Shantae: Clash of Arms
by IllusoryNomad
Summary: Following her latest defeat, the notorious Risky Boots hatches yet another dastardly scheme to annihilate Sequin Land as we know it. Only this time, she's managed to pilfer an extensive collection of military-grade weapons from another world! With the threat of Risky's conquest more perilous than ever, Half-Genie Hero Shantae and an unlikely ally must join forces to stop her!
1. Hard Contact

Sequin Land… an extraordinary country in a world that, for those unaware, held a storied reputation of possessing incredible levels magic and wonders that would be deemed unfeasible to those who had never experienced it first-hand. This particular country was one of many in a world where powerful, enigmatic humanoid creatures, called genies, once lived side by side with full-fledged human beings in undisputed harmony and tranquility; that is, until the mysterious disappearance of the genies many years ago... save for (at least) one heroic belly-dancing, hair-whipping, teenaged half-genie girl who appointed herself the guardian of a shabby, shambling, but modestly lively port town. Lost yet? Yeah, I thought so. More on this oddity later. For now, I, your nameless, faceless, yet-still-omniscient-and-unquestionably-beautiful narrator, shall regale you on the turbulent recent history of the mysterious Sequin Land. Take your bathroom breaks and finish your horrendously-unhealthy snacks now, reader, because you're about to be in for the long haul.

Sequin Land had been under the threat of destruction many times in the past; whether it be due to a deranged, egomaniacal pirate woman and her army of little black batmen trying to conquer the world one impoverished, defenseless city at a time… an ancient, legendary, deranged, egomaniacal magic-wielding ghost pirate man who inexplicably rose from the grave with the intent to enshroud the world in darkness… or the same deranged, egomaniacal pirate woman inexplicably finding a portal to an alternate dimension inhabited entirely by genies and planning to use some complicated, visually-unappealing technological device to corrupt the genies' magic, enslave them all, and dominate the world with their power turned evil… or something.

Yet somehow, every single attempt at global domination and/or ruination, whether by the deranged pirate woman or the deranged ghost pirate man, was thwarted by no more than a teenage girl with her hair and magic as her only weapons. Uh… clearly, there's a motif about evil pirates and magic here. The rest of this prologue makes zero sense. Bear with me. We've only scratched the surface.

Anyway, it was just mere days after the ferocious, tenacious, capricious… not to mention deranged, egomaniacal pirate woman Risky Boots suffered her latest, most embarrassing defeat at the hands of the same belly-dancing magic teenager that always thwarted her plans. Her scheme had been foiled yet again, the charred remains of her genius 'Tinkerbrain' device melting in a smoldering heap of magma after her hideout—also an ACTIVE VOLCANO, by the way—unexpectedly erupted following the supposed destruction of her machine and resulting expulsion from the Genie Realm. Risky was furious, her temper burning like the lava that was swallowing up the remains of her base and invention. Indomitable as she always was, she was hard at work barking orders at her Tinkerbats like a rabid dog to salvage what little they could of the Tinkerbrain and the scraps of resources from the base to load onto her ship, which had somehow been unscathed in the chaos.

 ** _To provide a closer perspective…_**

LOCATION: RISKY'S HIDEOUT (or, what's left of it), ?, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: AUGUST 30TH, [UNDISCLOSED]

TIME: 1637 HOURS

"MOVE IT, YOU LUBBERS!" Risky roared with thunderous intensity from atop her ship. "Gather everything you can! If even a nut or bolt from that device can be saved, you'd better learn how to swim through molten magma to get it! We may have lost this battle to that meddlesome little twerp, but we have FAR from lost the war!" Risky was determined to get her revenge on this loathsome little twerp… well, more than simply causing the girl in question to lose her magic for the majority of a game and then purposely giving it back by the end of it, inadvertently making her even STRONGER than she was before. Yes, that actually happened. As in, canonically. Anyway, she knew that if it weren't for that twerp and her bafflingly-preposterous strokes of luck, she'd have had the world eating out of her palm. She was SO close this time.

If she were able to stall the brat for just a few minutes longer… if her Tinkerbats were better prepared to handle her and her magic shenanigans… if ONLY she had better weapons to use and give her Tinkerbats than primitive flintlock pistols, cannons, scimitars… and the AWFULLY vulnerable P.O.O.P.T.O.O.T. (don't call it that)… she would have turned that wretched magic-wielding halfling super evil like she did to demonstrate the Tinkerbrain's power previously, corrupted the Genie Realm, bent it to her nefarious will, and dominated all of Sequin Land in a flash. Just as Risky was solemnly pondering her recent misadventure, a group of Tinkerbats equipped with propeller packs flew up to her and delivered important pieces of the machine to her.

"My word… The light and dark shards, the iron slab, and copper ore are still intact," Risky observed in wonder. "Is there anything else?" Another group of Tinkerbats boarded the ship with more important materials. The periwinkle-skinned maiden of madness eagerly leapt from the ship's mast and landed gracefully on the deck to inspect her soldiers' findings. She was astounded to discover that the rest of the materials used to build her sworn rival's scientist uncle's lazily-named Dynamo were still largely intact. Of course, the only thing she was missing was the power source… which was previously a zombified hamster running on a wheel; an incredibly flagrant design flaw in hindsight. Nonetheless, Risky grinned with diabolical glee. It appeared she was hatching another scheme already.

"Yes… Yes!" she exclaimed, pulling a blue roll of paper from seemingly nowhere and holding it high. "Good thing I made an extra copy of the blueprints for the Dynamo," she further exclaimed as she unrolled the blueprints and studied its contents, penning down plans as she went along. "Hmm… All I'd have to do to accommodate for the previous Tinkerbrain's weaknesses is make some slight readjustments to intensify the polarity of the energy outputs of the shards, reinforce the position of the copper ore… get a stronger, bigger, more durable magnet… and find a more reliable source of energy than a hideous undead rodent on a wheel… and VOILA!"

The self-proclaimed Queen of the Seven Seas had hit an unlikely scientific breakthrough. She would have her Tinkerbats rebuild the Dynamo bigger... stronger… better… She would reenter the Genie Realm with her army in tow, striking while the genies were still recovering from the devastation suffered by her last plot. Her domination of their world would be swift and merciless. And then… and THEN… she would use the new-and-improved Dynamo in conjunction with the corrupted genie magic to take over Sequin Land in one fell swoop! There would be nothing that obnoxious half-genie brat could do to stop it!

"HOOOOHOHOHOAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!" Risky triumphantly cackled before calling the rest of her Tinkerbat army back to the ship, almost immediately sailing off to an emergency bunker she set up a fair distance away. Risky always had a plan; even in the event of her defeat by her hated archnemesis. "It'll take us at least a fortnight to get the cannonball rolling on this one, but in due time, we'll be back with a much-deserved, long-overdue vengeance!"

 ** _A fortnight later…_**

LOCATION: MILITARY BASE, [ADDRESS UNKNOWN]

DATE: SEPTEMBER 13th, [UNDISCLOSED]

TIME: 1722 HOURS

In a far off, much different realm of existence, where genies were known as nothing but the stuff of folklore, magic nothing but simple smoke and mirrors and tawdry parlor tricks, and humans the sole dominant species of sentient being whose advances in technology were far beyond anything any individual could conceptualize, there existed a particular human whose life was... less than ideal for a human in his world. Why the sudden jump from Sequin Land to a seemingly-random alternate dimension? Trust me on this one, you're about to find out.

In a nutshell, this human, a young man, was a determined, ambitious individual who sought to make a difference in the world in which he resided. Despite his youth, however, he knew much turmoil and tribulation in his time, having joined the armed forces of his native land as soon as he was able in part to escape the socioeconomic pressures of his troubled life. Most important about this man, however, was his other reason for joining his nation's military. He bought into the idea of becoming a hero; an immortal figure that commanded undying recognition, respect, and adulation from all who knew of him. He wanted to prove himself as more than a simple street thug with a delusion of grandeur and a death wish. Joining his country's military was the only opportunity he had to make that 'delusion' a reality. Little did he know, his once-in-a-lifetime chance to prove himself as a hero would come much sooner and much more… extravagantly than he'd have ever reasonably expected.

 _ **Speaking of...**_

"Whoo…!" the yet-to-be-named man in question sighed as he finished an extensive independent training session. "At this rate, I feel unstoppable! There's no way any o' the C.O.'s or anybody on my unit will keep playin' me out when I finally get the chance t' show 'em what I'm capable of," he wistfully mused to himself in his characteristic urban vernacular as he exited the gym area of his military base's barracks. "Clockin' in this extra trainin' on my own should give me a huge boost, too..." he further commented, seeming to be ruminating about wanting to earn the respect of his peers and superiors. As he mentioned, he also appeared to have been working out alone. Nevertheless, the sudden, low *grrrrrrowwll* of his stomach quickly shifted his train of thought while momentarily breaking the ambient silence of the spacious gym. "Man, I'm starvin'..." he murmured, rubbing his abdomen as he peered across the gym to glimpse at an analog clock hanging above the exit doors. "Shoot, I lost track o' time, too. I hope the mess hall's still open. Last thing I need right now is yet another night without dinner... Better hurry there now," he further mentioned to himself as he got set to (hopefully) get a bite to eat.

Just as he made it across the barracks and grasped the knob of the door leading to the mess hall, the thunderous *BOOM!* of an explosion coursed through the air. A grenade in the distance, as far as he could tell. The man turned and gazed in wonder across the open, sun-bathed campus to notice strobe light-like flashing and smoke billowing from the armory. Knowing that anything going wrong in the barracks (especially the armory) likely meant huge trouble, the man immediately turned and, following his gut, began walking toward the compromised area. As he did so, he heard another distant *POP* of what sounded like a rifle being fired just once, in addition to the smoke growing a bit denser as it poured from the armory.

"That can't be good..." he acknowledged, increasingly concerned about the unusual phenomenon as he pressed on, breaking into a jog. "I hope that ain't somebody goofin' off in there again. Seriously, how hard is it t' just put a couple guns an' a few grenades where they belong without makin' a mess...? But then, all those flashin' lights don't look like anything any of our weapons could produce. That's too unusual t' ignore, an' now I'm worried we might be under attack or somethin'... I better hurry up an' see what's goin' on just t' make sure," the young man soliloquized as he increased his speed from a jog to a full-on sprint toward the armory. He certainly hoped it was simply some of his colleagues messing around or being careless, though the circumstances seemed to hint otherwise. Just to be prepared, the soldier grabbed his pistol from the holster on his belt and readied it as he swiftly dashed the compromised area with hardly another thought. If it was just a few peers messing around, then that would certainly be inconvenient, but hopefully not a cause for concern... well, aside from the harsh punishment the entire platoon would receive for their gross mishandling of such sensitive equipment. If it was some outsider, however, then whoever was running amok on military grounds, he was certain to make them answer for their transgressions. As he hurried toward the source of the disturbance, another subdued *BOOM* could be heard from inside, amplifying the soldier's premonition about the base suddenly coming under fire. Fearing the worst, the young man's instincts kicked in as he made his way to the armory.

Rather than wait or call for backup once he reached his destination, he forcefully kicked the already-unlocked door open with a *BANG* and pointed his firearm at the intruders. However, the valiant young soldier was as far from prepared has he could be to behold the utterly, undeniably bizarre and unusual sight that awaited him.

"What in the world...?" he murmured, taken aback by what greeted his wide-open eyes; a slender, curvy blue-skinned, purple-haired woman in seductive pirate getup, complete with an extravagant red and violet pirate hat bearing the classic jolly roger and some kind of skull-shaped bikini over top of a matching bra and pair of pants, wielding a stolen standard issue battle rifle. In addition to her was a series of little spiky people that looked like tiny human-bat hybrids raiding the armory for various weapons; rifles, grenades, pistols, rocket launchers, C-4 and other materials by the crate… No matter how strange the intruders, or how oddly attractive the intruders' apparent leader looked despite her unusual skin tone, they would not get away with this brazen assault on military grounds. "STOP RIGHT THERE!" the soldier bellowed, his voice echoing amidst the chaos that was the heist. "Leave the weapons an' find your way out o' here while you have the chance! If you don't, then I'll have no choice but t' stop you!" he commanded as the pirate woman and her minions stopped in their tracks.

"Oh, and what do we have here?" the pirate woman coolly acknowledged as she turned to face the man. "A hapless, misguided fool hoping to interfere with my plans?" Risky eyed the man up and down with intrigue, though she found herself mostly unimpressed. The man possessed a rich brown, milk chocolate-like skin tone. He was slim, yet muscular in bodily shape, as though he put himself through rigorous and intensive training over an extended period of time. However, he appeared to be very young; possibly no older than that half-genie brat Risky so despised. She further assessed to see that he was armed with nothing but the pistol he fervently pointed at her. The man had merely been wearing a black tank top, tan woodland camouflage-styled pants with a gun holster-equipped belt, and beige combat boots; nothing that would protect him in a situation like this. Given how young and underprepared he appeared, she could guess right away that this particular soldier was wet behind the ears and in over his head.

"This 'fool' could pop a cap in you at any given second! Don't push me!" the offended soldier remarked. "I'll warn you one more time before I start shootin': Drop the weapons an' leave! Now!" At that, Risky smirked with confidence and an extreme lack of concern for what this foolish boy would do.

"Listen here, kid, and listen good," Risky commanded as she turned her attention to the semi-automatic rifle she'd been holding. "My men and I have come from a land far away from here—presumably—and we came for a simple purpose; bolstering our might and mobilizing our forces to conquer Sequin Land. That is all you need to know," she added as she cocked the firearm and pointed it back at the military officer. "You'd be wise to keep your nose out of our business. If you value your life, then you will turn around, leave, and forget you saw anything here."

"Sequin Land…? What the…?" the soldier questioned, unaware of the country Risky spoke of. He was equally as confused at her referral to her black-skinned, red scarf and pants-adorning minions as 'men.' Nonetheless, she was threatening him with lethal force with a weapon that did not belong to her. "Are you crazy!? I don't know what kind o' Halloween party y'all think this is, but I ain't lettin' you take all these guns an' explosives! Drop 'em and go back where y'all came from!"

"Or what? You'll use that pathetic little pea-shooter to stop me AND all my Tinkerbats?" Risky contemptuously observed. The Mistress of Misery cackled again as she boldly approached the man, her crimson-red eyes glaring with malicious intent. "Feel free to throw your life away if you want, but I'd recommend that you turn tail and run away while you still have the chance. Otherwise, I'll have you sent on a one-way maiden voyage to the Pirate Master's Locker. You should learn to recognize an act of mercy when you're granted one, because I don't grant them often. I'd also prefer to keep this trip short and sweet, so don't force us to make a mess." The man was infuriated by her rancorous, arrogant attitude, but was more so confused by her bizarre terminology and her lack of awareness of just where she was. He would have lowered his gun to question this ashy woman's sanity were it not for the fact that they were stealing military-grade weapons by the crate, as well as the fact that one of these bandits had one of them pointed at him.

"...I thought you was crazy when I saw you, but that just proved it," the soldier incredulously retorted. "I don't know what a Tinkerbat is, I ain't got a CLUE what a 'Sequin Land' is, and I for ABSOLUTELY sure don't know what you think you're doin' in here thinkin' you're gonna rob my base. This game o' dress up an' pretend is over, lady," he continued, the tension rising as Risky's Tinkerbats surrounded him, also aiming various weapons at the soldier. The soldier, though just a tad intimidated due to his inexperience handling a situation as tense as an old-fashioned Western stand-off, kept his gun pointed squarely at Risky Boots.

"Your pathetic attempt at playing the hero is cute, really, but we don't have time to entertain you," Risky dismissed as she turned and motioned for some of her men to move some of the equipment toward a sight that utterly dumbfounded the man; a large blue, swirling whirlpool-like vortex that hovered a few yards away from where he and this delusional thief were standing. The area around it bent, contorted, and twisted as the massive ethereal construct crackled and sparked with such incredible energy that it spiked the entire armory's temperature enough to make it feel like the inside of a parked vehicle in the middle of a heat wave. It baffled him beyond belief to see such a ludicrous, outlandish, and scientifically impossible phenomenon happening before his very eyes, and he couldn't find the words necessary to even begin trying to figure it out.

"How...!?" he stammered, utterly dumbfounded by the very sight of the massive ethereal construct. His eyes remained wide as his jaw nearly hit the floor. "What... Is this...? Where did you...?"

"What you feast your feeble eyes on, my foolish, ignorant friend, is a product of my unrivaled and incomparable genius. Behold, my Tinker-Portal, new and improved," Risky boisterously bragged, though her aggressive stance had not faltered.

"Tinker... PORTAL!?" The young man echoed, directing his gaze back at Risky Boots as she shot him a smug, triumphant grin.

"That's right," she plainly confirmed. "The mere existence of this baby should be warning enough to you not to trifle with me. Curse the ill fate that crossed your path with mine, and do yourself the favor by backing off. If you do, I'll at least think about sparing you. However, if you want to keep pretending to be the authorities, then I'll have no issue putting a hopelessly naive little whelp like you in his rightful place."

"Put me in my rightful...? Do you know who you're dealin' with!?" the man argued, not taking kindly to her brazen insult as he grew steadily tenser and more confused about the absurdity of the scenario as it carried on.

"I don't care, but I'm sure you'll tell me anyway," Risky nonchalantly and dismissively replied. "Let's hear it, then."

"I'm part o' the Enforcement Services; a highly-revered, storied military faction, 'pirate' girl! One that you should know is NOT t' be played with! Nothin' about my background or my position here is 'pretend!' I have been trained specifically t' take down criminals like you! Whatever you hope t' gain out o' riskin' your life like this, I won't even bother tryin' t' understand. But, I can tell you right now that you ain't gonna keep playin' these stupid games an' hijackin' our weapons! I don't know who sent you here or where you're from, an' at this point, I don't care! Your little thievin' scheme ends here! Surrender now!" Risky merely smirked as she narrowed her unwavering glare.

"Trained to take down criminals like me, you say? Ha! What a cheesy line… I admire your resolve, boy, but you fail to impress me with your toothless threats. I can tell just by looking; you haven't seen even one minute of real combat," she deduced, much to the soldier's chagrin. "To shed a little light on the truly dangerous situation you've roped yourself into, I am a seasoned, thoroughly-hardened pirate captain who has seen more than her fair share of arduous, grueling conflicts the likes of which you couldn't even DREAM of. I am in command of one of the most powerful swashbuckling forces in all the land! I'll also have you know I earned my reputation as the Queen of the Seven Seas. Where I'm from, the mere mention of my name strikes fear into the hearts of all who are wise enough to know better than to get in my way. I have been through battle after battle in my years as the most fearsome pirate captain known to Sequin Land! Oh, and of all the things I have learned in my time on the battlefield, a most useful skill I have is knowing when my enemy is bluffing."

"...What in the...?" The young man muttered in total discombobulation, thrown way off by his adversary's monologue.

"You say you're 'trained,' but I have yet to see anything of you that would indicate that. I mean seriously, what moron charges headfirst into a combat situation with nothing but a handgun and the clothes on his back? As if I needed to mention that..."

"Hmph. The same could be said o' you, with that tacky skull bikini you call a pirate costume instead of any real protection for a heist you got busted on. You missed the cosplay convention by a long shot. Don't even get me started on these gangly weirdos you call your accomplices," he insulted, causing Risky to shoot him a menacing glare that signified her desire to shut him up the hard way. However, she stayed her hand and confidently chuckled as she brushed his ill-advised joke aside.

"Oh, so you think you're funny. That's adorable, but it does nothing to disprove my point about your training being horribly inadequate. Actually, let me tell you something, you impudent scalawag: No matter how much you try to posture it, training is mere child's play in the face of real warfare. You're still wet behind the ears at the end of it all. At best, you're nothing more than a yapping pup staring down a pack of full-grown, war-hungry wolves. Like I mentioned before, you'd merely be wasting your life trying to interfere with me. You don't want to know what I can do if you keep this little facade up, boy."

"You are really off your rocker, huh?" the soldier contemptuously remarked, not combating her point. "Whoever you are, you'd do best t' watch what you say, an' who you say it to. You don't know the things I've seen, so don't act all high-an'-mighty about who experienced what. I will still do what I must t' stop you. I don't really buy your 'Pirate Queen' story, an' I'm not interested in figurin' out your real intentions at this point. The fact is, you are NOT gonna toss one more bullet from a gun into... into whatever that portal thing is," he sternly responded, stepping close to Risky with his gun still drawn while still trying to figure out if he was dreaming or if this was really happening. "I... I don't have the slightest clue o' how you managed t' bring yourself here from whatever area o' the world your're from, but let me make myself clear: Make another move that ain't you givin' my weapons back an' surrenderin' yourself, an' I'll fill you with so many holes, you'd look like a soakin' wet dish sponge."

"It's your funeral, kid. Better make your next move count in that case, because you're as good as shark bait once I'm through with you," Risky warned, standing right up to the young man as she dared him to attack. Comparatively, the man towered over the Pirate Queen by close to a foot. The height difference did nothing to lower the intensity of the stare-down the two warriors were engaged in, however. The soldier pointed the gun squarely at Risky Boots' skull-shaped breastplate. In the same enmity-riddled vein, Risky aimed the assault rifle at the man's chest. The air grew thick as both combatants non-verbally dared each other to make a move, though the soldier was contemplating his next move carefully.

The soldier was indeed trained to handle a scenario where someone was pointing a weapon at him at point-blank range. He would quickly grab her gun by the barrel and direct it away as he sheathed his own weapon. He would tactically throw his adversary to the ground and either disarm her or unload the magazine of the rifle in one fell swoop. He would gain the upper hand and checkmate her with his pistol. His intention was not to kill Risky, but merely to subdue her so she would concede. It was against his code of honor to kill someone when there was a viable opportunity to apprehend and detain them alive. Take her down and none of her men would dare risking her life in a feeble attempt at interfering, should they be wise and loyal enough to her. At least, so far as he hoped. Of course, he'd have to act quickly or her men would take him down before he had another thought. After what felt like an eternity, the soldier steeled his resolve and made his move, commencing a most unusual battle.

 ** _RISKY BOOTS: PERNICIOUS, POUNCING PORTAL PLUNDERER!_**

He grabbed the barrel of Risky's rifle and directed it away from him. However, as he went to sheathe his pistol, he fumbled and dropped it. Attempting to make up for the mistake, he attempted to throw Risky to the ground by slipping one leg behind hers and forcing her backward with a push to her chest, but she proved much sturdier than she looked. Realizing this, he attempted to unload the clip, but was met with a swift fist to his chin that threw him back before he could contemplate his next move. He stumbled away a few paces, dazed at the speed and power of the punch.

"HOOOHAHAHAHAHAH!" Risky cackled in triumph as she aimed the assault rifle at the now-unarmed soldier. "That was gutsy, though uncoordinated and sloppy. The old 'disarm-and-subdue' maneuver. Such a pathetic way to try and bring me down. You're definitely a rookie, alright. I had you cornered, outnumbered, and outgunned from the start. Now you're out of options after your first move. What'll you do now?" the gun-toting pirate mistress dared. The soldier was indeed in a tough spot. His pistol was on the ground nearby, Risky was aiming a fully-loaded combat rifle at him, and her Tinkerbats were still hauling weapons into the portal. It seemed he failed already before he even started on this mission.

"You won't get away with this…!" the soldier spat as he approached her, the fire in his eyes burning with rage. Risky aimed upward and fired a warning shot into the air, startling the man into place. The recoil from the assault rifle's blast forced Risky Boots to take a step backward.

"Ah-ah-ah~," Risky taunted, though she seemed surprised by the powerful kickback of the rifle. "Take one more step and this thing will have you leaking like a rusty pipe. I must admit, I admire your courage, though you could use a LOT of discipline. So I'll give you three options. One: Join my pirate crew and help train me and my Tinkerbats on how to use these weapons. Two: Stay where you are and leave us to accomplish our mission. Or Three, which I have no qualms with: You make one more idiotic move and I blow you away with this gun. We continue doing what we came here to do, and your demise would be about as meaningful as the dirt on my boot. What'll it be?"

The soldier was stuck. He certainly read in Risky's menacing glare that she meant every word of her ultimatum. He knew better than to test her willingness to use that gun. However, he had no desire to desert the only thing in his world that gave his life meaning; especially not like this. Even then, the soldier thought about ways to expertly handle a situation like this. He analyzed his surroundings. His gun was literally a footstep away. Risky was watching his every move, but was slowly backing up as she momentarily took notice of the Tinkerbats having finished up cleaning out the armory.

Maybe… just maybe if he waited for her to let her guard down, he could apprehend her and force her to bring the weapons back. He considered maybe feigning surrender, diving for his gun, doing a roll, and with a stroke of INCREDIBLE luck, taking Risky down with a well-placed shot. Of course, a Tinkerbat strolled along and swiped the soldier's gun before he could make a move for it, limiting his options further. With a heavy sigh, he eventually responded.

"...Two…" he uttered in feigned hopelessness. Risky's expression changed to one of slight disappointment.

"Hmph. The coward's way it is, then," she responded in contempt as she lowered her weapon and backed up as her Tinkerbats began jumping into the portal back to their native world. "All that masculine bravado you displayed, and in as little as a couple seconds, you're beaten into submission after a clumsy mistake. Seems like you men are all the same, no matter what world or dimension you're from. Truly pathetic."

"Why you... Smart-mouthed...!" the man grumbled, irrevocably irritated with this woman's disreputable sentiments toward him. Nevertheless, he remained stationary as he watched her every move.

"Y'know, I was at least hoping you'd try to make this fun by attempting to stop me again. I suppose it can't be helped, however. I DO have that effect on people. In any case, farewell. Hope your friends and your higher-ups don't mind. I'm certain you'll do a good job explaining the missing equipment before you lose your job," the mischievous swashbuckling maiden shrugged with a derisive chuckle as she turned to see the last of her Tinkerbats jumping into the portal. With one final triumphant glance over her shoulder, Risky threw her rifle into the portal; exactly the opportunity the soldier was looking for. Just as she was about to jump in herself…

"I ain't finished with you yet! RRAAAAAAAAHH!" The soldier charged toward the pirate mistress in a mad dash equivalent to an enraged cheetah. Alarmed, Risky attempted to defend herself, but he proved too fast. He tackled her into the portal, sending both of them barreling through to the other side.

With an instantaneous, crackling *WHOOSH*, the two opposing fighters found themselves flung through the ethereal vortex and entangled in a hand-to-hand scuffle on the cold, gravelly floor of Risky's hideout. The hideout happened to be a shallow, damp, dimly-lit cave whose walls were decorated with a series of wooden torches burning to provide a source of illumination in the absence of sun rays. Any sign of sunlight was only visible through the cave's entrance near a wide, effervescent body of water whose waves crashed vigorously against the pirate ship idly bobbing in it.

Paying little heed to his surroundings in the heat of the moment, the soldier attempted to hold Risky down as he found himself on top of her, but Risky again proved much stronger and more resourceful than she looked. She punched, kicked, and thrashed to free herself until she got the idea to scrunch up a mound of dirt and fling it in her opponent's face.

"Agh! Cheap, triflin' move…!" the unprepared serviceman complained as he let go of Risky to wipe the grainy mud from his eyes, allowing the conniving pirate captain to escape, kicking him away and springing to her feet to catch her breath. In that time, the blinded young man rubbed the gravel from his eyes with his shirt to regain his vision. Risky, thoroughly infuriated by the soldier's interference with her plans, drew her scimitar and pointed it directly at her adversary, wrathfully growling as though she were going to eat him alive.

"I hope you're proud of yourself, because now you've made me mad!" Risky threatened as she charged forward and slashed at the soldier, who jumped back to dodge her attack. Risky relentlessly swiped and swung at her opponent, glaring hot, seething rage at him the entire time. How dare this wretched, despicable little ruffian attack her so brazenly and make such a foolish attempt at stopping her from getting what she wanted?

She would surely make him wish he'd never thought to get in her way. All he needed to do was slip up once and it would've been over… Of course, this projected slip-up took longer than expected to make itself apparent. Like, a LOT longer. Much longer than one would think it'd take for someone to cut someone else with a sword. "Stay still and take your punishment!" Risky roared as she quickly grew frustrated with repeatedly missing her opponent with her sword.

Realizing that trying to hack at him until he tired out proved fruitless, she changed tactics by jumping back, spinning toward the soldier, and performing a powerful crouching, pivoting swing aimed at his ankles to catch him off-guard. She missed again as he hopped upward, though she planned for this. She'd hoped to force him into an inescapable disadvantage and then take full advantage of it. However, her next move, a second, standing pivot swing aimed at his neck, was blocked, as her enemy caught her by the wrist before the blade made any contact.

"Gotcha!" the soldier proclaimed, quickly pulling Risky forward by her arm with his right hand and delivering a powerful left elbow to the pirate mistress's ribs, winding her as she hunched over in a mix of sudden breathlessness and pain. The soldier followed up with a swift uppercut to Risky's chin with the same arm, while he grabbed her scimitar with his right hand. The soldier finished his counterattack with a heavy thrust kick to Risky's side, forcing her to let go of the sword as she stumbled a few steps back before falling backward onto the frigid, wet cavern floor. The soldier callously tossed the sword away and into the flowing river near her ship. With a distant splash, the pirate mistress's trusty blade was swallowed up in the outgoing ocean current, certifying that she wouldn't be tempted to pick it back up. "Still think I'm just a rookie now, lady?"

"Don't get cocky," Risky shot back as she brought herself back to her feet, stretching and brushing herself off. "You merely surprised me, nothing more. You have my attention now, nevertheless. That was an impressive move," she praised, though it was laced with contempt. "No one's ever disarmed me quite like that before."

"I don't need compliments from you. I know my own abilities, an' I know you're gonna bring my weapons back where they belong," he vehemently deflected her commendation. Risky smirked in a mix of intrigue and an intense desire to tear this arrogant little snot to pieces.

"Still deluding yourself into thinking you can stop me? You're a riot, kid," she sarcastically spat, snickering at the thought. "Only thing I'm gonna do right now is make you regret ever crossing paths with me!" she proclaimed as she rushed toward him barehanded, prompting the soldier to brace himself as Risky let loose a flurry of quick, coordinated punches. The military officer, alarmed by the speed and power of her strikes, backed up to create some distance, but Risky burned with determination to make him suffer. She immediately closed the gap and landed a few sporadic strikes to his face and abdomen, disorienting him slightly as her relentless assault continued. Understanding at this point that stepping back to distance himself was not going to be an option, the soldier adapted.

He next attempted to grapple with the unexpectedly-strong violet-haired woman and wrestle her to the ground, but it proved incredibly difficult. He attempted a judo hip throw, but was countered by her rolling over his hip and kneeing him in his gut after landing on her feet. She then threw a swift left hook, which he caught in an attempt at another calculated throw. As he was moving into position, Risky kicked him in his knee, causing him to shout in pain as he stumbled back, his knee almost buckling under the sudden pressure. Risky followed up with a devastating right cross that sent the man careening to the cold, hard ground. Before he could get up, Risky stomped on his chest with the force of a wrecking ball, grabbed him by the collar of his tank top, and lifted him up to strike him again. The Pirate Queen's fist rammed into the man's jaw, causing him to grunt with excruciating agony. She attempted another punch, but he caught her fist with one hand, and yanked her forward for a headbutt.

"OW!" Risky shouted pain as her forehead collided with the soldier's like two trains in a high-speed, head-on crash. Stunned, Risky stumbled back, holding her head and trying to shake off the pain. The valiant serviceman took this opportunity to get up and deliver a swift, yet devastating right uppercut to her abdomen that caused her to cough up all the air in her lungs upon the thunderous *THUMP* that emphasized the impact. He finished with a hip throw as he spun around, hooked his arm around her midsection as she recoiled from the blow to her stomach, jutted his hip out, and rolled her over. The interstellar thief found herself colliding hard with the wet earthen floor, emphasized by the voluminous *THUD* that echoed around the base upon her impact. The man, while feeling incredibly uncomfortable performing such violent techniques on a female opponent, acknowledged that Risky Boots was not to be taken lightly. Risky shook off her disorientation, also taking off her hat to let her long, silky indigo locks fall free around her face as she took a few breaths.

"We don't have t' keep doin' this," the soldier began, his discomfort showing. "Jus' give up an' we can-!"

"Save it for the seagulls, you insolent little punk!" Risky roared back, wanting to hear nothing of her opponent's pleas for a peaceful end to this confrontation. "You caught me off-guard with that sneaky headbutt, but you've far from won this fight. Better prepare yourself, rookie, because I'm about to show you what happens when you cross the Queen of the Seven Seas! And since you're so fond of close-quarters combat, we'll play it your way," she threatened, cracking her knuckles and neck as she readied herself.

She surveyed her surroundings to see her loyal subordinates armed with scimitars and ready to intervene as they idly spectated the barbaric affray. "Men, do NOT interfere! I'll handle this intruder myself. If anyone so much as sneezes in a way that makes me think you might step in, it's off to Davy Jones' locker with ya!" she warned before turning her attention back to the ironically-accused intruder. "Been awhile since my last barehanded brawl. That other brat could never have handled me so well as you've been doing when it comes down to physical strength and combat skills, so let's see how you fare when I get serious." The soldier, though determined to stop Risky at all costs, became curious as to whom his opponent was referring.

"…What 'other brat' are you talkin' about?" he questioned, understandably confused.

"Hmph. Not that you'll get the chance to meet her, but the person I refer to is this obnoxious, goody-two-shoes, belly-dancing half-breed little twerp who just doesn't know how to keep her nose out of my business. Just like you, she thinks she can 'save the world' by delaying my inevitable conquest of all the land, sea, and air. Worst part is that she's always prattling on about the power of 'love' and 'magic' and 'friendship' despite ALL of her victories being nothing but flukes powered by a whole heaping TON of dumb, blind, Hail Mary-tier luck. She's been a thorn in my rear for as long as I can remember, ruining all my plans and constantly destroying all my inventions…! Ugh, just THINKING about that hair-whipping little wretch makes me want to tear someone's eyeballs out!" Risky ranted, driving herself up a wall thinking about her archenemy as she clawed at her face and stomped on the ground in a fit of reminiscent rage.

"Huh…" the befuddled young man cocked an eyebrow, wondering who this mysterious heroine was and how she managed to defeat Risky Boots enough times to get her to hate her this much. Nonetheless, she wasn't here; he was. He brushed the thought aside and refocused his attention as he shook his head. "Forget I asked. Just bring my weapons back an' you won't need t' worry about havin' another thorn in your behind."

"No deal," Risky quickly denied, refocusing herself. "These weapons aren't going anywhere but in the hands of me and my loyal soldiers. We've seen what some of them are capable of, and we're not letting such precious resources go to waste after I worked my Tinkerbats so hard to get them. If anything, you should be more worried about what I'm gonna do to you for all the trouble you caused," she threatened with a menacing sneer. "I could use some stress relief and entertainment, and beating up on you has been nothing short of a blast, as much as it pains me to admit. So, let's continue where we left off, shall we?" she suggested with a threatening grin, putting her dukes up and preparing herself for round two.

"Darn it…!" The soldier cursed, unwilling to continue, but equally cognizant that he had no choice but to fight. "If that's how it's gotta be, then so be it. What happens next is on you." With that, Risky dashed forward, ducked and slid toward the serviceman's feet to deliver a heavy low kick. The man jumped backward to dodge, but found that Risky was not only stronger, but also quicker than she let on. She immediately climbed to her feet and threw a vicious left hook toward the soldier's ribs. He quickly blocked by raising his elbow to where she attempted to knock the wind out of him and followed up by throwing his own left hook as hard as he could.

It connected with explosive force, the echo of the impact bouncing off the walls of the cave. Though Risky felt the impact as it caused her to jerk her head in the direction of the punch, she did not stumble back. After a tense moment of absorbing the shock of the impact, she instead grinned menacingly at him as she gingerly recovered from the powerful haymaker.

"So you've been holding back until now, huh?" she rhetorically remarked, that intimidating grin never fading, totally flabbergasting the serviceman.

"H-How…?"

"That hook had a heck of a lot of power behind it. I know strength when I feel it. You could've very well knocked me out if I wasn't prepared," she observed before spitting onto the ground away from herself and her opponent. "Still, you'll regret not taking me seriously from the start, you worm. Your day just got a whole lot worse…!" she threatened again, her grin turning into a nightmare-inducing glower, her blood-red eyes fixed solely on the soldier.

"Shoot, what will it take with this woman?" the serviceman mumbled to himself as the two clashed again in a vicious game of blow trading as the two hammered into each other with an incredibly rapid rush of heavy, rage-riddled punches that they mostly found themselves blocking or dodging completely. Neither combatant could find a definitive advantage over the other as their collective fortitude threatened to envelop the whole base in violent chaos.

Seeing her resilience, the soldier became more determined to take her down as he attempted an uppercut to her chin. Risky dodged it, leaving him open as she countered with a vicious hook to his gut, sending him reeling back as he doubled over in a mix of total astonishment and unbearable pain. Risky wasn't done, however, as she followed up with an unforgiving axe-handle to his chin, knocking him back a few steps as he stumbled to avoid falling over. Though shaken, the soldier regained his senses and countered Risky's following thrust kick by catching her leg. He swept the pirate mistress off her feet by clipping her free foot with his opposing heel. As she went down, he clasped her feet in his arms, flipped her over, and attempted to perform a Boston Crab submission hold on her. Risky's most recent meeting with the ground was rough, but far from enough to disorient her.

With a powerful hip motion, she ripped one of her feet from the soldier's grasp and slammed her heel directly into a most… unsavory spot for a male to find anyone's foot slammed. The soldier shouted in insufferable, pulsing despair as he released his grasp on Risky's other foot immediately and fell to one knee as she rolled away and stood, catching her breath again.

"Aw, did I hit a weak spot?" Risky asked in a mocking tone, laughing as she apparently knew exactly what she did to get out of such a pressuring situation. "Maybe next time, don't try any funny moves that leave you that wide open." The soldier, enraged as he was disgusted with Risky's dirty move, gingerly stood, breathing heavy with fatigue and pain.

"Oh, that's it…! I've had enough!" the soldier growled, incensed at Risky for her dishonorable show of hubris and indifference. Ignoring the thresholds of debilitating abdominal pain resulting from Risky's disgraceful kick, the soldier rushed and grappled with her, locking arms with her as his rage boosted his determination to win.

"What's your next move, big man?" the unscrupulous woman taunted with a sinister grin, knowing that her opponent was losing steam fast. "Must be a real hit to your ego losing to a beautiful woman like me, huh?"

"Nice try, but I don't judge my opponent's ability on gender like some child," he shot back, deflecting her snide remark as they continued their show of physical strength. "Can't say it's been a comfortable experience havin' t' go toe-to-toe with a woman, no matter how I slice it, though. I'll admit that. Regardless, you're far tougher an' more dangerous than I thought you'd be. You're certainly somethin' else, if I gotta say it."

"You're just realizing this now, kid?" Risky asked with a confident smirk, basking in the fact that he was stating the obvious. "You're slow on the draw, but at least you're not blind, I suppose."

"Hmph. You're way better at this than I gave you credit for, that's for sure. I guess that almost makes up for you an' your group bein' a bunch o' crazy pirate cosplayers."

"Crazy, boy?" Risky remarked with a sneer. "Oh, you haven't seen 'crazy' yet...!" she menacingly warned him, taking his comment as a most personal insult that would motivate her to bury him alive. "You should probably also get the hint that we're not playing pretend. Your life is in serious danger because of your astonishing idiocy, and my crew and I will see to it that the hard-knock lesson you learn today sticks... PERMANENTLY!"

"...I guess I should get the hint then, all things considered," he reluctantly agreed, the very thought of his life being in jeopardy as a result of his entanglement with this strange, savage blue woman worrying him more than he cared to acknowledge. It also didn't help his worries to acknowledge that he did just jump through what was previously described as a portal to another world. Too many mind-boggling circumstances to conceptualize, without a shadow of a doubt. Nevertheless, he pressed on with engaging his enemy in battle. "Regardless, you're too much of a danger t' be left t' your devices... or in this case, MY devices. For that alone, I have t' make it a point t' take you out now…!"

"Flattery gets you everywhere but out of this situation, sweetie," Risky retorted, keeping up with her condescending tone. "I appreciate the offer, though."

"What? That wasn't-!" he tried to reply before being interrupted, evidently being thrown off by Risky's salacious comment.

"I hate to break it to ya, kid, but while you've got guts and some skill, you're just too young and inexperienced to handle me at my best. We've barely started and already, you're too ragged and tired to go the distance with me. I can tell," she remarked, hinting to him that she hadn't been trying nearly as hard as her opponent, yet still had the upper hand. "How pathetic… You've certainly got potential, but you'll have to try a lot harder to impress me," she quipped further, infuriating him as he refused to give in.

"Then try harder, I shall!" The still-nameless young man accepted Risky's challenge. However, just as he was about to make his next move, a sudden *BOOM* crackled throughout the cave, drawing both combatants' attention toward the portal, though they kept their arms locked onto each other. The swirling blue vortex had wavered and fizzled until it dissipated like water vapors in mere seconds. The machine that powered the portal was a rather clunky-looking amalgamation of seemingly-random wooden, metal, and glass components with two crystals loaded into bulbs in its top, hooked up to what looked like a gigantic, gleaming onyx-colored electric generator the size of an 18-wheeler, fixed with a series of flashing blue and red lights. The onyx generator had evidently malfunctioned, causing it to blow. "No…!" the young man muttered in frustration, his heart sinking like an anchor as he realized exactly what the portal's disappearance meant for him.

"My Tinker-Portal!" Risky shouted, her anger just as prevalent. "You buffoons forgot to turn it off before it overheated! Now we don't have a way back to that other world we just discovered!" she further yelled, though the gravity of her statement weighed at least ten times heavier on the nameless soldier she'd been fighting than it did on her.

"I'm stuck here!? No, that can't be...! No, no, no...!" The distraught serviceman muttered, hit hard with the sudden realization that he was separated from his home with no discernible way of going back.

"Hmph. Welcome to Sequin Land, I guess," Risky callously remarked, not caring in the slightest about the fact that her opponent was suddenly stranded in a world he had no intention of entering. Risky's comment only served to completely infuriate him.

"This is all YOUR FAULT!" he roared, his temper having long been lost as he suddenly pulled Risky toward him and wrapped his arm around her neck, squeezing his opponent close. He wrapped his legs around her torso and fell back toward the ground, attempting another submission hold on her. This time, he aimed to squeeze the air out of his opponent with the asphyxiating pressure of an anaconda on her ribs and around her neck until she either passed out or gave in. That portal's disappearance meant he was as good as stranded. That knowledge infuriated the man as he made his last-ditch effort to subdue his opponent. "You're gonna find a way t' fix this! Even if I have t' make you! I'm done messin' around with you, pirate girl! Give up now an' send me AND my guns back!" Risky, despite being in a very tight spot, made a conscious effort to control the situation.

"How pitiful… Chokeholds won't… get you… any closer to victory…!" Risky managed to utter through labored breaths as she struggled to free herself. Though the serviceman's grip was strong and his resolve unrelenting, the buccaneer's brazen bravado shined through. After a few seconds, Risky found enough room to begin punching the soldier to free herself. She pounded her fist into his side repeatedly, each blow resonating with the force of a sledgehammer. The unnamed young man, his fatigue from the arduous battle having set in, found it increasingly difficult to keep his hold in place.

"Ahagh…!" The injured officer grunted as he was forced to let go to catch his breath. Her punches did an extensive number on him as she disrupted his breathing. Risky recovered from the hold, though she herself was frazzled, sweaty, and breathing heavily.

"Fool… I've had casual hugs that were tighter than that!" Risky mocked as she stood and adjusted her hair, now frizzy with perspiration and the heat of battle. One could potentially ask, however, who in their right mind would ever in their life hug Risky Boots without fear of her ripping their spine out if she deemed it appropriate, but... I digress.

"How… how is this happenin'…?" The soldier quietly lamented as he attempted to get up despite his trouble with catching his breath. As he climbed onto one knee, Risky delivered a ferocious kick to his chest, knocking him on his back as he writhed in agony. Risky followed up with another stomp on his ribs where she'd previously punched him, causing him to scream in horrible pain. To top it off, the malevolent pirate mistress threw one final heavy punch to his face to subdue him. Though unwilling to give in, the soldier had lost. He lay on the ground thoroughly beaten, ragged, fatigued, and disoriented, Risky triumphantly standing over him with one foot on his chest.

"Whoo…! Haven't had… that much fun in a while…" Risky remarked as she fully regained her composure. "You actually managed to make me break a sweat… A shame that you chose so poorly as to not join me. You could've at least been my new punching bag. That said, my offer still stands, now that the stakes have been raised on your end. I'll need someone to teach me and my men the ins and outs of our new equipment and there's no doubt you know at least a tiny bit about how they work. I'm not usually one for magnanimous offers, but this is a special case. It's your lucky day. So, what'll it be, stranger?"

"Shoot…!" The defeated soldier spat in disappointment in himself as he lay beaten on the ground, unable to do much else to defend himself. "I'd rather die," he answered, ever defiant of his circumstances.

"That can be arranged," Risky indignantly retorted, being none too fond of her captive's rejection. "I have no further use for you if you won't serve me," Risky seemingly bemoaned as she looked toward the device connected to a circular structure that led her into the soldier's realm. "It also seems you won't be going anywhere near home anytime soon." The Pirate Queen took note of the new-and-improved Dynamo smoking heavily as the Tinkerbats that weren't watching the fight were frantically trying to put out a fire that had done significant damage to the machine. The portal conjured up by the device had vanished, leaving an empty statue-like circle and stranding the soldier in a world entirely unknown to him. "Looks like you're stuck here with nowhere to go."

"How did you even…!?"

"…manage to conjure up a portal to your world?" Risky guessed as she turned her attention back to him, though she never took her foot off of her captive. "Not that you would have any idea what I was saying, but… not even I have a concise answer for that. My original plan was to invade the Genie Realm while they were still recovering from my last invasion attempt. I may have made a miscalculation in energy output for this machine here. I also think the replacement of energy source from that disgusting little undead rodent to the hypersonic propulsion generator I stole from Ammo Baron's two airheaded cronies may have skewed the coordinates by a long shot. Doesn't help that I couldn't find any more Genie Crystals, either… It also might have something to do with the location of the portal." Risky examined the machine to see that the energy source had indeed overheated and combusted. By the time her men could put out the fire, the component was shot and in need of serious repairs.

"D-darn it…!"

"Oh well… That mistake was clearly worth it," she proudly exclaimed, marveling at her extensive new collection of military weaponry as she took her foot off of the soldier and signaled for her Tinkerbats to tie him up. "I now have access to a much more advanced, more destructive arsenal of weapons than even those bird-brained Barons could dream of! These babies will make taking over Sequin Land a cakewalk! Of course, I still need to figure out what to do with you…" the triumphant blue-skinned leader pondered. "Since you refuse to join or assist me, I think I'll just dump you somewhere no one would find you. Much as I'd like to keep or dispose of you here, it'd be too much of a hassle. Plus, I'm not in need of any interdimensional pets. Hope you like deserts full of ravenous, man-eating monsters…" Risky grinned with evil intent, though nothing else was going on. Pretty soon after Risky's threatening statement, the base fell awkwardly silent.

"Wha…?" the soldier tried to ask what she meant. Risky, ever the hater of awkward silences and even more so of her Tinkerbats not getting a clue that was so OBVIOUSLY given to them, became livid.

"D'oh, THAT'S YOUR CUE, YOU MORONS!" Risky bellowed in capricious frustration, scaring all her men into attention. "SET SAIL FOR TASSEL TOWN AND DISPOSE OF HIM!"

"Tassel…?" the disoriented soldier attempted to question, but Risky began cackling like a witch again as her Tinkerbats hurriedly lifted him and carried him onto the ship and set sail into the setting sun. The Tinkerbats carelessly tossed him into the cargo hold and left him there. The still-nameless soldier, though beaten and captured, still had a desire to survive this bizarre encounter. It also helped that the creatures didn't tie him up to the point that the rope prevented him from moving his arms. They'd also neglected to tie his legs. Surveying the dimly-lit, empty cargo hold, he soon caught a glimpse of a weapon—a sword—lying unattended on the other end. He slowly climbed to his feet, staggering over to the weapon, managing to grab it by dropping to his knees to pick it up, as his hands were tied together at the wrists while the upper portions of his arms were tied to his torso.

"That crazy pirate woman thinks she can jus' beat me down an' throw me away like trash? She got another think comin'…" Thinking quickly, the intuitive fledgling soldier began sawing at the thick, sturdy strands of rope enveloping his torso. He had no idea where they planned on dropping him off or what they planned to do with him once the destination was reached, but he was sure not to go without a fight.

 ** _Hours later…_**

LOCATION: TASSEL TOWER, TASSEL TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 13TH, [UNDISCLOSED]

TIME: 2011 HOURS

Deep within the abandoned sandy wasteland that was Tassel Town stood a lone, large tower whose height was unrivaled by any other structure this side of Sequin Land. Rumor had it that one who knew their way around the plethora of secret passageways of the tower would be handsomely rewarded with treasures galore. Many have tried to traverse to this tumultuous region to search for the fabled treasures it beheld, but very few people were capable. One such person, a genie-human hybrid girl with the ability to transform into a variety of animals—amongst other magical feats—was on her way back for her umpteenth trip to the tower to collect on the mysteriously-replenishing treasures.

"Man, I really should stop spending so much money on junk food, Spider Web Island Man comics, and hair-care products…" the young, red-garbed, purple-haired girl lamented as she entered the tower. "I totally overdid it and now I'm late on the rent. Being Guardian Genie sure is a tough job to maintain when you're not even being paid on a normal schedule for it. It can't be helped, though. This hair of mine is my greatest asset for defending Scuttle Town from the forces of evil," the young adventurer murmured to herself as she began belly dancing, stretching her arms out as she swung her hips with a disarming close-eyed smile, the temple being enveloped with an odd, yet catchy drum beat. Within an instant…

"Traaaaansform!" this enigmatic maiden announced as she changed from human to a small purple monkey. The now-simian young lady deftly climbed the tower's walls with unparalleled coordination and precision. The young treasure hunter transformed back into her humanoid form for brief stints to smash vases full of colorful gems before changing back into a monkey to scale the walls of the tower to search for more valuables to collect. She gracefully danced through the dangers of the perilous dungeon, transforming into various animals such as an elephant, spider, and harpy to quickly dispose of the myriads of red cyclopean snakes and armored black ravens that dropped green spike-launching slime creatures, as well as avoiding buzz saw traps floating along some of the chain links hanging down from the ceilings of the higher floors of the tower. The young lady was hard at work earning this month's rent when she heard shouting and thumping noises come from the floor directly above as she exited a treasure room.

"Huh, that's strange… I'm usually the only one who comes here…" the half-genie pondered. "The voice doesn't sound at all like that archaeologist that got me sick, either… I wonder who else is here." As she continued to wonder, she witnessed a small black, yellow-eyed creature garbed in red fall to its explosive demise, plummeting past her at top speed. "A Tinkerbat? That isn't a good sign..." With that observation, the girl jumped and grabbed hold of the dangling chain links and shimmied her way to the next floor. She used her elephant transformation to bust through a dragon-head statue to reveal a secret room, but what she saw shocked and confused her as she changed back. A tall, chocolate-skinned man with a jet-black buzzcut garbed in clothes entirely unfamiliar with anyone else she'd ever laid eyes on, wielding the tattered remains of a rope fending off a gang of Tinkerbats.

He appeared to be struggling and in severe pain as he lashed the rope at one of Risky's nefarious minions, sending it flying off before it exploded somewhere no one could see it. He whipped again and again, sending Tinkerbats to their doom one by one, but his fatigue and physical agony were evident. His clothes were matted with dirt and sweat. He was being backed into a corner as he was surrounded by the rest of the squad, each of them threatening him with scimitars. He mustered what little strength he had left to whip at another Tinkerbat, but had lost his coordination and fell to the ground. He was pressured to crawl backward into the corner of the room, breathless and desperate as he contemplated his fate.

"Oh, no… He looks like he's in bad shape," the worried girl observed. "Don't worry, mister! I'll save you!" she called out to the man, who'd been too busy trying to stay alive to notice her. Nonetheless, the magical young woman performed yet another belly dance number and struck a pose. "OBLITERATE!" she announced. Instantly, spontaneous explosions rang out all over the room, disposing of all the Tinkerbats in it while leaving the injured young man safe from further harm. In the aftermath, the practical guardian angel rushed to the man's aid. She knelt beside him and inspected him for injuries. "Are you okay?"

"I… I could be better..." the man breathlessly began, his eyes still shut as he regained his senses. "At least I ain't dead…" he continued as he brought his gaze to meet hers. He was immediately taken aback by his savior's appearance. She was gorgeous, to say the least. She was a young, petite, yet curvy woman with mocha-colored skin, luscious ocean blue eyes, pointed ears, and an absurdly long, flowing curtain of lavender hair neatly tied up in a lush, silky ponytail. Her outfit consisted of what appeared to be a scarlet red two-piece, midriff-baring belly dance costume, replete with gold jewelry adorned to her wrists, ears, hair, and forehead. He'd have been more enamored with her had it not been for the fact that he was almost made into a wall decoration by that pirate woman's soldiers.

"Good thing I got here in time. Come on, let's get you out of here," the soldier's rescuer suggested as she pulled out a silver whistle and blew. In an instant, a large, winged shadow materialized. It was too dim in the dungeon room for the man to make an image out, but he was more concerned about where this young lady was taking him. She seemed to harbor no ill intentions, however. She did just save him from certain death. At this point, all he could do was trust her as she, with a seemingly-uncharacteristic show of strength, lifted him onto the birdlike creature before climbing on herself. Within seconds, they were off to the next destination, beginning the next saga in the history of Sequin Land…


	2. Consult & Camaraderie

Chapter 2: Consult and Camaraderie

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN LIGHTHOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 13TH, [UNDISCLOSED]

TIME: 2047 HOURS

It was past dusk in Sequin Land when the enigmatic lavender-haired young woman and her tired, injured refugee reached their destination. The two made landfall near a dilapidated lighthouse on a peninsula a great distance away from the desert in which they found one another. The sun had long since set over the horizon, welcoming the tranquil ambiance of the night. The purple, blue, and yellow color-splashed behemoth the girl previously summoned had dropped them off and soared into the starry evening sky the minute the two strangers climbed from the passenger saddle on its back, though the soldier immediately fell to one knee. The lavender-haired girl quickly moved to assist him, as he appeared to be too weary to walk on his own.

"Take it easy," the girl advised in a nurturing tone. "Looks like you've had a pretty rough encounter with those Tinkerbats."

"Rough… would be an understatement," the exhausted man remarked as he allowed her to help him up. "Those Tinkerbat things ain't what I'm worried about, even though they had me in a tight spot. It's their leader that was mostly responsible for my condition…" At this, her expression immediately changed to one of shock.

"Risky Boots is still out there!?" the mysterious maiden asked in utter surprise, evidently familiar with the Pirate Queen.

"If you mean that crazy pirate woman… then yes," the soldier replied, unaware of Risky's name as he only knew her by her occupation. "You wouldn't believe what she put me through."

"Please, share everything you know. She's very dangerous. To hear she's hatching another scheme so soon isn't good… She usually takes two to eight months before she comes up with a new way to try and take over Sequin Land, though it always feels like two to eight years…" the young woman warned as she and the thoroughly worn out man stepped into her home, which bore an appearance similar to a small wood cabin with stone walls and neatly-organized fixtures lining the perimeter of the circular living room. She invited him to sit down in a wooden chair as she took a seat directly across from him on a wooden stool before beginning their discussion. "What happened between you and her, mister?"

"Before I go on," the man began. "Thanks for savin' me. I probably wouldn't have survived if it wasn't for you."

"No sweat! It's part of what I do as guardian genie!" Her acceptance of his gratitude struck him as odd. 'Guardian genie?' What the heck was that? The man eyed her incredulously. It was one thing that the whole scenario with that marauding pirate woman and her pirate minions happened. It was another thing that the instant this admittedly-cute lavender-haired girl appeared in that tower, explosions mysteriously happened and wiped out those Tinkerbats. It was yet another thing when she summoned that humungous sherbet-colored eagle thing with just a whistle to fly them out to their current location. And then she just referred to herself as a mythological creature that supposedly only existed in fairytales and kids' movies. The soldier found himself more discombobulated than he'd ever been, and he'd only been in this world a few hours.

"Guardian… genie?" he dared to ask, puzzled by her terminology.

"You seem surprised," she observed, though she appeared to understand his confusion. "Do you know what a genie is?"

"I… uh, I think I do. I mean, I ain't ever meet one in person. Till now, I guess," he confessed, suspending his disbelief as he considered just what happened to him in the last couple of hours. "They're some kind o'… magic spirit people who live in lamps an' come out when someone rubs 'em. Then they grant the finder o' the lamp three wishes… or something, right?"

"Hmm, not quite. I mean, you're right to some degree about granting wishes, but no. Genies were once the protectors of the world until they all disappeared to the Genie Realm save for their half-genie, half-human descendants many years ago. I'm one of those descendants. There's a longer story behind it, but it'll have to wait until after we discuss Risky Boots."

"Noted," the man acknowledged, though he wasn't willing to admit that this woman's nut-shelled tale of genies and half-genie offspring only confused him further. He was at least somewhat relieved to learn that his host was at least part human. "So… you're a half-human, half-genie guardian of… of Sequin Land?" he asked, utilizing what little knowledge he had of his surroundings that he gathered from the Pirate Queen.

"Well, I'm only guardian genie of Scuttle Town, the city near this lighthouse. But sometimes, I find myself guarding a whole lot more ground… Actually, I ALWAYS find myself guarding more than just Scuttle Town, now that I mention it…" The girl pondered just how big her job was and if there really were any other half-genies out there doing the same. "Anyway, I'm usually the one who's tasked with putting a stop to Risky Boots's plots of world domination," the gracious house host confessed, causing her guest to realize something as he ruminated on her words. "She's Sequin Land's most dangerous enemy, a ruthless swashbuckling pirate captain with a seemingly-endless army of Tinkerbats and an undying lust for power, money, and all things shiny. She's been at it for longer than I can remember and, as she's proven, each scheme she hatches is more hazardous and convoluted than the last. Usually, she launches an attack before anyone knows it."

"Wait a second… So YOU'RE the one she got all riled up about…!" The soldier deciphered, harkening back to Risky's temperamental tirade about a certain 'brat' who always meddled with her plans.

"Hm? What do you mean, sir?" she asked, not understanding right away what he meant.

"I was in the middle of a fistfight with her an' she compared me t' somebody… She said somethin' about a… a 'goody-two-shoes little half-breed twerp' who always got in her way an' messed everything up for her…" At that, the woman frowned. "That's you?"

"That sounds EXACTLY like something she would call me… You've certainly met her, alright," she affirmed with a sigh, of course finding Risky's name-calling as distasteful as ever. "And yes, that's me."

"If it's any consolation…" the soldier began, acknowledging his savior's dissonance at the Pirate Queen's harsh words. "…After what I saw an' experienced of her, I can tell she definitely needs t' be kept in check. She is one incredibly cutthroat woman. I don't know how often you've fought her, but kudos t' you for doin' so. Don't sweat the name-callin', either," he reassured his host. "Whatever you did t' get her that mad at you, it's what she gets for bein' such a grouchy stick-in-the-mud. I don't even know you, but I like you already, miss," he admitted with a thumbs-up, eliciting a modest giggle out of the generous young woman.

"Aw, thanks, mister! I aim to please… I-I guess."

"No sweat. So… what's your name?"

"Oh! Right," the half-genie laughed in realization. "We never did properly introduce ourselves. My name is Shantae. And yours?"

"…Tayshan," the man uttered with a cocked eyebrow, seeming to be taken by surprise at her name.

"Wow, neat!" the heroine beamed with humorous delight. "We pretty much have the same name! Just switch the syllables around and voila!" The two laughed together at the one-in-a-million coincidence… or maybe one in a trillion. Or quintillion. Or googol. Seriously, what ARE the odds of that happening!? "How do you spell your name? It'd be a real wonder if we had the same spelling, too!"

"T-A-Y-S-H-A-N."

"Ohh, so close!" Shantae remarked with a snap of her fingers.

"What, am I off by a letter?"

"Yeah, just one. Mine is spelled S-H-A-N-T-A-E. Same number of letters, same pronunciation… The only difference is the 'Y' in your name and the 'E' in mine. Well, that and the syllables. Still, that's so crazy how much our names are alike!"

"Heh, well I guess the coincidence had t' end somewhere there. I only hope we don't wind up confusin' each other. Still, add that to the long list o' things that are buggin' me out about this place…"

"This place?" Shantae inquired, tilting her head as she eyed her guest. "You mean you're not from around here?"

"Yeah… I'm not familiar with this place in the slightest. I didn't even know it existed."

"Didn't know it EXISTED?" Shantae queried with utmost surprise. How could anyone not know that Sequin Land existed? Sure, it wasn't the most famous country in the world, but it had enough of a reputation that everyone had some idea of what it was… or at least, she presumed; unless he meant that he didn't know Scuttle Town existed, in which case, she could understand.

"Yeah, I know. Sounds crazy, but that's what I'm tryin' t' figure out. I'm honestly surprised that we speak the same language," he explained, giving Shantae the slightest clue that her guest might not have just been unfamiliar with Scuttle Town; he may very well not have been a Sequin Land native at all.

"Hmm… You're not from around here and you didn't know what a genie is… It's safe to say you don't live in Scuttle Town… Yet, you speak the same language as me…" the half-genie wondered, attempting to figure out her guest's origins. "Where are you from? Oasis Town? Water Town? Bandit Town?" She guessed, presuming that he may have been from a different municipality within Sequin Land to rule it out as a possibility.

"I have no idea what any o' those places are," he answered, confirming her hunch.

"I thought not. Actually, your clothes don't look at all like those of any citizen of Sequin Land…" she realized, studying him up and down. "Are you maybe from a different country? Like, say, the Nation of United Seams? Or maybe the Great Button Province of the Deep Pocket Sea?"

"A different country is a gross understatement…" the soldier remarked, catching the young lady's attention. "Would you believe me if I said I came from a whole different world?" At that, Shantae's vibrant light blue eyes widened in wonder.

"Are… are you maybe a genie who lost his powers and/or memories?" she inquisitively assumed, sounding hopeful that maybe Tayshan was either from the Genie Realm, the only other dimension of existence she was aware of, or a half-genie who'd suffered from amnesia. "I've never heard of a male genie before!" she exclaimed, getting excited about the prospect of meeting one of her own kind. "So far as I've heard, all genies and half-genies were girls! Unless… No, you don't look very girly to me…" she further observed.

"Wha? No, no… I'm full-blown human," Tayshan confessed, dashing her hopes. "I'm also definitely a man. No doubt about that. Anyway, I think I'm from… an alternate timeline, separate planet, or parallel universe or somethin' t' that effect," he continued, causing Shantae's eyes to widen even more as her mouth hung slightly agape, her previous disappointment in his not being a genie immediately gone. "That's the best way I can explain it, all things considered about how I got here."

"What? But… how? Where did you come from? How did you get here?" Shantae rapidly shot questions at him, believing him without a doubt where others may have had reasons to doubt him… or commit him to a psych ward. "Actually, since we have the same name… are… are you maybe a human male version of me?" At her last question, Tayshan let out a healthy chuckle.

"You're askin' the wrong guy, Shantae. I wouldn't have the slightest clue if we were the same person from different timelines or parallel universes. If that was the case, then we certainly turned out WAY different from each other in terms of appearance, amongst other things."

"That's true," the half-genie smilingly agreed. "Maybe our names being similar is just a coincidence, then. So… how did you find your way to this world? What's your world like?"

"It has t' do with that pirate witch. Y'see, I'm from a place where, believe it or not, genies an' magic... don't exist outside o' storybooks," he explained with utmost uncertainty as he found it difficult to believe what Shantae had told him about herself and her abilities, even after having caught a glimpse of her powers when she saved him. "I come from a place where pirates like the one who basically kidnapped me used to exist… but they went out of practice hundreds o' years ago due to their lifestyle not bein' worthwhile for survival over time. Plus, none of 'em had blue skin… or legions of little scarf-wearin', sword-swingin' bat people obeyin' their every command. I don't know much about this place t' make a comparison, but I'm guessin' there are a lot of differences between our worlds, not the least of which bein' that yours has magic an' pirates."

"No genies in your world? No magic? No evil pirates? No way!" Shantae was thoroughly curious about her houseguest. "I've got so many questions! So… how does your world function with no magic or genies of any kind? Who protects the citizens of your world's nations when there's danger?"

"Uhh… I really don't know how t' answer that without goin' on a massive tangent, t' be honest. I'd ask you the same about what it's like t' actually have those things here… or even what it's like bein' the sole protector of an entire country. We'll figure that out as we go along, I hope. For now, I should prolly tell you about how I got here."

"Right. Yes, please," Shantae nodded in agreement, her attention fixed on the man. "How did you wind up here?"

"Well, it starts off like this…" Tayshan filled Shantae in on the recent events of his encounter with Risky Boots. Her portal to his world, her hijacking of incredibly advanced, now-contraband artillery, his attempt to stop her, the current state of her interdimensional travel device, and his banishment to the caverns of Tassel Tower, where she arranged for her Tinkerbats to dispose of him.

"Darn that Risky Boots…!" Shantae cursed. "She's always got something up her sleeve. I thought I completely destroyed that Dynamo she stole from my Uncle Mimic when she tried to enslave the Genie Realm. The volcano she stored it in and used as her hideout even erupted after I blew it up!"

"A… volcano? She chose a volcano as a hideout? An active one, at that?"

"Mm-hmm," Shantae affirmed with a simple nod. "Very poor choice of base of operations, I know."

"Right…" Tayshan dismissed, bewildered once again by how little sense this situation made. "Anyway, maybe she found some spare parts or somethin' after you beat her last time?"

"Possibly… I really thought she'd have learned her lesson this time. From what you tell me, she's still just as conniving and motivated to take over Sequin Land as ever… and now, who knows what she'll do with the weapons she stole from your dimension if they're as powerful as you say they are. I have to do something fast."

"We don't even know where she is, though…" Tayshan lamented in regret.

"Didn't you see her new base?" Shantae questioned, confused that her new acquaintance was unaware of Risky's location despite having been the one who last encountered her.

"Yeah, but I don't know where it is… After she beat me, she had her goons tie me up, throw me in the darkest part o' that ship, an' try t' finish me off in that desert. It felt like I was on that ship for days. Only way I could tell it all happened at once was by the barely-visible rays of sunlight shinin' through the windows. It had t' be at least a couple hours between them puttin' me on the ship and takin' me off. By the time I got there, I had just cut the ropes off me, but the sword I used was too dull an' brittle t' fight with. It cracked t' pieces after a couple swings at those Tinkerbats, leavin' me with just the tatters o' rope. I was in there for a hot minute. Once I busted out, they chased me int' the tower you found me in."

"Hmm…" Shantae groaned in worry.

"Plus, I don't know if there's anything we can do right now if we don't even know where t' start searchin'. That and I'm too injured t' move."

"That's okay," the determined young girl assured. "I can handle her by myself. You just rest up and recover your strength. By that time, I'll have stopped her again and made her give your weapons back."

"That don't sound like a good idea, goin' alone," Tayshan disagreed, painstakingly propping himself into a more comfortable position. "At least, from my experience. She thrashed me good without help from her cronies, an' I've got at least three years of martial arts trainin' plus one year o' military-grade combat trainin' an' a ton of athletic experience under my belt. Unless you're sayin' you're stronger than her…?"

"Well… to be fair, just about every time we've fought, I've had my magic, my hair, and a ton of equipment on my side against her Tinkerbats, pirate ship, super strength, super jump, scimitar, cannonballs, gun, parachute hat, and knack for sneaky tricks. Even then, every battle has been a beating-to-the-bones, all-out challenge of endurance and willpower. I… can't exactly say I ever walked away from each battle unscathed, despite having defeated her each time. Plus, I've never fought her hand-to-hand like you did. Sounds like she's a real tough cookie there, too. Still, I have to give you credit for fighting her without weapons and surviving the encounter. That takes a lot of bravery and I imagine a lot of quick thinking; especially if you managed to pry a scimitar out of her hands while she was swinging it at you."

"Thanks… I guess. I mean, I probably would've been far less likely to have 'survived the encounter' if it wasn't for you. Still, it's definitely assurin' that you have the power t' beat her," Tayshan began, suspending his disbelief once more. "But this time, she has all my guns an' explosives, too. Those weapons are high-quality an' are NOT t' be trifled with."

"How so?" she asked, her curiosity piqued. "I know you said they're really strong, but exactly HOW strong?"

"We're talkin' heavy-duty artillery here, Shantae," he reasoned, the urgency in his tone evident.

"Like what? She's already got access to a ton of weapons. All of her Tinkerbats usually carry flintlock pistols, fire bombs, and scimitars. She herself is usually armed with a scimitar, a portable cannon, steel-toed running boots, a hat that can double as a parachute like I mentioned earlier, and a special variety of flintlock that can fire bullets, spread shots, and even small, slow-moving homing rockets. Plus, she's got a knack for inventing some unique larger-scale weapons like cannons and a partially-mechanized pirate ship. That's just scratching the surface, though."

"Wow… even without havin' invaded my world, she's armed to the teeth. Still, she got her hands on some SERIOUS stuff. Stuff that could do some unspeakable damage," the serviceman commented, as astounded as he was confused by the specs of Risky's weapons.

"You mean to tell me she's got something MORE dangerous than what I just mentioned?" Shantae asked, her heart sinking slightly at her guest's implication.

"Yes! All sorts of things… Off the top o' my head, I know she took a ton of assault rifles, frag grenades, flashbang grenades, grenade launchers, pistols, rocket launchers, sniper rifles, land mines, tear gas cans, C-4, an' submachine guns, t' name a few…"

"…Oh boy…" Shantae groaned with a worried rub of her forehead, grasping the severity of the situation. "I don't even know what half those things are, but this sounds REALLY bad…"

"I know. I was tryin' t' stop her from even bringin' those things here. In the wrong hands, those weapons can put a LOT o' people's lives at risk. Right now, she has the destructive power to annihilate an entire city in under an hour. Heck, she could wipe a small town out in as little as fifteen MINUTES with just a couple rocket launchers an' MAYBE some grenades."

"Oh, no…!"

"An' she took enough weapons to arm entire squads o' those Tinkerbats with 'em."

"That isn't good at all…" she bemoaned, scratching her head in concern. "Out of curiosity, could you maybe give me an example of what we're dealing with here?"

"Well… How about a comparative analysis?" Tayshan offered, uncertain of what parallels to draw between Sequin Land and his own realm.

"Yeah, that might help," the young heroine agreed, eager to understand the severity of the threat Risky Boots posed this time around.

"Okay. So first thing, what city here is the smallest an' most vulnerable?"

"Hmm… If it weren't for me being here, I'd have to say Scuttle Town. It's the one city Risky Boots ALWAYS attacks first. Usually, she'll fire off barrages of cannonballs and Tinkerbat attack pods into the city from her ship once she gets close enough. From there, any Tinkerbats that make landfall by attack pod will go running amok, pillaging, terrorizing, and vandalizing away until the Sequin Land guards or my friends and I put a stop to it."

"Yikes… How often has that happened?"

"Almost every time, Tayshan. There's only one time where she wasn't responsible for staging a full-frontal assault on Scuttle Town. That one time, it was a warmongering army general named Ammo Baron, who'd managed to sneak into Scuttle Town and take Mayor Scuttlebutt's job as mayor of the city."

"Ammo Baron? That doesn't sound good, either…"

"He's one of the Barons of Sequin Land, and the one with a massive army and weapons arsenal of his own. Granted, he has actual men—and two girls—as his followers instead of Tinkerbats, but he's generally pretty unlikely to attack Scuttle Town head-on unless for a very specific purpose."

"I see…" The soldier acknowledged, wondering about the possibility of crossing paths with such a foreboding figure as this Ammo Baron during his search for the Pirate Queen.

"Plus, despite his army and access to all sorts of destructive weaponry, he's nowhere near as well-equipped as Risky Boots is… That or he's generally not quite as cunning. I'm not sure how, now that I think of it, though. Anyway, we shouldn't have to worry as much about him."

"Maybe you can tell me more about him later," Tayshan dismissed, wanting to forego distractions in favor of focusing on getting his point across. "We're gettin' off-track. Anyway, pirate girl. How long would you say it usually takes between her launchin' an attack on Scuttle Town an' you stoppin' her?"

"I never measured or thought about it, but if I had to guess… I'd say that last time, it took me about an hour or two to fight my way through Scuttle Town while it was under siege to stop her. I managed to bring things under control before she did TOO much damage to the town, though. Even so, Scuttle Town is still in a rebuilding phase from the last assault."

"Okay, so we definitely have a problem," Tayshan concluded with a sigh, his tone grim.

"Uh-oh…"

"Uh-oh is right. If one attack lasted two hours with cannons an' attack pods an' she STILL didn't completely demolish the city, I'm afraid I have some VERY bad news for ya…" At that, Shantae gulped in anticipatory fear. "T' give you some perspective, a single round from a single rocket launcher—at least, of the kind she stole—has enough power t' theoretically wipe out a house an' a half on impact, not even countin' the aftereffects like shockwaves, fire, or even shrapnel. As in, rocket makes contact, EXPLODES, an' takes EVERYTHING with it. The rockets in particular are anti-tank. Their purpose is to immobilize or destroy enemy tanks…" he rambled before he paused to realize something. "Here I am, assumin' you know what a tank is… Allow me t' backtrack a bit. Do they have tanks here? Y'know, giant armored war vehicles on treads with long, tube-like mounted guns?"

"Yeah, but they're VERY rare," she answered, surprising her houseguest. "At this point, only Ammo Baron and his army have access to them. Even then, they don't always use them. They're too slow and clunky, and the last one I faced off against, I managed to destroy simply by whipping red cannonballs fired out of it back at it. It was incredibly easy, too."

"Really now? Wow… This world is somethin' else…" Tayshan remarked with a shake of his head, having some much-expected trouble imagining a single woman of Shantae's stature destroying a fully-operational tank all on her own without a rocket launcher. Granted, he also assumed that if she managed to destroy it so easily, it must not have been at all like the kind of tank he knew from his world. "The tanks in my world are resilient enough that you'd HAVE t' use a rocket launcher, bomb, or another tank t' take them out. We're talkin' reinforced steel mixed with uranium alloy. INCREDIBLY tough material. They don't shoot cannonballs, either. They shoot highly-explosive rounds that move at about five times the speed o' sound AND can annihilate anything within a nine-mile range. Or fifteen kilometers, if we're talkin' metric system…"

"…Oh… Well, we definitely DON'T have THOSE kinds of tanks here, thankfully. I… don't think I'd be able to beat that on my own. Did… Risky manage to get her hands on one of those?" she queried, understandably worried.

"I'd be surprised if you could, t' be honest. But thank goodness, no, she didn't take any tanks from my world," he answered, causing Shantae to sigh in relief. "Still, these rockets are loaded with anti-tank warheads, which basically means they're designed to tear through reinforced steel an' uranium alloy like tissue paper. Against an unsuspecting house made o' bricks, wood, or what have you? Forget about it… Oh, an' if I've got the right idea about how the cannons you mentioned work, then I can guarantee you that these rockets travel MUCH faster than cannonballs do. You can't even see 'em comin', they move so fast. The launchers themselves are much easier t' reload, too. You're also supposed t' hold the rocket launcher over your shoulder an' aim t' fire it. Think of it as a somewhat-lower scale, portable tank gun."

"Oh my gosh!" the young woman gasped in total shock. "Not even Ammo Baron has THAT kind of firepower!"

"Right… an' THIS is just scratchin' the surface of the kind o' firepower she's messin' with."

"Wh-what kind of world do you live in where the weapons are so lethal that you could blow up an entire town with just one or two of them?"

"One that, while mostly peaceful, still ironically keeps those weapons around in case things suddenly become not-so-peaceful. It sounds a bit backwards, I know."

"Jeez… I'm afraid to even imagine…"

"I don't blame you. So now, imagine pirate girl an' like… let's say six o' those Tinkerbats all sailed int' Scuttle Town, each armed with a rocket launcher an' a TON of extra ammo. Because she stole a LOT of it. A LOT. Enough t' arm herself an' a decent chunk of her army for weeks. Anyway, they sail t' where they're about the same distance away on their ship as they were last time they attacked. They start firin' rockets at everything indiscriminately, so long as they're aimin' at Scuttle Town. Just SEVEN rocket launchers. Each one fired just ONCE in Scuttle Town's general direction."

"Okay…"

"Now imagine this. In just five seconds, she has just turned an entire neighborhood into a smolderin' crater of fire an' carnage. By the time you are alerted t' what happened, she an' those six Tinkerbats have fired their launchers three times apiece. Let's say it takes you five, maybe ten minutes t' gear up an' fight her off. In the time it takes you t' arrive at the scene, you walk int' what's left of Scuttle Town t' see that it has been entirely obliterated. Not a single building standin' without some form o' heavy damage. What isn't already engulfed in flames or crumblin' like burnt cookies has been blasted all over the vicinity. Survivors are a pipe dream at best if they're totally unprepared."

"My goodness… It… It can get that bad?" Shantae queried, moderately unsettled about the example she'd just been given.

"Potentially. This is all speculation, so don't take that example as fact," he assured her. "However, I'd advise against disregardin' it, too. Like I said, she took a LOT of weapons big an' small from my base, an' right now, she has the potential t' destroy this place if we don't act fast."

"I see…" she began with a contemplative sigh to dispel some of her apprehension. "I can handle her, though. If I move first thing tomorrow morning, I know I can find her wherever she is, and take her down before she even thinks of using those weapons."

"I like your enthusiasm. But hey, why don't we team up? Seems we've got a common goal an' a common enemy. Together, we can definitely take her down."

"Thanks for the offer, but…" Shantae began, politely declining her guest's proposition. "…if anyone knows how to deal with Risky Boots and her schemes, it's me."

"No?" Tayshan remarked with a cocked eyebrow, surprised that his host would turn him down after all he'd warned her about. "Then, how do you expect t' stop her on your own with everything I just warned you about?"

"I'll find a way. Trust me. I always do."

"Hmm… Sorry t' say, but that ain't convincin' t' me. Do you have a plan o' some sort, or some form o' countermeasure for when she attacks?"

"No… but I assure you, I've got it covered, Tayshan," she confidently dismissed, though her words did nothing to persuade the ethereal serviceman into believing she had the situation under control.

"Shantae, I'm serious," the soldier remarked, still eager to lend a hand in the upcoming fight. "I urge you t' think about this an' reconsider. I'm tellin' you, she's got a lot more at her disposal than you might realize. That said, how can I help?"

"You've helped more than enough by warning me about her. I can handle the rest from here. And hey, since you warned me so early, I'll definitely stop her way sooner than usual."

"I can't speak for how soon you can get t' where she is, nor can I speak for how easy or hard it'll be for you t' battle her again, but I seriously don't think you should go alone this time. The threat she poses right now is catastrophic, to put it lightly. I should come with you for back-up."

"Tayshan, don't worry about me," the confident young woman insisted. "I'll be okay. I can adapt to whatever Risky has to throw at me. I can deal with her by myself. Besides, I don't want to put you in more danger than you've already been in when you fought her. Maybe you can just let me know some info about what other kinds of weapons she has and I'll be sure to keep an eye out for them while I'm out there searching for her."

"There's safety in numbers, Shantae," he shot back, determined to ascertain their success in confronting Sequin Land's public enemy #1. "I might not have had more than one encounter with her, but I can at least keep you informed about the weapons we might encounter as we go along. We don't have time for me t' teach you the ins an' outs of every weapon. There are way too many of 'em an' there's no way you'd remember everything I had t' tell you. Plus, if I can get my hands on a couple o' those guns, there's no doubt I'd be able to provide all kinds of support for you t' make things easier. I'm pretty versatile with most, if not all o' those firearms, believe it or not."

"That's fair…" she nodded in thought, curious about the capabilities of her potential ally.

"I'm also aware I don't have the kinds of experiences you do with goin' on crusades t' protect this place from criminals, but I can assure you that I'm trained t' handle a wide range o' combat situations where the most conventional approach might not work. If you want me t' prove that to you, just say the word."

"Hmm… No, I think you have a point… but she almost had you killed, Tayshan. That's what worries me most about bringing you along. I'd rather you be safe and resting than risking getting hurt while you're with me."

"I… I know," the soldier begrudgingly admitted. "Though, on the brighter side o' that, I did manage t' survive in that desert long enough for you t' find me. I fought off almost a whole brigade o' those Tinkerbats with nothin' but a tattered-up rope for at least an hour while tired out from fightin' pirate girl, if you wanna put that int' perspective. If I at least had a sword o' my own or had been at full strength, you'd better believe I'd have fared much better. On top o' that, I'd like t' think I gave pirate girl a fight she won't forget, even if she beat me. She's strong, yes, but I'm pretty tough myself. I'm also a quick thinker. I caught her off-guard a couple times an', if I knew more about her durin' that fight, I could've possibly got the drop on her. Trust me on this, Shantae. I can help you."

"I… I suppose…" the half-genie pensively acknowledged, weighing her options.

"Plus, we can't expect t' stop pirate girl if we don't know what she's plannin' or have a clue where she is right now… The only clues I have are that she said she wants t' rebuild that machine she used to bring me here an' use the portal to invade your Genie Realm again. That or stage a full-scale assault on this place t' take it over by force after possibly makin' another trip t' my world t' steal more weapons."

"True…" Shantae regretfully admitted, thinking back to a piece of advice Risky herself gave her after the two sworn rivals worked together to defeat the Pirate Master long ago. She recalled Risky stating that the most important aspect to beating the enemy is to first KNOW the enemy. Additionally, she contemplated letting this stranger join her. She had no idea who he was or what he was capable of. Sure, he fought Risky Boots and… well, survived, at least. However, how would she know he wouldn't be a liability should she bring him along?

She examined the injured young man up and down as she processed the information she'd been given. After a moment, the half-genie surmised that he came off as informative, intuitive, and intelligent. She could not deny that it did indeed take much resolve, instinct, and guts to go through the things he did with Risky Boots, Sequin Land's most dangerous criminal, as well as her legion of Tinkerbats. However, his professed skills had yet to be seen by her eyes. As far as she knew, he was unproven, which worried her. She had no conceivable way to put much faith in him. Nonetheless, if he could indeed provide her with the supports he said he could, why wouldn't she take him up on such an offer? It gave him a chance to prove himself, as well as giving her an opportunity to cooperate with someone who could make her upcoming perilous journey more bearable. This alien soldier presented as confident in his knowledge and capabilities, which served to be a key point in her decision. Eventually, she spoke after a moment of total silence. "I… I see your point in us working together to stop her. You're right."

"I promise I won't let you down or get in the way," he replied with an enthusiastic nod and a fist raised close to his chest. "I'll do everything in my power t' help you shut that pirate thief down."

"Right," she acknowledged with a smile and nod. "Still, what do you think we should do about preparing to battle her again?"

"That, I'm not so sure of… Hmm…" the soldier droned as he and his host began thinking about the situation at hand. The lighthouse went quiet save for the crashing waves of the ocean outside as both Shantae and Tayshan contemplated their next move. Within a few moments, the extraterrestrial soldier spoke. "We can start by alertin' some people who can help us, but we gotta be discreet. Don't stir up too much of a fuss for right now until we know for certain what she's plannin'. For all she knows, I'm dead an' you're totally unaware of her resurgence."

"I… don't see how that would be effective to only let a few people know what's happening," Shantae disagreed, one of her eyebrows raising with curiosity.

"Crowd control, for one thing. As I was taught, lettin' the general public know about a big problem before it's under control causes panic an' confusion that we'd have t' spend time gettin' cleared up. Time that we could be usin' t' bring the situation to a swift an' early end. We want people t' be peaceful unless she attacks head-on right away."

"She's done that numerous times, though."

"No surprises there. She seems aggressive enough t' do that. I doubt she would this time, though."

"How do you know?"

"Neither she nor her men know how t' use those weapons, from what I saw. If she's as crafty as you say, there's a chance she'll be takin' the time t' teach herself an' them clumsy Tinkerbats o' hers how t' use 'em. She HAS t' know that just sendin' them out there with such destructive tools an' no idea how t' wield 'em would be a disaster waitin' t' happen. Right now, those weapons pose a huge threat even t' her until she figures 'em out. All things considered, she might be awhile with learnin' them if we're lucky. That alone buys us a lot o' time, even though it's in the worst way possible."

"Good point," Shantae lauded. "She is usually one to consider her moves very carefully before she makes them, as far as I've learned about her. Most times, we're totally unprepared for when she attacks, so it's good to be proactive for a change."

"Good t' know. Lettin' just the right people know about her plans first gives us more time t' build our defenses an' form a counterstrategy of our own."

"Ohh, I see."

"Yeah. Crazy as I might sound, I think we gotta approach this with cool minds and a lot o' patience. This situation is already an 8.5 on a scale o' 1 to 10 on how dangerous it is."

"Agreed. You sure know how to plan things out in a time of crisis."

"I kinda have to. It's a strength of mine," he confessed, referring to his military training.

"Good to know. Though, I can't promise you that the list of potential allies will be long or easy to fulfill. Most Sequin Land citizens are just that; citizens, with normal lives and normal jobs. None of them would be prepared to fight Risky Boots head-on like we're talking about. Of those who aren't just citizens, most of them also enemies of mine most of the time. That or they won't budge unless we really convince them that it's for their own good."

"That's no good… Well, how about the government? Surely, they know about her by now, no?"

"We could try alerting the guards or the Sultana at Sequin Land Palace, but there's little to no chance they'll hear us out until after Risky Boots attacks. I… don't necessarily have the best relationship with them, which is part of why I tend to work independently."

"Seriously?" Tayshan asked with moderate incredulity, though he grasped a clue as to why this was the case for her. "What, they don't like the idea of a superhero livin' in their midst or somethin'? How you don't 'follow their rules,' an' they see you as some kind o' lawless renegade vigilante who operates on her own wavelength, even though you're workin' for the greater good?"

"Actually… Yeah!" Shantae remarked with utter surprise, though the soldier could only sigh in expectant disappointment. "They don't believe Scuttle Town needs a guardian genie and they often tell me that a 'pretty little lady' like me should stay out of public affairs and leave the law enforcement to them; especially regarding Risky Boots. Granted, I have proven once and again that I can handle things if they let me, but… it's complicated. Plus, the Sultana's never available for some reason. Something about her always traveling…" The soldier took note of Shantae's terminology regarding the leading power of Sequin Land and began to draw comparisons to certain cultures in his world. He also contemplated her statement, gaining little more than a slight sense of dread from it. "Whatever the case, the guards aren't very likely to help us, no matter what we say."

"Hmm… Well, there IS strength in numbers regardless, but I guess we should also prepare for if we have to go about stoppin' pirate woman by ourselves. That said, I gotta know… Exactly how strong are you?"

"Plenty strong!" Shantae boasted as she raised an arm as if flexing a muscle, though she soon brought a finger to her chin and gazed upward in wonder. "Though I'm not sure if all the power-ups I picked up since my last video game are still there. Almost none of my power-ups carry over between games, for some reason…" At this, the military officer stared at her as though she were completely insane. He always did wonder why the cutest of girls always happened to be either taken or out of their minds. This was not helping that case; even in a parallel universe.

"…What?" he managed to ask, completely thrown off by her statement.

"Oh, never mind," Shantae nonchalantly dismissed, doing nothing to address her guest's confusion. "I'll just check…" With that, the guardian genie bowed her head and closed her eyes as though meditating with the occasional "Hmm…" After a couple of minutes, her eyes flew open. "Y'know what? I just remembered! I donated most of my inventory to needy street children in Cape Crustacean after the big carpet race cost their families their homes. I only have a Gator Steak and a potion left. Then I gave my Magic Tiara back to Mayor Scuttlebutt after he said he didn't have a birthday present for his niece from Saliva Island. And without that tiara, all the fire, lightning, and bubble spells I learned took too much of a toll on my magic, so I got rid of all but the basic fireball spell, which is pretty useless on its own, but I found it worth keeping just in case. I also recently ran out of the Mega Shampoo and Hair Cream I use to keep my hair in peak whipping shape," Shantae rapidly recalled.

"What are you even-?" Tayshan attempted to interject, raising his hands to emphasize his question.

"That stuff is super expensive too, so I had to resort back to the normal brand," Shantae continued, ignoring Tayshan as she explained her loss of power-ups to him. "It doesn't work as well, but it keeps the split ends and cowlicks in line. I couldn't stand wearing my metal bikini armor, either. It chafed something fierce, so I tossed it as soon as I was done with it. And as far as I'm aware, most of my Heart Holders just vanish after I finish an adventure. I'm back to two hearts of health again, though I still at least have most of my belly-dancing spells, according to my pause menu… Er, why are you looking at me like that?" Shantae questioned, noticing after her tangent about her lost power-ups that she completely discombobulated her house guest, who stared blankly at her with incredulous squinted eyes and his mouth ajar.

"I uh… Hm, uh—Mmh, O-okay…" Tayshan was at an utter loss for words at his Sequinean companion's explanation of her loss of equipment. Realizing that he was probably never going to fully understand anything the half-genie rambled to him, he simply shook his head before formulating his next statement. "Alright, so what you're basically sayin' is that you're maybe a LITTLE bit better equipped than I am when it comes t' takin' on this pirate woman… Risky Booty, was it?"

"Risky Boots," Shantae laughingly corrected, finding a great deal of amusement in the soldier's misnomer. "That's a good one, Tayshan… Buuuut… Yeah, I definitely need to prepare. You do have a point there. Which reminds me…" she trailed off as she reached into the breast piece of her outfit and pulled out a thoroughly-cooked slab of what seemed to be beef. "Here, eat this," she casually offered him the Gator Steak she previously stated she had. Again, the parallel-universe inhabitant stared blankly at Shantae. "What?"

"Yo, you just pulled a full, thoroughly-cooked cut o' steak out of your…" he trailed off, his face getting slightly hot. He coughed awkwardly, not wanting to finish his statement. "Uhh…"

"What about it? These pants don't have pockets and it isn't like I carry a huge bag full of stuff around all the time. That'd just be impractical, silly," Shantae naively confessed, none the wiser to Tayshan's lack of understanding of her admittedly-bizarre reasoning.

"Y'know what? I'mma just shut up an' take it… I'm too hungry t' care anymore anyway," he admitted with an exasperated sigh, fearing that asking just one more question about this weird planet and its weird inhabitants (of which he had only met two that spoke at this point), his head would burst like a party balloon. Tayshan got Gator Steak from Shantae and took a rather careless bite. He was immediately astounded by the rich, juicy flavors of the slab of meat. Its succulent extracts coursed all over his taste buds as the choice cut's tenderness provided it with an irresistible melt-in-your-mouth sensation.

The steak's flavor was accentuated by a uniquely charbroiled umami inflection. The soldier couldn't help but to devour every morsel of this steak in an instant. As he finished the last bite, he felt a sudden surge of energy as his old strength had returned to him. No more post-battle fatigue or residual injuries he picked up from his fight with Risky Boots. He felt good as new, though he did not understand how or why. Another question to which he knew he'd never find an answer that made sense.

"Sooo, how was it?" Shantae asked Tayshan, eagerly awaiting his reply.

"Hooooo-WOO, that was good!" the soldier sang in a mix of astonishment and savory satisfaction. "Wow, that was better than any steak I've ever had back home! Shoot, my taste buds gonna be dancin' for days off that!"

"Gator Steaks are the absolute best kind of choice cut Sequin Land has to offer! Glad you liked it! Looks like that did the trick, too!" Shantae proudly exclaimed with an adorable smile. "You look like a million monies!"

"You mean bucks?"

"No…?" Shantae tilted her head, unsure of Tayshan's meaning.

"Right, different world, different expressions. Forget it," the young man dismissed with a sigh that quickly turned into a yawn. "I'm still tired after today… I should probably get out o' your hair an' find somewhere t' camp out while I'm here," he added as he stood and stretched before turning for the door, though his host raised a curious eyebrow. "Got a lot t' think about… Again, thanks for the steak. An' especially thanks for savin' me. I owe you a huge favor."

"Well hold on!" She called, stopping him before he reached the door. "Camp out? Why don't you just stay here?" she suggested, concerned that he had nowhere else to go. "I might not have a ton of room in here, but I can at least offer you a roof over your head."

"Nah, I couldn't do that…" he modestly declined. "You did plenty by gettin' me out o' that horrible situation. I can't impose on you by just crashin' in your house, too. Don't sweat it, I'll be okay."

"Tayshan, I insist," Shantae contested. "There's nothing out there for you to camp out with. Do you have anything you can use to protect yourself or survive out there with? Especially if you just got here today by total accident? I doubt you even have any money to rent a room for a night."

"Nothin' but the clothes on my back, as well as my…" he admitted before realizing he didn't have even one component of the necessary equipment he needed to survive in the wilderness. "Oh, right… no gun or knives. On second thought, maybe you're right…" he acquiesced with a sigh of slight discomfort. "Are you sure, though? I could seriously find somewhere else t' sleep. I'm pretty resourceful. I don't wanna be a burden."

"Nonsense, Tayshan. If you're stranded on a totally different planet with no idea of how it works, the last thing I'd want you to do is wander off and get hurt. Plus, it's kinda nice having someone around for once. I don't usually have company."

"You raise a good point… Fine, you got me. I'll stay here… at least, for tonight."

"Awesome!" Shantae cheered. "Make yourself at home however you'd like."

"I can't express enough how thankful I am, Shantae. Thanks for your hospitality."

"Think nothing of it! I'm sure you'd do the same for me if I were in your shoes."

"Absolutely…" he nodded, looking downward to notice that his clothes were filthy from his previous predicament with Risky Boots. "There a bath or somethin' I could use t' clean myself up with? My clothes are caked in mud an' I feel like I ran a nonstop marathon for a day straight."

"I can take care of your clothes for you," she replied as she stood with a yawn. "As for baths… I don't own a bathtub, so I can only suggest that you wash up outside." At this point, the extraterrestrial man stopped expecting any convenient, sensible answers from Shantae. "I kinda need one too after today, so I'll join you."

"Oh, that's a real funny one," Tayshan sarcastically remarked, reading her suggestion to join him in bathing in the ocean as a joke. "I didn't take you as the flirty type, Shantae."

"Hm? What are you talking about?" she asked as she opened a nearby dresser drawer to fetch some towels, wash cloths, a bar of soap, two scrubbing brushes, and a bucket. Only then did he realize she was serious. His shock was of course tempered with restructured (read: lowered) expectations. Nonetheless, her suggestion begged the question of comfort level.

"Hold on… You're serious about takin' a bath with me?"

"Yeah. Is there a problem with that?" she asked, taking note of the apprehension in his tone.

"I mean, we barely know each other, an' if we gotta go outside, then that means-!"

"It's not that big a deal," Shantae assured her guest. "I mean, it IS a little unusual bathing with someone I just met, but it really shouldn't be too different from going to a bathhouse or the beach in… Oh, but you're not FROM here. Right… They DO have beaches and bathhouses where you're from, right?"

"Yeah. True, true…" The genie girl had a point. "I guess if we mind our manners an' such, we should be okay. But, if you say it's like goin' t' the beach or bathhouse, what does that imply?"

"That we won't be completely naked out there, if I'm… going to put it bluntly," she affirmed with a slight blush. "I definitely wouldn't have offered it if that were the case, if that's what you're nervous about."

"That's a relief. But… I… ain't that a bit weird for you, seein' a strange guy with nothin' but a pair o' boxers on?" At that, Shantae perked up.

"Trust me, Tayshan. I've seen worse than a guy in his underpants in my time. MUCH worse," she unabashedly confessed.

"I'll… take your word for it, then," he acknowledged with a nervous chuckle.

"That said, are… you uncomfortable? Y'know, with seeing… a girl in what'll basically be a bikini?" she dared to ask again, her own apprehension shining through once more.

"When you put it THAT way… No. I'd be completely fine in that case. If it's like a trip t' the beach, as you say, then there should be nothin' wrong at all. I-I think… I mean, especially if I imagine that we're wearin' beach clothes while we're out there."

"See, it's not so bad! Just think about it like us going to the beach. Besides, I wouldn't want you to have to wait until the next day to get cleaned up; especially not after what you went through. I understand if maybe you're a bit self-conscious about it, though. You can tell me if something's wrong. If so, we can… take turns, I suppose. But, I think it's faster and more convenient for us to go together. I've only got one bucket and only one way to keep it warm." At that, the young man sighed impatiently.

"You know what? You're right," Tayshan conceded in the same vein as he was reminded of how there was no such thing as privacy in the military when it came to showers. Granted, military showers were full of big, sweaty, naked men; hardly an ideal situation regarding bathing. Surely, taking a beach trip-styled bath with an attractive young woman wasn't all THAT different… he hoped. It was certainly a nice change of pace, though he wouldn't outwardly admit that. "Ain't nothin' t' worry about. We can bathe together. No sweat. I was just tryin' t' be considerate. Y'know, about gender stuff…" he sheepishly admitted, pushing his index fingers together and averting his gaze.

"You're so cute!" she proclaimed with a healthy laugh, much to Tayshan's chagrin. Men are not supposed to be 'cute.' Despite this, he pouted with embarrassment, bashfully darting his eyes away. "For an alien, you sure are shy."

"Hey, don't make fun o' me. I just… I-it's new t' me, takin' a bath with a girl… Gimme a break," he defended with an abashed mumble, crossing his arms and looking elsewhere.

"Aww, Tayshan… I appreciate that you're so considerate," she praised with a cheerful smile, still finding his bashfulness about the matter endearing. "We'll be okay, though. Promise. And don't worry, I'll try not to get my cooties all over you when we go."

"Haw haw haw," the soldier dryly remarked, though he was admittedly calmed by his host's nonchalance about the topic. "I might be from an alternate dimension, but like I said before, I'm still human. So are you, if what you told me about yourself is accurate. It's only natural t' be considerate in situations like this."

"Yeah, that's true," she realized. "I guess that's one thing our worlds have in common."

"Yeah… but, I can own up to it an' say you got me on that," he admitted with a slight chortle, lightening up a bit. "Anyway, a bathtub is a pretty big thing t' miss from your home, ain't it?"

"This lighthouse is missing quite a few essential home accessories, so I've kinda had to make do with what I've got."

"If that's the case, then why you livin' here?" he asked in genuine curiosity. "No disrespect, but if you're the hero of this world—or at least, this country—like you say you are, shouldn't you have a lot more resources at your disposal?"

"A common misconception," Shantae mused as she handed him a towel and wash cloth. "This job actually doesn't pay as well as people think. I get most of my money from the occasional scavenger hunts I embark on during my adventures or from my uncle. I also sometimes go treasure hunting if I'm low on funds and have time to spare. In fact, when I found you, I was in the middle of gathering the money necessary to pay this month's rent. I'm usually pretty good at finding money to pay my bills with…"

"But I guess SAVIN' said money is kinda the issue?"

"Yeah… Especially when I can only hold a maximum of 999 monies at any given point in time. REALLY kills my ability to save. It also doesn't help that the mayor keeps firing and rehiring me as Guardian Genie if I so much as blow my nose the wrong way or if he thinks he can replace me with someone who can do the job better than I can. Anyway, how'd you know about my difficulty saving money?"

"Wild guess," Tayshan answered, though he could relate in a twisted, otherworldly sense. "Still, that kinda gets tedious, don't it? Havin' t' dig up funds wherever you might find 'em, workin' a job that ain't payin' you what you deserve an' with no security whatsoever, livin' more-or-less paycheck to paycheck… Are you sure you're a bein' treated like a hero or more like a strugglin' restaurant waitress?"

"I won't lie, Tayshan… It's hard. Even when you have magic powers and a track record of saving the world multiple times like I do," Shantae lamented as she undid her gold hair tie and let her luxurious royal purple mane fall freely around her face before she pulled a two-piece night gown from the drawer. "I never ask for much, if anything in return for saving the world, though. I get enough satisfaction watching Scuttle Town's citizens peacefully enjoying their daily lives. I've grown accustomed to my lifestyle, though I'm aware that I could have a better living situation. I suppose I don't want to burden anyone by trying to live amongst humans as a half-genie; nor do I want to impose upon the citizens of Scuttle Town more than I already have. Plus, I actually like it here, believe it or not!" She smiled at him before turning her attention back to gathering her nighttime materials.

"I see your point, Shantae…" Tayshan nodded. He himself had aspirations of being a hero… It was why he joined the military, after all. He imagined a hero to be celebrated… adored… respected in the highest regard… immortalized as an idealized utopian image of himself by others. Admittedly, they were rather ambitious and unrealistic expectations, but it made him desire it no less. The thought perpetually enticed him like water would entice a dehydrated fish. Accordingly, as though it were a predestined encounter, he was talking directly to someone regarded as a hero in her native land. Yet here she was, living as though she did nothing more important than the average Joe. In that moment, the young soldier found a new, deep sense of respect for his newest ally.

"I don't think you're bein' a burden by livin' with and protectin' the people here," he spoke again, grasping the young woman's attention as she undid her earrings, headband, and bracelets. "I don't know exactly how often you save people here or the gravity of the situations you saved them from, Shantae… but I know you're doin' a very important job that only you can do, an' you do it without expectin' anything in return. You have my utmost respect," he confessed with a smile of his own. Shantae was moved by this stranger's words as she focused her gaze toward him. He was standing tall, his muscular frame contrasting with the cascading moonlight beaming through the window as he raised a hand toward his forehead, saluting her. He seemed to mean it as she noticed the solemn conviction in his eyes.

"Wow… Thanks, Tayshan… That means a lot. A lot more than you might know…" she modestly accepted his salutation, feeling appreciated.

"Call me Tay," he proffered as he motioned to take the bathing equipment and go outside. "It's… what my friends used to call me back home." At that, she smiled warmly.

"Aw, that's sweet…" Shantae admitted with a mirthful grin. Tayshan chuckled in amusement and a light tinge of shyness. "Sure… Tay. Say, you wouldn't mind telling me a bit about yourself, would you? We'll be working together to stop Risky Boots, so I think it's a good idea for us to get to know each other. Plus, it's always nice to meet a new friend."

"I don't see a problem with that," he agreed. "Maybe we can talk outside while we wash up? I'm sure you need your privacy," he added, taking note of Shantae's state of partial undress.

"Oh, don't worry. I'll get ready on the upper floor," with that, Shantae set her fabrics, scrubbing brush, and soap down and leapt toward a rope hanging down from the ceiling of the second floor. She climbed the rope and within a few seconds, jumped back down wearing what appeared to be a blue-and-white striped two-piece bathing suit. "Ready!"

"Huh… I uh… Hm…" the stunned young man cleared his throat as his eyes darted around the humble abode, his uncertainty about how to assess the situation evident. It was odd for him to be in the same room as a beautiful half-nude girl who seemed unfazed by the fact that she wasn't wearing conventional clothes. He also didn't want to come across as immoral by making prolonged eye contact with her as she was. As such, he was only able to glance at her for brief stints before averting his gaze elsewhere.

"Well, aren't you going to get ready, too?" She casually asked, grabbing her bathing equipment in addition to a bottle of shampoo.

"Oh! Uh, y-yeah. I'mma meet you outside," he excused himself. "This stuff is a little bit complicated t' take off…"

"Okey dokey!" Shantae unassumingly acknowledged as she grabbed her bucket and strolled out the front door, leaving her alien-ish acquaintance to wonder exactly how to process everything going on around him. He was stuck in a whole different world with no conceivable way of getting back home. He was now entangled in a life-or-death struggle against this different world's most dangerous criminal. He was hopelessly lost and confused about every circumstance he happened upon since his encounter with Risky Boots.

Yet, his only form of guidance through this tangled up yarn ball of a situation happened to be a nubile, young, beautiful purple-haired girl who herself made very little sense in her explanations of Sequin Land, its laws of physics, and her role as its protector; not to mention her personal boundaries were way different from any girl he'd ever met in his world. As the fledgling soldier disrobed down to just a pair of black boxer-briefs, he contemplated intensely on how he and Shantae would defeat Risky Boots and reclaim the stolen equipment, exactly what Shantae was capable of as a half-genie… and especially how he was going to find his way back home. He was stranded here in Sequin Land, as far as he was concerned.

Eventually, with a deep and heavy sigh, he set his clothing neatly on the floor, grabbed the towel and scrubbing brush given to him by his impromptu tour guide, and stepped outside. Immediately, he noticed her sitting at the edge of a wooden structure extending from the grassy hill the lighthouse stood on, using her magic to heat up the bucket, filled with water, by way of casting minuscule embers from her fingertips to make light contact with the base of the bucket.

"So THIS is how you do it, huh?" Tay observed in wonder, already astounded by Shantae's method of bathing.

"Yep. I fill the bucket, heat it up to purify the water, dip my wash cloth in it, and the rest should be pretty obvious," Shantae explained as she soaked her wash cloth before rubbing the bar of soap on it. "It's quite refreshing."

"Hm," he nodded in understanding as he took a seat next to her, on the opposite side of the bucket and began employing her method of bathing. "This is a pretty simple way of washin' up."

"That's the best part about it. Sure, I'd like to sit in a nice, hot bathtub or stand in the endless flow of a shower and let the warmth of the water swallow me up as I relaxed, but it's like I said… you make do with what you have. I hope this isn't too inconvenient for you."

"Nah, you're good! I understand completely," the soldier modestly assured. "Believe me, I'm the last person you need t' explain yourself to."

"What do you mean?" Shantae asked, her curiosity piqued as she scrubbed herself with her wash cloth. Tayshan began to do the same with his own cloth.

"Well… I never had the most… comfortable upbringin'. I mostly grew up on the streets where I'm from. I was lucky if the faucets in my bathroom worked well enough for me t' take a bath or shower. This is a comparative luxury."

"Ohh…" she remarked in wonder, recognizing the soldier's statement as the beginning of him opening up to her. "You grew up poor?"

"Yeah. My parents tried their best, but we were definitely livin' in poverty."

"Wow… I hope it wasn't too bad…"

"Well, it's about as bad as it gets. We barely ever had any food, we was livin' in the slums, our water was almost always brown, so we couldn't even drink it, much less bathe in it, an' if there wasn't rats or the sounds of people fightin' outside that kept us up at night, it was the landlord of our apartment bangin' on the door demandin' rent money first thing just about every mornin' if we missed rent, to name a few things… It was rough."

"Oh, my…" Shantae acknowledged, lending him an ear as she washed up. "Were your parents at least able to provide for you?"

"Yeah, as best as they could. Dad was a firefighter, but so many years savin' people from burnin' buildings an' breathin' in toxic fumes took its toll on him, amongst other things. Plus, he never got paid as much as I thought he deserved. Mom jumped from job to job, strugglin' along with my dad t' make ends meet while they tried figurin' out how t' keep me outta trouble. Of course, trouble has ways o' findin' you if you don't go lookin' for it," he confessed.

"Sounds like this won't be a very happy story… Are you okay telling me about your life? I don't want you to remember things you don't want to for the sake of telling me."

"Nah, I'm good. It's my life, so I been livin' it for better or for worse. Tellin' you the story won't destroy me."

"Okay… then please, continue."

"You got it. Where was I…? Oh, yeah. Trouble. As my parents were tryin' t' make ends meet, I wound up gettin' involved with the wrong crowd as a kid… I let older kids trick or bully me int' doin' things I ain't wanna do… I skipped school, got int' fights for no good reason, stole from people so I knew when I could get my next meal… that whole shebang."

"Yikes…" she remarked, slightly unsettled by her acquaintance's confession. Her impression of him was one where she'd never expected him to have done such things as steal or fight for no reason. She was aware, however, that she knew next to nothing about him, only having met him mere hours ago. At this point, it was impossible to grasp a comprehensive image of her guest. As such, she continued to listen intently.

"My parents knew about the kinds o' ruckus I was causin', an' they told me again an' again t' stop walkin' down the hoodlum's path or else I'd end up locked up or… or dead. I didn't see what I was doin' as 'bad' at the time, though. I thought I was doin' myself, my family, and my so-called friends favors."

"How so?"

"I'd bring food home when mom an' pop couldn't, I'd share what I… 'confiscated' with the younger kids on the block who were in worse situations, an' I did everything I thought I could at the time t' earn the respect o' my peers. But it was either never enough or it was ill-gotten to the point where my parents would make me give back anything I swiped for them an' force me to apologize t' the people I took from. As for everyone else, they'd take what I had t' give an' demand more, jump me t' take more than I had t' offer, or basically spit in my face. Figuratively speakin', of course."

"Oh… That sounds awful…" she commented, beginning to grasp an understanding of the soldier and his background. It relieved her to hear that his intentions for his past actions were not malicious in nature. However, it saddened her to hear that his efforts were basically for naught in relation to his goals at the time.

"Yeah… Simply put, I tried t' play the hero in the sad, sad tale o' the rose that grew from concrete, but I never found the satisfaction I thought I would for even makin' the effort," he lamented as he wrung his wash cloth dry before dipping it in the bath bucket. "I wanted t' be like my dad, y'know? The man o' the house, the firefighter who always saved people an' asked for no kind o' help in return, no matter how tough the situation… the hero I always wanted t' be. He was my role model."

"Mm, I know that feeling… Having someone to look up to, being inspired by everything that person does, wanting to become something great like them…" the young woman attested, having an idea of his struggle and his aspirations. "It's great that you had someone there to motivate you to do the right thing, even though your situation wasn't the best."

"Absolutely…" he affirmed with a nod. "Of course, the difference between me an' him was that he actually did productive things t' make people's lives better. Actually savin' people from life-or-death situations an' protectin' them from harm. I only ever tricked myself into believing I did the same things he did."

"Aw, don't beat yourself up about it, Tayshan," the young lady consoled, reaching out to pat her new friend on the shoulder. "I'm sure your heart was in the right place. I mean, I can't speak for what happened, but… It seems like you really cared to make things easier for the people around you; especially your family."

"Yeah, I guess…" the young man nodded, contemplating her words. "Y'know, my dad once told me somethin' that you sorta reminded me about."

"Oh, yeah? What's that?"

"He told me that… 'The best heroes are those who make sacrifices for others and continue living as normal people.'" He fell silent for a moment as he sat, thinking about his father's insightful words and how they related to his host. Shantae, hearing this loud and clear, raised her eyebrows in intrigue, reading his quote as a vote of praise toward her.

"Wow… I… I don't know what to say. I'm… flattered. Really, I am. Your father… he sounds like he's a really kind, heroic, selfless guy."

"Yeah, he was…"

"W… was?" the half-genie echoed in worry as she recoiled her hand, afraid of what he might follow up with.

"Mm-hmm. Almost like a cruel twist o' fate, the unthinkable happened. It happened so suddenly that it still haunts me because I couldn't get over how I felt at the time…"

"Oh no…" Shantae stopped and turned to her friend, further concerned about what he would tell her next.

"Yea… My father… I was out hangin' with friends on the streets one day when I was told by a neighbor that the police were at my house. I thought they might've been lookin' for me t' get me for somethin' I did, but the neighbor said it was somethin' serious… Well, more serious than anything I could've been in trouble for. Takin' that t' heart, I took off home as fast as I could, wonderin' if my parents were okay… sprintin' down the road until my legs an' lungs nearly gave out on me… hopin' that what I was told was some kind o' sick joke, but… when I got home, my mom was on her knees in a fit o' tears with one o' the cops tryin' to console her. When I approached one o' the other cops an' asked what happened, he knelt down and he told me… 'Your father… he's gone now. I'm sorry, my boy, but he's gone…' I was heartbroken…" he lamented, squeezing his eyes shut and sniffling as the memory of the tragic event resurfaced in his mind.

"My gosh… I… I'm so sorry…" the saddened young woman apologized, reaching a hand out and laying it upon his back to console him.

"Don't be… There was a housefire a couple towns away an' he was called int' action," he continued, wiping his eyes. "I was told he saved a couple o' kids, but then when he went back in t' save one more, he collapsed because his lungs an' heart gave out on him. In hindsight, I at least take pride in the fact that he sacrificed his life t' give those kids a chance t' keep livin' theirs. Even in death, my dad was the hero I aspire t' be," the soldier confessed, trying to hold back his tears. "I just wish my mom was still here t' see how I'm makin' that aspiration come true."

"You… lost her, too?" Shantae asked, choking up with empathetic sadness.

"Yeah… With my father gone, all the stress fell on her. She worked harder, was gone for longer hours because she had multiple jobs, an' saw less time for herself. Meanwhile, I was still cuttin' up on the streets, doin' the same thing I always did, except with more anger in my heart than ever. It wasn't fair that my dad was gone. It wasn't fair that my mom had t' work so hard t' pick up his weight in responsibility… but it also wasn't fair that I didn't take responsibility like my dad would've. Eventually, my mom wound up in a hospital from stress-related illnesses, where she saw her final days. I lost her just a year after I lost my dad… just a year," he somberly ruminated, shaking his head as he stared into the deep, effervescent blue waters of the ocean. "I still blame myself…" he admitted, shining streaks of moonlit tears running down his cheeks as he struggled to keep himself together. "Maybe if I'd have shaped up, started actually helpin' out around the house, got a job, done SOMETHING actually beneficial t' take a load off her rather than run the streets like some two-bit thug with a misplaced grudge… I could've at least kept her alive…"

"…You've had a very rough life, huh?" Shantae found the courage to ask, unsure of how to address the man's grief as she tried unsuccessfully to choke back her own tears. "If it means anything, I… I don't think you should feel like you're to blame… for what happened. I don't quite know how to say it, so I guess I'll just say it; your situation was out of your control. At least, with your parents. I'm sure they gave it all they had… and that even with what you were going through when you lost them… they knew… and you knew… that you were sticking together like a family should."

"Yeah…" he nodded, appreciating her observation as he wiped his face clean of his overwhelming grief. "You're right… but hey, it ain't all bad," he perked up slightly as his newly-acquainted friend removed her hand from his back. "I learned somethin' after that. I learned that I couldn't rely on selfish, short-sighted ways of copin' with my situation. I also learned that if I was gonna be the hero my parents motivated me t' be, then I would have t' clean up my act and strive for somethin' better. I was an orphan just about as soon as I became a teenager, but I at least had good neighbors who took the mantle as my guardians. I made absolutely sure not t' repeat the same mistakes again."

"Wow. Quite the lessons to learn from such a tragic experience…"

"Yeah… I still got bullied a bunch for various reasons over the next few years an' I still found ways t' get in trouble, but all that did was motivate me t' be stronger… smarter… more independent an' reliable. I took up martial arts an' worked harder than ever in school t' make up for lost time. I also did a ton of sports an' volunteer work t' build a useful career path an' give me both physical and mental strength. I gave up hangin' around the streets in the wake o' takin' my situation seriously. I had t' give up all the 'friends' I made while I made the transition, of course. I can only hope they understood why…"

"What a turnaround…"

"You got that right. Eventually, I enlisted in my country's military as soon as I was old enough. It was my ultimate opportunity t' be a hero; if not for the world, then at least for the community where I grew up. I was pumped. I was motivated. I still am," he trailed off with a chuckle. "Buuuut then this situation happened, an' now I'm in a whole different world with nothin' but the clothes in your house an' no idea where I am, talkin' to an' sharin' a bath with a genie, and wonderin' just how an' why my life led me here."

"Well if it's any consolation, Tay, then I have an idea of what you've been struggling with… Finding your place in the world when you're just about the only person of your kind that you know of, having to lose both your parents at a young age with little idea of how or why it happened, dealing with other people giving you the wrong idea about yourself… and through it all, still trying to be the one everyone looks up to despite your own personal doubts… It's hard."

"You got that right, Shantae… If it's okay, mind if I ask—?"

"How I came to be? I don't have that many answers myself, to be honest" she admitted as she set her wash cloth down and reached for her brush. "In a way, I feel like I'm still figuring myself out. Buuut, if I had to start somewhere… then I guess I'll start with this: My father was human and my mother is a genie. I don't know what happened to my dad. I don't even know if he's alive or gone, though I have reason to believe the latter... My mother, so far as I'm aware, is in the Genie Realm helping protect us from much bigger threats than the ones my friends and I deal with here. She's been there since a short time after I was born. I've never laid eyes on her at any point that I could remember… I only know she's alive because she checks on me occasionally. Other than that… sometimes, it almost feels like she isn't alive when I haven't gotten a chance to meet her in person, but have other people simply tell me about her without the means of introducing me to her…" the young lady frowned in contemplative sadness.

"Hey now, at least she's still watchin' you, wherever she is. I'm sure she'll come here an' you'll meet her someday," Tay consoled, hoping she understood what it meant to still have a mother. "Havin' an absent, but livin', lovin' mom is better than… well, you know…" the soldier trailed off, momentarily diverting his gaze to the water below.

"You're right. It's selfish to say things like that… especially after what you told me. I'm sorry…" Shantae acknowledged, feeling guilty for her previous statement.

"Nah, I understand what you mean… But if you ain't grow up around your parents, who did you grow up under?"

"I spent my whole life in the care of my Uncle Mimic, a scientist and retired Relic Hunter who's just as lovable as he is goofy. I also grew up alongside my friends Sky and Bolo, who helped me become the person I am today. Without them, I'd be totally lost…"

"Are they still around, at least?"

"Yeah! When we visit Scuttle Town tomorrow, I'll introduce you!"

"Sounds like a plan. How did you find out you was part genie, anyway?"

"Good question. I can't even remember the year it happened, I was so young. All I remember was that pretty soon, maybe a year or two after I learned to walk, I learned to dance. One day, I was in the jungle with Uncle Mimic, dancing freely to a tune in my head that I always heard when I felt inspired by something, and as I was really getting into it, I saw a monkey climbing a tree. It filled me with wonder seeing the furry little thing minding its own business, swinging and leaping from tree branch to tree branch… As soon as the thought crossed my mind, I transformed," Shantae giggled with reminiscent amusement. "I scared my uncle half to death when he saw the little girl he brought with him replaced by a black-furred, brown-eyed baby monkey wearing his niece's jewelry."

"Heheh, I'd probably panic, too," Tay admitted, sharing the humor, though he became curious.

"Yeah… Since then, I discovered that belly dancing is the key to harnessing my magic. Here, I'll even show you…" the young maiden offered as she stood up, faced her guest, raised her arms to stretch out from her sides, and began rhythmically wiggling her hips. Tayshan immediately found himself mesmerized as he felt the atmosphere envelop with an arcane, yet calming aura. He swore he could hear a disembodied rhythm that sounded like someone's heartbeat.

He watched as Shantae danced, her skin glistening in the moonlight, her long silky locks swinging almost in tandem with her hips as she focused. She closed her eyes and smiled warmly as she continued her hypnotic belly dance, clasping her hands together as she continued sashaying her hips like a pendulum. She seemed to find a sense of comfort in her dance, so far as the energy in the air was to be considered. To Tayshan, there had hardly been a more enchanting sight than a gorgeous young woman dancing in the night, emanating vibes of lighthearted, carefree purity in letting her own internal rhythm carry her away. Of course, he was aware she was only doing it to demonstrate her magic ability, so he avoided getting the wrong idea. Before he was entirely hypnotized by Shantae's dance, however…

"Transform!" she announced. In an instant and a puff of pink smoke, Shantae's slender humanoid form was replaced by that of a tiny purple, blue-eyed monkey. To say the young man was flabbergasted would have been an understatement. He stared in total awe, his mouth so wide open, one might have been able to fit a beach ball inside.

"Get outta here…!"

"Pretty cool, right?" the miniature monkey beamed with delight before poofing back into her human form. "I can transform into a variety of other animals too, such as an elephant, spider, crab, bat, and even a mermaid. These transformations have helped me on most of my adventures since I became guardian genie."

"Wow… Uh, I… I-I don't have words for… Just… wow." The astonished young man could hardly formulate a coherent sentence, he was so astounded. Shantae smiled cutely at his speechlessness.

"Yeah, it's neat as it is useful for a variety of things."

"I'd bet it is… Though… didn't you say when you first turned into a monkey, your fur an' eyes were different colors? I saw purple fur an' blue eyes."

"Yes. Oh, right!" She exclaimed, having remembered something. "My hair used to be black and my eyes used to be brown. My monkey transformation is the one that best reflects my hair and eye traits."

"Really now?" Tay remarked in wonder yet again, though he had an idea of how such a drastic pigment alteration in hair and eye color could be achieved. "What, did you dye your hair an' start wearin' blue contact lenses?"

"Nope," she denied with a smiling shake of her head. "My hair is naturally royal purple now. All the way down to the roots. I… don't know what a 'contact lens' is, but I'm guessing that has to do with my eyes. My eyes are naturally blue now, too."

"Seriously? But… How?"

"I'm not sure…" Shantae pondered as she cupped her chin with her hand and looked upward in thought before turning her attention back to Tay. "Come to think of it, it happened pretty suddenly. Pretty soon after I discovered my Monkey transformation dance, I started finding out all sorts of other powers I had. Almost like it happened overnight, I looked in a mirror one day and boom! My hair turned purple and my eyes turned blue."

"Wow…"

"If you think you're surprised, try imagining how I felt," she laughingly suggested. "I totally panicked because I thought I was turning into a monster at first. Uncle Mimic thought the same and almost jumped out of his boots again when he saw me. You can probably guess I've thrown him for a lot of loops when I was younger."

"Heh, I wouldn't doubt it. As many changes as you went through, I probably wouldn't recognize you after a certain point. I gotta admit though, you'd make for one cute monster. The purple hair an' blue eyes look good on ya," he complimented with a much-needed chuckle.

"Aw, thanks, Tay! I appreciate that! But it wasn't always fun in the sun… or the moon, in this case," Shantae's smile faded as she sat back down and cast her gaze upon the crashing waves. "I was made fun of quite a lot for my appearance and powers when I was little…" Her companion couldn't believe it. Who would be anything but amazed at such unique and marvelous talent? What's more, who would possibly make fun of someone so beautiful? He felt all but compelled to ask her about it.

"People made fun of you? I can't imagine… That transformation was the most incredible thing I've ever seen."

"Glad you think so," she acknowledged, though she was still staring intently at the rushing waters below, contemplating her comfort with opening up to someone she barely knew about her own insecurities.

"And what's wrong with your appearance that people would have a problem with you?"

"My ears, for one thing… If you didn't notice, they're quite pointy. Other kids didn't know at the time what a genie was, so they didn't really understand that genies were born with pointed ears. They called me names, didn't let me play with them, and generally didn't want much to do with me. Even after they heard about what I was, they found new reasons to not include me, which leads into the other reason other people didn't like me."

"They… they didn't like you because you're half genie?"

"Yeah… They said I'd use magic to cheat at games or scare them away with curses and spells that would turn them into slugs…" the half-genie maiden's face echoed her sadness to her friend. "I used to get pushed around a bunch too, being asked to use my magic to pull pranks or to give someone an advantage. They'd hurt me if I said no, and it didn't help that I really wanted to fit in…"

"Shantae…"

"They made me hate myself for being different… For having my powers at all… for… for existing as anything other than human…" she lamented, her eyes watering up as she recalled her painful memories. "I still don't know why… For some reason, even adults here didn't like genies at all. They'd just stare at me or walk away from me in a hurry like I was planning to hurt them… I couldn't understand…" she further admitted, her tears beginning to streak down her face as she turned toward Tay, the reminiscent hurt in her eyes clear as the night sky.

"How… unbelievably disgusting…!" the appalled soldier uttered through clenched teeth and fists as he imagined the sort of discrimination his friend had endured in her childhood. He felt his own eyes welling up again in empathetic sadness. He felt bad for her. However, he tempered himself with a deep breath before he offered a reply. "I… know where you're comin' from, though… The sort o' prejudice you dealt with is somethin' nobody deserves to go through. It's horrible… It makes you feel like so much less than a person that you wonder why you were given the life you have… One where no one likes you, but when you ask why, they can't give you a reason that makes any sense at all, but still choose t' treat you worse than the dirt under their shoes."

"You know what it's like? For people to dislike you for seemingly no reason?"

"Absolutely, I do," he nodded. "To most o' the world I'm from, I was nothin' but an impoverished street thug with dark ambitions, an even darker future, and a tombstone with my name on it before I enlisted. One glimpse at me back then, an' anybody outside my neighborhood instantly thought I was out t' cause some kind o' harm to 'em or stir up trouble."

"Wow…"

"Yeah… they called me all sorts o' names too," he admitted. "'Ragamuffin' this, 'hood rat' that, 'street urchin' the third… But the worst thing anyone has ever called me… was a 'lost cause.'"

"Lost cause?" Shantae repeated, feeling a vicarious sting in her heart.

"Yeah. As in, I was expected t' be a failure with nothin' in my future but an early grave or a jail cell specially reserved for me t' stay in for the rest o' my life. Even after I committed t' changin' for the better, people had zero faith in my ability t' do so. They were too caught up in their opinions of me t' ever really change their minds. If I was up, I was 'just lucky.' If I was down, almost nobody would lend a hand. Instead, they either watched me struggle or they'd tell me it was no one's fault but my own."

"Tayshan… I'm… I'm so sorry that happened to you…"

"Don't be. It might've made me upset at first, but… in the long run, all it really did was motivate me t' prove them wrong; t' show them that I COULD accomplish great things. I wanted t' be a shinin' example o' the possibility t' evolve past all obstacles. That said, how'd you manage t' push through all the negativity?"

"Well… I almost didn't. For a while, I believed what people were saying about me. I didn't understand what their issues with me were, but I figured back then that, if this many people had a problem with me, then I must've been bad… What's worse, I was all alone…"

"Darn… That's really rough, Shantae… I kinda wish we knew each other as kids now… I would've had your back no matter what."

"I'd bet," she agreed, perking up a bit as she cast her gaze upon the starry night sky. "I feel like I'd be able to trust you as my friend. Speaking of which, I thankfully became friends with Sky and Bolo. At the time, they were the only two aside from my uncle that accepted me for who I was, in addition to what I am. They stood up for me when I was being picked on and took a genuine interest in me as a person. I couldn't have been more grateful to find friends like them."

"Glad t' hear you had people who cared about you."

"Yeah! I'm thankful for having them. They've been there for me basically my whole life. Once I made friends with them, I gained a sense of hope that things would get better. But then one day, I had a dream… A dream where I was in a whole different world all on my own… I couldn't describe what my surroundings looked like, but I heard a strangely-familiar voice call out to me. I can't remember much of what the voice said, but it was along the lines of… 'You are special… You are wonderful… You are loved… You are destined to be great…' I had that dream every once in a blue moon, but every time I did, I always woke up with the brightest smile on my face," she confessed as she turned her attention back to her companion, her eyes wavering like the ocean beneath them, but with a wan smile on her face.

"Goodness… How profound…"

"The dreams and the support I got from my friends and uncle helped me carry on through every day with my head up high. Eventually, I accepted myself as a half-genie... well, sort of. I was at least no longer afraid or ashamed to use my powers, so long as I used them to help people. One day, I decided to help people in the best way I could with these unique abilities of mine. As though I was drawn to it, I set up camp here in this lighthouse and told Mayor Scuttlebutt that I would protect this town with my life. That's how I became guardian genie of Scuttle Town and so much more as a result… Though even to this day, I kinda struggle with how worthy I feel I am for the job. I'm still… a little bit unsure of myself, if I'm gonna just put it out there…" Tay was struck with a mix of secondhand despondency and amazement.

"Wow… You've had it pretty hard too, huh?"

"Yeah, but I'd like to think I'm pulling through," she responded, drawing closer to him as she turned her gaze toward the lunar crescent hovering above. His stare followed hers as the two glued their eyes to the luminescent shape that graced the atmosphere with a somber, yet soothing glow.

"Absolutely, you are. You came so far an' accomplished so much. It's good t' see that you grew up in good company, discovered your powers, pushed past all the naysayers, an' become protector to at LEAST an entire town that you saved from disaster more than once. It's amazin'. Don't sell yourself short."

"Sell myself short?" she asked, wanting him to elaborate.

"I understand where you're comin' from, strugglin' with your self-confidence, and to that, I say keep your head up high, even when there's doubts in your mind. The more determined you are t' do good in the world, the deeper that people—yourself included—will feel the impact. And y'know what? For what it's worth, you're the most beautiful girl I've ever met in… well, both the worlds I've existed in," he complimented, though unaware of the impact of his words. He was indeed aware that the only women he'd met in this world to this point were Risky Boots and Shantae, in that order. However, he had a hunch that, based on the half-genie's words about her species being scarce in population, he may not have been wrong. He also acknowledged that Shantae bore a much more… welcoming and approachable appearance and outlook on life than Risky Boots did.

As though she'd been given a special surprise birthday gift, Shantae's heart skipped a beat as she found herself sitting directly beside him, a luminous blushing grin on her face as she locked her eyes on him. She was entirely grateful for his kind statement, but was simultaneously at a loss for words. No one had ever said anything quite so nice to her before and been so forward and certain with it. This new friend of hers certainly had a powerful way with words. She gained a deep sense of an inexplicable appreciation for Tay in that moment.

"You… you sure know how to make a girl feel good about herself, Tay… Th-thank you so much…" she lauded, causing him to direct his full attention to her to finally notice she had scooted right next to him. He was alarmed, but understood that Shantae was expressing her gratitude for him listening to her. Inexperienced and uncertain of what to do, however, he merely patted Shantae on the back; a gesture that she appreciated greatly despite its awkwardness. She returned the favor by patting him on the back while his hand remained gently pressed to hers. "…And you know, just like how I'm pulling through, I can tell you are, too."

"You think so?"

"Yeah," she assured, scooting slightly closer so there was minimal space between them. "It takes a really strong person to still want to do the right thing after going through as much as you did. It's a tough situation to deal with, no matter how you look at it. For what it's worth… I'm glad to see you're aiming to do the right thing, Tayshan. I know we still barely know each other and all, but I already respect you deeply…" the now-contented young girl admitted, shooting the interdimensional traveler a most pleasant, disarming smile he couldn't help but return.

"Heh, I appreciate that," he voiced his gratitude with a nod, allowing the sound of the soft, whispery winds of the night to fill the air as they gazed at one another for a few emotionally-bonding seconds before he spoke again. "This was a good talk," he stated as he gathered his bathing equipment, having long since finished his bath, though he hadn't yet moved from his seated position. He almost didn't want to after having his companion sitting so close to him. The nippiness of the cool midnight breeze was making him shiver slightly. Though cold, he also felt an unexplainably-comforting warmth coming from his companion that made him scoot ever-so-slightly toward her, to the point where their legs made contact.

"Absolutely…" Shantae agreed as she began washing suds out of her hair by running her damp cloth through it, being careful not to wet her friend. "Thanks for sharing your experiences with me. And thanks again for listening to mine. It's not often I get to talk to someone who understands me."

"Likewise. Plus, it helps ease my nerves t' get t' know someone in this world. I'm especially glad it's you," he confessed, though he found himself curious about his mysterious interstellar friend. "Say, you sound like you got a lot of experience under your belt. How old are you, if you don't mind me askin'?"

"I'm sixteen," she casually shared, blowing him away.

"Sixteen!? Wow…! The kind o' stuff you shared with me, I thought you was at least twenty."

"No, no!" she laughingly denied. "Really, I'm sixteen. As a matter of fact, the year I was born was the year all the genies left for the Genie Realm, or what we in this world call the Genie Flight… if that gives you any clues."

"Heh, would you be surprised if it didn't?"

"I guess not," the half-genie acknowledged with another small giggle. "Is it safe to say that time is measured differently in your world, too?"

"Depends… We measure by seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years. Not that it would make sense t' you, but to give you an example, today was supposed to be September 13th. I was probably dragged here at about… a little bit past 5:00 PM if I remember right. Anything different about how you measure time here?"

"No, actually!" she uttered in surprise as she turned her attention to him, coming to a sudden halt on washing her soapy hair. "Your measurements are exactly the same! It's even September 13th today! Of course, it's way past 11:00 PM at this point, but from the sound of it, time passed by exactly the same for both our worlds! Although… What year was it in your world?"

"Oh! Right, I forgot t' mention. It was 1564 I.M.E."

"I.M.E.?"

"In the Modern Era, is what that stands for," Tay explained, revealing his measurement of the time at which he'd encountered Risky Boots. "There was some event some time before I.M.E. started, so far as the history books on my planet said, that was so cataclysmic that it wiped out most of the planet's population. Those who survived, for some reason, had no memory of what year it was, though they could remember the day, time, and month. With not another clue on how to figure out what year it was in the aftermath of the mysterious event, that very day was marked as the beginnin' o' the modern era… even though it wasn't January 1st when they marked it, so they had to kinda play around with the national holiday. Suffice to say, New Year's Day in my world can vary, depending on what you grew up learnin', though January 1st is still observed as the start of a new year."

"Whoa… Do you know what happened?" Shantae queried with utmost intrigue in Tayshan's tale.

"No. No one does, really. Most, if not all traces of life before that period are just speculation. Many different signs of life before the Modern Era began in my world were lost to the sands o' time in one way or another. I'm no history buff myself, either, so that's just about all the info I have…"

"Wow, Tay… I'm just so curious about the world you came from. How could it be so similar in some ways, but so different in others?"

"If only, if only I had an answer… By the way, what year is it here?"

"The year here is 16 P.G.F." she answered with certainty.

"P.G.F.?"

"Post-Genie Flight," Shantae filled in the blank, finally unveiling the measurement of years in Sequin Land. "It's been a whopping sixteen years since I was born and the same whopping sixteen years since all the genies disappeared to the Genie Realm to protect this world from outside threats."

"Wow…"

"Yeah… I don't know all the details myself, so I'm right there with you in not having all the answers. Anyway, how about you, Tay? How old are you?"

"I just turned nineteen a couple months ago, believe it or not," he answered. Shantae eyed him up and down to examine him, taking note of his almost child-like facial features save for the stubble around his lips and chin that formed a very light, fuzzy goatee. She took note of the young man's lean, yet chiseled bodily frame. From what she saw, she surmised that Tay was indeed young, but not quite as young as she'd thought. Her extensive stare-down of an observation, of course caused him to raise an eyebrow in perplexity. "…What?"

"Hmm, I can see that. I will admit, though, I thought you were younger. Maybe closer to my age," she assessed as she finished up washing her hair. "You've got a young face, despite your goatee."

"Hm. Fair enough," he simply replied, wrapping himself in the towel as he waited for Shantae to rinse her hair and wring it dry. "So… how do you suppose we go about startin' the search for Risky Boots?"

"We'll have to see about that tomorrow," she answered as she gathered up her equipment and wrapped herself in her own towel. "For now, let's rest. As soon as morning hits, we'll figure it out. I at least have an idea or two of who might be able to help us."

"Duly noted," he agreed as the two intergalactic allies made their way back to the lighthouse to rest and prepare for the coming trials headed their way. This marked the beginning of the next adventure of the half-genie hero and the first Sequinean expedition of the alien-ish soldier from another world… As they say, folks, let the games begin.


	3. Culture Shock & the Call of Duty

Chapter 3: Culture Shock & the Call of Duty

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN OUTSKIRTS, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 14TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1047 HOURS

The morning came swift as a thirsty hummingbird to a birdbath and, wasting little time, the two newly-acquainted interdimensional allies were well on their way to begin their mission. The sooner the proper measures were taken to ensure Sequin Land's safety, the better. To kick things off, the duo made their way toward the streets of Scuttle Town, as the first thing our extraterrestrial soldier wanted to do was familiarize himself with his surroundings. His half-genie tour guide, agreeing wholeheartedly, took the lead with gusto. A hop, skip, and jump from the lighthouse was all it took before they arrived.

"Welcome to Scuttle Town, Tay!" Shantae announced to her newest acquaintance, holding her hands out in front of her to formally introduce him to the port town she was routinely tasked with protecting. The sight beheld by the otherworldly serviceman was no less than breathtaking, as his eyes widened with an awestruck combination of intrigue and speechlessness. He silently took in the view of the concentrated jungle of cream-colored brick buildings, many of which bore onion domes colored either scarlet, cobalt, or magenta. He noticed the attire of many citizens, picking up that most of the men were dressed wearing jewel-endowed white turbans, vests of varying colors, cloud-white puffy pants with sashes across their waistlines, and slippers with pointed-up tips. He briefly glanced at a few of the attractive, caramel-toned female residents and noted their brightly-colored, form-fitting saris of seemingly every color under this world's sun. Some of them wore veils and hijabs, while others had their luxurious, silk-like hair, ranging from ebony to royal purple to ocean blue to even snow white in color, neatly styled into buns or extravagant updos. Children wearing miniature versions of outfits worn by their adult counterparts freely frolicked in the sandy cobblestone streets. The calm, crystal-clear waves of the ocean could be seen crashing against the mineral-rich soils of the coast as the all-encompassing scent of saltwater wafted through the crisp, chilly open air.

"Wow…" he murmured, astonished by the lively, bustling civilization surrounding him. "This is… just… unbelievable…"

"It's a nice place, isn't it?" the half-genie proudly asked, taking Tayshan's speechlessness as pure amazement.

"N-no doubt… but what gets me most about this place is… is that, except for a few key differences, it looks JUST LIKE certain places back in my world," he revealed, catching his new partner by complete surprise.

"R-really?" Shantae asked, now just as taken aback as her extraterrestrial friend.

"Yeah…" he affirmed with a bewildered scratch of his head. "This place STRONGLY reminds me of a city in a country in my world that neighbors the one I'm from. The resemblance is uncanny…!"

"Whoa, no way… You've gotta tell me more, Tay! If I wasn't curious before, I totally am now! Do you think maybe your world is more like this one than you did at first?"

"I… I can't say for sure right now. I'll… need t' take a few more mental notes before we get t' that point."

"True… Alright then, let's get going!" the young woman eagerly suggested as she took the initiative to begin their tour. Tay, needing no further prompt, walked beside her as he scanned his surroundings in total amazement. They silently wandered around the city almost as if they were moving in slow-motion, with Shantae leading Tayshan through the scenic routes to maximize his exposure. As the two scoured the vicinity of Scuttle Town's busy streets, Tay voraciously took note of every nook, cranny, decorated cluster of golden vases, merchant shop with names spelled out in characters of a different language, two-story building, and open path they came across. He found himself almost completely culture shocked, but in a way he could never have expected.

"How… is this possible…?" he murmured, becoming steadily more blown away with each passing landmark. "It's all so… familiar, but… so foreign at the exact same time…"

"Familiar and unfamiliar? How so?" Shantae prompted, practically itching to hear his answer.

"The more I see, the more it looks EXACTLY like that city I mentioned. Almost to a T, but minus certain bits o' technology an' the details about the way the buildings look."

"What kinds of technology do you mean? What details about the buildings are different? How much alike are Scuttle Town and this place in your world? Come on, Tay, don't leave a girl hanging! Talk to me!" Shantae eagerly prodded her guest, her imagination running wild at the possibilities presented by his flabbergasted observations.

"I wouldn't even know where t' begin tellin' you, Shantae… I really wouldn't," he confessed, shaking his head as he gawked at her. "All I can say is that this is just the most bizarre thing in the world, but it keeps gettin' more bizarre with every passin' second. If it wasn't for what we talked about last night an' certain things I'm seein' here an' now, I would SWEAR I was still in my world… but because of what I'm seein', it's almost… like travelin' int' the past… except I've already seen things here that I didn't think would ever exist in the past in my world… Shoot, one o' said things brought me here…" At that, Shantae stopped dead in her tracks and turned her full attention to him.

"The PAST?" the young woman nearly shouted, the endless ambiguity of her friend's vague, thunderstruck revelations nearly driving her mad with intense curiosity. "Are you saying you think you might be from the future, Tayshan?"

"I don't know…" he shrugged, scratching his head some more as he pondered the outrageous possibility of time travel. "We definitely don't have time machines or portals in my world, nor do we have… just about anything related t' that pirate girl… or you, at all. Otherwise, I'd be willin' t' bet our worlds would've collided ages ago."

"That's… true enough, I guess…" Shantae pondered alongside him as they continued their ostensibly-aimless trek. "I mean, I wouldn't know about any other dimensions than the Genie Realm, but that realm is supposed to be totally inaccessible to anyone who isn't at least part genie… and you're sure you're not a genie at all?"

"As sure as I am surprised our names sound the same, amongst other things," he nodded. "I don't have one magic bone in my body."

"Goodness gracious, I can't wrap my head around it either…" the two went silent, pondering just what kind of ludicrous, unfathomable, reality-tearing monkeyshines Risky Boots must've perpetrated to gain access to Tayshan's home planet… or universe… o-or timeline… Gosh, even I don't know, and I'm supposed to know everything about what's going on here…

Don't give me that look, reader. I know what you're going to say, and to that, I say shut your face, sit tight, and keep studying. I'm sure some answers will pop up at SOME point or another.

"Just thinkin' about it makes my head hurt," Tayshan remarked, rubbing his temple to eliminate the chance of getting a headache big enough that he may have burst a blood vessel from the confusion alone. "I'm not sure what t' make o' this, so… shoot, I'll just suspend my disbelief an' let the answers come t' me for now."

"Yeah, that sounds like a better idea than trying to grasp at straws about exactly where Risky dragged you from…" she agreed, her head about ready to spin like a disco ball. "I mean, I'd LOVE to know what happened or how it was possible to bring you here, but… the only one who can really answer that is Risky Boots. We'll have to track her down and get her to talk. For now, though, let's keep going with our tour."

"Right. So, not t' get off-topic, but what kinds o' things do you do when you're not savin' the world?" Tay asked his companion as they reeled in their perplexity about the nature of Tay's fantastic voyage into Sequin Land.

"Good question. Well…" Shantae began, taking a moment to think. "As you might guess, belly dancing is my all-time favorite hobby."

"I figured as much," he acknowledged, tilting his head. "I don't know much other than what you showed me, but you seem really good at it. Plus, you seem t' really like dressin' for the occasion. Ever think about goin' pro?" he asked, causing his friend to shoot him a puzzled look.

"I'm surprised you haven't guessed by now, but I already am a professional dancer," she answered with a raised eyebrow.

"Well shut my mouth wide open an' call me a fool…!" Tay remarked in even more surprise. Seriously, any more surprise out of him, and he'd have started spoiling children's birthday parties simply by being within ten miles of them. "I must really be trippin'…"

"It's alright, Tay. It isn't like I flat-out told you, and you're not even from this… uh, existence, so it's unfair to just assume you'd know."

"Right, right… So, if you're a professional, then how do you balance that with bein' a hero?" the serviceman inquired, growing increasingly interested in his partner and her background.

"Well… These days, it's mostly, if not all hero time, with basically no room or time for belly dancing on-stage. Trust me, if it wasn't for my job as guardian genie, I would focus all my attention on it," she assured him. "I'd probably be traveling all over the land, doing shows and loving every second of it. Y'know, there actually used to be a belly dance parlor here in Scuttle Town. I used to go there all the time and perform all kinds of shows for the people every night."

"Ya don't say…?"

"Yup! I used to get paid a fortune for handling the REALLY tough crowds on some nights, where I would go on without even being scheduled. I'm telling you, I used to make a ton of money off of it, much of which I would use to buy supplies I needed to complete my first big adventure through Sequin Land."

"Oh yeah? Sounds like it was your bread an' butter as a job, if you're serious about how much money you made. What happened to it?"

"I… can't say for sure, but… I think it had something to do with the Dance Parlor Lady finding it too difficult to work in these parts."

"Difficult how? If you were doin' your thing, I'd imagine business would be boomin'."

"I… I think that's just it," Shantae divulged with a tinge of pensiveness. "Business WAS booming… but it got to a point where it was only booming when I performed shows and only I was getting paid to do them."

"Aw, I think I know what you're about t' say…" he forewarned with a tap of his index finger to his forehead.

"Hm? What am I about to say?" Shantae dared to ask, curious about the serviceman's prediction.

"You're about t' say that the other dancers couldn't compete with you, nobody would attend if you weren't on the stage after a certain point, an' that the Parlor Lady got mad an' blamed you for the discrepancy in revenue generated for the studio, so at some later point, she closed up shop an' moved away because you alone were overqualified an' too much competition t' be an asset t' her team. Also, you're gonna say that since the parlor closed down and/or relocated, makin' extra money's been rough on you like you mentioned last night?"

"Actually… Yes! A hundred and ten percent yes!" Shantae confirmed, totally blown back by Tay's intensely-detailed observation. She could only find herself awestricken at his insane deductive reasoning. "That's the second time you did that! How'd you know!?"

"I… have my own talents with makin' educated guesses based on the context," the young man answered nonchalantly.

"Hmm…" Shantae wondered, eyeing the soldier up and down. Evidently, Tay's response sparked some level of suspicion in her. "…or maybe you really ARE from the future, and you know all this already, but you're pretending you don't know anything to avoid messing up the space-time continuum a la 'Butterfly Effect' since you probably weren't even supposed to be speaking with me right now…"

"…Huh?" he asked, thrown off by Shantae's sudden bout of theorizing the circumstances of her partner's impossibly-accurate sense of foresight.

"Or maybe nothing you do in this era affects the original timeline because this is basically a separate one caused by your arrival here, so you're just using your future knowledge from that timeline to mess with me…?" she continued to poke for answers.

"…Somebody's really into sci-fi…" Tay mumbled, raising an eyebrow, though Shantae heard him and gasped in shock.

"I AM into sci-fi! You HAVE to be from the future to know that about me, because not even my best friends or my uncle know! Alright, cough it up, Tayshan! What's the future like, and why are you messing with me!?" she accused, suddenly wary of her presumed time-traveling comrade as she stood in front of him, again stopping their tour.

"No, my explanation of what happened t' your dance parlor was actually just a wild guess," he apprehensively assured, his eyes darting around the vicinity of the town as he acknowledged her accusation. "A detailed one, yeah, but that's all it was. I only know you're into sci-fi now because you just told me. That was supposed t' be a joke."

"Uh-huh…"

"Trust me, if I was from the future an' knew it, I'd have certainly told you by now. If anything, I'd probably be here t' try an' stop a major foretold catastrophe from happening if I knowingly traveled into the past from a future where the event already happened… which would be useless, because it'd either start a causal loop where I'd be repeatedly goin' back in time t' stop somethin' only for it t' cause me t' keep goin' back in time over an' over again… or it'd defeat the purpose of me comin' t' the past because it either wouldn't affect the original timeline leadin' to the catastrophe or I'd wind up completely forgettin' why I came here once the job was done," he reasoned, evidently as much into sci-fi as his half-genie companion. "That, or I'd just cease to exist right on the spot. Worst-case scenario, my interference would actually CAUSE the catastrophe to happen."

"…If you say so, Tay… If you say so…" she commented with a suspicious look in her eyes as she leered at her apparently-psychic friend. "You know an awful lot about time travel to not be a time traveler yourself… All the way down to the Bootstrap, Butterfly, Grandfather, and Self-Fulfilling Prophecy paradoxes… and even a little about Multiple Timeline Theory…"

"What can I say? I am also into sci-fi. We should totally be friends or something, so we can talk about time travel more. Still, you don't gotta believe me if you don't want, but I'll have you know that the last thing you could ever call me is a liar," he dismissed with a casual shrug.

"Hmm… Fair enough, I suppose," she ceded with a scratch of her head. "I guess I shouldn't jump to conclusions. Sorry, Tay."

"Ah, it's fine. I'd have probably done the same thing if the roles were reversed. Anyway, what else do you do for fun?"

"Well, besides my top hobby of belly dancing, I like to read comics. Like, I REALLY like to read comics. Sci-fi comics are among my most favorite, but you kinda-sorta knew that already. I'll stay up all night on some days if I know I won't be busy the next morning. I have a huge collection of comics of all kinds of genres back at my house. It's… something of a guilty pleasure, if I can admit that to you…" she sheepishly confessed, causing her friend to raise an eyebrow in intrigue.

"Huh… I didn't even know comics would be a thing here, but alright," he observed with an approving nod. "You're an aficionado of sorts, I'm guessin'?"

"Yeah! I've got entire series' worth of comics in my room. I'd ask if you were interested yourself, but… you probably wouldn't know any of the titles, all things considered."

"Enlighten me a bit, why don't you? I mean, after you tell me more about your other hobbies," he humbly requested, containing his excitement about her nerdy comic book habit.

"Sure thing! So… Other than that, I go to the beach when the weather permits… I also play sports, exercise, practice martial arts, and go spelunking; if not for extra money, then just to keep my exploration skills sharp. I also like to sing from time to time, though I've never sung in front of a crowd. On occasion, I do more mundane things like maybe casually take strolls around different areas of Sequin Land to sightsee or sometimes, I'll cook and practice recipes… though I'm still not terribly great at cooking just yet."

"Wow… So many things t' be invested in…"

"Yeah… I also like to stargaze on my rooftop on clear, moonlit nights and let my imagination take me away. It's really relaxing; especially after a hard, stressful day. Sometimes, I'll lounge and soak up some rays during the day. One more thing I really enjoy is fashion, though I haven't had much time for that. When I do get time, I occasionally model a couple of new outfits or even a bikini for clothing stores around Sequin Land, though that's usually only if they need me. I get paid for that sometimes, too. It's rare that that ever happens, though. And… sometimes, I hang out with my friend Rottytops. We'll go on the occasional camping trip, but we mostly just spend time trading beauty secrets, gossip stories, and comics, amongst other things. Those are just a few interests I have."

"You've got a lot o' hobbies. Though, from the seems of it, I can see you're quite the tomboy," Tay mused, though Shantae was none too receptive to his comment. She scowled at him in resentment.

"Don't call me that," she rebuffed with unexpected annoyance. "I just happen to like things that I guess most girls don't. It's irritating to be labeled things like that for my personal interests."

"Oh. Noted. My bad," Tay apologized, noticing he struck a nerve as he looked away from her. Shantae picked up on her friend's sudden discomfort and immediately regretted her remark.

"I-I'm sorry… That was rude of me," she apologized, not wanting to make a bad impression on the soldier.

"No, I get it. It's like if somebody called me 'sissy' because I like somethin' that guys don't usually take interest in," he reassured, taking a deep, contemplative breath.

"Kind of… Still, I didn't mean to be so short with you. There was no way you could've known. My reaction was uncalled for. I'm sorry."

"It's fine, Shantae. Really," Tay assured. At that, the half-genie shot him a disarming smile. "Still, you've got a lot o' things under your belt there. With that many hobbies, I can't imagine you'd ever be bored. Definitely always one way or another t' keep yourself occupied."

"Yeah, true. It's like, there's never enough time in any given day to enjoy everything, but at the same time, there's too much of it to do nothing, y'know?"

"Truer words could never have been spoken."

"Yeah. So, what do you like to do in your spare time?"

"I've got a few things, though I enjoy some more than others. In no particular order… I like intense exercise t' stay in shape, games, playin' sports, listenin' t' music, playin' instruments—the drums, specifically… I also like breakdancin', paintin', since art is a great way t' express yourself… Hmm… I like t' dabble in comics from time t' time too, though I don't doubt that your comics are way different from mine…" At this, Shantae's eyes glimmered with enthusiasm.

"So you ARE interested in comics! I just knew it!" she exclaimed, her fists balled up and tucked tightly toward her chest in excitement.

"Oh, really? You got me pegged like that already?"

"I guess I had a hunch you'd be the kind of guy who might know a thing or two about them. That hunch was made stronger by our little discussion about time travel."

"Well, nothin' t' say there except that your hunch is right. I have a few stacks neatly compiled on shelves back at my foster parents' house. Still, I only wonder what kinds o' things you have… I'm kinda itchin' t' find out, if I gotta admit it," he shared, grinning with unhindered enthusiasm.

"Maybe when there's time, I'll show you some! Like I said, I have a whole collection of them! All sorts of heroes I'll bet you'd enjoy."

"Shoot, you had me at 'collection.' I'd be glad t' see what comics you got. I'm a sucker for the gritty, plot-driven stuff, though. Maybe throw in a romantic side story t' keep me cravin' more, so long as it makes enough sense. I'm hooked if I like the story, generally."

"So am I!" the excitable young girl exclaimed with an elated gasp. "Wow, I can't wait until I get a chance to show you some of my favorites!" She beamed before reeling herself back in. "A-anyway, I'm getting carried away. What else do you like?"

"Uhh… I like practicin' martial arts, because, amongst other things, it teaches me t' think on my feet an' I LOVE learnin' new skills an' puttin' them to the test."

"I'm right with you there."

"I believe it. A kindred spirit, you are. I gotta admit, now that I think about it… Losin' t' that pirate girl the way I did… It really threw me for more loops than I could've expected. I never thought I'd ever go up against somebody like her in my life. She even said she wasn't even tryin' when we fought…" he confessed, casting his gaze toward the ground in pensive dejection. "Almost nothin' I tried worked on her, either…" he further admitted with a heavy sigh as he furrowed his brow and balled his fists. "…and the moves that did work, barely even put a dent in her. She floored me like a flimsy sandbag an' laughed in my face the whole way through."

"In your defense, Tay, Risky's monstrously strong," Shantae countered. "Don't be too upset about losing to her," she further consoled, understanding her friend's disappointment. "She's just about the strongest person in Sequin Land in both skill and in physical strength without contest. That's a huge part of what makes her so dangerous. Even now, fighting her is in the top three of the hardest things I've ever had to do in my life."

"That strong, huh?"

"Mm-hmm."

"But… you've beaten her. Multiple times, so far as you an' she mentioned. How'd you do it? Is your trainin' that intense? Do you have a secret technique? Special weapons of some kind that are especially effective on her?"

"Well… it helps that I'm half genie and that my Light Magic counters her Dark Magic. I should probably also chalk it up to the fact that we've fought so many times that I've gotten used to her tactics. Although, she does always find a way to keep me on my toes…"

"Fair enough. So, that said… you lost to her the first time you fought her, too?"

"No, I won. Granted, it wasn't easy, but yeah, I've won just about every battle we've gotten into. I will be honest, though… I MAY have gotten lucky once or twice. Don't tell her I said that, though."

"Hm. Your secret's safe with me. So, has she ever lost to anyone else?" he pressed, at this point eager to figure something out about how to take down the Pirate Queen.

"Umm… Her former boss, the Pirate Master. Buuuut, it was because he had total command of a heaping ton of Dark Magic and used it against her when she tried to stop him from taking over Sequin Land after he returned from the grave."

"Yikes… How strong was he?"

"…Let's just say it took the combined might of nearly every genie on the planet to even put the Pirate Master IN that grave in the first place. After that, most, if not all full-blooded genies disappeared into the Genie Realm, granting him a golden opportunity to eventually make his return. And, like I said last night, it took the combined might of me, Risky, my friends, and even some on-and-off enemies to take him down again. I only hope it stays that way this time…"

"Jeez… Me, too, in that case," Tay remarked, understandably disconcerted by the harrowing tale of Sequin Land's true worst enemy. "So, if he was her ex-boss, how's that relate t' how strong she is?"

"Under his rule, Risky was granted a HUGE chunk of his Dark Magic to control as her own, which she retained and built upon even after his destruction. It's one of the biggest reasons behind her increased strength, durability, and capacity to be totally evil," Shantae explained to give Tay some context about the notorious Queen of the Seven Seas.

"Got it… Let me rephrase my original query: Has she ever lost to anyone that was a full-fledged human with no magic abilities of any kind?"

"Oh! In that case… No," she plainly replied, unwittingly shooting down her friend's faith in his chances of triumphing over his newest adversary.

"Shoot… So basically, if I'm not packin' a huge reserve o' magic o' some kind, it's pretty much impossible t' win?"

"I… I don't know," she answered, uncertain of how to address the issue. "I've never seen it or heard of it happening, but that doesn't mean it's impossible for a normal human being to defeat Risky Boots. If I had to guess, I'd say it isn't implausible, but they'd probably need a LOT of help. Otherwise, it'd be pretty unlikely they'd win alone."

"Darn it…!" he cursed as Shantae's remark afflicted him with a great deal of frustration and worry. "How am I supposed t' get all those stolen guns back if I don't have a feasible shot of beatin' her?"

"You've at least got me on your side, Tay," Shantae consoled, patting him to ease his discomfort.

"…Y-yeah, I guess that helps," he uncertainly replied, unwilling to admit he took no comfort in her consolation. "Though, you've never lost t' her. You have every reason t' be confident. I'm tellin' you, of all the people I've ever fought, she's by far the toughest. Seriously, I've fought grown men twice my size, twice my age, an' twice as strong as me in the past. As in, either some combination of two o' those three things, or, on one or two occasions, all three at once. Yet, I managed to come out the winner on most occasions due t' some combination of technique, stamina, improvisation, experience, quick thinkin', an' even sheer willpower. That pirate girl has somethin' else about her, though… Maybe it IS the magic you mentioned, but… just from the blows I took from her and how she tanked everything I had t' give her… She's in a whole other league. It's insane for me to imagine…" Shantae, hearing her ally's dilemma, began to feel bad for him.

"Tay… I'm sorry… I'm probably not doing very much to help you keep calm about the battles ahead," she acknowledged, feeling his frustration as she rested a hand on his back. "I don't know if you're looking for a one-on-one rematch with her the next time we find her, but you'll totally get better in general if you keep yourself motivated as we take on the challenges of our adventure together. It's a huge part of how I got as strong as I am. Again, don't be so bummed about losing. I once heard that sometimes, there's more to gain from losing than winning, anyway."

"You speak the truth…" he nodded, gazing into the sky as he contemplated his defeat. "Frustratin' as that was—and still is—it was also a humblin' experience; a reminder that I have a ton more stuff t' learn. I have t' learn from that fight. You can guarantee I will, too."

"Yeah! We'll beat her together! Now that we're a team, we should have an easier time taking her down."

"I hope so…" he somberly replied, dejection and apprehension still evident in his tone.

"It'll be okay," she assured, patting his back to console him. "I know things look bleak right now, but trust me… We'll get your guns back or die trying. And I'm still kicking after X amount of fights with her without a partner, so…"

"Heh, thanks, Shantae. I… I trust an' believe."

"Of course! Anyway, let's talk about something else so we don't get so stressed out," the young woman politely suggested, wanting to keep herself and her new partner calm. "What other hobbies do you have?"

"Hmm… I like… practicin' with guns at a shootin' range, since it's part o' my job… Plus, it helps me take my mind off things, though it gets loud if you ain't wearin' earmuffs. I've built myself up t' be quite the marksman, believe it or not. If I had a gun, I'd demonstrate just how disciplined a sharpshooter I am."

"I'd love to see it! Maybe we can find you an old-fashioned blunderbuss or flintlock to use, if we're lucky."

"I ain't sure how or when that'll happen, but I'm hopin' it's sooner than later. I almost feel naked without my usual gun. Anyway, what else…? Oh! I can cook, too. Glad you mentioned that."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. I learned how to as a kid… By the time I was old enough t' use a stove, I was already makin' chicken, steak, an' even pasta dinners, as well as full-scale breakfast platters for my parents. At least, full-scale for poor people. Still, they taught me good. Don't even get me started on lunch, either… I could gush for days on what kinds o' things could be made for lunch," he proclaimed, a hungry smile creeping onto his face. "Juicy, succulent burgers, flavor-blasted chicken wraps with just a touch of all the right seasonings… fried rice with shrimp, scrambled eggs, peppers an' onions… Man, oh man, can I go on… You learn t' improvise when you're poor an' ingredients are scarce." Listening to Tay's verbal food binge made the half-genie's stomach rumble with desire as she visualized the food he described. Her hunger was matched only by her surprise.

"You learned all that a kid?" Shantae remarked, surprised by her friend's ability. "I didn't learn to cook until I was fourteen!"

"Heh, better late than never. Still, if you want, maybe I can show you a thing or two."

"That'd be awesome! I could use a few innovative ideas for what to make. Your ideas sound incredible! I'm getting hungry just thinking about them…"

"We'll plan for it. Anyway, I also like lookin' up at the stars on clear nights an' just lettin' the whispery, ambient winds carry me to another mental world as I sit back an' relax."

"Here I was, thinking I was the only one in this whole city who liked staring up into the sky at night… Isn't it the best when you just lay back and think about life as it seamlessly carries along, listening peacefully to the sounds of nature and the environment surrounding you like a bubble of tranquility while you docilely trace shapes and constellations in the sparkly reaches of deep space?"

"Heh, you could be a poet… But yeah, you hit the nail on the head with that one. For some reason, I really appreciate rainy days, too. You might not be able t' stare into the sky on account o' there bein' nothin' but clouds, rain, and maybe lightnin', but just… it's soothing, y'know? Listenin' t' the rain fall an' the rolls o' thunder, absorbin' the gloomy atmosphere an' comparin' it to a sunny day… even welcomin' the darkness it brings, though the sun still shines through. It's perfect weather for jus' bundlin' up an' chillin' at home with… with some hot cocoa an' a good comic book or somethin'."

"Hmm… I've always been more appreciative of sunny days. I DO see your point, though… Never thought about it that way," Shantae admitted, pondering her appreciation of rain and thunderstorms. The prospect of being at home in the rain never appealed to her until Tay described what ways a rainy day could be spent. "That actually sounds incredible, when you put it that way. You almost have me hoping it rains soon," she admitted with a chuckle, which Tay shared. "Anything else you like?"

"Believe it or not… fashion, gymnastics, and poetry. I'm no model or anything, but I do like t' pull off a fresh new outfit every so often; especially if I got a good pair o' shoes t' go with a color-coordinated shirt an' some stylish designer pants… I haven't had the time recently since I've been on active duty, but still… It feels good t' look good. Gymnastics is great for posture an' coordination. I don't care what anybody says, gymnastics ain't just for girls. It actually helps me with my martial arts an' breakdancin' hobbies, too. Adds that extra discipline factor. And poetry is… poetry to me is feelings bein' brought to life through unique structure, emotional investment, an' a most tasteful touch of eloquence…"

"Wow, your interest range is so diverse!" Shantae exclaimed, her fascination with him shining true.

"Diverse, huh? That's an interestin' word t' use. Is it maybe because o' the last three things I said?"

"Uhhhh…" Shantae trailed off, having been caught paying attention specifically to the hobbies she didn't expect him to list. "Maybe?"

"I thought so," he remarked with a smug grin. "Those in glass houses should not throw stones, they say."

"That's fair…" she conceded. "Though I do really like that you have such interesting hobbies. Some even line up with mine," she added, smiling brightly. "A bunch of them do, actually!"

"Yeah, that's true, ain't it?"

"Yeah! For someone who lives in another world, you and I surprisingly have a lot in common. I think that in itself is amazing. Are you sure you're not actually a parallel-universe counterpart to me, Tayshan?" she teasingly asked with a wink.

"Dunno, Shantae," he remarked with an amused grin, catching on quickly. "At this point, I'm startin' t' wonder about that myself. Come t' think of it, you DID say your hair an' eyes used t' be black an' brown, respectively… which, incidentally enough, are the same color my hair an' eyes are. Our skin tones are pretty spot-on, too… Strange, isn't it?" he jokingly queried, stroking his chin with his hand as he shot his comrade a goofy look. Shantae giggled, appreciating her friend's lighthearted observation.

"You're silly, Tay… Careful, though. For all we know, you might actually be right. Maybe your hair and eyes will turn purple and blue before you know it!" Shantae shot back with a cheerful giggle, finding a great deal of amusement in speculating about the possibility of her newest friend being an alternate, gender-swapped version of her. "Hey, maybe if you're here awhile, we could just… hang out? I mean, I know you didn't come here on purpose and your top priority is finding a way back home, but… I hope you can find it in you to take advantage of your time here."

"Sounds like a plan. Y'know, dependin' on the situation we have on our hands now," Tay agreed, though he soon realized something. "You're right about one thing, though; even though comin' here was far from the first thing I had planned, maybe I could try t' get a feel for Sequin Land while I'm here."

"Yeah, I think you'd like it here. It's pretty peaceful… most of the time. If there's anything you might want to do with me, just let me know!"

"Actually, I got an idea…" the serviceman pondered, rubbing his hand across his chin as he focused his attention on his comrade.

"What's that?"

"I wanna test your strength an' skills," the soldier stated, seeming eager to see what the half-genie had in store regarding physical prowess.

"…You're challenging me to a sparring match?"

"You guessed it. It's one thing t' be told that someone is strong. But actions speak louder than words. Plus, I think it's a good idea for us to keep our skills sharp." At that, she smirked at a thought and directed her gaze straight ahead as they continued to traverse through the town.

"Okay, we can do that when there's time. But I will warn you; I'm MUCH tougher than I look."

"I don't doubt that. I never go into a battle without expectin' everything t' be a possibility. Well, except with you-know-who. She definitely expanded my definition of 'everything.' Anyway, I analyze an' learn as a fight goes on, so maybe it ain't me who should be watchin' out," he teased.

"You're on, Tay," Shantae accepted his challenge. The two allies continued their conversational town tour for a short time before they came across a peculiar building that looked like it had a bird's nest on top. As soon as it was noticed, they paused in front of it. Immediately, Tay's eyes were drawn to the amalgamation of sticks resting atop the flat rooftop and the giant egg with blue polka dots protruding from the stick pile.

"Why does this buildin' look like it has a bird's nest for a roof?" he asked, reasonably discombobulated by the building's odd structure.

"This is Sky's place," Shantae informed her companion. "She's one of my best friends, like I was telling you. She's like an older sister to me. One really special thing about her is that she's really good with birds. She's a bird tamer by profession. She takes a ton of pride in it, which should hopefully explain the overall aesthetic of her home's design."

"Uh-huh…" Tayshan acknowledged, appearing perplexed at the shape of the house they were approaching.

"In fact, you know that giant rainbow-colored bird I brought you home on?"

"Yeah. That thing belongs t' Sky?"

"Good guess!" Shantae smiled, impressed by the soldier's expert deduction.

"Heh, alright. Can't wait t' meet her," he stated as the two walked up two flights of stairs and entered the building on the second floor. There, they were greeted with a blonde-haired, tan-skinned, brown-eyed young woman wearing a color-splashed outfit consisting of a blue and pink midriff-baring bustier whose cups resembled Easter eggs, a royal purple hood and turquoise scarf wrapped around her head, a pair of white capris, and wood-brown boots. She had just finished feeding her giant sherbet-colored avian friend, who was previously responsible for escorting Shantae and Tayshan from a certain abandoned desert temple the night before. She was just removing the mud-brown handling glove from her left hand when she noticed that she had company.

"Shantae! Hey, what's up?" the woman called in excitement as she turned to face her visitors and casually approached.

"Good morning, Sky! Believe it or not, we've already got another emergency on our hands."

"Risky Boots?" Sky guessed.

"Risky Boots," Shantae confirmed. "She's already up to no good again. My new friend here encountered her just as she was hatching another scheme," she added, gesturing toward Tay, who casually walked beside her. Sky looked up and seemed to be taken with the muscular young man, who towered over both girls by more than a foot each, immediately. Her eyes widened and glimmered like the reflection of the full moon on ocean waves as she studied every inch of his body. She sized him up as though she were sifting through a catalogue, which did not go unnoticed.

"Huh?" Tay questioningly grunted, immediately taking note of Sky's sudden and intensive bout of staring longingly at him.

"Well hey there, handsome stranger," Sky greeted in a rather enamored tone, her eyes half-lidded with interest as a salacious grin crept onto her face. Reading this, the soldier instantly became tense, his eyes darting toward Shantae, who merely made a knowing face at him and tilted her head as though she'd expected this to happen. "The name's Sky. What's yours?"

"Uh, T-Tayshan," the soldier awkwardly introduced himself, seeming to already be picking up a vibe from Shantae's friend. "Nice t' meet you, Sky…" he added as he offered his hand for a handshake. Sky returned the gesture, her enraptured stare never breaking from Tay's eyes as the pressure he felt grew steadily more evident.

"Tayshan, hm? That's a pretty cute name, if not a bit… familiar," she complimented… he thought. Of course, he was also put off by her calling his name 'cute.' Men are NOT supposed to be cute. Tay resisted the urge to pout, though it was safe to say he did not like being addressed with a word he felt was… inaccurate in describing him, to say the least. "You've got a strong, manly grip there, too. Anyway, it's nice to meet you as well. I wasn't aware of you before today. I'm surprised such a good-looking guy like yourself slipped under my radar. Unless…" she observed, seeming to infer that the half-genie had a secret suitor. "You and Shantae been together long? I was never made aware she started dating." Shantae's eyes grew wider than sauce plates at Sky's implication. Tay, already uncomfortable as he was, was only slightly surprised by her question.

"What? Eh, no, we actually just met yesterday. She's showin' me the ropes an' givin' me a tour o' the town as we look for help dealin' with our little pirate problem. We only just became friends."

"So you're single?" Sky immediately asked, seeming hopeful about the otherworldly man's relationship status and what opportunities she had with him. Her intrusive question instantly caught her houseguest off-guard as he nearly froze in shock and mortification.

"Uhh, um… Hoo, it sure did get hot in here," he remarked, chuckling nervously as he averted his gaze, looking away and tugging at the collar of his tank top.

"Or maybe it's just you~?" Sky expertly hit on him with a smiling wink, nearly causing the poor guy to explode with embarrassment.

"Uhh…!" the serviceman froze, his eyes wide like truck tires and his face redder than strawberries as he stared blankly at Sky. His heart was pumping like he'd just jumped off a 500-foot building and survived. Yeah, I'm pretty sure by now that no amount of combat training he'd ever endured could have ever prepared him for the unthinkable; an unabashedly-romantic encounter with a woman. It's safe to say he was even LESS prepared for an unabashedly-romantic encounter with a woman who showed such… aggressive interest in him. He had no idea what to say or do, panicking on the inside as he became a statue on the outside.

"Sky! Stop, you're embarrassing him," Shantae admonished her friend, slightly disquieted by the nature of the conversation. "And me, for that matter…"

"What? I'm just trying to get to know him! Unless there's something you're not telling me about this striking young gentleman, hm~?" Sky teased, transferring the pressure felt by Tay onto Shantae, whose face heated with an incredibly embarrassed blush.

"N-no! Wh-what would give you that idea!?" the flustered lavender-haired girl indignantly responded, to Sky's amusement. "We're just friends!"

"Alright, alright, I won't tease you…" Sky relented momentarily as she turned her attention toward the still-stunned young man. "But if you and Shantae are just friends, then maybe you'd be free to spend some time with me once she's done showing you around town…?" The man, flattered as he was alarmed by her suggestion, nervously cleared his throat before responding.

"Uh, a temptin' offer from such a radiant an' beautiful lady as yourself, heh…" he stammered, making Sky blush with flattery as Shantae turned toward him with a look that emphasized a mixture of emotions ranging between confusion and crossness. "…b-but right now, we got a problem on our hands with that pirate an' her bat soldiers." Sky nodded in understanding, though she was still smiling.

"A business-before-pleasure kind of guy, huh? Just the kind of maturity I like in a man," she confidently confessed with another wink that emphasized her flirtation, catching Tayshan off-guard yet again.

"Uh…" he nervously stammered, unable to conjure up a proper response. At this point, one could HEAR the sweat trickling down the poor guy's face, as well as see his heart frantically trying to break free from his chest.

"Sky!" Shantae shouted, having had enough of the nigh-tangible romantic tension.

"Okay, okay… So what's the scoop with Risky?" Sky asked, prompting the soldier from an unknown land to regale her on the details of the events of his brawl with Risky Boots the same way he informed Shantae. Sky seemed as worried as she was astounded after hearing the tale.

"The situation's already really serious from the start," Shantae noted.

"Yeah, an' if we don't find an' stop her soon, she could take this place over in a matter of days," Tay added. "Maybe sooner if she's aggressive enough. The weapons she stole are no joke."

"Shoot, this really doesn't sound good… What really gets me, though, is how she managed to sneak onto a whole different planet with a portal to get you and your weapons here… The whole premise sounds totally absurd. I can't wrap my head around it."

"How do you think I feel about it?" Tay remarked, agreeing with Sky's observation. "My head's been spinnin' nonstop since I first ran into Risky Boots. Bein' dragged here, beat up, abducted to a desert, found by Shantae, an' now gettin' a crash course on this world while I help y'all save it… You couldn't write a textbook big enough t' contain this much shenanigans."

"Believe it or not, that sort of thing is normally just the tip of the iceberg here," Shantae informed her newest friend. "Things MAY get a little more… uh, disorderly, as we go along," she explained, though one could only imagine how things could get any wackier than interdimensional weapons theft and kidnapping, accentuated with a healthy dose of teenaged, belly dancing, shapeshifting genies, evil blue-skinned pirate women, and armies of anthropomorphic bats with swords. "If you're really sure about helping me defeat Risky Boots, Tay, then I'll do my best to get you prepared."

"Thanks, Shantae… I appreciate that. But yeah, I'm all in. Risky dragged me here an' stole from me, so I got no choice but t' fight an' get back what she took."

"Yeah, and you can rely on me for additional support," Sky added, contributing to the soldier's growing sense of security in his new allies.

"Thank you, Sky… Thanks a bunch."

"Of course! Let me know what I can do to help, and I'll be right on it," Sky offered her assistance, determined to contribute.

"Well…" Shantae pondered, seeming to be thinking about uses for Sky's help aside from using her and her bird as transport between different locations in Sequin Land.

"Something besides taking you for rides everywhere," Sky added, seeming to read Shantae's mind. "This situation sounds like you'll need more help than before. This is definitely not something I would simply let you run wildly into alone like you always do."

"Good point, Sky…" Shantae acquiesced, seeming disappointed. Evidently, that was her one bright idea. She went silent as she thought up other uses for Sky on this next great crusade to stop Risky Boots.

"I've got an idea," Tay spoke up. "Right now, we need to find out where she's hidin'. Word on the streets is that you're a bird tamer?"

"Scuttle Town's one and only," Sky proudly affirmed. "I'm a professional war bird trainer. I train all sorts of my avian allies for a wide range of things, like transport, protection, and attacks from the air."

"Good, good. That'll be a huge help. How about reconnaissance?"

"Absolutely! Recon is a premier talent my birds possess."

"Fantastic! If possible, could you use your bird or birds t' scout the surroundin' area for any suspicious-lookin' activities or locations that could lead us t' pirate girl's hideout?"

"Sounds like a plan. Where should I start?"

"Hm… How 'bout that desert place where Shantae first found me? I can only guess that pirate woman might be based near there since that's where she dropped me off."

"Which one?" Sky asked, not getting a clear hint from 'that desert place.' "There's Men's Desert, Ladies Desert, the Baron Desert, Tan Line Island, and Tassel Town, to name a few."

"Uh… W-Why are there so many deserts here?" the soldier inquired, thrown off by the sheer number of options from which to pick.

"It's just the way Sequin Land is, I guess," Sky nonchalantly replied. "To be fair, though, Tassel Town in particular wasn't ALWAYS a barren, abandoned, sandy wasteland. It became one after some incident wiped it and its inhabitants out of existence. Can't seem to remember what it was, though…"

"Iiiiit's probably better that you don't," Shantae hastily warned Sky. "Remembering anything too specific about that place causes certain characters to pop up and cause a commotion."

"Like who?" Tay asked, only further befuddled by his friend's suggestion.

"Exactly, Tay. Exactly," Shantae mysteriously agreed with an affirming nod, seeming to want to end the discussion of a certain Tassel Town folk legend before it was carried too far. Even I'm not sure to whom she was referring, but… it's probably for the better, though I do get a sudden chill that spooks me right out even attempting to dig into Shantae's words. Oh, well.

"Okay…? Anyway, are these deserts all separated or are they next to each other?"

"Separated, more or less. Though, the only things between them are cities, forests, and the ocean. Sequin Land is the desert capitol of this world."

"That… doesn't sound good. Sounds like this place is prone t' massive, unbearable droughts that apparently might've been the downfall of one o' your cities; even with there bein' so much ocean around. I mean, I'm no weather guy, but still. Why live in an area o' the world so easily afflicted by too much sun and not enough consumable resources like drinkin' water or vegetation-friendly soil?"

"You think that's bad? Just wait till you see all the mermaid-inhabited waterfalls and monster-infested rainforests around these parts," Sky shot back, warning her guest of the dangers ahead. "Those are everywhere, too, though somehow mutually separated from each other. We built a lot of our towns smack dab in the middle of all such hazards and threats to people's safety; Scuttle Town being a prime offender of being placed in the middle of everything."

"Sounds like this place's ecosystem is a force t' be reckoned with, if nothin' else…" he commented, unsure of whether to be afraid or concerned.

"She has a point, Tay," Shantae interjected. "That's why it's always best to travel only if you know where you're going or if you're prepared to brave the perils each environment presents to you."

"Gotcha."

"Yep. Anyway, you'll want to start off in Tassel Town, Sky. That's where Tay and I first met."

"On it," Sky assured as she climbed aboard her giant eagle/sparrow/parrot thing. Honestly, I'm not sure WHAT kind of bird it is… "You coming along for the ride?" Tay and Shantae shared a momentary glance before the soldier spoke.

"No, this is all you. I feel like we should stick around here in case somethin' goes wrong. Call it a hunch," Tay politely declined.

"Yeah, there's a good chance Risky could strike without warning," Shantae agreed. "Especially given her history of surprise attacks. Let us know any clues you might find about her."

"Roger that. If anything comes up, don't hesitate to use that whistle to call us back, okay?"

"You have my word," the lavender-haired young woman assured with a nod.

"And you…" Sky turned her attention to the soldier, who took note of her shift in tone.

"What's up?" he inquired.

"When you have time to spare, give me a holler. Maybe you and I could get to know each other over some nice, hot coffee," she invited with a smiling wink, flabbergasting him while Shantae cocked an eyebrow in observable annoyance. "I don't know how long you'll be here in this dimension, but I want to at least make sure you're being treated right."

"Heh, we uh… we shall see," he bashfully responded, unsure of how to handle Sky's rather forward advances on him. Sky merely nodded before focusing her attention on the task at hand.

"Okay, Wrench! Let's head off to Tassel Town!" With that, the gargantuan avian beast flared its wings and soared through the open trapdoor in the roof, leaving the soldier and the half-genie to contemplate their next move.

"…Soooo…" Tay rather awkwardly began as the two exited Sky's home and continued their trek through Scuttle Town, passing by crowds of citizens and more humble, decorative stone buildings of varying shapes and sizes. "Uh… Call it a different hunch, but I think she might have a crush on me."

"What was your first clue?" Shantae jokingly asked with a slight smirk, doing everything to confirm his suspicions while doing absolutely nothing to ease his discomfort… or hers, for that matter. "Sky can be a bit… assertive when it comes to dating."

"I think I picked up on that… from the second we locked eyes," he nervously replied with a gulp.

"I can't exactly say I didn't notice the sparks flying as soon as she noticed you. She does that sometimes with guys she finds herself interested in, but I'm pretty sure that was the first time in quite a while she's done that at first sight."

"That right? Huh…" he gulped again, getting a sinking feeling about his most recent ally as his stomach erupted with butterflies. "What's the deal with that, if you don't mind me askin'?"

"Well… she says she's on the cusp of adulthood and that being single at her age is a testament to how 'unprepared' she is. Her idea of getting a head start on being a woman is by getting a boyfriend or else she'll be doomed to forever remain a lonely bachelorette whose only soothing company in her older years would be the very birds she spent her life training… or something to that effect. Mind you, she's only a year older than I am."

"Wow. She's seventeen, huh?"

"Yep! I know, she looks more mature than that, right?"

"Hm… Kinda. I would've thought her to be my age, if not a year older than me, if that's what you mean."

"If she weren't my best friend, I'd have guessed the same," Shantae agreed. "Anyway, she's been on this kick of finding herself a man as soon as possible. But, for reasons I won't disclose out of respect for her, she's had some pretty rotten luck with guys lately. She's… determined to break the streak before it gets out of hand, to put it lightly."

"Seventeen goin' on forty is what that sounds like," Tay naively remarked, eliciting a giggle out of his tour guide. "I'm flattered, I guess, but maybe she should slow it down a bit. Enjoy her time as a teen while she still has it. Ain't no reason t' grow up too fast. You only get t' be a teenager once. Shoot, I'm just a year off from bein' twenty."

"Yeah, that makes sense," she nodded, agreeing with her friend's statement.

"That said, what about you?"

"Me?" the half-genie asked back, becoming just a tad apprehensive. "What about me?"

"You got yourself a boyfriend?" Shantae's face grew hotter than the Sequin Land sun at the question as she turned away and began fidgeting with her ponytail with one hand while nibbling on the index finger of her other hand.

"Um, n-no… No, I don't…"

"That's surprisin' t' hear," he bluntly commented, causing her to turn her attention to him as she continued to wring her hair, the two pausing momentarily in the middle of the cobblestone road as two horse-drawn brown carriages casually passed them by.

"Why?"

"Well… you seem like the kind o' girl a lot o' guys would be lucky t' spend quality time with…" he began, unsure of how to word his statement without sticking his foot too deep into his mouth as they continued trekking toward nowhere in particular on their extended tour of the port town.

"I do?" she asked again, unaware of anyone she knew that would find her desirable enough to date.

"Absolutely. I mean… from what I've learned about you, you've got a lot of awesome hobbies, you're great with conversation, you have a wonderful personality, you're selfless, you're motivated t' succeed an' make a positive impact on other people, and… like I said before, you're um… y-you're unbelievably pretty… I-I stand by it when I say you're the prettiest girl I've ever m-met…" he finished, his breath getting heavy as his heart began to pound like a jackhammer in his chest. He'd never been this openly honest about his opinion on a girl; at least, not in the sense of straight-up telling the girl in question what he liked about her. This was new to him, no matter how he sliced it. Nonetheless, Shantae's blush deepened immensely as he finished his statement. The flattered young woman lowered her head and nervously twirled her fingers through her ponytail. Tay bashfully looked away to hide his own nervousness.

"You're very sweet, Tay. Thank you… f-for that," she nervously began, her own anxiety fueling her hesitant speech. "I'm glad… that you think of me that way… To answer your question, though… I mean it's not like… like I haven't thought about it, but… I don't think I'm ready for a relationship right now… I don't even know how I'd handle dealing with a guy I like at this point. Plus, y'know… I've got a busy job and all…"

"Fair enough," Tay nonchalantly nodded, not pressing the issue further as their collective nervousness transferred rapidly into one another, the pressure of their conversation building with the longer they stayed on the topic of love and relationships during their casual stroll through the sun-bathed streets of Scuttle Town.

"Well… what… about you?" she managed to ask as she brought her eyes to meet his, breaking the awkward silence. "D-do you… have a girlfriend back home?"

"Nah," he coolly responded, though he didn't elaborate.

"Why not?"

"I… I don't have much of a reason for it. I uh… I just don't, I guess…" he shyly replied, dodging the question.

"Wow… I thought you would've had someone special waiting for you back home," Shantae vocalized her surprise, catching her comrade's attention.

"Oh… Well, given what I've said t' you, I reckoned that would've given you the idea that I was single… Still, uh… Why's that?"

"Well…" the bashful young lady began, uncertain of how to word her statement. "I mean you uh… you're… pretty um… well, you're a really h-handsome guy, if I'm gonna be as honest with you as you're being with me… You're uh… you look like you're in great shape, like you do a lot of exercise, which you said you do… and you seem to be a gentleman…" Tay's eyebrows almost shot off his face and into the stratosphere, evidently not expecting his companion to compliment him as his and Shantae's trek slowed in pace once again, causing them to block the paths of some disgruntled citizens who mumbled their disdain as they strolled past the duo.

"Oh?"

"Yeah. You know how to make a total stranger feel completely comfortable with you… i-if last night is any indication… and you're also really easy to talk to… especially about… about things I probably wouldn't share with anyone else… I-I think you're awesome for that. Plus, you've also got some really cool hobbies and you seem totally committed to making big changes in your life whether or not other people support it… You seem to have a ton of confidence in yourself, too. A ton more than I think I do, anyway. I… I admire you for that… You're really brave."

"O-Oh, thanks. You flatter me…" he began, his own face heating up in a similar fashion to Shantae's. "…but I think you're givin' me too much credit. Don't underestimate yourself. You've got all sorts of accomplishments under your belt an' you're workin' tirelessly to improve yourself."

"Hm… I don't really know. I mean, I get what you're saying, but sometimes, I wonder if I'm really doing all I can to make myself better…"

"Hey, even if you don't think you got the confidence, you still trust an' believe you're doin' the right thing. Evidently, it's paid off. Plus, I gotta admit… Sometimes, my 'confidence' stands a chance of falterin'. I get scared an' nervous sometimes. Heck, I was scared t' death at least twice before you found me. I had… what, two near-death experiences between runnin' into Risky an' havin' you find me? I can't say I was 'confident' that the experience would go in my favor, all things considered; especially when she had that rifle pointed at me an' had me outnumbered like six hundred to one, AND when I was all alone in that desert, tryin' t' survive an' avoid bein' hacked up an' stabbed by that group o' Tinkerbats."

"You can't be blamed for that, though. Even I would be scared if I were in your place. What makes it so awesome is that, even though you were scared, you still went through and tried your hardest to stop Risky Boots all by yourself. Then, even after you found out how strong she was, you still carried on and fought her to the bitter end. And even after all she's done to you, here you are, joining forces with me to try taking her on again."

"Sounds no different from what you've always done, if I'm not mistaken," Tay reasoned as they paused again, beginning to exhibit some difficulty with multitasking between walking and conversing with one another. "You've gone through the wringer with her a few times, no? Even beat up her undead ex-boss, who I understand was WAY stronger than her, on one occasion?"

"Yeah, but remember, I had a ton of help from Risky and my friends to take down the Pirate Master. As for Risky herself, I've never taken her on without my powers. You did, and you even put up a great fight as a full-fledged human without superpowers. You're being totally honest about your feelings in those situations, too. That's a huge part of what I think makes you so cool, Tay…"

"Oh… W-wow, well… I mean… Thanks, first and foremost. Still, you've done way more awesome things in one week than I think I've done in the last seven years. I admire your modesty, too. Again, I think you ought t' give yourself some credit. You're a spectacular young lady, Shantae. You don't need me t' tell you that, because I'm sure you know already, but… trust an' believe, homegirl. Trust an' believe."

"You… you're right. I will. Also… 'Homegirl'? What's that mean? Is it because you're basically living with me for right now?" she asked, understandably puzzled by the odd terminology.

"No, no, nothin' like that," Tay denied with a mirthful laugh. "That WOULD make sense, though. Anyway, it's a slang term from my universe that basically just means 'friend' of the female variety. Sorry, I shouldn't call you things you ain't aware of; especially when they're so… literal, I guess?" he further awkwardly apologized. I mean hey, if an alien from another planet started stowing away in your house and called you 'Home [insert gender-specific noun here],' how would you react?

"No, no, it's fine. I actually kinda like how it sounds… 'Homegirl…' Anyway, we were talking about relationships, right?" Shantae asked, getting the conversation back on-point as she noticed some of Scuttle Town's nearby residents getting upset with the two of them blocking the flow of foot traffic.

"Yep," he affirmed, his eyes following hers to notice all the people around them. "We were, weren't we?"

"Yeah. Here, why don't we take a seat? I think we're getting in the way, standing in the middle of the street like we are," Shantae offered, grabbing the bewildered serviceman by his wrist, leading him to a nearby wooden bench to sit down on so they could continue their conversation.

"Alright, so where did you wanna start this time?" he asked, noting Shantae crossing her fingers as she appeared to deeply contemplate what she would say next.

"Well… If it's okay to ask… H-how… how come you don't… have a… a girlfriend?" Shantae popped the question as they sat on the bench, safely out of the way of traffic. Caught off-guard, Tay paused as he pieced the words together for his reply. After a moment of silence, the moderately-flustered young man took a deep breath and cast his forlorn gaze toward his tour guide.

"…I feel like I can trust you, so I'll spill it. T' be perfectly honest, I've been a lone wolf ever since I lost my parents. My old friends only ever tried gettin' me in trouble, I got bullied, an' I constantly got shot down by girls I was interested in… It made me feel like I wasn't worth bein' around unless I had somethin' somebody wanted. Romance… never seemed to enter the equation, y'know? I felt like I wasn't worth… bein' considered a good… 'option' for anyone…"

"Yeah, I know that feeling all too well…" she consoled, relating to him as her blush faded and her somber blue eyes met his.

"Oh, yeah? How, if you don't mind me pryin' a bit?"

"Pry away, Tay. I'm comfortable enough with you to tell you this, so… Would it surprise you if I told you I've had my share of unreciprocated crushes on boys in the past?"

"Wow, really?" he asked, alarmed by his comrade's revelation.

"Yeah… But, just like in your situation, they never worked out."

"How come?"

"Well… Some were afraid of me because I'm a genie. Others were scared because my Uncle Mimic's reputation as an accomplished Relic Hunter. Even if they HINTED that they might have liked me, they were always so scared of making me upset that they stopped talking to me if they said something that annoyed me even slightly."

"What for? It ain't like you give off a scary vibe… at least, not one I could pick up."

"Like I said last night, they thought I knew spells that would turn them into slugs. Other than that, they thought I'd tell Uncle and get him to use one of his relics or inventions to erase them from existence or something. Once I became guardian genie, you can imagine that got a TON worse."

"Such is the life of a hero, eh?" the young man nodded in understanding. "Elevated status tends to make people put you on a pedestal an' immediately be intimidated by your reputation alone before they even try t' get t' know you. I get it… in a twisted sense. Still, that's the worst…"

"You're telling me. Especially now, though, no one's even tried to approach me unless they were more interested in my body or my looks than anything else, which is super frustrating…"

"I hear you there. Nothin' worse than a person bein' so short-sighted an' vain that they value looks over everything else, but then don't even have the backbone t' even be honest about it. How pathetic."

"Exactly. At least being honest would save me the trouble of having to find out. Other than that, other boys thought they could just trick me into liking them, or they thought I was some kind of lonely on-the-road performer because of my… outlandish outfit."

"Outlandish?" Tay echoed, studying his friend's attire to understand what she meant. "I mean, I guess it's an attention-grabber, if I'mma put it out there. But, for a genie with a special talent for belly dancin', I can see how it'd be comfortable for you. Outlandish is not the first word that comes t' mind, believe it or not. I'd say you're… profession-appropriate."

"Finally, someone who gets it!" Shantae exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air to emphasize her existential frustration with how others saw her… unique clothing tastes. "Another thing was that people tended to be put off by my appearance when I was younger…"

"Now that, I still can't believe."

"I'm totally serious, Tay. Most other kids took one look at me and branded me as the… well, the 'ugly duckling' of the bunch because of my hair, eyes, and ears…" she confessed, dejected at the memory. "As if picking on me wasn't enough, they'd call me all kinds of names and tell me I was destined to become a lonely, wrinkled old witch who'd ride flying broomsticks and conjure up curses to terrorize people with… It got pretty bad… At some point, I almost felt like maybe I didn't deserve to have anyone fall in love with me all."

"Ouch… Wow, I'm so sorry, Shantae…" feeling the pride-wounding sting of the scathing insult. "It's just… unfathomable that people treated you like that."

"No, no, it's okay. I'm over it now… Anyway, there is kind of a bright side. There actually WAS one guy who seemed to be interested in me a little under two years ago."

"Ah, so there IS someone here with some common sense. Thank goodness," Tay commented with a sigh of relief. At that, the half-genie giggled, taking his joke as an indirect compliment.

"Yeah… We got along really well, actually."

"Please, elaborate."

"We shared a lot of the same interests, we almost always found time to hang out at my house between my adventures, and we were ALWAYS spending time trading stories, reading comics, stargazing, and laughing. Just me and him. Even when I was down, he always knew how to put the biggest smiles on my face."

"Heh, how romantic. Sounds like y'all were quite the pair."

"It definitely felt that way. He was an introvert like me, so we took a while to get used to each other, but… he was so cute…" she admitted, blushing as she grinned. "We bonded so well that it was like we always knew each other. It got to a point where just thinking about him when we were apart made my heart jump for joy… It also helped that he saw me for who I was and told me again and again that I was the best thing that happened to him since he moved to Scuttle Town. I felt the same way about him…"

"Hm… Sounds like y'all were made for each other, in that case."

"Mm-hmm. If it doesn't sound too crazy, I think he might've been my first… well, my first boyfriend if we had more time together… I wish he'd have stayed at least long enough for me to tell him how I felt. Our time together was only about four months."

"Aw… What happened?" Tay asked, saddened by her implication.

"One day, he stopped showing up to hang out with me. I stopped seeing him in town, and I thought maybe he changed his mind about liking me and disappeared without a trace… But, after about a month, I found out he moved far away without me knowing about it. I actually ran into him a few months after that in the Great Button Province while I was out sightseeing. I was on a trip there with Uncle, who had to attend some sort of Relic Hunters' convention. Sadly, though, he already found another girl to be his girlfriend by that point. A regular, full-human girl about our age, from what I could tell. I know this because I watched him kiss her right on the lips when I spotted them…"

"Shoot… What'd you say to him?"

"I never actually spoke to or addressed him because I was so disappointed about it that I didn't find it worth the effort. I only spotted him from a distance with his girlfriend. I never saw him again after that. I spent a few weeks thinking over and over about what I should've done… what I should've said… I cried like a baby for weeks until my friend Rotty convinced me to get over it once she found out. She helped me cheer up, but… I… I still miss him, y'know?" she confessed with a contemplative frown, bringing a hand to her heart and sighing in dejection as she looked at Tayshan. He read her heartbreak from just her forlorn gaze, his sepia-toned eyes meeting hers in that same disarming moment. At that, he sighed and laid a hand on Shantae's shoulder.

"Another of many things we have in common, it looks like. Shoot, that's rough. But hey, it ain't the end, homegirl. There's plenty of other boys out there for ya. That ain't the best thing t' say, I know, but… I guarantee you you'll find somebody who really deserves your love," he encouraged, patting her on the back as he empathized with her. "I don't think I've ever gotten that close to anyone. Sorry t' hear about that. I hope you're alright."

"Yeah, I'm fine now. It's been a long enough time, so no hard feelings, I guess. It's life," the young lady replied with a shrug. "I've come to realize I'm probably better off not dating anyone right now, anyway. I've got a ton of other commitments to make as guardian genie and in my own personal life, so I think it was for the best. What do you mean, though? You've never had a close friend or someone who could've been your girlfriend?"

"Eh, yes an' no… Closest I ever got was this one girl askin' me for walks from school t' home every day when I was about fifteen. I had no idea who she was before that started, an' the first time she asked me t' escort her home, it was totally out o' the blue."

"Really now? That's an interesting way to kick things off. What'd you do when she asked you?"

"I obliged her, of course. I figured at first that she was just scared o' makin' the journey alone. Bad neighborhood with long walks an' all. I went with her even when it cost me time I had planned for bein' somewhere else. I gotta say, though… She was so beautiful inside AND out that I'd have easily said no t' all the money in the world if I had t' choose between that an' bein' with her for the rest o' my life. She was older, too; by about two or three years. She was super mature about everything, which was THE best thing in the world… She was down-to-earth, modest, an' optimistic, but realistic… We were together every weekday, an' even on some weekends, formin' this unbreakable bond an' meltin' each other's life stresses away. I tell you, she made my world a brighter place with just her smile."

"Sounds like a dream come true for you, huh?"

"One would think so, if this story had a happy ending," he spoiled, causing Shantae to frown. "Still, we had chats that lasted hours on end, we joked about everything under the sun, we studied together, an' we even spent one or two nights out on the town together over the span of a few months… Not t' mention me goin' to her house an' doin' all sorts o' silly things with her, like dancin' an' roughhousin', or even sharin' our personal experiences…"

"Sounds like you and this girl were pretty close. No, REALLY close. What happened?"

"That's just it, homegirl… We were NEVER close, even with what I said. Turns out, she was only hangin' around me because she felt sorry for me, not because she liked me."

"Oh… Wow…" Shantae barely managed to comment, flabbergasted by the development. "How'd you find that out?"

"Because she basically said it herself. She heard about my situation an' witnessed me gettin' in trouble a few times an' decided she'd be the one t' 'save me from myself,'" he explained, air-quoting with his fingers and emphasizing the last bit of his statement to make his point.

"Save you from yourself?"

"Yep… T' nutshell it, I overheard her talkin' to some of her actual friends one day about me, an'… well, that's when she straight-up told them she didn't like me in the least, that she had a boyfriend already, an' that she only saw me as some pitiful, lonely, miserable charity case. Not exactly in those words, but you get what I mean… right?"

"Kind of… I guess I understand as far as she felt bad for you?"

"Basically. I walked up on them an' confronted her right then an' there, just as soon as I heard her confession leave her lips. She tried explainin' that what she said wasn't what she meant, but that she wanted me t' change for the better because she cared about me. After an embarrasin', tear-riddled exchange o' words, I basically told her that I didn't need her pity an' that if the only reason we were friends was because she thought she could try an' force me t' be someone she wanted me t' be without ever actually uderstandin' where I came from, then we were never really friends in the first place. I said somethin' else that made her cry in front of her friends, then stormed off in such a fury that day, feelin' so humiliated…"

"Wow, Tay… That's heavy. Someone trying to make you into something you're not, but acting like it was in your best interest without ever asking you about what you wanted? I can't even imagine. Did you two ever make up?"

"Of course not," he confessed with a shake of his head. "I never spoke to her again. She tried makin' amends, but I felt at the time like she stabbed me in the back. For a boy like the one I was back then, the last thing you'd want me t' think of you is that you betrayed me. I would cut people off faster than you could say 'Tinker-Portal,' an' forever brand you as a traitor. It didn't help that my back was already covered in metaphorical knife wounds from all the other people that used an' betrayed me. That said, I never forgave her. I… kinda regret it in her case, thinkin' back."

"How come?"

"I burned my bridge with her without givin' her a chance t' explain herself, for one thing. Another thing was that, before that day, I liked her. Like, REALLY liked her. I saw myself eventually gettin' together with her before that awful day. Not even a week before that, I contemplated confessin' to her in full. Still, she eventually got the message an' never even looked me in the eye for more than half a second again for the rest o' the year. Every time we saw each other after that, she glanced at me with this super guilt-ridden 'I'm sorry for hurting you' look that just… tore me apart inside. After a certain point, though, she moved far, far away t' go t' school somewhere else. I didn't find that out until two months after she left the neighborhood. Shoot, it hurts just thinkin' about it now…" he admitted with a melancholy waver in his voice, clutching his chest and sighing with remorse.

"Jeez, Tayshan…" Shantae consoled, pressing her hand to his arm. "That's awful. I wish things could've panned out better for you and that girl. I'm sure you would've been happy together if maybe you could've reached an understanding," she stated before realizing a certain important detail in his story. "Oh, but she already had a boyfriend… Sorry… I-I mean, I'm sure you would still be friends?"

"Hmph," he scoffed, slightly stung by his friend's attempt at consolation, though he did not mean to offend her. Realizing his error in judgment, he shook his head to recollect himself. "Sorry… Still, even if we DID make up, I was definitely not interested in just bein' friends with her. Selfish of me t' say, yes, but if she had a boyfriend already, what would she need me for?"

"It doesn't have to be so cut-and-dry, though, does it? Just because she wasn't available or… interested in you, does it really have to mean you couldn't be her friend?"

"Eh… I think that really depends on context, but we can debate that later if you want. I'm… not sure how t' answer that in a few words. I realize that the way I'm sayin' it makes it sound like I think she owed me a relationship simply because she was nice t' me, but…" he reasoned, hesitating as he tried to find a reasonable method of conveying his feelings to Shantae. "I guess… there's a real… blurry line between bein' just friends an' bein'… anything more, but clarity can only come from communication. In hindsight, I'll admit that I waited way too long t' communicate with her; even if her whole reason for talkin' t' me was because she felt sorry for me…"

"We can definitely talk more about that later, but I will say I understand, Tay," Shantae affirmed with a nod. "It IS pretty confusing sometimes, when you're friends with someone of the opposite gender and… for one reason or another, things get complicated because you don't know what the other person wants and they don't know what you want, but you're both too scared of jeopardizing your friendship to ever address the topic because it's a basically a dungeon full of double-edged swords and relationship traps…"

"…Y-yes!" Tay exclaimed, agreeing wholeheartedly. "That's exactly what I was thinkin'!"

"I figured that. I've been there, too. Not with the boy I most recently had a crush on, but I've been there. I've lost a few friends myself because they wanted to date me, but never told me anything about liking me that way. They'd either be overly nice to me and expect me to read between the lines, which Sky and Rotty both taught me about… or, they'd be overly MEAN to me and expect me to just develop some fixation on them, which never worked… or they'd start by being my friend and making it seem like they only wanted friendship until they suddenly drop the 'I've fallen in love with you' bombshell on me out of nowhere. That one's the worst."

"I… I see…" Tay nodded, suddenly feeling a pang in his gut as he related Shantae's experiences to his own.

"Granted, that one is also the most understandable. It's hard not to get a little… attached to someone you spend a ton of time with and see just about every day for long enough. It can go both ways, too. In that case, I at least partly see from your perspective why your friendship with that girl ended. I mean, it wasn't okay at all for her to try and change you without being honest with you from the start, but maybe it would've been good for you to tell her how you felt sooner…"

"An' you said you didn't have that much experience with datin'…" he remarked with a wan smirk.

"I don't. Like I said, I've never actually been in a relationship," Shantae explained. "I just happened to pick up on some things about people I've gotten familiar with over time. Since we're on the subject now, I have a question, if you don't mind my asking…"

"Go for it."

"Do you think you and I would be good friends if you were here long enough? Or do you think at least one of us would… y'know… eventually wind up… becoming attached to the other…?" she hesitantly asked, her heartbeat speeding up as her face grew hot. She knew before she asked that the question was quite personal in relation to their discussion.

"Oh! Hmm…" Tay paused, totally blindsided by the inquiry and the intense gravity around it. He knew right away that if he answered wrong, it would have had a significant effect on his budding friendship with Shantae. However, he wasn't certain he could answer the question, considering all the implications in the context of their conversation. After a momentary, thought-provoked pause, he spoke. "I think… it's too soon t' answer that, if I'm gonna be honest," he replied, alarming her as her eyes widened.

"Oh? Wow, I wasn't expecting that…" she admitted, evidently having anticipated a more definitive answer than a wordier version of 'I don't know.' She wasn't certain of how to interpret his answer as she studied him intently. "I'm surprised."

"I know that's a real weak-soundin' reply, but bear with me," Tay explained with utmost sincerity. "We've shared a lot since we opened up to each other so far, but we've only known each other for basically a few hours. I take that question very seriously, believe me. I don't wanna say the wrong thing t' you in the spur o' the moment, y'know?"

"That's fair," she agreed, sighing away her tension. "That's a great point, Tay."

"Indeed. So… how about this? If I'm here for… let's say, a week, maybe two, an' we find ourselves spendin' a ton o' time together, ask me that question again after the week or weeks have gone by. That should be plenty of experience for both of us. I'll definitely have an answer for you by then, Shantae. I promise. Don't forget," he assured, smiling and giving her a thumbs-up.

"Okay, I won't forget," she affirmed, nodding back and smiling with confidence. "Just… make sure you really do have an answer, Tayshan. I won't take 'I don't know' for a valid response the next time I ask," she teased, at which he mirthfully chuckled.

"Deal. Still, the allure of wishes an' 'what-ifs' is all about hypothesis an' wonderin' how things would play out if they went a certain way. Thanks for your words on the topic. You shed some much-needed light on me, homegirl. Goin' back though… Part o' me wishes things went better with that girl, too, but… Can't cry over spilt milk, as they say. But yeah, experiences like that tend t' do a real number on your sense of trust in yourself t' pick the right people t' be around, let alone your trust in other people. It took me a long time t' step back an' see what I thought was wrong with me. I'd like t' think I at least learned how t' trust myself by now, though…"

"Enough that you feel confident having someone special in your life?"

"Well, maybe not that far. I mean… I guess I'd be open to at least makin' new friends now, but I ain't gonna chase anybody down for a date at this moment. Come t' think of it, you're just about the only friend I made in the last couple years now, t' be honest…"

"Wow…" Shantae remarked in astonishment. "You weren't kidding…"

"No, I was not. Even after joinin' the military in my world, I still found myself unwillin' t' trust other people. I can't tell you enough how much of a refresher it is talkin' t' someone who understands."

"Yeah, the same could be said about you," she agreed with a casual smile before pausing to take a moment to formulate her next statement. "I... have another question, if you don't mind me asking…" she asked, some of her timidity returning as she shuffled on the bench to calm her nerves. "I know I've been grilling you with questions since we started talking, but… I'm curious about you."

"Oh? I'm… not sure how t' take that. I hope you mean that in a positive way," he remarked in apprehension.

"Of course!" she admitted, perking up slightly. "I want to know more about you. I just don't want to make it seem like I'm interrogating you."

"Right, right, I got it. So, what's up?"

"Don't be too surprised when I ask this, but… What do you think about Sky? She's romantically interested in you, as we saw. Would… would you… d-date her…? Hypothetically speaking?" she posed, though it took a considerable amount of mettle for her to even conceptualize such a personal question.

"Hmm… If we're gonna ignore the whole part about me bein' from a different planet… I don't know… Maybe, but then maybe not… She seems nice, but I don't even know her… Plus, if she's lookin' as hard for a relationship as you two imply, then that comes off as just a bit… intimidatin' rather than charmin'… Still, gotta give a girl props for knowin' what she wants. I can respect that, at least…" Tay pondered what it would be like to actually take Sky up on her offer; at the very least, out of general curiosity. Of course, he considered the myriad of implications and circumstances that came with getting that close to someone who lived in an alternate, parallel (until now) reality. Meanwhile, Shantae stared at him, seeming to be hoping for an answer. She felt uncertain of how she might react to his thoughts on him dating her best friend, but she was not keen on dealing with such a mysterious sense of anticipation for his reply.

"You don't have to answer that," she spoke up, interrupting the soldier's train of thought as she hopped off the splintery seating structure. Tay stood up right after her. "It was a silly question, now that I think about it. Anyway, we're right across the street from my Uncle Mimic's workshop. I'll introduce you to him!"

"Oh yeah? I feel like I should prepare myself t' make a good first impression on him, considerin' what you told me about him," Tay expressed, disregarding the tension brought on by their previous conversation topic as the pair continued their stroll, approaching an enormous crimson laboratory-like building that stuck out like a sore thumb in both its placement and its unique red-brick design.

"Aw, don't be nervous," the optimistic scarlet-clad girl reassured. "He's incredibly friendly, even at age seventy. I make absolutely sure he doesn't get a case of the olds on my watch." At that, Tay exhaled with mirth as they reached the entrance to the workshop. Inside was desks covered with test tubes, metal parts of varying shapes and sizes, and an array of blueprints and schematics for various projects messily strewn about the room. At the other side of the room was a large, stocky elderly man with an absurdly-long silvery white beard wearing a long, green trench coat and orange sunglasses—er, goggles. He also wore a pair of oddly modern-looking jeans and a burgundy sweater under his trench coat that quickly made Tay cock an eyebrow at how out-of-place he seemed as compared to the rest of Sequin Land's citizens. Granted, he acknowledged that Sky was dressed way differently from other Scuttle Town residents as well, but he couldn't make heads or tails of why or how.

"Shantae, my girl! Good morning to you!" the old man excitedly greeted as he approached the duo, thrilled to see his favorite niece again.

"Good morning, uncle! I brought a friend I'd like you to meet," she greeted back, gesturing toward the still-apprehensive soldier as the two stepped further into the workshop.

"Why hello there, lad," Mimic greeted, offering a hand. Tay politely, wordlessly shook the man's hand, still studying his style of dress to understand him. "Quite a grip you got there, young'un," the scientist remarked as he examined his guest, seeming to find something amiss about him. "Can't say I've ever seen you around here before. You new to these parts?"

"Yeah. You could say that," Tay replied, dropping the tiniest hint that he was not of this world.

"And what's your relation to my niece here? Are you her new boyfriend?" he asked rather bluntly, catching them both off-guard.

"Uh, wha?" Tay stuttered, getting hotter than race car tires at the intrusive question.

"What!? Uncle, not you, too!" Shantae yelled, embarrassed that her own uncle would ask such a bold question to someone he'd just met, in conjunction with him immediately assuming she was dating the serviceman. "He's just my new friend! FRIEND!" she enunciated. "He just so happens to be a boy. Total coincidence, I swear!"

"He'd better be just your friend. You don't need to date until you're at least twenty," he rebutted, making his niece groan and facepalm.

"Hey now, I don't wanna get in the middle, but I don't have any ill intentions," Tay reasoned, though he was still quite worried about how to make a good first impression. Mimic seemed not to hear him however, as he took a moment to closely examine the soldier standing before him.

"Hmm… there's something strange about you," Mimic commented, stroking his beard as he began pacing around Tayshan as though he were an exotic animal.

"St-strange?" the soldier repeated, alarmed by Mimic's observation.

"Uncle, that isn't nice. He just got here. Cut him some slack!" Shantae admonished, still recovering from the elderly man's embarrassing dating statement.

"No no, sweetheart, I mean I sense something… familiar about him," he added, meticulously sizing the young man up and down to figure out just what it was that resonated with him.

"Familiar?" The soldier repeated again, his mood shifting from frightful to perplexed.

"Yes… Something about the energy surrounding you… It's… reminiscent of a particular series of escapades either I or my niece embarked on," he vaguely replied, standing in front of the unnerved serviceman and staring him down like they were in a western standoff.

"Reminiscent?" Shantae repeated this time. At this rate, the old scientist might have thought there was either an echo or a parrot in the room.

"Yes, but at the same time, there's something about your energy that seems VERY foreign… A great deal of it seems to resonate with an odd atmospheric pressure surrounding you, though I can't rightly place my finger on what it might be at this time… Another significant part of it exudes hunger for power and aggressive industrialization, as well as… unadulterated hubris, though that part of it is ALL too familiar to me," Mimic concluded, shocking his guests.

"Uncle!" Shantae protectively shouted, reading her uncle's observations as derisive criticisms. "Leave him alone! He just got here! Give him a chance!"

"Well I don't know what kind of energy you're seein' but I assure you I mean no harm," Tay defended, offended by Mimic's comments.

"Hm? Oh, my apologies. I didn't mean your personality. I'm sure you're a fine young lad. I meant the electromagnetic waves emanating off of you…" the inquisitive scientist replied, discombobulating his guest as he continued examining him.

"Wha-?"

"Tell me, son; how exactly did you find yourself in Scuttle Town?" Mimic asked, his curiosity about the soldier piqued.

"Oh, well… Believe it or not, I was kinda… forced to come here from a… an alternate timeline… or universe or somethin'," Tay cautiously explained as best as he could, though he did not know how to accurately detail the circumstances of his arrival. Nonetheless, the prodding scientist was taken aback by the reply.

"Ah, you don't say?" Mimic remarked with strong intrigue. "And how might you have stumbled upon our realm, traveler?"

"Some pirate woman named Risky Booty—er, BOOTS invaded a military base in my world with some kind o' weird portal device an' stole a bunch o' my weapons. I tried t' stop her, but we wound up comin' through the portal together in the middle of a fight. Sometime after that, your niece here rescued me after the pirate woman tried t' have me assassinated in some abandoned desert temple."

"Ah-ha!" Mimic shouted in bolstered interest, startling both Tayshan and Shantae. "I knew it! Do you have any clues about the structure or the name of the device Risky Boots used to bring you here?"

"Not… really…" Tay meditatively responded, taking a moment to recall the desired details. "She said somethin' about a machine she used… it was attached to a giant stone circle… Only name that comes t' mind on my end is 'Tinker-Portal.' Shantae, what was the machine called again?"

"The Dynamo," the half-genie answered, much to Mimic's surprise. "Risky somehow managed to rebuild the Dynamo. She used it to create a portal to a whole different world other than the Genie Realm."

"But my Dynamo was never supposed to be capable of such a spectacular feat! It was only supposed to be a cost-effective power supply substitute! And now it's being used to invade other realms of existence? How is this possible!?" Mimic wracked his brain over the potential of his invention and how maliciously it was being abused by that fiendish pirate captain.

"She said she made some kind of renovations to it…" Tay answered, remembering more about the machine in question. "She said somethin' about makin' the power output stronger… and somethin' about replacin' a dead rat as the energy source with somethin' she stole from somebody else… I'm pretty sure there's more to it, but I didn't get much intel out of her, all things considered…"

"She's tampered with the design yet again, I see," Mimic lamented with a sigh, though he was more intrigued in what he was being told than disappointed by it. "Do you at least know what she replaced the zombie hamster with?"

"Uh…" Tay thought hard, the name of the component escaping him. He paused for a moment before answering. "It was a… a hyperbolic propeller generator or something."

"A hypersonic propulsion generator?" Mimic corrected.

"Yeah, that."

"My word!" he exclaimed, taken by complete surprise yet again. "Where would she even get such a rare and delicate piece of equipment!?"

"She said she stole it off some guy's two minions. Didn't mention them by name, though."

"I think I may have an idea as to whom she was referring," Mimic mused. "It appears my hunch was correct, nonetheless. You are indeed an alien from a different world, cast here by absurdly-unlikely chance and a pinch of pirate shenanigans."

"…In no better words, yes," Tay agreed, though his perplexity was evident.

"My stars and gators… You must inform me more about your world, young'un! What technology exists there? Are there Relic Hunters there? Are there perhaps monumental endeavors of scientific research that expanded the horizons of your world's greatest minds? Better yet, have you brought anything with you that I may borrow for research?"

"I-I uh… er…" Tay stammered, uncertain of where to begin with answering Mimic's rapid barrage of questions.

"Uncle, now's not the time to talk about any of that," Shantae stepped in, again defending her friend from her legal guardian's relentless curiosity. "We've got a huge problem on our hands with Risky stealing a bunch of highly-dangerous weapons from his world!"

"But Shantae, you must understand! An opportunity THIS golden wouldn't even present itself in even the deepest reaches of the coalmines of the Shimmering Drape Savannah!" he rebutted, thoroughly intrigued by what wonders of knowledge the soldier may have had. "Surely, he must have time to divulge some valuable insight into the functionality of his world! At least let me know this: Is he from the future? From an alternate, formerly-parallel dimension? From another planet? Or perhaps an alternate timeline within the same existential paradigm, thus confirming the ages-old theory of infinite continuities?"

"We're still not-!" Tayshan was about to answer.

"I know, I'm just as curious about it as you are, but we'll have to wait till later to ask him about what sorts of things are different about his world," the half-genie reasoned to get her uncle to calm down, cutting her friend off in the process. "If we don't get a move on with tracking down Risky, then who knows what kinds of unfathomable debauchery she'll wreak upon the land with her stolen arsenal?"

"Oh? How dangerous is this stolen weapons cache?" Mimic inquired, experiencing a mix of alarm and curiosity.

"If I could give you some ins-!" the soldier tried once more to reply.

"Tayshan said that she could easily obliterate Scuttle Town alone in under five minutes with just a handful of the weapons from his world!" Shantae spoke over him.

"Theoretically," Tay cut in, though his comment fell on deaf ears.

"F-f-f-five minutes!?" Mimic exclaimed, his heart nearly exploding through his eyes at the revelation. "My word! What inconceivable level of technology exists in your world that it grants access to weapons dangerous enough to destroy an entire city in the time it takes to finish a bowl of Monster Egg Soup!?"

"Well…" Tay began. "There's all kinds o'-!" he tried to explain.

"The kind that makes Ammo Baron and Techno Baron look like spoiled schoolchildren!" Shantae interrupted. "We don't have much time, either! If she figures out how to use them before we find her, we're in for a horrible surprise!"

"Now, let's not panic," Tay tried again to interject. "The way I see it, we still ha-!"

"By the Bathhouse Lady's bracelets!" Mimic exclaimed once more, using an expression I have NEVER heard before. "That's as perilous as perilous gets!"

"…Okay," the soldier murmured, getting just a tad irritated with his lack of time to speak in the middle of Shantae and Mimic bantering about his weapons in Risky's hands.

"As always with Risky Boots," Shantae agreed. "The sooner we stop her though, the more time you might have to ask Tay your infinite supply of questions about his world."

"Hmm… You raise a fair point, dear," the silver-bearded scientist concurred, scratching his head as he contemplated the severity of Risky Boots' latest threat. "In that case, I trust you know what she's planning this time around?"

"Not quite, but we have an idea. We do at least know that her main goal of taking over Sequin Land hasn't changed at all," the young heroine asserted.

"Fair enough. I also trust you two intend to team up to stop Risky's latest diabolical scheme?" the retired Relic Hunter asked again.

"Absolutely," Tay finally spoke up, this time uninterrupted. "As long as I draw breath in this world, I am charged with the solemn responsibility t' put a definitive end t' Risky Boots's despicable schemes. As part of a military corps that strongly stands for the protection of and advocacy for peace for the public, it is my sworn duty t' get those weapons away from her, for the sake of all of Sequin Land's people. As far as it stands now, Sequin Land is my homeland, and I will loyally treat it as such until I find a way back t' my world. No matter the cost, justice will be served," the fledgling warrior vowed, clashing his fists together and furrowing his brow. He dared not forget the humiliation and turmoil Risky put him through since their first encounter. He would be sure to pay her back.

"And as long as there's a hair on my head to whip the forces of evil into submission with, I will smack all wrongdoers… Wait, I-I mean, the enemy will fear the heroic wrath of my dancing… Uh, I am the light in the dark and the d-dancer in the danger… o-or something…" Shantae attempted a motivational quote to add to the suddenly-altruistic energy, but had trouble putting her thoughts into words. "Oh man, your heroic statement was so much cooler than mine," Shantae lamented, frowning with disappointment in herself as she gave up. "I've never said something so awesome before starting an adventure."

"Heh, you're adorable. Y'know that?" Tay commented with a chuckle, causing Shantae to glance up at him in surprise. The sight of the young man smiling warmly at her made her heart beat heavier in her chest. She blushingly turned away, pouting while folding her arms.

"Don't patronize me, Tay. It's hard enough as it is trying long as I have to say something cool to kick things off with. You have no idea how many times I've tried. Yet, you bang out a total masterpiece in one go. It was noble, it was inspirational, and it was flaring with heroic energy. No fair…"

"I'll… take your word for it," he nodded in apparent agreement.

"Before you go, I'd like to offer my assistance to you," Mimic informed, capturing the duo's attention. "This is Shantae's first time traveling with an active ally in tow, but I have reason to suspect you won't be as well-equipped as she is."

"What do you mean?" Shantae asked.

"I'm aware you usually have a pretty good idea of how much strength you have and how many resources are at your disposal at any given point regarding your magic, inventory, and health, no?"

"Yeah," the young woman confirmed. "My pause menu and heads-up display never fail me."

"And as for you, young man?"

"…Probably not," Tay answered honestly, knowing he had no clue what Shantae and Mimic were referring to.

"Indeed. I shall construct for you a specialized Heads-Up Display, or HUD Monitor with which you can keep track of your own health and inventory. It's the least I can do for you as you embark on your quest to save the country from utter destruction."

"Awesome!" Tay proclaimed, though he had no idea what such a device would even look like. "Is that gonna take long?"

"For something as simple as that? Not at all! However, there is a catch…" Mimic warned.

"Uh-oh…" Tay got a bad gut-feeling that he was going to hear something he didn't like.

"What's the catch, Uncle?" asked Shantae.

"You will need to find the components needed for it." And there it was. The soldier's facial expression immediately turned to one of dread, though neither of the other two participants in the conversation noticed.

"What components?" Shantae asked, already seeming familiar with scavenger hunts.

"I will need some Copper Wire, a Circuit Chip, and a Busted Remote."

"Okay…? Sounds pretty simple. And where do we get those? There a store nearby that sells 'em?" Tay queried, slightly perturbed at how basic these items were and how they were supposed to make the Key Item in question. If anything, Mimic could've gone to a local hardware store to pick these things up… of course, Tay wondered if hardware stores even existed in this world.

"Beats me. That's usually Shantae's forte," Mimic shrugged, vexing Tay greatly. He glanced at Shantae, who merely smiled cutely and waved at him, before turning his attention back to Mimic.

"What? So how would you know you need those things when you don't know where they are? And how exactly would a broken remote, a single circuit chip, and some copper wire help you build a specialized health tracker? Do you have the rest o' the components an' simply need the remainin' parts from the scrap of other tools? Because if that's the case, we could easily-!"

"How would you know when it's time to give the dog a bath? By smelling its fur, of course!" Mimic exclaimed, completely befuddling the soldier.

"But… that doesn't even make sense… Wha…?"

"First rule of science, lad: Don't question how it works; only question whether you will get the results for which you aim." Tay stared at the elderly man as though he were speaking in tongues… backwards… while shoving his leg into a polka-dotted, big-lipped alligator's eye.

"Where is the science in this?" the soldier dared to ask, his frustration as evident as his befuddlement. "It sounds more like you're gamblin' on some improbable outcome with no idea of how this might turn out should we get these parts for you, if you're gonna put it that way."

"You simply have to believe in it, my boy. Trust me on this, and you'll have moved much farther along on the path of philosophical enlightenment. Plus, you'll be that much farther along on getting those pieces to get you this Monitor."

"I… I don't understand."

"And THAT… is why you fail." After a moment of completely missing Mimic's totally sensible and eloquent points, Tay shook his head and sighed before he shot Mimic an incredulous side-eyed stare as he cocked his head back and wrapped one hand over his other hand, gently balled into a fist.

"So you're tellin' us to find random things we don't know the locations of, an' then bring them back to you… in order to have you build somethin' for me that, come t' think of it, I PROBABLY won't even need by the time we get the items to you if it takes long enough while we're tryin' t' find an' stop Risky Boots?" Suffice to say, Tay was skeptical of Mimic's logic.

"Hmm… Yes, to put it succinctly." Tay let out an exasperated sigh as he hung his head before refocusing.

"Alright. So do you at least have clues as to where we can get these things? I mean, I'd really like t' be prepared for what's t' come an' I'd appreciate your help, Mr. Mimic," Tay explained, trying to keep himself from stepping out of line. "But if we're gonna find these parts, I'd imagine you'd at least know where we'd be able t' find 'em… right?"

"Do you butter your pancakes before you pour the batter into the skillet?" Mimic cryptically and rhetorically asked again, almost causing the soldier to have a stage-five meltdown before…

"Tay… you're probably not gonna like this, but…" Shantae interjected, saving her friend from blowing his top. "…we're going to have to look around for them ourselves. And before you ask 'where' again, we'll very likely have to look all over Sequin Land for them." Tay breathed a heavy sigh to calm himself down.

"Alright, I think I can manage without it in that case. I won't know what my health condition is, but it'll save us time. No point in goin' on a wild goose chase with a situation so serious already in our midst."

"Actually…" Shantae, making a face that communicated that she knew he was not going to like what she had to tell him.

"Actually… what?" Tay dared to ask, knowing he was going to regret it.

"We don't really have a choice. If you expect to do well on this adventure, you're going to need that HUD Monitor. The only way to get it is by way of us looking for the pieces needed for Uncle to build it. Otherwise, we won't be able to progress."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that my adventures usually follow a sequential pattern that mixes between hunting for key items through a series of side quests that help me progress the main story and actually making moves to power up and prepare for battles against my enemies."

"Okay, so what does this HUD Monitor have t' do with this adventure?"

"Chances are, you're gonna need it for when the adventure gets hard later on. It's dangerous to wander around Sequin Land without any idea of how much health you have, because you might get taken out by an enemy at any given moment. Who knows how many health points you had left when I first found you. You did say you took quite a beating from Risky…"

"Ugh, don't remind me…" he grumbled, clearly unhappy with Shantae's mention of his fight with Risky. It only added to his frustration about the item he was apparently going to be forced to obtain.

"I know, but the point is, you can't expect to get too far without knowing where your health is or how many healing items or power-ups you have."

"Okay, I was tryin' t' hold off on this, but now I gotta ask: Why are you talkin' like this is some kind o' game?" he asked, finally reaching his limit with his acceptance of Shantae's cryptic terminology. "Power-ups an' key items an' health points… an' even what you said about pause menus an' losin' your old power-ups after 'your last video game,' now that I remember it… Are those code words or somethin'? What are those?"

"Exactly what they sound like," she replied, uncertain of how to explain things any clearer. "Do they not have health points and power-ups or anything of the sort in your world?"

"Nnnnoooo…?" he apprehensively answered, though her answer provided some clue that maybe the world he entered had been a video game… or at least, one that had rules and laws of physics closely related to those seen in video games. At that shocking epiphany, he sighed with a slight sense of relief. Tay, though not a terribly avid player of video games in his world, was at least familiar enough with them to finally grasp the concept of how things worked here in Sequin Land. More specifically, it provided him a basis from which to simplify learning about the world in which he was trapped. He further understood the terminology in relation to the adventure he preparing to embark on. "…but y'know what? Suddenly, I completely get it now," he exclaimed as he tapped his forehead with a finger, calming down just a tiny bit, though he refrained from sharing his epiphany with his comrades.

"That's great to hear!" Shantae naively congratulated him.

"Yes. Yes, I get it… Alright, so now that we're on the same page, I can ask y'all this: Do we absolutely need t' look for the parts t' this health monitor thing? An' what are the consequences if we don't pick the key items up along the way?"

"Yes, you absolutely need to find those components to build the HUD Monitor," Mimic began with an exhausted sigh, starting to lose his patience repeating himself. "As Shantae already made clear, if you don't find them, you can't move forward with your adventure. There is no other option but to collect those components during your travels, whether you would like to or not. I thought you said you understood how this worked." Tay, not appreciating Mimic's condescending tone, scowled as his anger grew.

"Yeah, Tay," Shantae added, worried about her ally's comprehension of the task at hand. "I hope we're being clear about this. I'm not sure how we could break it down any more for you. We've already just about spelled it out for you."

"If y'all make one more smart remark about this thing…!" he muttered to himself, daring either one of the two other participants in the conversation to test him further.

"Listen, lad, I understand if this is your first time on an adventure like this… but finding the components to the HUD Monitor is the key to completing your mission of stopping Risky Boots. It's simple as that." With that patronizing remark, Tay finally lost his patience, squinting with annoyance as his brow furrowed, one of his eyebrows cocked like the lever on a huntsman's rifle. Immediately afterward, he began a rather long-winded tirade of interrogative questions he had for both the half-genie hero and her scientist uncle:

"Okay, well makes zero sense. If I don't have a way t' check my own health or whatever while we're out there, why would you offer t' build somethin' for me for that purpose if you didn't have the equipment necessary t' build it right away? Wouldn't goin' out on extensive searches an' findin' the pieces t' somethin' I should've been provided from the get-go defeat the purpose of lookin' for 'em; especially when the pieces are ALL over this country, like you said, in addition to me operatin' just fine without it and PROVING IT by way of goin' all over the place t' look for the pieces? What's more, what's the point of lookin' for Easter eggs in the form o' supposedly-important key items when our main goal is t' stop Risky? Why would I need somethin' that wasn't available t' me right away an' even then, only served a specific purpose that wasn't necessarily conducive to said main goal? Plus, wouldn't takin' the extra time t' search for these things be givin' Risky a ton more time t' train her soldiers t' use the guns she stole than if we were to simply find out where she was an' stop her before she could think of her next move?" the meta-critical soldier ranted, seeming to take issue with one of the essential purposes of his adventure.

"I don't make the rules, Tay. I only follow them based on the game being played at any given time," Shantae shot back, fully cognizant of Tay's frustration. There she went with the 'game' reference again, which did nothing to extinguish the clothing iron-based house fire that was Tay's anger. "It usually works out that way, like I said. The side quests are generally what fleshes out the main adventure. Finding the pieces of the HUD Monitor during our travels just might lead us to the right places and give us the necessary clues to figure out how to stop Risky Boots, simply put. Sorry that it sounds so inconvenient, but I hope that helps you understand…" she added, understanding his concerns. She reached up to offer him a consoling pat on the back. The soldier then sighed, seeing no way around it.

"Oh, fine, let's just go…" The now HIGHLY-motivated soldier turned and trudged out of the workshop, his face contorted into a comical scowl. "Nice meetin' ya, Mr. Mimic. I'll be back with those random parts for that questionably-useful thingamabob in about six-and-a-half years if the country hasn't been annihilated by then," he sarcastically remarked as he raised a hand to gesture that he was leavin' the buildin' like a 60's rock star.

"I can see that this young man hasn't been here very long," Mimic hypothesized, to which Shantae giggled in amusement. "We haven't even told him about the item shop that only sells things you exclusively use or how it stays in business with just one customer."

"Yeah… That should be a wonderful experience. This was a fun talk," the excited young girl agreed as she turned to follow her companion out. "Be back soon, Uncle!"

"Alrighty then, dear! Stay safe!" With that, Shantae caught up to Tayshan, who was waiting outside of the workshop, still vexed about the inevitable scavenger hunt they were set to embark on.

"Sorry… Hope you're not too mad about us having to find the pieces of the HUD Monitor," she apologized.

"Hey, it's whatever. So long as it gets us movin' along toward findin' and beatin' Risky, what choice do I have?" he acquiesced, knowing no other way around it in his lack of knowledge about the world around him.

"That's a great way to look at it. Also, I'm sorry for cutting you off all those times when Uncle was trying to ask you all those questions about your world," she added as they continued their casual stroll through the town.

"Hm? Oh, I ain't mad about that," he dismissed, almost totally forgetting about the occurrence before she brought it back up.

"That's good to know," Shantae sighed in relief. "It's just, he gets SUPER curious about anything involving Relics, science, and especially his inventions. If I didn't let him know the hurry we were in, trust me: You'd have been there for the next three weeks MINIMUM, answering question after question after question about Tinker-Portal this, time travel that, alternate universe the third…"

"Yikes…" the young man remarked, suddenly grateful that his partner saved him from such unbearable torture. "Thanks for the save, in that case. I owe you two things now."

"Anytime, Tay! I'm glad to assist," she assured, winking and grinning with glee.

"Right, right. So where are we headed next? Unless we've seen everything Scuttle Town has t' offer. If that's the case, we should probably start figurin' out where t' start our part o' the search while Sky is doin' recon," he suggested, trying not to sound eager to finally begin their hunt, however much he enjoyed spending the day getting to know Shantae on a personal level.

"Well, I haven't introduced you to Bolo yet. Chances are, he's at the bathhouse, trying to pick up women again. It's just about that point in the early afternoon now, so let's head there."

"Alright," he agreed without objection. He was rather curious as to what the bathhouse was like, and if it was any different from bathhouses in his world… Or if it was at least any different from the way he and Shantae took a bath the night previous. More importantly, he wondered, based on his latest hypothesis about this world being akin to a video game regarding its laws of physics, what effects it would have on him with the longer he remained here and how it would relate to the events of his adventure. As they were making their way toward the bathhouse, however…

"Shantae!" A male voice called from the outskirts of the city that appeared to lead to a wilderness trail.

"Bolo! Hey, what's going on? I was just looking for you!" The young man, a rich peanut butter tan in skin tone with shaggy blue hair and donning a yellow head band, frantically sprinted toward his friend with a Morning Star weapon in tow and heavily sweating through his chalky blue vest, sleeveless white shirt, brown gloves, and dark denim blue shorts. He tripped over his own sandals and landed flat on his face midway through his mad dash. Yet, he quickly sprang up and continued after briefly being stunned by what was possibly a minor concussion. No biggie.

"Hey, we've got work to do," he informed her, appearing to have seen a great danger as he paused to catch his breath.

"What's the matter?" Shantae asked, concerned about her friend's urgency.

"Risky's Tinkerbats and Ammo Baron's soldiers are on the loose in the woods… At least one of the Tinkerbats I saw was armed with a strange weapon… Something I've never seen before. This can only mean they're more dangerous than ever." This news both shocked and fired up both Shantae and Tayshan. Though it seemed their hunch about Risky was correct, it was curious that there was a second malevolent force involved. "I tried to fight them off alone, but their intense conflict overwhelmed me."

"What kind o' weapon did the Tinkerbat have?" Tay asked Bolo, a sense of urgency creeping upon him like ants on a juice-soaked picnic table.

"I don't really know… It had a gun that was like Risky's flintlock, only way different in its look and much louder in how it…" Bolo trailed off as he took a look at the inquirer, seeming to catch himself as he relayed his information. He took one good look at Tay and furrowed his brow, taking special note of the empty holster on Tay's belt. "Wait, who are you? I don't think I've ever seen you around here before…"

"I'll tell you later," Tay dismissed, now in no state of mind to introduce himself as he wanted to find out more about the Tinkerbat wielding a weapon belonging to him. "That weapon… Whatever you saw, I need t' know about it ASAP. Could you tell me anything else about the weapon in question or the Tinkerbat carryin' it?"

"What business is it of yours?" he shot back, unreceptive to Tay's demanding tone. "Why don't YOU tell me who you are first?"

"Bolo!" Shantae admonished, displeased with her friend's apprehensiveness.

"Now ain't the time t' play interrogation, man!" Tay warned, his temper getting hot with each passing second that he was not on the move to disarm the Tinkerbats that could very well pose a serious threat to Scuttle Town's safety. "I need t' know what you saw an' I need t' know now!"

"Oh, really? You seem suspiciously worried about that gun…" Bolo attempted to assess Tay's desperation to receive intel about the Tinkerbats. "You know something, don't you?"

"Yes, but if we don't get movin' now, you won't find out," the serviceman urged, his patience dwindling quickly. "Now tell me. What-?"

"No, that's enough out of you. Now I know you're working with them! Surrender now or face one of Scuttle Town's greatest heroes!" the headbanded warrior warned, taking a stance of battle to prepare for a fight.

"WHAT!?" Tay remarked, astonished by Bolo's unwillingness to talk to him in the wake of his brazen accusation, as well as appalled that the headstrong 'hero' was immediately so hostile as to challenge him to a fight out of nowhere. What kind of hero goes around picking fights with people in the streets like this? "You can't be serious! We don't have time for-!"

"There's only a couple ways Risky's men would be so well-equipped this time around; and since the design of that weapon doesn't match Risky or even Ammo Baron, the next suspect down the line is you. Your strange style of dress and desperate pleas to get information out of me are a dead giveaway… You even have a holster on your belt that looks like it'd be a perfect fit for the gun I saw that Tinkerbat with," Bolo rambled about how he found the culprit behind the bolstered firepower of Risky's army, paying little attention as to what was going on around him. He set his weapon down and cracked his knuckles, seeming ready to apprehend his target using force. "Shantae, stay back! I've got this one!"

"Bolo, no! He's on our side! Stop!" Shantae pleaded, attempting to stop her friend from making an egregious mistake.

"No way that's true," the young battle-hungry hero stubbornly denied. "He would've revealed his identity to me by now if he wasn't up to no good. Bad guys with secrets always try to hide in plain sight. He's probably pulling the wool over your eyes, Shantae," he further deduced, wearing the soldier's patience away like an overused pencil eraser.

"That's enough…!" Tay scoffed as he rushed past Bolo, snatching his Morning Star off the ground and aggressively shoving him aside. The young detective stumbled back, caught by total surprise at the soldier's sudden move. "Get out o' my way!"

"Hey! Give that back!" Bolo angrily shouted, making yet another mad dash to apprehend his perceived foe. "You rotten thief!"

"Tay! Wait up!" Shantae quickly followed suit, speeding past her vigilant friend to catch up with the soldier, who'd created a steadily-widening gap between himself and said vigilant friend. Soon enough, she caught up to him. Wordlessly, the duo glanced at one another with fiery determination in their eyes. They simultaneously nodded in understanding before they steeled their resolves for the first of many battles ahead.

"Run an' Gun!" Tay announced, ready to rumble.

"Ret-2-Go!" Shantae announced, thus commencing their engagement with the enemy. Shantae and Tayshan sped through a series of open, grassy plains with dilapidated marble structures conveniently placed over deep, foreboding chasms that billowed with smoke puffs shaped like skulls and crossbones. Within mere minutes, they were faced with a small legion of Tinkerbats that, upon sight, readied their scimitars and charged forward. Fearlessly, they leapt into action as Tay, with a mighty running swing, smashed his way through three of the hapless henchmen, sending them careening cartoonishly into the sky. One group after another, he swung the chain mace and knocked them out like bowling pins. None too deterred by the comical method in which the Tinkerbats were defeated, the soldier skillfully wielded his stolen Morning Star with deadly precision. He also noticed that occasionally, enemies he defeated would drop rainbow-colored gems of various shapes and sizes. Though unaware of what these gems were, he collected them anyway, as he felt they may have been of importance. Unfamiliar with the perilous landscape, however, Tay made a quick judgment to stay low to the ground, only climbing aboard the shambling aqueducts and crumbling pillars when he came across pits too wide for him to simply leap over.

Shantae demonstrated the sheer power of her ponytail as she whipped Tinkerbat after Tinkerbat out of her path, taking them down with little effort. She leapt and danced along the beams of the structures with unprecedented grace and beauty, using nothing but those lethal locks of lavender to clear the path. Shantae's agility and finesse proved fruitful for her, as she made effortless strides clearing gaps and balancing along the disheveled marble columns scattered about the extensive grassy meadow that was Scuttle Town's outskirts. Soon enough, she found herself hopping, climbing, and dashing far ahead of her partner, though neither of them paid the gap any mind.

The partners continued their wild run toward the enshrouding foliage that was the forest nearby, taking down other threats such as haunted scarecrows and the occasional nose-diving armored hawk. The ethereal soldier trailed behind the half-genie, whacking what tried to brazenly assault him as he and Shantae swept through the plains and eventually powered their way to the end of the meadow, where they were met with a towering mass of trees with full bushels of emerald-green leaves adorned to their branches. Here, Shantae finally noticed that her friend had trailed behind her and turned to see where he might be. Surely enough, Tayshan was a few yards back, whacking another group of scarecrows out of his way as he caught up to her.

"So far, so good, Tay!" the half-genie congratulated the soldier as he jogged toward her, pausing once he reached her to catch his breath.

"Thanks," he acknowledged, stretching and taking in a sharp exhale to compose himself. "We jus' got started, an' already, things are pretty intense. I didn't expect t' be fightin' off such kooky creatures beside the Tinkerbats so soon."

"Like we were talking about with Sky, there are entire hordes of monsters out here and in other areas across Sequin Land we'll need to fight as we go along," she affirmed. "This meadow is as basic an example as you can ask for, though I will warn you that these are the easy ones."

"That right?"

"Yeah. Monsters in other places tend to be tougher to defeat, or they have some special ability or trait that makes them tougher, if not impossible to take down unless you have the right weapon or special ability of your own. I suppose I should ask, though, are you still okay with coming along for the ride? If this is too hard for you, it won't get any easier from here."

"Without a doubt!" Tay declared, clenching a fist as he raised it to his chest. "You don't have t' worry. From what I've seen so far, I've gone through tougher obstacle courses in boot camp. Even without a gun, this is a cakewalk." Hearing her new partner's confident reply prompted the young woman to smile and nod in approval.

"Glad to hear it, Tay. You're doing really well, so far!"

"Thanks again! So, where do we go from here?"

"If Bolo was right about what he saw, the Tinkerbat we're looking for is somewhere in the forest."

"Sounds about right. Shall we press on, then?"

"Yep! Let's go," Shantae commanded as the two entered the forest through a thicket of berry-laden bushes, entering what looked like a rainforest. The heroes were surrounded by a mass of trees that reached high into the sky, their leaf-blanketed branches stretching far and wide. The branches overlapped one another, nearly blanketing the sky above them, save for the sporadic spackles of sunlight that beamed through the dense canopy onto the rocky, mossy, twig-littered forest floor. Without hesitation, Shantae and her intergalactic ally marched forward at a steady pace, studying the incredibly-uneven landscape around them. From what they could see, there were hills, slopes, and seemingly-impassable walls galore that would serve to challenge their abilities with scaling the grass-bathed structures while keeping themselves out of harm's way.

Also within their line of sight were tree branches low enough on the moss-splotched tree trunks around them that appeared sturdy enough to climb onto… considering there were teams of bumpy-skinned, portly green goblins wearing Viking armor complete with horned helmets, armed with spears, standing atop each branch. In addition, the duo spotted vines dangling from branches all the way down to where they could reach them.

"Looks like this jungle won't be so peachy t' get through, huh?" Tay cautiously remarked, immediately aware of the dangers that awaited them.

"It seems intimidating at first, but trust me, this'll be just as easy as the last section," Shantae confidently countered as she took off, jogging down from the hilltop they were standing on. Tay followed suit, having no other option. Just as the two-person team reached the bottom of the hill, an ambush of Viking goblins, each one roughly the size of a portly, full-grown human man, accompanied by a horde of rampaging maroon-furred, yellow-eyed boars comparable in size to full-grown lions, surrounded them, ready to attack without a moment's notice. "…Or not."

"It almost seems like they were expectin' us. What's goin' on?" the wary serviceman asked, readying his confiscated weapon for battle as he took a defensive stance.

"I'm not sure, but make sure to stay on your toes and be ready to defend yourself," she warned, readying herself for battle as well. Just then, a boar dug its hoof into the ground, preparing to charge at the ponytailed warrior as its eyes flushed a menacing red. Meanwhile, three goblins, armed with axes, grinned with jagged-toothed, drool-soaked enthusiasm as they ganged up on the soldier. Without warning, they attacked. The wild animal attempted to ram into Shantae at full force, charging ahead with speedy, reckless abandon. Anticipating such a predictable 'strategy,' Shantae jumped and whipped it in the face twice with her ponytail while in midair as it got near her, causing it to roll onto the ground in a mix of shock and hair-based agony. As it recovered and prepared itself to charge again, another boar, ridden by a goblin wielding a shining, razor-sharp longsword, came barreling in. The goblin atop the second boar swung wildly and haphazardly as it viciously approached the half-genie, evidently hoping to slice her to bits. Though caught by surprise, Shantae adapted. She focused some of her magic into her hand, conjuring up a floating mass of fire, waiting for an opportunity to strike. Fortunately, she didn't have to wait long before the goblin-boar tag-team got close. At the precise moment she saw her chance, she flung the fireball, striking the goblin in the face to knock it off as she leapt over the boar.

"This is new, I'll admit, but you guys still won't have any luck against me," the maiden boasted, facing the ferocious couple of furry swine. Both boars dug their hooves into the dirt, ready to charge again. However, a *snap* of a stick brought Shantae's attention behind her to notice the goblin she'd struck was still standing, though it bore a disfiguring scorch mark across its visage as a result of her fireball. Worse for wear, the goblin was joined by two more of its comrades.

Each of them charged at her with full intent to tear the girl to pieces. Readying herself once more, Shantae performed a stylish spinning backward dash just as the goblins mightily swung their weapons at her, dodging their attacks with ease. However, she dashed toward the boars, one of which took the opportunity to charge. Adapting as quickly as she could, she finished her backdash with a sudden roundhouse kick, scoring a devastating direct hit on the beast's snout, knocking it out cold.

Enraged, the remaining boar dashed toward her with unprecedented speed, nearly catching the half-genie by surprise as she jumped to avoid it. The creature clipped her leg, causing her to wince in pain as she kept from losing coordination. As soon as she landed, the three goblins came sprinting toward her once more. One goblin attempted an overhead swing of its axe, only for Shantae to weave out of harm's way, countering with a powerful punt to the creature's chin, defeating it in a hurry. The remaining two goblins approached her from either side, attempting to overwhelm her as they charged in with their longswords drawn and held up high. The adept young adventurer conjured up another fireball, dashing out of the way of the goblins once again as she launched the magic blast at one of them. It struck the foul creature in its chest, causing it to panic as its armor was instantly heated to a roasting temperature that appeared to burn it alive from the inside.

As she tried to follow up, however, the other goblin jumped in. She attempted to keep the offending goblin at bay with hair whips, to no avail. The armored ogre ducked low, moved in, and swung hard. The monster struck the girl across the face with the hilt of its weapon, the sudden *THUNK* causing her to stumble back in pain and surprise. She shook it off, ready to make them both pay, but noticed right away that more goblins and one more boar were about to enter the fray.

"This doesn't look good," Shantae mused, rubbing her cheek where she was struck as she sized up her opposition. Behind them, she could see her partner valiantly swinging his weapon at the creatures, knocking one of them out as he dodged an incoming attack from another enemy. "Tay, how are you holding up?" she called as she prepared herself for another wave, though he did not hear her. Nonetheless, one of the foul monstrosities recklessly swung at her with its axe, only for her to backdash, charging a fireball as she did so before she launched it to counterattack. In an instant, the creature was ignited in a magical blaze, allowing Shantae the chance to whip it twice while it was vulnerable. Surely enough, her efforts caused the creature to vanish in a puff of smoke, leaving behind a sizable series of colorful gems that she was quick to collect as she focused her attention on the rest of the ambush squadron.

Meanwhile, Tay had been holding his own against the portion of the ambush that had been hounding him. Of the three goblins that initially challenged him, only one remained. Tay, being no stranger to close-quarter scuffles against armed opponents, swung his Morning Star with skillful precision, striking boars and goblins alike as they tried to belligerently rush him down. However, he noted the resilience of the goblins, as their armor cushioned the impact of many of the blows he dealt with his weapon. The most the chain mace was capable of was eliminating the threat of the raging quadrupedal beasts while keeping the Viking monsters at bay.

"These gremlin things are just tankin' hits from this mace…!" he complained as he dodged a wild, uncoordinated axe swing from a goblin while another one, appearing to sprout tiny bat wings, took flight to gain a height advantage over the soldier. At a moment's glance, Tay cocked his fist back and threw an explosive hook at the goblin that tried attacking him. With a ground-shaking, slimy *THUMP*, the goblin was sent flying off into the distance the very second the soldier's fist connected with its face, bulleting past Shantae and crashing into the stony wall behind her before vanishing into smoke. The goblin in the air, wasting no time to counterattack, pounded the moss-covered ground directly beneath it. With a mighty *BOOM*, the creature sent out a visible shockwave that traveled fast enough to strike Tay's feet before he could react.

"Kwagh!" Tay grunted in a sudden burst of agony, the shockwave bringing him to a knee. At that moment, a boar tried attacking him from behind while he was down. Never a quitter in a dire situation, Tay took a deep breath to keep his composure and swung the chain mace at the animal, bludgeoning it across the jaw and knocking its lights out with a horrifying metallic *PWANG* that even made ME cringe with how nasty the sound was… a-anyway, the goblin that previously caught our resident 'alien' soldier by surprise attempted to charge at him, longsword drawn in hopes to impale him. Tay, quick on the draw, stood and juked the barbaric monster, though its blade scraped his arm as it dashed past him.

"Ow…! You…!" he rasped, furious that he took more damage from the same creature as he was brought back to a kneeling position, clutching his arm. However, the ogre wasn't finished. The opposing creature turned around, immediately roaring and charging at Tay with its blade held high over its head with one of its clammy green hands. The Viking monster aimed to butcher the soldier with a single overhead slash. Seeing this, Tay quickly rose to his feet, dashing forward and catching the goblin by its wrist with one hand as it tried swinging its sword downward to hack at him. "It's about time you took a LONG nap…!" he remarked, sneering with an unprecedented fiery wrath. The enraged fledgling adventurer took a step back and yanked the goblin forward, drawing it close as he cocked his fist back again.

"HaaaaaRAAHH!" He roared at the top of his lungs as he dug his back foot firmly into the wood-riddled dirt to channel a mountainous heap of strength into his next move. In a flash, he released a full-power uppercut aimed squarely at the goblin's unguarded chin. With another jaw-busting *CRACK* loud enough that one might've heard glass breaking upon impact, Tayshan launched the goblin high enough and hard enough for it to break through an enormous tree branch at least ten feet above him before colliding with another one slightly higher and disappearing on impact. Chunks of wood rained from above as the branch came crashing down, crushing two more Viking creatures under it and vanquishing them. Far more astonished than he was proud, he gawked at the scene before him as the remaining goblins halted their assault. He observed the part of the tree where the branch was snapped, then looked at his hand, evidently unaware of how he managed to launch anyone (or anyTHING) that high with a single punch.

"Wow…" he muttered as he flexed his fingers, though he would get no more time to marvel at his accomplishment. Another wave of goblins and boars came rushing in, causing him to hastily look for his partner, who'd been busy fending off a separate team of the malicious creatures. "Uh-oh…" he murmured, dashing into the fray to help her out. As he approached his comrade, he clobbered another boar over the head with the Morning Star while it was distracted, in addition to slamming the mace into the chests of two goblins, one of which he thrust kicked in the face to dispatch it, causing it to hurtle through the air into a nearby bush. Soon after, he reached Shantae, who'd been breathing as heavily as he was. "You doin' alright, homegirl?"

"We need to get away," Shantae warned through labored breaths. "These goblins and pig monsters are coming in one after the other, and we need to get a move on with finding that Tinkerbat if it's still here."

"That's a good idea," he agreed as the two backed up toward a nearby moss-covered stone wall with a vine hanging conveniently near it. "Any way you think we can get outta here?"

"If we can get over this wall near us, we'll be able to escape," she advised, looking closely at the vine to see that it stretched far beyond the height of the wall and was close enough to where she could jump off to land atop the rock formation. "We can climb this vine to get up there. You go first. I'll cover you."

"Whoa, are you sure? These things are givin' us both a run for our money…"

"Yeah, don't worry about me. I'd prefer that you be safe than risk you getting overwhelmed. I've dealt with these goblins before, so I know how to keep them busy."

"Roger. You're absolutely sure about this, though?"

"There's no time! Just go!" she sternly ordered as the goblins came running toward her, weapons drawn. She quickly charged another couple of fireballs, launching each of them at the encroaching enemies to keep them at bay as she whipped her hair to stall one more of them. Tay, though reluctant to leave her in harm's way, trusted Shantae's judgment and jumped grabbed the vine, quickly wrapping the appendage around his feet before clamping it between them. He tugged it hard to test its durability, to which he noted that it was just as sturdy—if not sturdier—than rope, though its texture was sticky and slimy.

"Here goes nothin'…!" he murmured as he took a deep breath. Wasting no additional time, he climbed up the hanging plant with a burst of strength, pulling himself up solely with his arms as he kept his legs lifted upward and straightened out in front of him. In a few quick, coordinated strokes upward, Tay reached high enough on the vine to where he merely needed to jump over to land atop the rocky wall. Just before doing so, he peered down to note that Shantae was already on her way up, clinging to the vine with her hands and knees as she shimmied her way up. Assured that she was safe, he gathered some momentum and motioned the vine toward the cliff beside him before hopping off it and landing safely on top of the wall. Soon after, he crouched, reaching down for Shantae, who gratefully grabbed his hand once she climbed high enough to do so. With a strong tug, he hoisted his teammate up, ascertaining that the two were safe from harm as the goblins and boars suddenly gave up their hunt and marched off.

"Wow, Tay… you got up here quick!" Shantae remarked in complete surprise. "I don't think I've ever seen anyone climb a rope or vine that fast! Heck, I've never moved that fast!"

"That was nothin'," Tay bashfully remarked with a flick of his hand. "It's simple rope-climbing technique I learned in gymnastics."

"I'm still impressed. You must be super strong to pull yourself up here like that! Speaking of which, I saw what you did to some of those goblins and hogs back there…" she further commented, referring to their battle moments earlier.

"Did… I do somethin' wrong?"

"No, just the opposite! You totally decimated a couple of them just by punching them once!" she cheered, evidently a fan of her comrade's strength. "I was completely shocked by the one you sent flying into the wall, but when you knocked that other one so high up that it crashed through that tree branch? I almost lost my focus! That was so awesome! On top of that, you swept through a ton of them without even needing my help! You're incredible!"

"Shantae, come on…" he sheepishly rebutted, raising his hands in front of his chest as he gestured to stop her from complimenting him, though he did still find himself astounded by his own feats. "I-it's nothin', really. Those goblins ain't a thing on their own. One or two hits each, an' they were down. I'm sure you know that already. I'm still surprised I hit that one hard enough t' even send it that high, much less break a tree branch. I was only aimin' t' knock it out. They must be weak or somethin'. I mean, why else would so many of 'em struggle so much against just the two of us? Plus, you said this was the easy part, right?"

"Yeah, but not a lot of people can handle even that! I won't lie, Tay, I had my doubts about bringing you along, but you're doing such a fantastic job so far!" At Shantae's comment, Tay frowned in disappointment.

"Oh… thanks, I guess…" he glumly commented, a tad put off as he recognized Shantae's comment as patronizing. Reading this, she hastily covered her mouth with a hand as she realized what she said.

"Sorry… That… that wasn't what I meant," she explained. "I meant that I wasn't sure of how you'd handle all the dangerous environments and monsters I usually deal with… like, I wasn't sure if you'd be scared or nervous; not if you were good enough to team up with me…"

"Still stings all the same, homegirl," he shot back, causing her to lower her head. "I get it though… As far as you're concerned, I'm unproven, no?"

"Hm?" she responded, perking up in curiosity.

"You're not wrong t' doubt me, is what I'm sayin'," he clarified, tilting his head and sighing. "We still barely know each other, an' yet, here I am, jumpin' in the middle o' your heroic duties without a resume or even a reliable referral from somebody you can trust. It makes sense that you wouldn't really be confident in the abilities of somebody you just met, no matter what I tell you about my history."

"Well… yeah," she reluctantly agreed, though Tay made no reaction to her comment. "I guess you're right about that. Still, I… I shouldn't have put it like that. If anything, I would've waited until we were more comfortable with each other to admit something like that to you…"

"No harm done, Shantae. It's cool. If anything, I'm kinda relieved t' hear it from you now."

"What? Why?"

"Because it lets me know two things: One, that we're at least comfortable enough t' be honest with each other. And two, I know now that I have t' EARN your trust rather than have it granted t' me, even after our friendly talks. You can guarantee I'll earn it, too."

"Hm… You're… something else, Tay…" she uncertainly commented, scratching her head, though she still felt a pang of guilt for letting it slip that she initially had low expectations of him. "Still… you already earned my trust," she further admitted, surprising him greatly. "We've talked about so much already since we met that I'd be crazy to say I don't trust you after what we shared about ourselves."

"Yeah, that's true… Though, if you don't mind me sayin' it, I've only earned your trust as a friend, when you put it that way. I still have t' prove t' you that I'm capable of handlin' myself in the middle of a fight; especially when I'm not even fully-equipped like I should be."

"Tay, don't be silly!" she dismissed. "I just watched you clobber your way through a horde of armored, axe-and-sword-swinging goblins and aggressive feral boars, and then climb up a vine faster than even I can unless I'm in my monkey form; after you ran through Scuttle Town's outskirts with me, scaling dilapidated marble columns hanging over perilous death pits while fending off the monsters there. Plus, the only thing on you right now is Bolo's chain mace. You're doing fine, believe me."

"If you say so, but I will tell you I'm just gettin' started," he shot back, itching to prove himself to her. "You said yourself that this is just the tip o' the iceberg, so I still don't feel like I've done enough."

"Understandable… In that case, I guess we'll see what you're really capable of when we have our first Boss Battle."

"Boss Battle, huh?" he rhetorically asked, having long-since internalized the game-related terminology for the adventure he and his ally embarked on. "I almost can't wait t' see what one o' those is like…"

"Trust me, you're gonna see exactly why you should always be on your A-game. I don't know when it'll happen, though, so you'll just have to believe it until we actually encounter a boss."

"Noted," he agreed as the two strolled across the rock and studied what awaited them ahead. Before much could be seen, a question popped up in the soldier's mind. "Hey, before we go on… what was up with your friend back there?"

"Oh, you mean Bolo? What would you like to know about him?"

"Why he was so adamant that I was workin' for Risky Boots, for one thing."

"Knowing him, he was in his 'hero' mode again and decided he was going to jump in right away to solve a problem he found all on his own. Of course, it probably doesn't help that you took his Morning Star from him instead of explaining to him that you weren't evil…"

"That's true. Well… I should probably say sorry that I stole this mace off him instead of explainin' what was goin' on…"

"Yeah," she agreed. "When we're done here, we'll go find him and explain the situation. I know you didn't mean to take it from him, and you're making good use of it, but I was actually going to ask you why you took it in the first place."

"I figured that I'd need SOME kind o' weapon t' defend myself with," he reasoned. "This definitely wouldn't be my first choice if I had one… Plus, I might've kinda lost my patience when he accused me of workin' with Risky Boots without givin' me a chance t' explain myself."

"On that, I'll apologize on his behalf," she offered. "Bolo's one of my best friends, but he's been on this kick of trying to prove himself to me as a suitable tag partner for my adventures. As soon as the call of duty makes itself apparent, he's literally the first one to go in and try to either fix the problem on his own or tell me I should rely on him to get the job done. I mean, amongst a long laundry list of other things, he tried to fight you without warning and told me to stand back like you were holding me hostage or something. He can be sort of—no, VERY impulsive. He's always been like that."

"Word… Well, I hope we do eventually cross paths again. I'm surprised he ain't here with us right now."

"So am I… But without his mace, he wouldn't be able to get through this level. I mean, take a look ahead…" she instructed, prompting her partner to examine the next part just ahead. In their view was what seemed to be a miniature valley, steeply dipping low into a lake of bushes, tree roots, and giant, ridged slate-gray boulders. This dip was rife with smaller, mossier rock platforms and three separate bottomless pits spread across, though one could only tell the pits were there by the faint clouds of skulls and crossbones billowing from specific patches of lush, leafy foliage that almost completely concealed them. Also noticeable were the apparent presence of a group of tiny cobalt raccoons scurrying about in the bushes below. Above such a convoluted combination of traps and pitfalls were four stationary golden rings, floating over the mini valley at just the right distances where someone with the right skillset would be able to jump from them to skip the valley altogether to land on the next rock wall and advance to the next section.

"I see…" Tay remarked, sighing with anticipation, as he was going to have to figure out how to conquer this next arduous challenge. "Looks like we might REALLY want to avoid the forest floor down there. What are those blue raccoons, though?"

"If we're lucky, they're just raccoons," Shantae answered, seeming to be developing a premonition, though she was uncertain of if it was correct as she studied the furry, oddly-colored creature from above. It was only identifiable by the ears and two-tone striped tail it possessed.

"An' if we ain't?"

"Then we'll have our hands fuller than we thought," she warned. "I'm usually one to go down there and investigate, but we've been held up enough already. I'd rather we find that Tinkerbat as soon as we can. What do you think?"

"Hey, I'm all for prioritizin', but uh… we probably shouldn't leave any stones unturned," he surmised, scratching his head. "If nothin' else, you could maybe burn one o' the bushes an' see what comes out o' hiding?"

"No… I don't want to harm an innocent animal in the case that it really is just a raccoon."

"Good point… Okay, how about you… throw a rock at one o' the raccoons an' see if it scurries off?" he suggested, finding two rocks, each one rivaling his fist in their size nearby. He picked them up, testing them for their density and weight.

"Hmm… That MIGHT work…"

"Here, let's both throw a rock at the same one. Two of 'em are bound t' scare it outta the bushes," he further suggested, handing his partner one of them.

"Sounds like a plan," she agreed, taking the thick, round stone and cocking her arm back to aim at the nearest blue raccoon-like creature. Tay mirrored her motion, readying himself to strike.

"Okay, on three… One… Two… Three!" he counted, launching the fist-sized stone at the animal. Shantae, following the count, cast her stone at the exact same moment. After what felt like a full minute, the rocks eventually collided with their intended target. With a couple of jarring *THUMPs*, a portly, pale orange-skinned man garbed in a rather eccentric uniform consisting of a blue trench coat, tan pants, green goggles, and a goofy raccoon-themed hat, screamed in pain as he was sent flying and flipping away into one of the bottomless pits. The instant the enigmatic blue-garbed man fell into the pit, he exploded in a puff of smoke.

"Shoot! Just as Bolo said, Ammonian soldiers are here, too. That's no good," Shantae complained, apparently confirming her hunch about the raccoon not actually being a raccoon.

"Is that why that one just exploded into a cloud o' smoke? Shoot, we can't breathe that stuff in, or it'll kill us…" he presumed, unaware of the heroine's meaning.

"No, no, Tayshan… AMMONIAN soldiers. Not ammonia. They're guys who work for Ammo Baron. They're called Ammonian soldiers. Also, what you just saw there was what happens every time most bad guys are defeated. You saw it a bunch of times earlier," she corrected. "I assure you, the smoke is just for dramatic effect."

"Ohh, right. I see… An' here I was, thinkin' we'd be dealin' with them at some other point… though, if that guy could be taken down with just a couple rocks, how much of a threat can the rest of 'em really be?"

"Enough that you'll want to keep your guard up, Tay. We were lucky this time because we caught that one by surprise. Who knows what his buddies are plotting down there… We won't find out, whatever it is. All we have to do is make it to the other side using these floating rings. Although…" she trailed off as she observed, looking upward to spot a group of three red-garbed black figures floating into view from the woodsy foliage above, each of them wearing what looked like helicopter propeller-adorned backpacks. The creatures, unmistakably identified as Tinkerbats, wielded standard flintlock pistols. They appeared to be searching for someone or something, as they had not immediately taken notice of the duo. "Over here, Tay…! Quick…!" Shantae warned as she hastily grabbed Tayshan's hand, leading him to a nearby bush, in which they both ducked for cover. The rustling of the giant leafy shrub appeared to attract some attention, as the Tinkerbats began surveying the area around them.

"Looks like they're lookin' for somethin'," Tay observantly whispered as he and Shantae crouched in the bush, staying completely still to avoid detection.

"Yeah… I can't imagine what, though," Shantae concurred, studiously watching the pirate minions as they continued scouring the vicinity from the air. Suddenly, a series of rapid *BANG* noises, undoubtedly gunshots, rang out, splitting the air. In a matter of a few seconds, a relentless barrage of glowing marbles ripped into one Tinkerbat from below, damaging its flight equipment and sending it barreling into a series of dark, mossy tree trunks before it suddenly disappeared with a distant *POOF* of smoke. The remaining henchmen quickly identified the source of the gunfire and began firing their guns downward, commencing some sort of territorial skirmish. From the bushes in the trench below, the Ammonian soldiers rose from their cover, bayonet-adorned rifles drawn as they unloaded a spray of high-speed pellets. The pellets raced by, narrowly missing the Tinkerbats as they weaved in midair to dodge the incoming fire. One Tinkerbat responded by pulling out a dark gray metal canister, ripping out a pin, and tossing it into the trench. The other Tinkerbat followed suit, throwing another metal canister into the long, narrow ditch.

"Incendiaries…? Oh, no…!" Tay worriedly commented, evidently recognizing the weapon used by the Tinkerbats. He was overcome with an urge to intervene and dispose of Risky's thieving minions, though he realized that he had no way to protect himself or eliminate them from afar.

"Incendiaries? What are those?" Shantae asked, though by the time she uttered her question, the foliage within the ditch was set ablaze with a hissing noise coming from the crevice. Within seconds, towering flames engulfed the entirety of the lower passage, eliminating the remaining Ammonian soldiers, who had no way of escaping the burgeoning flames. "Oh my gosh…! They just burned those soldiers alive…!" she remarked in horror and anger as she watched on.

"Usin' weapons from my dimension…!" Tay added in a combination of moderate concern and unmistakable displeasure, though his statement alarmed his partner further. Nonetheless, they watched on as they contemplated acting to stop Risky's minions from doing further damage. However, they each were aware of the odds they faced. How would they manage to defeat the airborne henchmen with next to nothing in the way of options for defeating them unless they could get close? Did the Tinkerbats have more weapons from Tayshan's home planet? How would our heroes put out the fire in the trench?

The thick, murky clouds of smoke billowing from the raging inferno below all but shrouded the immediate vicinity. The fire seemed not to be spreading outside of the trench due to its perimeter being composed entirely of the same damp, fire-resistant mud that thankfully coated the forest floor. Although, would it be safe to simply let the fire run its course? As they thought long and hard on what to do, the Tinkerbats ascended through the thick, tree branch-composed ceiling above, evidently having finished their business. Seeing this, Shantae and Tayshan arose from their cover, collectively troubled by what they'd just witnessed. The duo examined the all-consuming blaze in the pit below, covering their mouths and noses to keep from breathing in the fumes, though the fire appeared to be dying down on its own.

"I can't believe they'd do something this careless," Shantae complained, appalled by the Tinkerbats' total disregard for nature. "Neither they, nor Risky will get away!" she vowed, her determination fueled like the roasting shrubbery that sustained the forest fire before them. "Still, what were those things they used to do this? They didn't look anything like the fire bombs they normally have…"

"Those were incendiary grenades," Tay explained. "Thermite, t' be exact."

"Thermite?" the reasonably-confused young lady asked, never hearing the term previously.

"A mixture primarily made of iron oxide an' aluminum powder."

"And… what's iron oxide?"

"Basically rust, like you would see on an old pipe or corroded metal, but it's in the form o' powder. Aluminum powder is just aluminum in powder form."

"Ohhh… So, those canisters the Tinkerbats threw…?"

"They were basically packed with Thermite, with some additives mixed into it t' make the fire spread across the bushes easier. They're typically designed t' disable or at least damage vehicles or render enemy hidin' spots unusable. When activated, the mixture burns at about 3,000 degrees, settin' fire t' whatever it touches, but once the catalyst is gone, the fire typically dies out on its own, too. Those Tinkerbats grossly misused them, carelessly tossin' 'em down t' burn those guys down there without givin' 'em a chance…! An' look what they left behind…" he ranted, examining the burning ditch as the embers eventually died out, essentially leaving a smoldering crater filled with charred, blackened remnants of vegetation. The smoke from the otherworldly devices maintained its presence, coating the area in a surrounding cloud.

"Terrible… Though, I have to wonder why Tinkerbats are fighting Ammonian soldiers out here in the first place…" she pondered. "I can't imagine for what reason Risky Boots and Ammo Baron would suddenly go to war with each other now… or even why all those goblins and boars were all grouped up near the entrance of the forest."

"Do you think maybe the Ammo Baron caught wind o' Risky's sudden increase in firearms an' now they're squabblin' over that? An' that maybe those goblin things were forced in some way or another t' stay out of the fight?"

"I wholeheartedly agree with that idea regarding the goblins," she concurred with a nod. "They naturally live here, so having such a disturbance in their habitat would cause them to disperse and try to defend it from other intruders. As for the chances of Ammo Baron hearing about your weapons this soon… I wouldn't think so… I mean, I hope not. There's no way Risky would be THAT hasty that she would suddenly make herself known right off the bat unless she had something else up her sleeve. I don't know what she'd gain out of locking horns with Ammo Baron."

"True. I don't know either of 'em too well now, but I would think she'd lay low for a bit after the heist she pulled. Granted, a couple Thermite grenades aren't huge reveals, but who knows what else they're packin' if there are more Tinkerbats in here… But then, none o' them had a gun that looked like it belonged to the arsenal she stole, so there HAS t' be more of 'em…"

"I'm not sure either… It's still too soon to speculate just yet. Anyway, we'd better get a move on before they cause any more trouble here," Shantae urged, her concern for Scuttle Town's safety growing exponentially. "Do you think you'll be able to use Bolo's mace to latch onto the rings, Tay?"

"Latch onto the… What? You mean use this thing as a grapplin' hook or somethin'?" he asked, understandably bewildered by her question. "This thing ain't anywhere near long enough, even if I knew what you meant."

"Yeah. Don't ask me how, though. Bolo showed me how he did it once, but I never got the chance to figure it out. I only know but so much, but I at least understand that it can extend when needed to cover longer distances to attack or cling to rings where you can swing from them. That should come in handy in situations like this."

"Really? Huh…" he nodded, eyeing the melee weapon up and down, though he noted nothing special about it. "Well, I don't think we got time t' try it, all things considered. Besides, I think I'd like t' investigate the area down there t' see if anything that hasn't been fried t' ashes is worth note down there."

"Are you sure about that? The smoke is still pretty heavy. I wouldn't recommend breathing it in."

"Good point," Tay concurred with a nod. "I've got just the idea…" he added, reaching for his chest and grabbing the collar of his tank top. With a firm tug, Tay took off his shirt as his partner watched, unsure of what he planned on doing. However, the serviceman's toned, bulky six-pack abs came into her line of view as he lifted his top. His torso glistened with a thin film of perspiration that gleamed like a mirror in the scattered beams of sunlight shining through the forest canopy. Caught by surprise, Shantae's eyes widened as she fixed her attention on her partner, unable to avert her gaze elsewhere. She'd seen guys with builds like his in the past, but seeing her friend up close, casually disrobing in front of her… It was 'interesting' in a certain sense. He certainly wasn't lying when he said he kept himself in shape. Tay, oblivious to the reaction he elicited from his tour guide, wrapped his tank top around his face, intending to use it as a makeshift mask. As he did so, however, he finally noticed his half-genie partner staring at him, her expression blank save for her widened eyes, slightly gaping mouth, and red-tinted cheeks.

"What?" he asked, suddenly self-conscious about the look she gave him. "I look silly, don't I?"

"No, no, you're fine," she quickly answered, immediately directing her eyes from his chest to his face. "I uh… wasn't expecting you to just… take your shirt off like that," she admitted with a nervous chuckle, her face heating up with surprise, batting her eyes away to avoid staring at him in his sweaty, ripped, brawny, half-nude form. She breathed a heavy sigh to dispel some of the pressure brought on by the masculine spectacle before her. This was certainly a new experience for her, by all accounts; even with having already seen her newest friend shirtless once.

"Oh. Well, I need somethin' t' filter out the smoke while I'm down there," he reasoned, still missing the point. "This tank top is all I've really got at the moment."

"R-right…" she sheepishly remarked, glancing at him to peek once more at the soldier's toned bare abdomen before batting her eyes away again, biting her lip and rubbing the back of her neck with one hand. If I didn't know better, I'd say our half-genie hero liked her boys similarly to how she liked her hair; in peak physical condition. But I digress.

"Uh… Is… there somethin' wrong? You seem bothered," Tayshan oh-so perceptively asked, finally taking note of his partner's nervous fidgeting. "I get it if it's weird I just ripped my shirt off without even-!"

"No, nothing's wrong!" she hurriedly bellowed, startling the half-naked soldier as she brought it in herself to look back at him. "Nothing at all! So, you're really sure about going down there to inspect for clues?" she asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah. I'll crouch low to avoid breathin' in too much smoke, an' make it quick as can be. Though, I'm gonna need your help gettin' up on the cliff on the other side, so far as I can tell. That said, maybe you can take the high road?"

"Good idea," she agreed. "I can keep watch for those Tinkerbats in case they come back, and it'll be faster to help you up once we're done," she further suggested as she took a deep breath, clasping her hands above her head. At a moment's glance, she closed her eyes and began swinging her hips as she stood in place. Again, the atmosphere changed, and the mysterious rhythmic beat returned, sounding in tune with each sway of the half-genie's hips as she seamlessly coordinated the rest of her body while she performed. Tay watched, captivated by Shantae's enigmatic dance number as she turned around to where her back was facing him. She began quickly gyrating her hips as she spread her hands while keeping them raised to the sky. Even viewed from behind, the incredible discipline in Shantae's technique shined bright. If one could make a semi-accurate comparison, it was like the genie girl's entire torso swayed and wavered like a snake while her hips rocked and wiggled like they had a mind all their own. Such a fascinating image nearly defied all description. Nonetheless, she tightened her focus, aiming to concentrate her magic. Tayshan, awestruck by the professional dancer's skills (and maybe just a bit more), stood still, studying her every hip swivel, wondering what she would do next. Before long, however…

"Transform!" Shantae announced, striking a finishing pose. With a smoky *POOF*, she switched into Monkey form once more, turning back to her mesmerized friend after doing so. "Still surprised to see me do that, hm?" she asked with a cheerful grin, prompting him to snap out of his trance. She greatly enjoyed seeing his star-struck reaction.

"Without a doubt," he admitted, clearing his throat as his eyes darted elsewhere momentarily. "Are you ready, though?"

"Whenever you are. Though, I could use some help getting up to the rings there. They're pretty high up, and the smoke hasn't cleared enough for me to see that well from here…"

"In that case, are you sure this form will do it for you?" Tay asked, slightly concerned. "You said you could turn into other types of animals, no?"

"Yeah, but none that could help more than my Monkey form. I'd have picked a different one to simply fly across, but going Monkey gives me the most mobility in the case that there are still Tinkerbats or Ammonian soldiers hiding out somewhere," she matter-of-factly explained.

"Oh, sure, no problem," he understood, walking over and allowing Monkey-Shantae to climb onto his hands. "Wow, you sure are light in this form. It's almost like I was holdin' a livin' breathin' plush toy…" he observed, noting quickly that in her current form, Monkey-Shantae appeared to be only marginally bigger than a human infant in size, but about as light as a regulation-sized football.

"Aw, thanks!" she accepted, misreading his observation as a compliment.

"Uh… Y-you're welcome? Er, anyway, what's the plan?"

"I want you to throw me high enough to where I can latch onto one of the floating rings. From there, I can try to keep watch and warn you of anything coming up. The smoke is in the way, but I think I can manage in short bursts."

"How will you deal with the smoke gettin' in your eyes an' airways, though?"

"I'll hold my breath and hop across as quickly as I can to keep watch safely from the other side. I won't be hanging onto the rings for very long. I just need the mobility this form provides me, and those rings will help me much more than flying across as a bat or a harpy would. Without explaining too much, the flight capabilities in those forms are far from perfect, but those are the only two I have that allow me to fly. One's too slow and I can't move anywhere but back and forward; as in, I can't move up or down in any way. The other one, I have a lot of trouble maintaining a balance between staying airborne and dodging traps or enemy fire. It kinda makes me an easy target if I'm not careful. Plus, that form makes me bigger instead of smaller like this one. It's a bit haphazard, but I'll have to show you what I mean later."

"Fair enough," he concurred, allowing the simian girl to lie prone in one of his hands, arms and legs outstretched to prepare herself. "Okay, so as soon as I throw you, I'll jump down with this mace, an' do a quick survey. In the case there are more o' those guys down here, neither of us needs t' be vulnerable for too long. Once I reach the other side, you help me up onto the hill over there. Sound good?"

"Roger," Shantae affirmed, smirking with determination. With that, Tay tightened his grip on his primate-formed partner as though she were an animated furry rugby ball. The soldier concentrated as he attempted to lock onto the first of the four floating golden rings mysteriously hanging over the pit. He could barely make out the image of the levitating circular metal object, but once he had his target, he cocked his throwing arm back as he put down the mace to stretch his other arm out to maintain his aim. He took three steps back to give himself space on the ledge, tensing his throwing arm to build up strength. "Let 'er rip, Tay!" Shantae commanded. With a deep, heavy breath, Tay hopped forward, jutting his hip forward and following through with his upper torso.

"Hyah!" he shouted as he launched Shantae through the air like a javelin, quickly grabbing the mace after throwing her and hopping into the trench below to scour the scorched foliage for any valuable items of interest. Had he paid attention, however, he would've noticed that he threw his partner at too sharp an angle as she flew over the rings by a wide margin.

"Waaaaah!" Shantae helplessly yelled, hurtling through the cloud of smoke and far over the rings she was supposed to be hanging from, as though she were thrown for a buzzer-beating basket. With all the style and grace of a brick through a window, Shantae plopped hard onto the ledge all the way on the other side, sliding and rolling across the earthen ground like a hockey puck. Suffice to say, her touchdown was not a pleasant one. She was slow to recover from the grand slam of an impact with the rocks and dirt, involuntarily changing back to human form in a disoriented daze… Ugh, any more of these corny sports references, and I swear I'm gonna foul out for stealing bases to score a field goal and break a deuce… o-or something. In a nutshell, however, it appeared Shantae was down for the count… Oh lord, that was another one! No!

Anyway, Tay moved with undeniable urgency. Using the Morning Star as a specialized weed trimmer, he swatted away piles of blackened sticks and leaves as he attempted to sift through smoky trench for anything that might benefit him and Shantae on their quest. He had little time to work with, however, as the pungent fumes and the billowing smoke were only minimally deterred from entering his airways as their presence remained strong. Ducking low and resisting the urge to cough up a storm, the impromptu scavenger diligently cut his way through, noticing quickly that there were wide, deep splits in the ground that, thanks to the flames generated from the Thermite Grenades, were no longer hidden by thick, leafy bushes and vines. He cleared the mini pits with ease, though he was tempted to look down to find out if maybe there were Ammonian soldiers in need of help or lying in wait to attack him.

Unfortunately (depending on the circumstance), he found no traces of them, save for one of their raccoon-themed hats and a bright, shining red heart the size of his hand floating just above the ground where one of the orange-skinned men hid. Finding it worth note, he picked the heart up and kept it secure in one hand while leaving the hat in its place. In a matter of a minute or so, he finished up cutting through the perilous smoldering ditch, making it through to the other side. However, he noticed an extended lapse in the presence of his partner, who'd said nothing to him at all since he climbed down. He wondered if she was okay or if she was occupied.

"Shantae!" he called, looking directly up, though he did not get a reply. "Hey! I'm finished! Can you help me up?" he shouted again. Once more, no answer. As one might expect when multiple calls go unanswered, Tay quickly became worried. He had no vine from which to climb up to the ledge this time, and the wall in front of him was too smooth and steep for him to attempt scaling. Unless he sprouted wings, he had no conventional way to ascend out of the trench. "Shantae!" he shouted again, though she still did not answer. "What happened up there…?" he murmured, thinking of a way to get himself out of this trench, fearing the worst. Unless he found some creative way to magically whisk himself out of the ditch, he was stuck like used chewing gum under a school desk. Although, he examined his weapon and suddenly recalled an important bit of information.

"She said somethin' about bein' able t' use this mace thing t' latch onto the rings up above…" he pondered, peering upward to notice the fourth ring above him, despite the smoke. If Shantae was right, he could use it to climb out of the smoke-laden underpass before he succumbed to the toxic, cloudy fumes. However, he noted that the mace appeared to be way too short to reach them from his position. Conversely, she DID mention that it could somehow extend when need be. The bits of knowledge bestowed upon him about this chain mace only further confused him, but he realized he was low on options and lower on time. "Whatever way this thing is supposed t' work, I'd better make it work fast…" he muttered, his heart pounding as the effectiveness of his makeshift mask diminished. With that, he began twirling the chain mace, though he examined it to see no magic button or compartment from which more chain links would emerge to extend the reach of the weapon. With nothing else to go on, he took a deep breath and mentally hoped to the high heavens that something would give.

"Here goes nothin'…!" he remarked, bracing himself for anything as he, with a strong swing, flung the mace upward. Miraculously, the mace extended far beyond what Tay could've ever expected, wrapping around and latching onto the ring as though it had a mind of its own. "Huh… Neat. Now how do I…?" he contemplated, tugging on the handle of the multi-purposed weapon to see what it would do. Suddenly, the chain began to slowly retract upward, prompting Tay to hastily stuff the strange, bubbly heart item into his pocket, where it seemed to magically disappear. He firmly grasped the Morning Star with both hands, the makeshift grappling device lifting him into the air without any sign of its hold on the ring loosening. In a moment, he found himself hanging slightly higher than the edge of the platform ahead. However, the ring from which he dangled was far enough away that he wouldn't be able to simply reach his feet over and try to climb aboard. He also noticed Shantae, back in human form, sitting and rotating her head as though she'd been fighting to stay awake. He could've sworn he'd seen tiny yellow stars orbiting around her head, she appeared so dazed.

"Shantae!" Tayshan called, hanging onto the chain mace for dear life as he remained suspended in midair. He had no idea why she seemed injured, which caused him to worry that she might've been attacked while he swept through the trench. Shantae failed to respond right away, further concerning him. "Hey! Homegirl! You good!? Wake up!"

"Huh…?" Shantae groaned, shaking her head and blinking her eyes to snap herself out of her disoriented stupor as she came to. Hearing the frantic shouts of her friend, she turned and took in the view of her extraterrestrial partner clutching onto his stolen chain mace while trying to keep from breathing in a sample of the thick, enshrouding smoke. His shirt was still tied around his face, but it appeared the article of clothing only did but so much, as he began coughing while trying to maintain his grip. Piecing together the image of a friend in desperate need of assistance, Shantae drew in a dramatic gasp. "Oh, no! Tay! Here I come!" she urgently shouted, picking herself up and running toward the edge of the grassy platform. "You got the chain mace to work! Awesome!"

"Yeah, sure, just… tell me how…!" Tay tried to urge through a fit of coughing, the smoke having already entered his airways.

"Build momentum and swing yourself over!" She instructed, recalling what little Bolo told her about how his trusty weapon worked. "I'll catch you if you wind up falling short, but you'll need to focus!" Tay, just about ready to do anything to get out of this predicament, tried his best to cease his coughing fit, though he was only barely able to do so. The incessant itch in his esophagus proved difficult to suppress. He cleared his throat as best as he could, biting down on the tank top and drawing in as much filtered air as he could through his mouth. Once he sucked in enough air, he held his breath. Following Shantae's instructions, he began kicking his legs back and forth, holding the mace firmly to avoid losing his grip.

"Just like that, Tay! Make sure you build enough to make your jump a high one!" she encouraged, further motivating her friend. Tayshan poured as much energy as he could into powering up his swing, eventually building up enough to where he was almost able to whirl a full 360 degrees. "Okay, that's perfect! Now, I'll try to explain it the way Bolo told me. When you're about to swing forward, pull on the mace and throw your entire body forward! Don't hesitate for even a second!" Hearing Shantae loud and clear, Tay tightened his focus, though he was quickly running out of breath. He strained to keep himself from releasing the remaining air in his lungs, realizing that if he exhaled too soon, he'd wind up drawing in a heavy dose of smoke while he swung. Placing his faith in his partner's advice and his own acrobatic ability, Tay made one final full-motion, momentum-fueled swing. As Shantae instructed, he pulled downward on the mace as he was swinging upward, causing the weapon to dislodge from the ring.

From there, everything seemed to move in bullet time. Tay was entirely in midair, careering toward the ledge Shantae was standing on. Shantae, certifiably anxious about the fate of her ally in this pulse-pounding dilemma, held her hands out in the case that he missed his mark. The soldier's focus was entirely channeled toward clearing the intimidating smoky gap. He had no time at all to think about what would happen if he missed. His thought process became a jumbled mess of what-ifs and how-to's that blended into a perfect mental storm of panic and anxiety.

After what felt like an hour's worth of time, Tay began to descend. However, it was immediately apparent that he might not land on his feet, though he was still far above the ledge itself. Instinctively, he leaned toward the ledge to try and catch it, hoping he wouldn't slip. Shantae, also watching every tense, heart-wrenching second of Tay's last-second trapeze act, stood closer to the edge, ready to catch him in the case that he missed his landing.

Then, the moment of truth arrived. As he approached the ledge from the air, Tay stretched out his hands to try and catch the edge or Shantae's hands. With a painful *THUMP*, the soldier plopped onto the grassy, rocky cliff, the impact mostly reverberating through his chest as the Morning Star was flung forward. The turbulent crash landing nearly knocked the wind out of the endangered young man. The weapon found its resting place in a patch of grass out of his reach. Without even a millisecond of hesitation, Tay dug his hands into the ground, as his entire lower body was still dangling over the edge of the cliff.

"I've got you!" Shantae quickly rushed to the man's aid, grabbing him by one arm with both her hands. She pulled with all her might to at least provide him some leverage. "Just pull yourself up! I won't let you go!" she commanded. Needing no further prompt, Tayshan found solid footing on the cliffside as he squeezed onto Shantae's hands with one hand and dug his fingers into the warm, damp, mushy, grassy ground with the other.

"Haaaap!" Tay grunted with considerable effort, climbing upward and onto the ledge. With much help from his half-genie ally, he pulled himself all the way up, crawling a few paces forward to ascertain that he was 100% on the ledge before letting loose a fit of violent hacking and coughing. He was finally able to breathe clean air, at least. Although, the damp, musky humidity of the forest's atmosphere prevented him from fully enjoying the experience. Shantae, concerned for her fellow adventurer, took a knee by his side, removing the tank top from his face and patting him on the back to help him clear his airways. After a few minutes of Tayshan hacking up a lung, he regained enough of his composure to finally flip over and sit up, marveling at the third life-or-death situation he'd just found himself in.

"Are you okay, Tayshan?" Shantae asked with insurmountable concern for the soldier's wellbeing.

"Yeah… Yeah, I'll be okay," he assured, clearing his throat, though he couldn't get rid of the bitter, stinging aftertaste of smoke in the back of his throat. "That… was WAY too close for comfort…"

"I'll say… Still, you managed to pull through," she complimented. "I'm impressed!"

"Thanks," he acknowledged, though he wasn't necessarily looking for approval for his most recent stunt. "Are you okay, though? I saw you up here in a daze. Did some Tinkerbats or those blue guys get the drop on you?"

"No," she answered, momentarily reflecting on his question. "I was dizzy because you threw me way too far," she explained, alarming the young man as he instantly shot her an apologetic look. "I went flying way past all the rings and landed here… hard. The impact almost knocked me out cold."

"Oh…! Shoot, I'm so sorry!" he apologized, turning toward her in a panic. "I was so sure I hit the mark that I jumped down right after I threw you! I should've stayed up there an' made sure you actually landed on a ring before I charged in. That was such a rookie mistake, homegirl. I-I didn't mean t' hurt you. My bad…" he pleaded, convinced he'd made a bad impression on his heroic companion.

"It's okay, Tay," she assured, bringing herself to her feet and offering a hand to him. Without question, the soldier accepted as he took her hand, allowing her to pull him up to his feet. "If anything, I'm surprised yet again by how much raw power you pack," the half-genie further observed as she moved to pick up the shirt and the mace, handing them to her ally. "It just proves that those muscles of yours aren't just for show," she complimented, giggling to lighten the mood a bit. Taken by surprise as he slid his tank top back on, Tay smiled back, relieved that Shantae hadn't held any hard feelings for what he viewed as an egregious mistake on his part.

"I… I guess so…" he uncertainly replied, still slightly embarrassed. "Thank you for that, though. Still, if we have t' do that again, I'll try t' be a bit more coordinated. I don't wanna turn you into a human-genie rocket…" he joked with a nervous titter. At that, Shantae laughed with him, though she considered the implications.

"Y'know, my Monkey form has a special ability that, now that I think of it, would be great for a Team Attack if it were combined with your super strength," she suggested, letting her imagination carry her away. However, her suggestion caught her partner's attention. "And here I was, thinking you didn't have any superpowers!"

"I… don't have superpowers, though," he uncertainly countered. "Like we talked about before, I'm just a regular full-fledged human being. All I can say regardin' my strength is that I just built up a lot of it over the years since I started weight trainin' an' exercisin' t' stay in shape. Bein' in the military helped me immensely, too."

"Hmm… That makes sense, but… no ordinary human I've met could ever do the things you did in just the last hour or so," she argued, convinced that he had some form of special ability he possibly didn't know about. "Seriously, even with all your training, there's no way a normal human could be that strong. At least, not as far as I've ever seen. The only people with such impressive amounts of power that I'm aware of, are usually influenced by high amounts of Light or Dark Magic."

"In that case, I don't have a definite answer, because I don't have any magic abilities, either. Although, you might be onto somethin'."

"What do you mean?" she inquired, interested in his suggestion that he may have a clue.

"Thinkin' about it, somethin' about bein' here makes me feel… different. I don't know if it has t' do with the magic you mentioned, but there's somethin' about the atmosphere in this world that just comes off as… weird."

"Weird how?"

"As in… I feel… lighter on my feet, the air I'm breathin' feels clearer despite the heat an' humidity in this forest… an' the smoke… and… I feel like my whole body is just surgin' with a nonstop electric current. Call me crazy, but maybe it's somehow increasin' my normal strength by some unknown margin," he theorized, catching Shantae's full, undivided attention. "Otherwise, I don't think I'd have been able t' hit some of our enemies as hard as I did back there, amongst other things."

"Really now?"

"Yeah. That's bizarre t' say, I know, but it's like… now that I notice it, I feel strange. Not 'sick' strange, but just… strange," he confessed, worriedly examining his body for signs that he might've been falling ill.

"Strange how? Tell me!"

"For example, when we were beatin' up those goblins, I felt such a huge burst of energy the whole time that I hardly recognized myself; especially when I hit the one goblin so hard with that uppercut that I sent it crashin' through the tree branch way above it. I'm talkin' somethin' different from your average adrenaline rush."

"Interesting… I wonder if what Uncle said about your energy being different might have something to do with it, if it isn't magic. When we get a chance, we'll need to go back and ask him. Still, was that the only time you felt like that?" she asked, causing him to go silent in thought, gazing into the air as he cupped his chin with his hand. She was eager to hear his reply, figuring that she could help him identify the reasons behind his apparent increase in physical strength.

"Oddly enough… no," he answered, breaking the silence and further surprising his tour guide. "Now that I remember it, the same thing happened when I fought Risky Boots, too… Right at about the time we went through the portal, there was this sudden change I couldn't put my finger on. I was too busy fightin' her t' pay attention to it, though. At one point, she even said that I was holdin' back, even though I swore I was goin' full power the whole fight through. I've been havin' that same feelin' in seemingly-random spurts since I got here…"

"Y'know what? That sounds just like Super Sequin Man!" she gushed, a giddy smile creeping onto her face as she drew a rather hasty conclusion.

"Who?" Tay predictably asked, having no clue what she was talking about.

"Right, right, you wouldn't know who that is… That's the main hero in one of my comics," she explained. "He gained his superpowers because he was sent to a fictionalized version of Sequin Land from a different planet as a baby. The difference in atmospheric pressure mixed with his ability to absorb moonlight as lunar energy turned him into a superhero. If what you're saying is true, you just might have powers you don't realize yet, which would be totally awesome!" At that, the soldier chuckled, though she DID pique his interest.

"That's an interestin' theory. Now I'll be thinkin' about that…" he pondered, though he didn't want to get carried away in their current situation. There was little time to consider the WIDE range of possibilities regarding his current condition. "Maybe we can explore it later, when we go see your uncle again. Anyway, you mentioned a Team Attack?" he asked, redirecting the conversation.

"Yeah, I did. We can talk about that later, too. It's just an idea. For now, we continue investigating what's going on here," the determined heroine reminded, taking the lead as she pressed forward. "I do hope we figure out what you're feeling right now, though. I'm curious. Beside that, did you happen to find anything useful or interesting while you were down there in the trench?"

"I was rushin' t' get out, so I didn't pick up anything but this giant, shiny heart thing," he answered, pulling the aforementioned object from his pocket. "If I didn't know better, then I'd say this thing would heal you?" he asked, still internalizing the video game-related logic this world appeared to follow.

"Hit the nail on the head there, Tay," she confirmed, despite being mildly surprised. "Though, it's strange that you're able to hold it without it activating for you."

"What, is it supposed t' instantly heal me as soon as I touch it?"

"Unless you're at full health, then yeah," she answered, cupping her chin in thought as she studied the supposed healing item. "You definitely took at least some damage back there, didn't you?"

"Yeah, a lot. I feel fine, minus the smoky aftertaste in my throat, though. I'm not sore or anything, either. Shoot, one o' those goblins even cut my arm with its sword back there, an' I don't even see a mark," he mused, examining his arm for damage sustained in his previous battle.

"Interesting… Here, let me see that," Shantae requested, gesturing for the heart-shaped object. Tay complied, handing it to her. The second she touched it, the heart popped like a bubble, making a mysterious *GLUG* noise. Shantae was fully healed in a flash, any damage she sustained from their previous battle (and her unceremonious soldier-powered flight) totally undone. "Oops… Sorry, Tay," she apologized, afraid that she stole a much-needed health boost from her friend.

"It's… okay?" he cautiously forgave, though he found himself befuddled by what he'd just witnessed. "I… I don't even know what happened. Did… you wind up bein' healed or somethin'?"

"Yeah, I'm back at full health. These hearts are supposed to restore your health meter by certain amounts, depending on the size of them. That one was a large one, so it healed me completely. Yet, when you held it, it didn't do anything for you at all."

"Weird… I mean, I still don't understand completely, but if I'm followin', it was supposed t' work like that steak you gave me, right? Minus havin' t' actually EAT that thing t' gain its effects?"

"Yeah. I wonder if that means certain power-ups will be exclusive to me, while others are exclusive to you. We at least know that food items work for both of us, but without that HUD Monitor, we don't even know how much health you have."

"Hey, your guess is as good as mine," Tayshan shrugged while Shantae momentarily lost herself in thought. "Like I said, I took some hits here an' there, but I still feel fine. I'm not even tired from all the runnin', jumpin', an' fightin' we just did."

"Really? Wow… I wonder if that's also because you're from a different planet…?" she continued to wonder. However, she shook her head to refocus before too much time elapsed. "We'll figure it out soon. I'm sure of it. For now, let's keep moving!"

"Copy that," Tay agreed without argument, following the half-genie deeper into the humid, bushy forest. The two made their way to the next section, where they were immediately met with squads of Tinkerbats and blue-coated, raccoon-hatted soldiers squabbling amongst one another in a wide, stony clearing littered with tree branches, muddy puddles of water, and leaves. Shantae held a hand out to stop Tay from charging in as the two remained hidden a safe distance away from all the action.

"More of them…" Shantae muttered, perturbed by the presence of entire squads of Ammonian soldiers and Tinkerbats in the forest.

"And they're armed," Tay observed, his eyes instantly drawn to the firearms held by the Ammonian soldiers involved in the scuffle. "Though the rifles with bayonets are way out o' style as compared t' the weapons Risky stole," he added.

"You don't say…" she replied, her worry growing regarding the nature of Risky's increased firepower.

"Yeah, but from the looks of it, these Tinkerbats don't have anything worth note, either. Just swords an' those clunky-lookin' flintlock pistols. I don't know how much of a threat those pose to us, though…"

"Don't worry about them. The guns they have are pretty easy to avoid," the half-genie assured. "The rifles only usually only shoot in bursts of three and the bullets are simple enough to dodge because they don't move all that fast. They charge in blindly with their bayonets, too, so if you can keep a safe distance, you can take them out without breaking a sweat. The pistols are even less threatening."

"Interestin'… Hey, who is this Ammo Baron, anyway? I should've asked sooner, but if we're gonna be dealin' with him so early, I might as well get some intel."

"He's a ruthless and calculating military general whose goal is to conquer Sequin Land and rule it with an iron, weapon-riddled fist. That and possibly begin a massive black-market arms-dealing business of which he'd be the sole benefactor. Behind Risky, he's one of Sequin Land's biggest threats as one of the four notorious Barons of Sequin Land. Although, he doesn't usually make himself noticeable unless he's specifically after something…"

"That's unsettlin'," Tay remarked as the two continued to watch Tinkerbats clashing with Ammonian soldiers in a fierce—if not at least slightly comedic—brawl. Headlocks, suplexes, sucker punches, noogies, slapfights, and atomic wedgies galore as the two factions tore into each other the same way grade school children on the playground would. It was a wonder why they even had guns when they were just wrestling with each other like animals in a giant, swampy, stick-laden mud pit. "…almost as unsettlin' as this pitiful display," he further remarked, baffled by the bizarre sight he beheld. "Do they usually fight like this?"

"Believe me, this is the first time I'm seeing this, too…" she remarked with a shrug. "Like I said, I never thought Risky Boots and Ammo Baron would ever go to war. I don't know why they'd start now."

"Gotcha… Sooo… do we NEED to engage them, or can we sneak past? They seem PRETTY busy on their own here…"

"For the sake of finding what Bolo saw, we should probably skip past them. I've got an idea how…" Shantae affirmed as she began to dance another hip-swinging rendition of that same hypnotic belly dance technique she demonstrated moments earlier. The air surrounding the duo turned a tangible smoky hot pink as the mysterious beat returned. Tay noticed that everything around them had frozen, as though Shantae had managed to stop time itself.

"Wow…" He muttered, still amazed at the magic-wielding young woman's unmistakable talent. Soon, she struck a pose that communicated that she was ready to transform.

"Traaaansform!" Shantae announced before instantly turning into a huge dark blue spider-human hybrid with baby blue skin, silky navy-colored hair, and a big red bow tied into her hair. To say that Tay was alarmed was a gross understatement, though he resisted the urge to scream. It was no less than mind-blowing to see his comrade as a chimeric spider the size of a van; even more so when her top half was basically humanoid, while her bottom half was that of a Black Widow spider. It was the stuff of nightmares. "Here, get on," Spider-Shantae whispered to him, gesturing her backside toward him and turning back to face him. Still slightly (read: immensely) alarmed, Tay gingerly climbed onto Shantae's sleek, silky back. Once he was aboard, she lifted her backside upward shot a line of web into the air that landed squarely in front of the soldier.

"…Ew," he commented, justifiably grossed out.

"Get over it," she shot back, her voice surprisingly changed to where there was some creepy clicking noise emanating from her throat when she spoke. Tay nearly panicked again at the disquieting sound of her spider voice. "Don't tell me they don't have spiders in your world."

"None as big or as uh… pretty as you are. Also, I've never ridden on the back of a spider before. The biggest spiders in my world only a fraction as huge as you are. Not fit for spider-back riding. Anyway, game plan?"

"I'm going to climb along the branches above to get past these guys. I'll need you to secure yourself on my back. It'll be a bumpy ride, but I think this form can handle the added weight in short bursts."

"…Whatever you say," he trustingly complied as he wrapped the thick, sticky, ropy webbing around his and Shantae's waists, as well as his hands, and grabbed on tight. He was of course put off by the stickiness of the webbing in addition to having to wrap himself in it as though Shantae captured him with the intent to eat him. Nevertheless, Spider-Shantae jumped and spun a web from her bulbous spider thorax and clung to a tree branch VERY high above. Within seconds, she quickly reeled herself upward and touched her spider legs onto the underside of the tree branch, defying all sorts of laws of gravity. "Okay, this is nuts…" Tay murmured as he hung onto the arachnid girl for dear life. He was stuck tightly to Spider-Shantae's back, hanging upside down as she crawled along the underside of the tree branch. Such an experience would make even the most iron-stomached individual queasy.

In Tay's case, however, since Shantae was unable to simply jump along the branches, she was forced to drop from one tree branch and spin a line of web to link up to the next one before reeling herself in to crawl on it. She maintained this method of navigation to inconspicuously sneak past any enemies below that might give them trouble. This continued for much longer than Tayshan would have cared for before they eventually maneuvered past the massive faction war that unfolded in the mud pit. Shantae dropped from another tree branch basically a mile high once she saw the coast was clear. They landed on a wide, mossy, crooked, stone pillar-shaped platform protruding from the ground that loomed over a lower, deeper forest trail, where Shantae transformed back into her humanoid form, forcing her passenger to unexpectedly meet with a faceful of moss.

"Ouch…!" the soldier remarked, feeling just a little unwell as he lay facedown on the platform.

"Sorry…" Shantae sheepishly grinned as she helped her partner up. "I've never had a passenger with me when I transformed. That was pretty cool though, right?"

"Ask me that when my stomach ain't flippin' around like a circus trapeze act…" he remarked, tearing the webbing and moss off himself as he regained his composure. At that, Shantae let loose a small chuckle before a loud, sudden *CRACK* in the wind caught their attention. The perplexed half-genie looked around in confusion as to where the sound came from. Tay, on the other hand, appeared to know the sound and its location as he immediately ducked and pulled his partner down with him.

"What gives?" Shantae asked, unaware of what Tay had reacted so suddenly for.

"That sound was one o' the guns Risky stole," he informed her in a whisper, eliciting a gasp. "They have at least one out here just a bit farther on." The duo peered over the ledge to notice two Tinkerbats down below; one with no weapon on-hand, and the other with a handgun, of which Tay recognized the shape as soon as he saw it. "A sidearm…!" he rasped, incredibly displeased with the sight he beheld. "She can't be serious with lettin' these clumsy little mutants parade around with these guns…! Especially not now…!"

"So it's true without a doubt… Risky's giving them your guns to fight with," the concerned maiden observed, her nerves stirred up by the knowledge. "There's only two of them down there, and only one of them has a gun, though. We should at least try to get it back from them," she suggested. "Our odds look pretty good here."

"Yeah, but we gotta be careful. If we tip them off, the one with the gun could blow both of us away. I'm thinkin' what we need t' do first is…?" he trailed off as he turned and saw Shantae shapeshift into her Monkey form. "What are you doin'?"

"I'm gonna take them by surprise and try to get that gun. Wait here…" the little lavender monkey stated as she prepared to jump down, though Tay did not approve.

"Shantae, no!" he shouted as he got up and threw the chained mace to the ground below before moving to leap after her. He landed first with a voluminous *THUD* of his feet on the forest floor, being much heavier than she was, and held out his arms to catch the ambitious monkey girl. He caught her as she transformed back into her human form, though she appeared none too happy about his interference.

"What are you doing?" she asked, perturbed by his interruption. Before the two could clear the air, the Tinkerbat with the gun, startled, aimed it at them with the full intent to shoot. Tay, noticing this, instinctively hugged Shantae close and turned around to shield her. A thunderous *BANG!* rang out from the firearm, its live round taking a significant amount of time longer than Tay would have expected. The round struck his lower back in a matter of a half-second, nevertheless.

"HAWWGH!" He screamed and winced in pain, nearly falling over. The searing agony from the gunshot had nearly overwhelmed him, but he found himself almost equally confused as to why the shot hadn't hurt a lot more or sent him crumpling to the ground, bleeding out. Shantae, almost falling loose from his grip, wrapped her arms around his neck to keep herself from slipping. Without much thought, he picked up the chain mace with one arm, held Shantae with the other, whipped around, and with a swing of his arm, launched the Morning Star at the confused gun-wielding Tinkerbat, knocking it and its partner out in a single strike with a couple of vanquishing metallic *PWANGs* as it whirled through the air like helicopter blades. The melee weapon crash-landed into a pile of twigs nearby afterward. The firearm was dropped in the place where the Tinkerbat previously stood. With the coast clear, Tay set his comrade down, wincing again as he bent to set her on her feet.

"Are you okay?" Shantae asked, the worry evident in her voice as she examined her partner for injuries he sustained during the short scuffle.

"Yeah…" he replied as he inspected the source of his pain to see a hole in his tank top, but no sign of bodily penetration from the shot he took; instead, there was a charcoal-black smoking burn mark where there should have been a gaping hole in his back. It caused him moderate discomfort, but he was still able to move; something he figured he should not have been able to do after taking a direct hit from a round fired from a loaded handgun. "I feel a lot better than I thought I would. Mind you, that gunshot stung like a thousand wasps. Still… that wasn't what I was expectin' t' happen when I got shot…" he informed her. The half-genie inspected the wound to see what he meant. She gasped in shock to see the smoldering quarter-sized mark. It almost looked like a birthmark or a mole, if one were to take away the context.

"That looks pretty bad…" she observed, worried that the soldier might not be able to continue traveling with her.

"It could've—and should've—been much worse," he countered as he moved to pick the gun up and examine it. As far as it seemed, the gunshot injured him, but did little to hinder his range of movement. "Wait, this… this ain't right…"

"What's up?" Shantae asked, perplexed by her ally's confusion about the weapon. "Is that gun not part of the collection?"

"No. This… This is MY gun. At least, one that belonged t' me personally, but… this one shouldn't be here… even WITH Risky havin' stolen so much artillery from my base…" he murmured, though he understood that his Sequinean comrade wouldn't have a clue as to what he meant. "What could this thing possibly be doin' here? An' what's wrong with the ammo for it?"

On top of not understanding how this particular handgun made it into the hands of a Tinkerbat, Tay also didn't understand how the handgun did such a small amount of damage to him as compared to what it should've been capable of. He fired a shot into the air, startling the unsuspecting genie girl with the sheer volume of the *BANG!* alone. However, he was befuddled to see what came from the gun; a slow (for a bullet, anyway), glowing red-and-blue marble-sized sphere ejecting from the weapon's barrel. The floating marble seemed to look like and travel at maybe a fraction of the speed of a paintball fired from a standard paintball gun; speedy, sure, but much slower than a live round from any gun should have been, regardless of whether it fired bullets or paintballs. He fired three more shots into the air to see the same thing happen again. "This can't be right…" he murmured as he unloaded the magazine. "It sounds the same, but…"

"Is there something wrong with the gun?" she asked, covering her ears with her hands. She had never experienced a gun firing quite so loudly and was likewise unprepared for when Tay test-fired the weapon.

"Yeah. It's firin' wrong…" he answered as he looked at the rounds inside the magazine of the gun. The bullets appeared as a series of little glowing pellets much like the ones he watched fire out of the barrel of the unusual firearm. As far as he knew, this gun, a chrome silver .50 caliber Desert Eagle, was meant to hold seven incredibly powerful rounds in it that, amongst other things, looked nothing like what was inside. In just the last few minutes, the gun was fired six times; twice when the Tinkerbat fired it, and the four times Tay fired it. The magazine should have been empty. Yet, it still looked completely full… of glowing marbles. He tried dumping it out to no avail, as the rounds stayed stationary inside like they were superglued in. He also attempted digging the enigmatic ammunition out with a finger, only to find that not a single marble budged. Last, he attempted to unload the round resting in the chamber, at which point he noted yet another glowing marble emerging from it and landing in the grass. Thoroughly stumped, he reloaded the magazine, turned the safety on, and sheathed the gun in his holster before picking up and examining the enigmatic round. He couldn't make heads or tails of the condition of his weapon.

"It seems to work just fine, as far as I can see" Shantae observed, finally uncovering her ears.

"I… guess, but it should be empty save for one round… an' the rounds comin' out of it are nothin' like any gun I've ever used… I'm wonderin' if maybe Risky tampered with the way this gun works; an' what's more, what she could be doin' to the rest of 'em."

"I… don't know anything about your weapons, but usually, Risky's gun has unlimited ammo and never needs to be reloaded," Shantae explained once the ringing in her ears finally stopped, stumping the soldier further.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. She's fired hers at me many, many times during our battles and has never once needed to reload it. Even when I borrowed it in my time as a full-fledged human, I never needed to change the ammo out. I just fired away, and the bullets came out without fail. No matter how many times I shot it, it never jammed, ran out, or anything."

"Hold the phone… You know how t' use a gun? You were a full-fledged human at one point? You've been SHOT before?"

"Yes, yes, and… yes," she plainly answered, causing Tay to gawk at her as though she had six heads. He had many questions to ask her on how she learned to use a gun, at what point she was fully human, and even how she'd been on the business end of a bullet and appeared to be without even the slightest scar on her body. However, he knew that this was no time to ask such questions. He could at least surmise that his gun had unlimited ammo, based on what he observed of its altered properties, and that could serve as a huge benefit for him. However, if all of his world's weapons were tampered with by Risky in this manner, it yielded disastrous consequences. At the very least, he could ditch the comparatively-inferior Morning Star that wasn't even his. Heck, he'd already totally forgotten about it.

"Hm… Well, when we get time, I'm interested in learnin' more about you," he casually confessed. "You're full of surprises. It's uncanny… but I actually kinda like that."

"Aw, thanks!" she cheerfully accepted his compliment.

"Yeah. But I have t' advise you t' be more careful," he chided, his wound still fresh as he rubbed his hand over it. "If this gun worked the way it should've, I would've been dead the very second I got shot." This news alarmed the scarlet-clad young woman. "We got lucky this time, from the look of it."

"O-oh… I'm sorry, Tay…" she apologized. "I didn't know how strong your world's weapons really were. I'll definitely take better precautions next time. Also, thanks for saving me."

"No sweat! Though, I have myself t' blame because I should be wearin' more equipment than this, t' be honest," he explained, lamenting the absence of protective equipment such as a Kevlar bulletproof vest, a helmet, and protective padding, amongst other things.

"Oh. Will you be okay without it?" Shantae asked, concerned for her partner's safety.

"I only hope. So far, nothin' too threatenin's come our way… well, almost nothin', dependin' on how we look at it. And now that I got my hands on some kind o' firearm, I feel a little bit more prepared. But come on, we should scout the area for any more of 'em out here. Where do we go next?"

"The Sequin Land Palace is just ahead. We can scout for any suspicious activity there and search for clues. Chances are, Ammo Baron possibly had a run-in with Risky, which would explain the Tinkerbats and Ammonian soldiers fighting in the forest. Since we're headed that way, maybe we can try convincing the Sultana to help us out."

"Hmm… Okay, let's go," he agreed, following Shantae through the last few shrubberies and trees of the forest before they eventually emerged to see a stone bridge leading over a wide, sparkling ocean that glistened in the afternoon sunlight. In the distance beyond the bridge stood an enormous, architectural masterpiece of an Arabian-styled palace that seemed to have eaten other giant Arabian palaces to become as gargantuan as it appeared. Shantae, thinking about hers and Tay's recent encounter with the last two Tinkerbats they'd crossed paths with, found herself curious about her partner's handgun, figuring he had answers for her regarding its firepower.

"That gun of yours…" she began as they neared the bridge. "How strong is it? When you shoot it, it's incredibly loud. Louder than a cannon."

"Truth be told, Shantae; Very. Maybe a bit too strong, all things considered," he replied with slight worry, piquing the girl's interest.

"Too strong?"

"Yeah. This thing really packs a wallop, but it's hard to aim, much less shoot. I don't know if you were watchin' when I tested it, but you saw how hard my hands jump back when I shoot."

"Yeah, it looked like it was ready to fly out of your grasp every time. If it's that hard to control, are you sure you can make use of it?"

"I can certainly try. I don't have a choice in the matter now. This gun is not the one I was issued when I enlisted. This one is mine personally. The kind I'm supposed t' have is a lot more… practical, simply put."

"How?"

"The kind I was supposed t' have is black instead o' this shiny, gleamin' silver, for one thing. Also, the other gun is slightly smaller, has a much bigger magazine, a much better firin' rate, and a much more comfortable grip that helps me t' aim it better. Also, it ain't quite as loud, though its rounds are somewhat weaker than this gun; at least, in terms o' the ammo that's SUPPOSED to be in them, not the weird little glowin' marbles jammed up in this gun. All that said, this gun is, by all accounts, inferior from a professional standpoint. Too strong for its own good, but not even worth the incredible firepower when you sacrifice so much accuracy for it that you'd be lucky t' hit a mountain at close range."

"Wow… sounds like that gun is quite a hassle."

"Yep. I turned it in right when I signed up because I didn't feel like it'd be safe t' leave it at home, nor was I gonna sell it or throw it away."

"How come?"

"I didn't really want it anymore, all things considered about how it first wound up in my possession. Although, I didn't think it belonged anywhere but in the hands o' trained professionals that could use or get rid of it themselves by the time I was old enough t' understand what it really meant t' own a gun. I thought they disposed of it because I never saw it again after that, but… evidently, Risky Boots an' her henchmen found it in the stash they pilfered. It's weird t' see this thing again…" he answered as he nearly lost himself in thought, momentarily glancing at the weapon in his holster.

"Oh. Then… how did you get that gun in the first place, if you don't mind me asking?" Shantae asked, her interest growing. At that, Tay sighed, apparently expecting her to ask the question, but somehow still unprepared to answer. Nonetheless, he replied.

"Believe it or not, I… was given it a long time ago… to help someone cover up a crime," he cautiously admitted, much to Shantae's surprise.

"What?" the half-genie yelled in shock, nearly stopping in her tracks as she turned her full attention to her partner.

"Yeah, I know… Not a very heroic thing for me t' do, coverin' somebody who deserved punishment for what they did. Granted, I never actually covered for him, t' be honest…"

"Well… what happened?" she asked, certifiably alarmed by her new partner's chilling confession, though very curious.

"Long story short, I had a 'friend' a couple years ago who used this gun t' rob people… I don't even know for myself where he got it from, but yeah. He'd never shot anybody before a certain point, but he would point it at people t' force 'em t' give him money or some valuable thing he decided he wanted at the time. He didn't even need half the things he stole from people, but he was just… greedy, amongst other things. In a nutshell, he kept that bad habit up for way longer than he should've, pushin' his luck further an' further with every innocent person he stuck up."

"My gosh, that's awful!" she remarked, appalled by this 'friend' and his ghastly deeds.

"You don't gotta tell me twice. One day, he finally pushed his luck too far an' stuck up some random woman in broad daylight. The robbery didn't go so well this time."

"How?" she dared to ask.

"The woman, an off-duty police officer, tried t' wrestle the gun away. He shot an' injured the woman an' immediately came runnin' t' me in a panic. He knocked on my door, I opened it, he shoved the gun in my hands, told me not to tell anybody, an' ran off. Mind you, they caught him anyway because the woman he shot survived—thankfully—and reported him as soon as she was able to. How he kept gettin' away with it before that point is still a mystery to me…"

"Wow… That's so terrible that that happened."

"I know. I had a hunch he would slip up an' try t' rope me in somehow. I was no saint myself, but I did keep tellin' him t' chill or else he'd pick up some serious heat. Of course, he'd tell me t' shut up an' mind my business an' dared me t' snitch to the police. Like I was sayin' before, I didn't have very good friends."

"Yeah, but for them to be that cruel to you? How could you even call this guy a 'friend' at all, in that case?"

"Your guess is as good as mine. Addin' t' that mystery of why I ever considered this dude my 'friend,' I also had a hunch he would tell police somethin' about me bein' involved after he gave me this gun, so I took preemptive measures t' hide it before the police came. Of course, they showed up t' my door a couple days later after they found an' arrested him. They asked where the gun was, since this 'friend' told them I did it. Huge shocker, right?"

"I… I guess not, if you already had the feeling he would do that…"

"Yeah. Me bein' the little knucklehead I was though, I decided I wanted t' keep it anyway. I knew they'd search my whole house for it, no matter what I told them. Plus, I wasn't gonna go to jail for somethin' he did. So, right after he gave it to me, I hid it at the bottom of a trashcan a good couple miles away from my house before they showed up. When they came lookin', I lied t' them about havin' thrown it in a river after I told them he ran t' my door t' hand it over t' me. They searched my house up an' down like I predicted they would, an' unsurprisingly, they found nothin'. Incredibly dishonest, I know…" he admitted with a heavy sigh, knowing the dark implications of his tale to his newest friend.

"Yeah…" she agreed, the concern evident in the disconcerted look she gave him. "A lot of terrible things happened for you to get that thing. Why would you even want it, in that case? It seems like so much trouble. Don't tell me you…?"

"Robbed or shot somebody with it? No!" he exclaimed, picking up on his friend's implication. "I wouldn't have been able t' join the military if I did those things, much less got caught. I mean, I DID show it off t' scare people every once an' again a few months after that incident, though. Once the static about the event with that 'friend' blew over an' he got incarcerated, I got the bright idea t' start carryin' it around, thinkin' I was cool because of it."

"Why? That doesn't seem like a very good idea…"

"Try tellin' the younger, more misguided version o' me. Back then, I liked to intimidate people who picked on me. Before I got my hands on it, I had nothin'. I wasn't workin' out at the time, either. I was tall, but I was scrawny, quiet, an' cowardly… but once I managed t' get a real gun, some o' that changed in my favor. Or, so I tricked myself int' believin' at that time…"

"So… What'd you do with it to scare people, if it's okay to ask?"

"Most o' the time, I flashed it by pullin' up my shirt while it was stuffed into my belt. When I saw people jump, I'd tell 'em I stole it off a rival gang member an' dared them t' try me or tell on me, thinkin' it made me look tough. Not proud o' that in the least, in hindsight…"

"I can't imagine you would be," Shantae affirmed, now mildly wary of the soldier as he opened up to her about his unexpectedly-shady past. "You seem… different from what you're telling me, if that makes sense."

"That's because I eventually picked up a certain somethin' called common sense," he retorted, acknowledging the frightened looks she'd been shooting him, however unaware she was that she was gesticulating her discomfort. "What you see now is someone who learned from his foolish, incredibly life-threatenin' mistakes, but still has a long way t' go, if that puts your mind at ease about me…"

"What do you mean?" she inquired, puzzled as to why he would imply that she was upset.

"I see the looks you're givin' me as I tell you this," he plainly replied, shocking her as she focused on him. "I can tell you're a little bit uncomfortable now. Trust me, I've gotten many looks like that before, for many reasons," he admitted, ostensibly unfazed by his friend's perceived fear of him.

"Oh… w-well, I… I'm not uncomfortable," she uncertainly rebutted, though she chose her words carefully. "It's just… what you're telling me. It's… a lot to process. I'm sorry. I'm not judging you. I promise."

"Ah, I get it," he acknowledged with a somber nod, though he found himself suddenly hesitant to continue. However, with some mental priming, he continued. "In a way, this gun suddenly reminds me of myself, so far as its known history is concerned. Sorta twisted, yeah, but… I'm just thinkin' now."

"How so?"

"This gun was used to commit crimes at first, and now it's about t' be used t' fight crime. Likewise, I used t' commit crimes, an' joinin' the military became my opportunity in more ways than one t' start fightin' crime. Also, helpin' you stop Risky Boots. It's a journey for redemption an' a fresh start, if you know what I'm sayin'," he calmly confessed with a disarming, friendly grin. Hearing this comparative revelation brought the young woman considerable relief, as she got an idea about Tayshan's character. He wasn't such a bad guy, despite his past. As far as she saw it, he was a guy who struggled to do the right thing, but eventually found his calling. That, she understood and… in a sense, she could relate to it.

"I know exactly what you're saying, Tay. I totally get it now…" she affirmed with a smiling nod as the tension she felt dissipated.

"Thanks. Granted, I'd practiced shootin' with this thing ever since I got it an' still never completely got over the sheer power, volume, an' recoil of it."

"Somehow, I might've figured that," she acknowledged, having bore witness to the overwhelming firepower of the handgun in her friend's possession.

"I'll bet you might've. I almost sprained my wrists a few times just shootin' this thing in my younger years, believe it or not. Doesn't exactly help that I still had t' keep it hidden so I didn't get in trouble for even havin' it, which further limited my time for practicin' as a kid. Mind you, I was dumb enough t' show it off anyway, which put me in a couple o' really sticky situations before… Of course, I also had t' keep in mind how I was gettin' more ammo for a gun I wasn't even supposed t' have an' that was way too strong for me t' be playin' around with."

"How… DID you get more bullets?" Shantae uneasily queried, concerned at the answer he would give.

"Remember when I said I'd tell people I stole this gun off a RIVAL gang member?" he hinted.

"Yeah…?" she tilted her head before realizing what he meant. "Ohhh… You… you were in a gang?"

"Yep, with a strong emphasis on the past-tense there… It's not like I WANTED t' join one, don't get me wrong… It was for protection in the neighborhood I was livin' in, where life had some sick ways o' pickin' off the weak an' defenseless. Given what I told you, I was pretty weak an' defenseless at the time. Didn't help that my parents weren't around, either. Long story short, some 'scouters' basically forced me t' join sometime after I lost my mother an' the news spread around the neighborhood. But, once I was in, they made sure people didn't mess with me so much. Plus, they covered me for a lot of… errands they made me run for them, an' in return, they gave me, amongst other things, more ammo for this gun t' practice with."

"Whoa…"

"I got away with a lot o' things that should've had me put behind bars, Shantae… a lot o' things that I don't think I have the courage t' tell you right now. Anyway, stolen ammo was in a scarily healthy supply for the gang I was in. I, of course, wasn't allowed t' ask questions. That said, I can't even give you a clear answer as to where ammo for a gun with such a small magazine would come from t' make it into my hands… which is part o' why I gave this gun up once I joined the enforcement services. It was supposed t' be a testament t' me leavin' the street life behind an' startin' a fresher, brighter chapter in my life."

"Wow, Tay… your past is surprisingly dark. It seems so… unlike you, though. I mean, we haven't known each other long, but…"

"Yeah, I know… But like I told you, I'm committed t' makin' positive changes in my life. This gun makin' it back into my hands after all this time is… now that I think of it, it's a reminder that you don't have t' be limited by your history; that you can, no matter how bad you've been in the past, do some form o' good when given a chance. Of course, I worry that it might not be all that useful, even with the apparently-unlimited ammo. Although, with all the military weapons trainin' I've received over the last year, I'm at least confident that I can control it much better than before."

"As your only weapon of choice, I hope it still comes in handy. You'll need it for the kinds of threats I usually go up against. Still, what an interesting background you have. I can't imagine you as having been a bad guy… You seem so nice. It makes more sense when I think back to our conversation last night, though."

"Oh yeah? In that case, what's your overall opinion, if you don't mind me askin'?"

"You were pretty much forced to be a villain because of your environment until you found an opportunity to become a good guy. That's pretty deep, Tay. I've never had the chance to team up with a former villain before," she observed, somewhat missing the point of her ally's confession. "…with an emphasis on 'former.' Risky's still evil, even after our team-up."

"Aw, come on, I've always been a good guy…" Tay defended, slightly offended by Shantae's branding of him as a 'former villain.' "…at least, I'd like t' think that. Just, I've made a lot o' bad choices in life up t' this point. I've been workin' hard every day t' make up for it. Still, I… hope your opinion of me hasn't changed because o' what I told you about this gun an' my background. I get it if you think o' me differently now," the soldier confessed, expecting Shantae to cast more judgment upon him. After all, he'd been used to people judging him based on his checkered past. Shantae studied him for a minute, seeming to attempt to read further into his character and how she received him. After the minute passed, she smiled.

"Y'know what? I respect and appreciate you being honest with me," she started, confident that she had him pegged.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah. It takes a lot of courage to admit to something like that," she forgivingly confessed to him as they finally made it across the bridge. "You're definitely on the right path, Tayshan, I'll tell you that much. And hey, I'll show you the ropes on being a hero while you're here, if you want. It's a much more rewarding path to take than the path of evil, to say the least. Still, I hope things do get easier for you when you get back home. My opinion of you hasn't changed at all."

"I… Thanks for that," he gratefully responded, though he acknowledged she still had the idea that he was a villain-turned-hero. Regardless, he had a golden opportunity to learn from someone who'd been established as a hero in her community; an opportunity he'd be crazy to say 'no' to. "I'll take any lessons you have to the heart if it ain't too much of a burden takin' me on as a kinda-sorta protégé-slash-sidekick," he half-jokingly offered with a slight, nervous chortle. However, Shantae's smile widened, her ocean blue eyes sparkling like stars at the glorious prospect of having her very own disciple. She'd never been a mentor, role model, or guide before, and this was a golden opportunity like no other for her. The mere thought filled her with such excitement that she could hardly contain it.

"Of course! Don't you worry, Tay! With my teachings, you'll be a true hero in no time!" she boasted, letting her excitement get the better of her as she proudly reached up to rest a hand on the soldier's back as the two began negotiating the terms of their partnership.

 ** _Meanwhile…_**

Just beyond the end of the bridge, two blonde-haired girls in rather revealing blue raccoon-themed outfits, armed to the teeth with bombs and guns, were casually conversing with one another, appearing to be looking for something as they stood just outside the Sequin Land Palace.

"So far, we haven't had any luck finding out what happened to our device," one of the girls lamented to the other, crossing her arms and staring into the air with a cocked eyebrow.

"Which is strange, because for something as humungous as that thing is, it's sure as heck been tough to find…" the other girl pondered, scratching her head in a mix of frustration and perplexity. "The only way it could've vanished without a trace like it did is if someone magically made it disappear." Evidently, this couple of peculiar weapon-toting young women were searching for something they lost and had been led to the nation's capitol in their hunt.

"We only know but so many people who can use magic, though…" the first girl commented with a sigh of vexation. "Hypno Baron's out as a suspect, since he's been on a bender of trying to get into the collectible merchandising business. He'd have no reason to take it…"

"Knowing that, that really only leaves two other suspects who'd even know about our device, much less want to steal it…"

"And here comes one of 'em now, at our 12:00 position," girl #1 alerted her friend with a nod in the direction of the bridge. As they looked forward, they spotted an all-too-familiar lavender-ponytailed, pointy-eared girl dressed head to toe in a tacky, tasteless dancer costume. She was happily fraternizing with a tall, muscly dark-skinned boy in a form-fitting black tank top and camouflage pants, the likes of whom neither of the girls had seen before. "Look at her, acting all nonchalant like no one knows she has a sneaky side…"

"You can say that again. That prissy, saccharine goody-two-shoes act of hers can't hold up forever."

"Couldn't have said it better myself. Although, who's the guy she's with?" asked girl #1, understandably thrown off by the half-genie's company.

"I don't have a clue," girl #2 replied with a shrug. "I've never seen him around here before. He sure looks like quite the hunk, though. I wonder if that's her boyfriend…"

"Whatever those two are, if he's with her, they're both going to answer for what they did with our machine," girl #1 swore before turning her attention to the duo approaching them. "Well, well, well… if it isn't everybody's favorite magical girl scout!" she taunted, causing the half-genie in question and her friend to face them.

"Twitch and Vinegar!" Shantae called out, already aware of the threat the two adversaries posed, though she did not specify which girl went by either name she called out. "What are you two doing here?"

"We might ask you the same thing," the first girl spoke, grinningly tossing a bomb into the air. The taller of the two, she had two parallel streaks of pink spanning from her eyes down her cheeks. She wore an orange leotard with blue shoulder pads, blue thigh-high boots, a blue miniskirt with a yellow utility belt, and a two-tailed striped raccoon hat with goggles strapped on her forehead.

"Or better, we'll politely ask what you did with our hypersonic propulsion generator," inquired the second girl. This one was shorter in stature than her partner and wore a more simplistic outfit consisting of a midriff-baring tank top and a shorter, wider-spanning blue miniskirt. She also wore a pair of green goggles and a differently-styled blue raccoon hat with a sleepy-looking face on it. Immediately noticeable, however, was the rather cartoonish-looking revolver strapped to her left thigh.

"What!?" Shantae indignantly shouted, appalled at such a baseless accusation. "I don't have your hippo-tonic… porcupine gelato thing!"

"Whoa whoa," Tay attempted to reason as he raised his hands in front of himself, immediately understanding Twitch and Vinegar's accusation once he heard the name of the stolen item. "I know what you're talkin' about, but I assure you-!"

"And where'd you find this bodacious bonehead?" asked the shorter girl, silencing the soldier instantly. He was insulted and complimented at the same time, though he never imagined he'd ever have to face such an oxymoronic dilemma in his life. "He must be as gullible as he is hot, if he's palling around with a no-good thief like you." It was like fried ice cream; two polar opposites coexisting at the exact same time, which boggled his mind. As such, his expression was one of utter befuddlement, his mouth slightly ajar.

"Uhh…" he barely managed to drone out in his confusion.

"I bet you're in cahoots with our little machine-burgling genie friend here, huh?" asked the taller girl, quickly snapping him out of his confused stupor.

"Wha? No, listen. I-!" he attempted to correct, snapping out of his stupor to explain the situation.

"Save it, hot stuff. We know you're the ones behind the missing machinery," interrupted the shorter girl, who again called attention to her apparent attraction to him while also refusing to let him talk. Tay found himself unable to get angry at her baseless accusation for the fact that she mixed in flirtatious pet names when addressing him. "Give it back and no one has to get hurt too badly today."

"We didn't take your machine!" Shantae yelled, though she also prepared to battle as she entered a fighting stance. "If you'd just let him explain, you'd know where to look!"

"Yes!" Tay agreed. "I know who took your-!"

"Your boyfriend isn't going to bail you out of this one, genie girl! Fork it over or we'll take it by force!" the taller one interrupted yet again, making sure that, so long as this conversation was happening, Tay would never get to finish a sentence. Nonetheless, the intergalactic duo was thrown for a loop when a new accusation came about.

"He's not my boyfriend!" "I'm not her boyfriend!" the two screamed in unison. "And we don't have your machine! Stop and listen an' maybe you'll get the answers you're lookin' for!" they continued together before realizing they'd spoken the exact same thought aloud, momentarily glancing at one another in surprise.

"Looks like you'll have to be made to talk…" the orange-garbed girl stated with a sigh as she turned and walked toward a miniature tank (colored blue, of course), parked conveniently beside the palace wall while her partner whistled, causing a blue triplane to rip through the skies to the makeshift battlefield. The goggle-sporting girl jumped in as it swooped from behind. "Don't say we didn't give you a chance," the same orange-garbed young woman spoke from within the tank as her partner took her position directly above.

"But you didn't even let me finish a sentence, much less give us a chance!" Tay attempted once more to reason, though it was clear this encounter was far past the point of conversation. As such, he and Shantae readied themselves as the half-genie examined her surroundings, seeming to be scanning the combat zone. Tay, though unsure of what was happening, drew his gun and cocked it in preparation for a fight he would very well remember.

"It's no use, Tay. We'll have to beat them to get them to hear us out," Shantae explained, causing her partner to sigh in reluctance.

"I knew it…" he lamented with a sigh, though he was ready for anything their enemies could throw at them… he hoped. Before he knew it, though, the battle started.

 ** _TWITCH & VINEGAR: TERRIFICALLY TURBULENT TWOSOME!_**

"Team Battle! Bring 'em down!" Shantae announced as she sprang into action, dodging the plane as it tried to dive into her. Tay, seeing no other option, shot at the tank in front of him and immediately noticed that each time he scored a hit, it would flash white for a split second while a number "8" would rise out of it.

"What in the…?" he murmured in confusion, expecting to do precisely zero damage to the war vehicle before him with nothing but a modified pistol with weaker ammo. "I won't even ask… I'm just glad I'm actually able t' do somethin'," he added to emphasize his uncertainty, though he found himself oddly motivated to participate in the chaotic entanglement. He kept shooting until the tank fired a large black cannonball at him. Startled as he was, the projectile moved at a low enough speed that he was able to jump out of the way as he continued his onslaught with his gun.

Meanwhile, Shantae was ducking and dodging the aircraft as it tried either to swoop into her or unload a spray of bombs thrown by the pilot. She was patiently awaiting an opportunity to strike, though she had trouble finding it. In a moment's glance, the tank revved up and charged toward the soldier, causing him to dive out of the way. As he recovered, the tank returned to its original place and began rapidly shooting more cannonballs at seemingly-random angles in an attempt to score a hit, though Tay managed to narrowly dodge each one that whizzed toward him. He dared not even imagine what it would've felt like to be hit with a giant, spherical chunk of metal ripping through the air with the speed of a nosediving bald eagle. Eventually, he noticed a spring green cannonball emerging from the barrel of the tank's gun that traveled much slower than the rest. The sphere was traveling so slowly that it one might've mistaken it for a wayward balloon at first glance. Shantae, despite having her hands full, noticed this as well.

"Tay! Shoot that green cannonball! Now!" The soldier, hearing his battle mate's call loud and clear, aimed carefully and shot a flashing marble at the flying metal sphere. With a *CLINK*, the cannonball immediately went soaring toward the plane, despite the fact that Tay had shot it at an angle that should have sent it flying toward the opposing tank. With an explosive *CRASH*, the shorter girl was knocked out of the aircraft. She fell onto the ground, dazed and unable to defend herself. Taking this as an opportunity to strike, Shantae ran near her, crouched, and began rapidly whipping her ponytail into the girl's face while she was down, letting out occasional grunts of effort. The power of each hair whip was emphasized by the voluminous *THWACKs* of Shantae's lethal locks against the grounded pilot's face. The girl, apparently defenseless outside of her plane, flailed on the ground like a fish out of water and grunted in pain with each successive hit. Bizarre and admittedly-hilarious as the sight was, Shantae's hair did "6" points of damage per whip, but her opponent wasn't finished. The girl got up, leapt like she had springs in her blue boots, and landed back in the cockpit of her vehicle, which was idly hovering above her partner's tank.

"Let's switch targets, shall we?" the plane girl suggested, to which her friend responded by aiming the gun of her tank at Shantae.

"Shoot, looks like plane girl's my problem now," Tay acknowledged, stepping back to create distance. "Shantae, can you handle the tank?"

"No sweat! This isn't my first rodeo with these two. Are you okay handling the airplane?"

"With nothin' but a sabotaged handgun an' my reflexes? Heh, I've never felt more prepared."

"That's the spirit!" Shantae cheered as she leapt out of the way of an incoming cannonball, failing to read her partner's sarcasm. Shantae appeared to know how to handle the tank, as she moved at such a pace that one would think she was predicting its every move. She had an easier time waiting for the land-based war machine to provide her an opportunity to strike back, granted that it was mostly stationary, its gunner largely trying to attack her from a distance.

Meanwhile, Tay was trying his hardest to take the plane down with his just his gun. Of course, he was struggling to aim, much less shoot when the aircraft was constantly moving to either dive into him or to get into position for the pilot to bombard him with explosives. As he previously made Shantae aware, his gun's unwieldly recoil made it hard for him to score a decisive hit. Worse still, the open, searing afternoon sunlight obscured his vision to the point where the airplane appeared as a giant, shady blob when it was high in the sky. He realized immediately that he was at a severe disadvantage, but he knew he couldn't allow it to overwhelm him in the heat of battle.

"Shoot…! I gotta find an openin' of some kind," he complained as he avoided a spray of gunfire and a barrage of bombs, though he suffered some damage from wayward rounds. This challenge proved much tougher for him than fighting the tank. He tried taking semi-coordinated potshots to inflict some kind of damage on the plane itself, but it proved only minimally effective with his gun's poor accuracy and fire rate. He only managed to strike his enemy a handful of times, though his hits were few and far between. As if things couldn't get difficult enough for Tay, the girl in the plane also tried nosediving into him while firing her mounted turret toward the ground.

"Haaahahahaha!" The blonde bomber girl cackled as she appeared to be having fun toying with her adversary. She swooped upward with an emphatic *VROOM* just as it seemed she was about to hit the ground, causing Tay to go prone on the damp, stony pavement, covering his head with his arms to avoid a most unpleasant introduction to the plane's propellers at breakneck speed. As soon as he saw the girl return to her original position, he stood and made more attempts to shoot the plane down with just his gun. Again, he only landed a few shots, which did nothing to worry the girl in the plane. "What's the matter, stud? Can't get me from all the way down there with just that handgun? Or maybe you're just too distracted fighting a cute girl like me," the girl arrogantly taunted with mocking laughter, further irritating the soldier.

"Oh, you cheap, trash-talkin' little…!" he muttered, so annoyed that one might've seen a vein protruding from his forehead. Between avoiding being filled with lead or eating a mouthful of bomb detonation and rolling out of the way of kamikaze nosedives, he found damaging the plane nearly impossible, which prompted him to focus on its movements rather than continue fruitlessly trying to shoot her down without a plan. "There's gotta be some point where you slip up…" He studied her pattern and, after a few cycles of bullets, bombs, bullets, nosedive, bullets, bombs, lather, rinse, repeat, he finally figured enough of it out that he could avoid taking further damage. However, as he tried looking for a decisive opening for a counterattack…

"Tayshan! Look out!" Shantae called as she rushed toward him.

"Wha-? WHOA!" Before the soldier knew it, his half-genie tour guide tackled him to the ground, with him landing on a dark gray manhole cover embedded in the cobblestone. He fell flat on his back with a metallic *THUD* as she clutched her arms around his sides. He almost completely lost awareness of his surroundings from the sheer speed of his partner's protective maneuver. His only clue as to what was happening was a cannonball whizzing past them, bouncing off and rolling over the bridge behind them as Shantae ducked to narrowly avoid being hit by it herself. The lavender-ponytailed young heroine quickly picked herself up and offered him a hand. Grateful, he grabbed her hand, allowing her to pull him back to his feet.

"Be careful, Tay. We might each be fighting one of them, but you've gotta be mindful of the other one, too," she instructed him as she prepared to reengage the tank in battle. "She almost got you with that cannon shot because she saw you weren't paying attention to her."

"Got it…" he sighed in relief that he could trust Shantae to have his back. "Thank you so much for savin' me!" he further showed his gratitude as he ducked under another suicide dive from the plane while also avoiding another cannonball.

"No problem! I'll protect you! Just make sure…" she trailed off, noticing the tank preparing for another volley. The diligent adventurer danced, ducked, and dodged the spray of cannonballs as though they were coming at her in slow motion. They rocketed past her as Tay made sure to dodge them himself, though he noticed a green one he missed an opportunity to shoot. "Shoot the red one!" Shantae commanded as a bright red cannonball was fired out of the tank. Acting quickly, Tay fired his gun as per his ally's request. With another *plink*, the cannonball was sent careening back toward the tank, causing massive damage as the ball rammed into it, exploding upon impact. The tank suffered instantaneous damage as smoke began billowing from it and a series of scratches and dents made themselves apparent.

"Wow…"

"Great job, Tay!" Shantae congratulated as she charged forward and began whipping the tank with her hair to inflict further damage. "As I was saying, make sure you watch for openings they might have themselves! You see how I can tell which cannonballs to shoot or whip back into the tank, right?" she asked, still busy keeping her enemy at bay.

"Yeah?" Tay answered as he continued returning fire at the airplane while simultaneously avoiding the merciless aerial assault.

"You can do the same with the plane. If no green cannonballs are coming out for me to whip into it, you can usually find a different method to counterattack! Just look for a sign!" she advised, expertly whipping an additional red cannonball into the tank and damaging it further.

"Jus' look for a sign, you say…? Hmm…" Tay internalized her words as he avoided yet another spray of bullets from the machine gun turret on the plane. "So I should probably… Aha! I got it," The soldier exclaimed, seeming to find his mark when he saw the plane stop in midair at just the right distance and angle where the sun did not impair his vision. His first and only clue came when he watched the mischievous young girl inside pull out a red bomb; an immediate giveaway, as he noticed most of the bombs the pilot threw were black. At that moment, Tay calmly focused himself and aimed, intending to strike at the perfect moment. He found it when the girl threw the red bomb to commence her next barrage. The moment it left her hand, Tay fired, sending it back into her cockpit. The girl noticed this and, in a panic, attempted to throw it again, though it was too late. With a voluminous *BOOM*, the plane was thrown off kilter, knocking the pilot out of it yet again.

"Whoawhoaaaaah!" the opposing aircraft pilot screamed as she plummeted to the ground. "Oof!" She grunted in pain as she landed hard in front of him, falling flat on her stomach on the manhole cover Tay found himself lying on moments earlier. Uncertain of what to do next considering he didn't feel right hitting a girl, he sheathed his weapon and picked her up. He held her tight, so she wouldn't escape back into the aircraft. The weaponized biplane was dented and scratched all over. It was smoking heavily with severe damage, though it was otherwise functional as it awaited her return to its cockpit. It found its waiting place above the tank Shantae was vigorously fighting.

"Gotcha!" Tayshan proclaimed, hugging his opponent tight to prevent her from wriggling out of his grasp.

"Let me go!" screamed the airplane pilot as she feebly kicked and squirmed to escape his grasp. "You're gonna get it if you don't release me right now!"

"You ain't goin' nowhere," he calmly explained, squeezing her tighter to keep her from breaking free. "You've caused enough trouble as it is."

"Don't act all high and mighty just because you got that lucky shot off, you… you bonehead!" she spat, clearly unhappy with her current predicament. Tay found it in himself to snicker at the blonde spoilsport in his grasp, finding her complaints to be just a bit hypocritical.

"How quickly that arrogant attitude o' yours changes when things don't go your way," he taunted, his grip unfaltering as she continued to wriggle and kick to try and break free. "Anyway, your plane is in horrible shape. You really wanna get back in that thing an' have us blow it up with you in it?"

"That won't happen," the girl stubbornly rebutted, still kicking and wriggling like a child being dragged out of a playground for misbehaving. "When I get back in there, I'll turn you both into beef jerky! Get OFF me!" In that moment, the tank fired another green cannonball, which Shantae used as her next opportunity to strike. She whipped the cannonball, sending it careening into the plane, which was immediately engulfed in a glorious flash of small explosions before a bigger one obliterated it. Fiery metal shards flew high into the sky, raining down like a smoky storm of scrap and wreckage that plummeted into the ocean below with a series of satisfying *SPLASHes* that coated the ground with water. Seeing this, the girl ensnared in the soldier's arms ceased her struggling and went practically limp with dismay. Tay, though surprised by the fireworks display he just witnessed, loosened his grip on his foe slightly, shooting her a triumphant look as she looked back at him in submissive defeat.

"You're welcome."

"Oh, man… I just had that thing tuned up, too… So much for the Vicious Velocity…" she complained, lamenting the loss of her awesomely-named plane before realizing she was still being held in the arms of the beefy man who defeated her. "You uh… you can let me down now," she casually requested as she looked up at him, blushing slightly as she found the idea of being held so closely by a boy somewhat flustering.

"Hm, I could buuuut… I get a strange feelin' you'll wind up doin' somethin' you'll regret. Like I said, you caused us enough trouble as it is. So no, let's chill here awhile an' spectate," he denied, knowing that the battle was more-or-less even if he kept the girl from interfering with Shantae. His denial of her request angered the girl, though she did not make further attempts to escape. He at least shifted her into a bridal carry position, where she was laying comfortably in his arms, her shoulder leaning against his chest on one side while her legs drooped over his opposing hand. The girl calmed herself a bit, though she still pouted with embarrassment as her cheeks turned a rosy pink. "Hey Shantae! I got one!" he called to his partner, who still had her hands tied.

"Nice!" Shantae called back, glancing to see Tay holding the former pilot. "Keep her…!" she trailed off, noticing a red cannonball coming toward her. She whipped it, deflecting it back into the tank's cannon, causing another huge explosion that damaged the vehicle further. "…under wraps! We don't want her to break loose and find a way to drag this out!"

"Noted," he obeyed before turning his attention to the admittedly-adorable pouting young girl in his arms. "So uh… what's your name?" he awkwardly asked in an attempt to begin a casual conversation with someone who had moments ago tried to kill him. Meanwhile, Shantae was hard at work taking down the tank, which had begun smoldering heavily as it took more damage. Shantae was also tiring out, but she was nevertheless determined to destroy the warmongering device.

The hair-whipping young warrior had done a considerable number on her enemy's machine and was patiently awaiting the next oddly-discolored cannonball. Eventually, after the tank attempted twice to ram into her and shot three volleys of black cannonballs, the moment of truth arose. A red cannonball was lazily lobbed out of the tank's gun, which Shantae leapt to whip back into it. Upon contact, the vehicle was engulfed in a series of small, victory-deciding detonations before exploding, launching the driver out and onto the ground, covered in patches of dust and scratches, her clothes tattered from the skirmish. Many of the shredded remains of the tank met the same fate as the airplane, raining into and polluting the ocean below. What little scraps of twisted metal that didn't make it into the ocean were piled up in a flaming heap.

"Finally," Shantae breathed in relief, grateful that the intense battle had come to a decisive end. She took a moment to catch her breath before turning her attention to the girl she'd just defeated in a hair-vs-tank scuffle. "Now… listen. We didn't take your machine."

"Lies!" the tank driver, still quite salty over her defeat, rebuffed as she dusted herself off. "You're the only one we ever have the displeasure of dealing with when we have a plan to mobilize our military might, so we know you-!"

"Hey, it's okay, Vinegar!" called the other girl with a wave, still held safely in the soldier's arms, though her previous vitriol toward him had appeared to vanish entirely. "He explained everything. They really didn't take our machine!"

"Twitch, what are you talking about? And why is Shantae's boyfriend holding you like he rescued you?" Shantae was of course, displeased to hear this, and sighed with annoyance.

"I already told you, he's not my boyfriend! He's actually my new student!" the half-genie yelled, though it fell on deaf ears.

"It's because he… kinda did…" the girl, having FINALLY been identified, blushingly admitted, pushing her index fingers together. "Anyway, he totally cleared things up," she further explained before turning her attention to the soldier holding her. "Hey, can you put me down now?"

"Sure," he agreed, gently placing her on her feet.

"Thanks, Tayshan. You're a real gent," she smilingly complimented him, catching him, Shantae, and even her partner Vinegar off guard. "You're as sweet as you are strong."

"O-oh, no biggie. Just glad to uh… keep ya safe after you almost killed me, Twitch," he awkwardly acknowledged, scratching his head with one hand as he nervously waved at her with the other.

"Right, sorry about that," she responded with a wink and a cute little giggle before turning her attention to Vinegar. "So anyway, Tayshan was explaining to me what happened to our hypersonic propulsion generator. Turns out that rotten Risky Boots swiped it from us and used it to power up a portal she planned to use to invade the Genie Realm. She of course, had no idea how it worked, and wound up dragging Tayshan from his own world into this one. She also apparently stole a bunch of top-notch weapons tech from his world, too."

"…and you completely believed him?" Vinegar skeptically stated with a raised eyebrow.

"With everything that normally goes on in this place, is a little bit of interdimensional travel and a heaping load of weapons theft REALLY that bizarre?" Twitch shot back as she approached her friend. "And even for a simple handgun, you saw how powerful Tayshan's weapon is, right? There's no way he'd be lying if he's carrying proof of his account."

"…Touché," Vinegar admitted after a moment of thought and a quick glance at the shiny firearm pocketed in her former adversary's holster. "Okay, so if that's true, then where is Risky Boots?"

"That's what we're trying to figure out ourselves," Shantae answered. "She apparently went into hiding as soon as she came back," she elaborated before getting an idea. "I'd hate to ask, but we could really use your help in stopping her before she becomes too big a threat for any of us to handle."

"Us? Help you? Is that a joke?" Twitch asked, skeptical of such a proposition. "Because we're not in the mood to play around."

"No, I'm serious. This isn't a joking matter. We could use all the help we can get if we hope to stop Risky Boots from destroying Sequin Land with intergalactic weapons of mass destruction. Speaking of, what's going on in the forest back there? Why is it that a bunch of your men are in there fighting her Tinkerbats?"

"We're not at liberty to say," Vinegar tersely retorted with a dismissive shrug. "We were just looking for our device. All I will let you know is that we had an agreement with a private party that required us to bring some reinforcements."

"Oh…" the half-genie groaned, taking no comfort in the implications of Vinegar's statement.

"Fair enough, but your boys in blue back there were real tangled up with a huge group o' Risky's minions," Tay warned, though it garnered no notable reaction from Twitch or Vinegar.

"We know," Twitch plainly countered, shocking both Shantae and Tayshan. "That's our problem, though, and we'd prefer to keep it that way."

"Oh. If y'all say so, but considerin' what we've seen, the circumstances ain't exactly negligible on your part," he countered in hopes of giving the two Ammonian acolytes some food for thought.

"Yeah, thanks. That aside, you said you needed our help against Risky Boots. It might not be such a terrible idea, as much as it sickens me to admit it. Of course, the million-gem question is this: What's in it for us?" Vinegar was quick to ask, abruptly changing the subject while seeming to find a certain level of distaste in working with a sometimes-enemy.

"Well for one thing, you'll get your hypnotic potpourri gesticulation thing-!" Shantae was about to answer.

"Hypersonic Propulsion Generator!" Vinegar screamed, clearly not amused by Shantae's misnomer, though Tay chuckled, apparently finding it funny.

"Yeah, that thing. You'll get it back."

"Right, but what would we get in return for helping you?"

"Oh! Uhhhh…" Shantae hummed, unsure of how she would bribe the two weapons enthusiasts. "I'm not sure I have enough money to pay you girls off… M-maybe I'll teach you how to dance like I do?" she offered with an uncertain shrug.

"Pass," both Twitch and Vinegar sternly denied in unison. "I would rather scrub the latrines in our airship by hand. We'll need a lot more than goofy, uncoordinated, tacky dance moves if you really want our help," Twitch further rudely commented.

"Hey! My dance moves are top-notch, not to mention sacred rites of passage AND the main source of my powers! I learned most of them from Guardian Genies across the land when I first became a hero!" the half-genie defended, unappreciative of their unwarranted criticism.

"Good for you," Vinegar uncaringly dismissed with a callous flick of her hand. "Anyway, if you two don't have anything to offer for a truce, then we'll be fine getting that generator back on our own."

"Okay," Tay acknowledged, understanding that the two were looking for something substantial. "What is it y'all might be interested in that we could compromise on?"

"Hmm… Oh, I know!" Twitch exclaimed, a bright idea popping up in her head. "How about if we help you get those guns back, you give us a cut of the spoils?" the shorter of the two blonde young women suggested with a rather sinister grin.

"Absolutely not," Tay immediately denied her. "Those weapons are far too dangerous for anyone without a clue on how they work t' be gallivantin' around with. Plus, I'm aimin' t' collect them all an' bring 'em back where they belong."

"Aww," Twitch whined in disappointment. "Fine. How's about you and I get to know each other better over Hot Hog Ham Hocks, since you're apparently single, then?" she boldly proffered, once again shocking the soldier out of his wits as he, along with Shantae and Vinegar, stared blankly at her.

"…What?" Tay asked, unsure of if he heard her right.

"I know a pretty good restaurant over on Main Street." Again, the soldier was caught off-guard. Shantae merely groaned, shaking her head in disbelief. "Trust me, Tayshan, we could gush for days about ballistic missiles, semi-automatic rifles, and fighter jets that rip through the skies at Mach 2 while we spent some quality time really digging into each other to see where it goes from there. Doesn't that sound the least bit interesting to you, hmm?" she innocently suggested with another cute smirk and wink in his direction. The flabbergasted soldier found himself speechless, silently questioning if this conversation was actually happening.

"Twitch, is this really the time to be looking for dates?" Vinegar asked, slightly perturbed by her partner's trivial proposition. "This guy is clearly taken, anyway. What about Bran-Son?"

"No way. Been there, done that. He's a total loser behind those devilishly good looks and those bulging muscles. This guy might not be near as buff as Bran-Son, but he actually knows his way around a real battle and has a fair share of knowledge on weapons and heavy machinery. We were having a nice, friendly conversation about his weapons tech after he saved me that I'd very much like to continue. Also, he said that he and genie girl are just friends, which means he's on the market, as far as I'm concerned. Plus, you gotta admit, he's really cute!" she reasoned. Tay, having been called the magic word that men are not supposed to be, scowled in embarrassment and contempt, crossing his arms and batting his eyes away.

"Look, before we get carried away, will you help us or not?" Shantae impatiently asked, wanting to cut the conversation short.

"Dunno. Do we have a date, beefcake?" Twitch impertinently asked the soldier, persistent in her effort. Tay, though unwilling to sell his relationship status in exchange for assistance in stopping Risky, took a moment to think before he formed his rebuttal.

"I… don't know about it bein' a date, so I would refrain from describin' it like that. Buuuut, we can see about becomin' familiar with each other in the future if there's time," Tay acquiesced with a sigh, shocking his partner. "It's gonna have to wait until after we deal with Risky Boots and ONLY if you PROMISE not t' try an' steal any weapons along the way, though. That goes for you and whoever y'all work with. Deal's off if you or anybody in your crew so much as glances at that equipment the wrong way."

"Scouts' honor," Twitch agreed with an unexpectedly-cheery grin, saluting him. However, her non-saluting hand was suspiciously hidden behind her back.

"Right…" Tay acknowledged, somewhat apprehensive about his new ally's overly-friendly demeanor. "In any case, did you need some more clues as t' what they look like? Granted, they're all in Risky Boots's possession right now…"

"You gave me a pretty good idea. We'll know what to look for when we get the ball rollin', and especially if we run into that snobby old hag Risky. Also, I can't wait for our da-! Er, meeting! You're gonna love those ham hocks!" she added with a consistently upbeat tone, evidently excited about spending time with Tay.

"Okay, I guess you have yourselves a deal," Vinegar uneasily concluded, offering a handshake to seal the deal. Shantae, despite being just as perplexed by the circumstances of the arrangement, shook the tank gunner's hand without a word. With that, their temporary alliance was formed. "We'll report back to Ammo Baron and figure things out from there," Vinegar assured.

"Yep! Bye~!" Twitch added with a wave as she and Vinegar dashed off toward the forest, leaving Shantae and Tayshan to ponder the events of the battle. In this time, a large, brightly-colored glowing marble platform manifested in front of them. Before Tay could ask what it was, however…

"So… first, you tell me all those nice things about how pretty I am and how much you enjoy being around me, then you mentioned how 'radiant and beautiful' you thought Sky was when she hit on you, and now you're apparently getting nice and comfortable with Twitch. Don't tell me you're some kind of shameless flirt, Tayshan…" Shantae accused. She eyed Tay up and down, suddenly suspicious of his intentions.

"What? No! No, no, goodness, no!" he anxiously defended himself, aware of the half-genie's irritation with him. "Whatever you're accusin' me of, you're takin' it way out o' context. The things I told you, I absolutely meant. If nothin' else, I'm totally honest about what I say. Plus, Sky hit on me, not the other way around. You saw that for yourself. I replied as nicely as I could without makin' her upset. And all Twitch an' I did was chat a little about why we were fightin' after I got her out the plane. I wasn't expectin' her t' be interested in me in the slightest, even with all the comments she made toward me… I honestly thought she was playin' around t' try an' distract me durin' the fight."

"A likely story…" she disbelievingly retorted. "So why'd you agree to go on a date with Twitch after telling Sky you'd see about spending time with her, huh?" At that, Tay took a breath of vexation, evidently not enjoying being put on the hot seat by none other than his own teammate.

"Well I didn't 'agree,' first of all. I said 'we'll see.' And I made it clear that it wasn't a date. Also, I got a hunch that it ain't gon' happen, anyway…" he explained before realizing something. "Besides, that girl don't look a day over thirteen years old! I swear she could be somebody's little sister. Probably that other girl's, if I had t' guess. Not t' change the subject, but how old are those two, anyway?"

"Um…" Shantae pondered, cupping her chin in deep thought. "Actually, I'm not sure. I think Twitch is the younger one, but Vinegar might be the same age as me. Of course, I also don't know if they're just friends or if they're related… Why?"

"T' make sure you understand I'm not some disgustin', philanderin' weirdo with a hunger for any an' all things female. I'm way more respectful an' clear-headed than that, believe me. Plus, if I have t' explain myself, I prefer girls closer t' my age."

"Oh yeah? What's your age range?" the half-genie pressed, still just a bit wary of her partner as the evidence stacked up against him.

"Oh, uh… wow, you caught me off-guard with that one," he responded with slight shock, not expecting her to actually ask him about his preferences. Regardless, he offered a rebuttal after a momentary pause. "Hm, I guess, since I'm nineteen… I'd have t' say no younger than seventeen… Sixteen an' a half gets a hard 'maybe…' but no older than twenty-one…?"

"Okay…" Shantae murmured, still giving the soldier a rather inquisitive, prying look.

"Granted, this is based on the age o' consent in my world, which is generally accepted t' be sixteen. I don't like playin' so close t' the fence there, regardless; especially when my own age is considered in relation. I wanna avoid trouble wherever I can."

"The age of consent here is sixteen, too. Still, that makes sense, I guess…"

"I hope it does," he replied, though he was slightly surprised to learn yet another similarity between his world and Sequin Land. "Sixteen an' a half is a HARD 'maybe' for me because other things like personality an' maturity level come int' play. Otherwise, the cut-off is seventeen. Anyway, based on age alone, you don't have t' worry about me tryin' t' woo you, homegirl. Or Twitch, for that matter." He expected Shantae to take his statement as something to be relieved by. Instead, she scowled at him, evidently offended by his explanation of age-related boundaries.

"Newsflash, Tay: I'm sixteen and three quarters years old," Shantae matter-of-factly corrected, again catching him off-guard. "I'll be seventeen in a couple months. Also, people say I'm quite mature for my age."

"Oh… Well, that's interestin'," he noted with a nod, though he wasn't certain of how to respond to Shantae's clarification based on the context of their chat. It wasn't like she was just throwing that out there so that he'd maybe consider her a viable option… right? "I guess that changes things… or it… doesn't? In any case, happy almost-birthday if it turns out I'm not here long enough t' help ya celebrate!"

"Thanks in advance!" she answered, accepting his premature birthday wishes.

"Right. I didn't mean t' imply that you were immature, either. Sorry about that. Anyway, look," he started, shaking his head to refocus. "I guarantee you, I am NOT the kind o' guy that goes around, lookin' for hot dates wherever I might find 'em. I have my preferences, sure, but I'm a lot more considerate than that. Also, I hate to admit it, but…" he trailed off, looking away in discomfort as he rubbed the back of his neck. "…I'm… too shy… for… for that sort o' thing. I'm used to… bein' alone…" he sheepishly admitted with a pressured sigh. "I… ain't lookin' t' change that anytime soon…"

"Aw, Tay…" Shantae endearingly consoled, patting her sidekick on the back as she let up on him with the accusation. She found his bashfulness as endearing as it was reassuring that she could trust him not to get himself in trouble. "It's okay to be shy. I'm… a little—no, VERY shy myself, believe it or not. I know where you're coming from."

"You an' I are one in the same, huh?" he acknowledged with a grin, bringing his attention back to his team leader. However, he suddenly realized something as he looked at her smiling face. "Actually… why are you grillin' me about this?" he asked, turning the tables. "I get that my interactions with two of the three girls we encountered so far weren't the most… tame, but it's not like you'd care if I DID happen t' be interested in either of them. Or, at least Sky. Right?"

"O-of course not! It doesn't matter to me who you like at all," Shantae hastily and fervently denied, blushing as she turned away and shrugged. "You can date whoever you want. It's just… not nice to play with a girl's heart when you have no intention of being with her."

"Well I assure you, I ain't playin' with anybody's heart," he naively affirmed. "I don't know Sky all that well, but if she's a friend o' yours, then I'd like t' get t' know her at least as a friend. Maybe she wants t' be friends, too. It'd be rude t' disregard her simply because she apparently likes me."

"That's fair, I guess…" Shantae acknowledged, facing the accused philanderer as she listened to him.

"As for Twitch… Like I was sayin', she may be just a TAD too young for me, no matter what way we look at that. Goin' anywhere alone with her, I'd guarantee would feel like I was babysittin' her."

"Oooh, harsh, Tay… Harsh," Shantae commented, comically reeling back as though she felt the sting of an insult that wasn't directed at her. At that, the serviceman laughed with her.

"You play too much," he joked with a shake of his head. "Still, I know she's gonna break the promise she made," he expertly deduced, genuinely surprising her this time.

"And you know that, how?"

"When she agreed to it, she had her hand behind her back. She was no doubt crossin' her fingers, an' I presume you know what crossed fingers mean when makin' a promise. An' before you ask: When we were talkin', she was WAY more interested in hearin' about the weapons I told her about an' how they worked than about if she an' I made a good match. Girl never even made more than a couple o' cutesy faces an' a comment about how romantic it was t' be held by a man," he explained, rolling his eyes in contempt. "Charmin' as she may be, I'm not a complete fool who'd get tricked into a one-sided deal by a desire t' date. Gimme SOME credit, Shantae."

"Hm… That's also a fair point. Twitch and Vinegar ARE pretty big on heavy artillery, and Twitch's friendly attitude toward you after our battle WAS just a little pushy."

"Indeed. So, while we might have t' keep an eye on them so they don't get sticky fingers should they come near those guns, just think about it as us basically gettin' their help for free. I also got a feelin' that, even if they did want t' try stealin' some from under our noses, they'd still have to find an' fight Risky Boots for 'em. Somehow, I doubt Risky would give 'em up so easily in that scenario."

"Huh…" Shantae pondered, seeming curious as to how her friend could be so sure of his actions that he'd make an unfavorable agreement with the certainty in his mind that the terms of said agreement would be violated. "Y'know, that's really sneaky…"

"I know…" he agreed, understanding Shantae's observation. "I promise, though, this is a matter o' coincidences, not some calculated effort. Seriously, I'm surprised half the things goin' on here are fallin' int' place like they are."

"That's true. Plus, it IS effective, considering who we're dealing with here. I can see your point, so I'll let it slide this time."

"Oh. Thanks for your forgiveness?"

"Yeah. I personally don't agree with what you did to make sure they worked with us, but I guess it's in our favor in this case when they were already making demands after they attacked us. Plus, I'm not sure we'd have been able to get them to help us otherwise. I basically had nothing to give them to pay them off. Still, you'll have to be prepared to spend quality time with Twitch if you turn out to be wrong about your hunch."

"Yeah…" he agreed with an anxious sigh. "At the very least, I'll be bitin' that bullet, not you. I'm a man o' my word, no matter what. One little 'playdate' ain't gonna be the end o' me. I'll keep my guard up, too."

"Good point. Thank you, in that case."

"Don't mention it. Seriously, don't. Ever," he joked, eliciting a small chuckle out of his team leader.

"I'll try not to. Anyway, good job on taking down Twitch. Those two are a real headache to fight alone."

"Fo' sho'. Glad to have been able t' back you up. Though, I still wonder… Why did you get all mad at me an' call me a shameless flirt? Is… there somethin' you wanna tell me?" the soldier prodded, suspecting that Shantae had something to hide herself.

"N-no! No, not at all," the flustered half-genie denied. "I was just… making sure you weren't purposely getting yourself in trouble is all. I know a couple guys who tend to do that. I'm glad you're not one of them."

"That right? Gee, thanks for carin' about my safety, I guess," he sarcastically remarked, still confused about his friend's concern.

"Of course, my dear protégé. And it's not because I fancy you or anything, so don't get the wrong idea," she casually shot back, smiling slightly as though to communicate that she trusted him.

"Didn't even make that assumption, t' be honest," he laughingly nodded, raising his hands to let her know he had no ill intentions. "Gotta admit though, that fight was pretty fun, even though I was under some heavy pressure. Thanks for showin' me the ropes. I hope I have made you proud, Shantae-sensei."

"Make me proud, you have, Tayshan," she shot back, keeping up the humor in being Tay's impromptu teacher. "There is much more yet to learn, however. Anyway, I'm glad to see you enjoyed your first boss battle! You're the first person I've ever co-op'ed with on an adventure. It was really cool how we worked together like that. I almost can't wait until the next battle to see what else we can do."

"Hey, I'm all for it," Tay agreed. "I hope we continue t' work well together like we did throughout this last-minute quest. Speakin' of…" he trailed off, recalling some of the details of their first adventure. "Those girls said they were affiliated with that Ammo Baron, right? I mean, I could kinda tell by the blue raccoon-themed outfits they wore…"

"Yeah. Those two are his right-hand girls. I know what you're thinking, too," Shantae preemptively concurred. "They were awfully secretive about why their men are in the woods fighting that horde of Tinkerbats. We probably should've pressed them more to figure out if they would give us a clue why they were here."

"Who's the psychic one now?" he joked, though he was just as disappointed as his new team leader about failing to press Twitch and Vinegar about their reasons for bringing an armed regiment into the forest or why they were locking horns with Risky Boots's forces there. "Still, maybe someone around here knows somethin'. There's no way there were no witnesses t' everything that went down. A civilian, a guard, or whoever, somebody's gotta know. All we know from Twitch an' her friend is that they've been lookin' for that machine Risky Boots stole. That, an' they came here thinkin' you took it."

"Right you are, Tay. What really gets me is how there were no guards here to stop them from causing such a ruckus. We'll go to the palace and ask around. While we're here, we can see if we can talk to the Sultana about mobilizing her guards to help us stop Risky Boots," the young woman suggested as she walked past the Stage Clear platform and toward the monumental citadel. Tayshan merely nodded, following suit as they approached the main entrance to Sequin Land Palace.

The duo was immediately greeted by two palace guards wielding spears, clad head to toe in cobalt blue armor traced with bronze detail. Each one wore matching helmets that hid everything but their eyes. The guards also wore royal purple armor-padded gloves that matched the purple sashes draping over their wheat-colored pants, visible at their hips. As the two warriors approached, the guards crossed their weapons in front of the palace entrance.

"State your business, Mischievous Genie and Nameless Peasant," one of the guards demanded.

"Peasant!?" Tay echoed in ire, taking the guard's hasty judgment as a scathing insult.

"Tay, it's okay," Shantae interjected, holding a hand up to halt her new partner from doing anything rash. The soldier, trusting Shantae, crossed his arms and sighed, allowing her to take the lead. The half-genie turned her attention to the guards. "Good afternoon, sirs. We have a dire emergency on our hands that threatens the safety of Sequin Land and its citizens. We were hoping to speak with the Sultana about-!"

"State the emergency," one of the guards interrupted, his and the other guard's stances unmoving.

"Er… Risky Boots and her minions are on the move again and we fear that they may launch another surprise attack on innocent people all over the land. This time, she's bolstered her might, and my partner and I have some crucial information that-!"

"Risky Boots is of little concern to us unless she herself encroaches upon the palace grounds," the second guard interrupted, shocking both Shantae and Tayshan.

"Wh-what?" Shantae asked, alarmed by the swift and inconsiderate denial of the guards. "But Risky Boots has posed a serious threat to the safety and wellbeing of people all over Sequin Land! The world, even! Surely, she'd be given some sort of priority should she be seen at all by this point?"

"We are aware, and no, there is no precedence set for her over other criminals," the first guard stated matter-of-factly. "She is merely a marauding pirate and thief who keeps herself safe by staying out at sea, where she frequently crosses international boundaries. By decree of the Sultana, we are not to engage her, even as the nation's most infamous repeat offender, unless she is to infringe upon the grounds of the Sequin Land Palace."

"But… if that's the case, then why didn't you arrest her when she set foot in Scuttle Town a while ago, during the time when the threat of the Pirate Master's return was present, and she had no way to escape you?" the half-genie queried, realizing that the guards' logic seemed somewhat flawed.

"As you said, she was in Scuttle Town at the time, which is out of our jurisdiction. Scuttle Town's problems are primarily its own unless a situation compromises the safety of the Sultana and the Sequin Land Palace."

"What about the last few times she's come here and ambushed the people of Scuttle Town? She's attacked the town with cannons, attack pods full of Tinkerbats that pillaged and looted many businesses and homes, a mechanized pirate ship, and even a giant slug, amongst other things. I've even heard from some townsfolk that she ran through the city herself at one point very recently, causing almost as much destruction and mayhem as her Tinkerbats while on some kind of quest to gather resources to fulfill her evil plans."

"Again, Scuttle Town's problems are its own. As such, unless she attacks the Sequin Land Palace directly or her ambushes pose a direct threat to the Sultana or the palace grounds, we cannot intervene. Additionally, Scuttle Town had been under the leadership of the Ammo Baron last time she'd been seen on foot there by any guards. Even if we were to pursue the possibility of arresting her, the town's change of leaders effectively wiped her slate clean up to that point. Records of any transgressions against other municipalities were either thrown out or were deemed not worth pursuing. She committed no crimes during Ammo Baron's tenure as mayor, so there was no need to arrest her. On the other hand, you know already what followed when you brazenly assaulted Mayor Ammo Baron when he was attempting to renovate the town for its protection."

"Right, you guys tried to have my hair cut as punishment…" she recalled, grasping her ponytail for dear life. "But then, I wasn't a threat to Sequin Land. I was trying to help the citizens of Scuttle Town! None of them wanted him to rebuild the entire town in his twisted, warmongering image, and he did it anyway! I was acting on behalf of the community!"

"You were well within the bounds of the Sequin Land Palace and you assaulted a public official, which is a federal offense punishable by fifty years imprisonment and seizure of all assets to accommodate the cost of the official's medical bills. You were wrong on every account and narrowly escaped retribution for your callous actions," the guard standoffishly reminded her. Shantae, becoming annoyed with the guards combatting her on every point she made, let out a frustrated sigh as she refocused her attention on the pressing issue ahead.

"Fine… But Risky Boots attacked the town once after Ammo Baron was removed and Mayor Scuttlebutt was reinstated!" the increasingly-frustrated genie girl argued. "That attack happened a month ago, if even that. She came very close to attacking the palace, too!"

"Yet, you stopped that attack yourself outside the bounds of the palace and failed to detain her or bring her here to answer for her crimes," the second guard countered. "As Scuttle Town's self-imposed, legally-designated guardian genie, it is your solemn responsibility to apprehend any and all direct threats to the safety of Scuttle Town. Instead, you let them roam freely within the city's walls, even after they have broken the law. They come and go as they please, even receiving assistance from you to conjure up other dastardly schemes to bring harm to your community, as far as we most recently observed you doing."

"What?" Shantae remarked in utter shock, evidently unaware of the finer details of her role. "But Mayor Scuttlebutt told me that all I had to do was keep Scuttle Town safe! Plus, no one I 'helped' ever mentioned wanting to destroy Scuttle Town at the times I did!" she vehemently contended, though her confession caused Tay to raise a curious eyebrow. "Also, they helped me by giving me important items that allowed me to defeat Risky Boots again! What they do with my 'help' is their choice! If they choose to threaten Scuttle Town, then I'm always there to stop them! Even with that, I've never heard anything about being the town's law enforcement, too! I didn't know I had to arrest them once I beat them!"

"Well now you DO know," the guard snidely remarked. "Why do you think Scuttle Town has no guards or other law enforcement present at all times?"

"…Because Scuttle Town isn't a ritzy, well-funded, hustle-and-bustle metropolis and the mayor can't afford to hire any guards?" she 'guessed,' her tone just a tad sarcastic.

"Precisely. That is primarily because that incompetent buffoon grossly mishandles his assets and foolishly allows his town's economy to suffer for it. In fact, his entire defense budget, however diminutive, is spent on you; an inadequate, naïve, and thoroughly undisciplined vigilante half-genie who only does her job halfway. Fitting, when you think about it… Half the genie, half the effort, with a halfwit mayor to add to the equation. Yet, you wonder why the city is under the constant threat of utter destruction…" At that, the other guard snickered while Tayshan, growing incredibly impatient with the disrespect these guards so irreverently hurled their way, shot a frightening death stare at both guards as he kept his arms folded. However, he recognized that he had no place to speak in the discussion so long as he remained unaware of the full story behind it.

"Hey!" Shantae roared, clearly put off by the palace guard's disparaging comment. "You have no right to insult me or my heritage! I do my best to protect the town! My efforts have kept it safe for years!"

"Not safe enough, evidently; especially if you're here, begging for our help. As such, when Risky Boots attacks Scuttle Town, it is your duty, not ours, to protect its people. If she attacks another city, it is the responsibility of that city's law enforcement. If she attacks the Sequin Land Palace, then it is the entire nation's obligation to find, apprehend, and/or neutralize her, as this palace is the capitol of the entire country. To attack Sequin Land Palace directly is to declare war on the entire nation," the guard further explained, the terseness of his tone evident. "That is not our personal preference, young lady. That is the law, as decreed by Her Highness. Even Risky Boots is wise enough to understand that."

"Okay, this is goin' absolutely nowhere," Tayshan cut in as he rubbed his forehead, annoyed as his partner was by the guards' refusal to listen to, much less offer any assistance to them. "I don't know what happened before, an' I won't give any input on that as a result. However, I will ask this, since y'all make such a convincin' argument about when to an' when not t' step in: When those two girls were just here with the tank an' the airplane, why didn't you lift a finger t' help us out or stop 'em yourselves?"

"Because they did nothing to indicate that they would jeopardize the wellbeing of the palace or the Sultana. In fact, they had only come here requesting information about an item that was stolen from them. They posed no threat and proved it by deactivating their weaponry with us as their witnesses." Tay, disbelieving of such an absurd reason to do nothing, shook his head incredulously.

"Alright, whatever sense that makes…" he acknowledged with a shrug before clearing his throat. "In any case, if you'll hear us out, then what we're trying to tell y'all is that Risky Boots has made herself a much bigger threat than she's ever been before. We would like some precautionary assistance with dealing with potential threats t' the peace and tranquility of not just Scuttle Town, but all of Sequin Land. In fact, that forest back there is a warzone between Risky Boots's Tinkerbats an' blue soldiers that I was told work for the Ammo Baron."

"Those soldiers are affiliated with the two young women and were commanded by them to stand ground in the forest as a countermeasure upon sight of a wayward Tinkerbat lurking about the premises."

"…Seriously?" Tay asked as he and Shantae widened their eyes in utter shock.

"Yes," the second guard confirmed. "Their protection of the Sequin Land Palace at this time is part of the temporary armistice we struck with Ammo Baron's subordinates in exchange for any information about the whereabouts of their stolen device."

"…That answers that question of why they were here… Okay. Anyway, is it at all possible t' get the attention o' the Sultana or any high-rankin' official who we might be able t' talk to about the threat Risky Boots poses?"

"The Sultana has just departed on a much-needed vacation overseas," the guard informed, causing Shantae to slap her palm onto her face in frustration. "We are the highest-ranking knights in her Royal Guard. Any concerns you have, you may address with us."

"Alright. In that case, we are formally requestin' assistance with possibly gainin' some protection for Scuttle Town an' any other places that may be under threat of invasion by Risky Boots. Can you guys help us in any way?"

"No," the first guard stated without a moment of thought, causing Tayshan to glare at him before he reserved himself and took a deep breath.

"Why not?"

"Sequin Land Palace guards are only assigned to protect the Sultana, the palace, and the palace grounds. As we told the half-genie, unless the threat to your municipality directly jeopardizes the safety of the nation's capitol, we cannot aid you. That is the law. Additionally, you bring such boisterous claims to us without so much as an inkling of proof. We cannot mobilize under any circumstances without probable cause. For us to even entertain this frivolous conversation for this long is a blessing to you. However, you are interfering with official guard business and are wasting your time and ours at this point. We will converse with you no further. Begone," the guard abruptly dismissed, seeing no more point in discussing the matter with the duo.

"Aw, come on…" the soldier groaned, throwing his head up in exasperation.

"Well, it was worth a shot," Shantae stated with an expectant shrug as she led the way back toward the Stage Clear platform. "It's just as I expected, though. We're gonna be totally by ourselves on this aside from Sky, Uncle, Twitch, and Vinegar. We'll basically be doing all the dirty work… again."

"That's… not a great sign," Tay admitted, his worries about their future growing like weeds in an abandoned, unkept lawn. "We'd better move like gale force winds if we expect this t' turn out well for us. At least we got a foot in the door with Twitch an' Vinegar, so this wasn't a total bust…"

"True. I mean, even for all the awful things Ammo Baron and his cronies have done, they're not totally evil, so far as I know. So, there IS hope there. Anyway, we should get home and get some rest. We also need to think about where to go from here," she advised, stepping onto the platform.

"Yeah, I'm pretty beat," Tay agreed, motioning to climb aboard before he noticed a floating object in his peripheral vision. Turning his attention toward the object, he approached to see that it was a damaged control device with missing buttons and wiring hanging out of it. Curious, he grabbed the device. Tay got Busted Remote and realized what it was as soon as he picked it up.

"Neat!" Shantae congratulated. "The Busted Remote that Uncle Mimic was asking for!"

"…Seriously?" He skeptically responded. "I'm pretty sure I could've picked any old remote up an' it would've been good. There is literally nothin' special about this thing. THIS is how we're supposed t' find these important key items? At random?"

"We've been over this, Tay," Shantae plainly stated. "At the very least, it's not technically 'random', per se. I can guarantee that no other broken remote control is designed like the one you just picked up. The other items will be in very specific locations, too." At that, he merely sighed.

"Yeah, yeah, I know… Anyway, are we forgettin' anything?"

"Hmm… No, not that I'm aware of."

"Gotcha. Though, I strangely feel… like we totally blew past somethin' an' forgot about it as soon as it stopped bein' relevant to our little quest."

"I… can't picture us forgetting anything. Maybe it'll come back to one of us after we take a break?"

"Yeah, probably," he stated, shrugging and dismissing his concern as he joined Shantae on the platform. "Though, I do kinda want t' ask you exactly why those guards mistreated you like that. You did mention that they didn't really care for your status as guardian genie, which I get, but they were INCREDIBLY rude t' you. I was about t' step in a lot sooner, but I didn't wanna step on your toes when I don't know that much about your past experiences with them. An' maybe you can explain t' me exactly what goes on in this world that makes its politics so… rigid."

"I'll fill you in once we get home. It's a LONG story…"

"Roger that," he acknowledged with a nod as the two readied themselves on the platform. "I got as much time as we need t' get that scoop…"

"All Clear!" Shantae announced with excitement as she struck a pose, though Tay had no idea what was going on. Before he could ask what she was doing, what this magic platform was, or why they were even standing on it, however, the two teleported away in a flash. Thus, concluded was the first of a series of zany, outrageous adventures to be had by the half-genie hero and the fledgling soldier from an unknown land. However, as the soldier had suspected, they had indeed forgotten something… or someone, rather.

 _ **Back within the emerald-green foliage of the woods...**_

A young blue-haired man wielding a chained mace was frantically running away from a squadron comprised of Tinkerbats, goblins, angry boars, and Ammonian soldiers alike. They had apparently come to an unlikely ceasefire specifically to beat up on the innocent, unlucky man.

"Shantae! Sky! Suspicious stranger who stole my mace! Somebody get me outta here!" Bolo shouted, dashing through the forest like a mailman being chased by a pack of hungry dogs. He had apparently bitten off more than he could chew when he tried to take on both Risky's and Ammo Baron's men on his own to prove his heroism, only to have them AND the forest-dwelling creatures gang up on him. At the very least, he got his Morning Star back.


	4. Trial & Liberation

Chapter 4: Trial & Liberation

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN LIGHTHOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 15TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 0600 HOURS

The evening following Shantae and Tayshan's most recent venture came and went swift as a woefully-unprepared teenage boy being chased through a monster-infested forest by an aggressive gang of said monsters, military soldiers, and anthropomorphic bat people. Our dynamic duo arose bright and early the next morning to valiantly tackle any challenges that came their way. Or rather, one of them was up bright and early. And it was more so just early. Not so much bright. Don't quote me. What about the other one, you ask? Well, make a judgment for yourself.

"Urrrgh… Man, this sleepin' on the floor shtick is for the birds," Tay groggily complained, stretching the cramps and cricks out of his back as he rose from the cold, splintery wooden floor. Though he'd spent the last two days in a completely different realm of existence (as far as we know), his military-primed circadian rhythm still had him awakening at absurdly early hours with minimal sleep. "My back feels like a wet, splintered 2x4… Maybe I should sleep outside next time. The grass would feel better than this…" The half-sleep soldier slowly picked himself up and prepared himself for the next day, though a jolt of pain coursed through his back as he stood. He turned and felt the area in which he'd been shot, noticing the wound where the otherworldly bullet from his own gun made its impact was completely gone. He surmised that it hadn't hurt even a fraction as much as when he received the injury, but it was still a nuisance when he was forced to sleep on it.

"Zzzzzzz… Shooooo… Zzzzzz… Shooooo…" the oh-so delicate and ambient sound of lions ravenously gnawing on children's bath toys echoed from the upper deck of the lighthouse with a steady and consistent rhythm that alerted our extraterrestrial serviceman that his friend had a habit of snoring. A VERY BAD habit of snoring.

"Shantae's log-sawin' definitely didn't help make this more comfortable… I can't believe homegirl only sleeps in a hammock an' STILL snores THAT loud… Sounds like a whistlin' lumberjack up there…" Tay complained some more, gathering the morning bathing supplies Shantae had left out for him on a nearby countertop. He readied himself for the next day and soon enough found himself dressed in the exact same outfit he'd been wearing since he arrived in Sequin Land. Though it had already been showing signs of significant wear in the form of fabric rips and loose, frayed strings abound, Tay's outfit was at least tidy and odor-free again. He had Shantae's magic and unprecedented cleaning technique to thank for that. "I only wonder if there'll be a point I could get some different clothes here… I should keep an eye out for a clothin' shop while we're out explorin'," he further pondered.

Figuring he could get some early-morning exercise in to kick the day off, the fledgling warrior went outside, walked what he judged as a fair enough distance away from the lighthouse to take in the burgeoning rays of the morning sun, and got set with doing a series of morning stretches and strength training exercises. There, the soldier spent an hour exercising to prepare for whatever supernatural threats would come his way before he was suddenly accompanied by a certain bird trainer, who approached on foot.

"Good morning, Tayshan!" called Sky as she casually approached, crossing the wooden bridge in front of the lighthouse with a cheerful smile on her face. "I see you're keeping yourself in tip-top shape," she acknowledged, admiring his physique as she drew closer.

"Good mornin' t' you as well, Ms. Sky!" the soldier politely greeted back, waving to her as he wiped sweat from his brow.

"You're adorable," she remarked, amused by his greeting. "You can just call me Sky, hon."

"Eheheh, noted," Tay acknowledged, already feeling pressured as his heartbeat quickened. "So how's it goin'? You're certainly up early."

"The same could be said of you. The sun's barely risen, yet you're already up and about, exercising like you're about to run a marathon."

"I'm more-or-less used t' wakin' up with the sun. As part o' my boot camp trainin' back home, I was always made t' wake up as soon as dawn broke t' go through a ton of intense, rigorous routines that kept us alert an' in shape as we prepared for combat. Can't say I ever enjoyed bein' up so early almost every day, but I've come t' learn that it has its perks if you know how t' take advantage o' the time."

"Ohh, so you're part of a military faction where you're from?" Sky asked with utmost intrigue, her eyes widening accordingly.

"Yes, I am. I've been enlisted for about a year, an' since I joined, I picked up a lot o' skills, some valuable lessons about life, and… well, a totally messed up sleep-wake rhythm," he joked with a slight chuckle, prompting Sky to smile with amusement.

"I'll bet," she concurred, her curiosity about Tayshan holding strong. "One year in the military, huh? That's impressive! What were you doing before you joined, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Not a whole ton… I'd just finished school an' joined almost as soon as I turned eighteen. Um… if I remember right, then right before I joined, I was… playin' sports in school, holdin' down a part-time job at a burger joint, and… mostly keepin' myself out o' trouble, simply put," he modestly explained. "Nothin' spectacular. Just regular teenager-turnin'-into-an-adult stuff, I guess."

"That's amazing, Tayshan!" the young lady gushed, her personal interest in the soldier growing like blooming roses on fast-forward. "If you have some free time, maybe you can tell me a bit about the world you're from? I want to hear more about your background."

"Really? W-wow, I'm flattered," he responded with a nervous rub of the back of his neck. "I didn't think you'd be curious about me at all."

"Don't be silly!" Sky reassured with a lighthearted grin. "Even if the whole 'being from another planet' part wasn't a thing, I'd still want to at least get to know a new friend. If anything, I'm even more interested because you're from a different planet!"

"Hm… fair enough," Tay concurred, finding no reason to combat Sky's point. "Maybe we can have a nice, long chat sometime? We could trade stories, if that sounds appealin' t' you at all."

"Sounds like a date," Sky agreed with an excited grin, her heart leaping for joy. Tay, again unnerved by his acquaintance's forwardness, exhaled a breath of air hot enough to melt plastic, scratching his head as he thought about what he'd just done.

"So… h-how was your day yesterday?" he asked, changing the topic without further thought.

"Can't complain. Though, I didn't have much luck looking for Risky's base, wherever it might be."

"Dang."

"Yeah. I looked around Tassel Town like you said and expanded as far as where her last stronghold was, but I didn't see a thing that might have clued me in on where she could be. Although, there WAS something fishy going on when I looked around the Naga Mountain."

"Naga… Mountain?" the curious serviceman echoed, uncertain of what Sky meant.

"Yep. I'm aware you might not know what or where that is, but… as a point of reference, it's a secluded, forest-heavy collection of crags located a great deal northeast of Tassel Town. Maybe you and Shantae can search around there to see if you can pick anything up. I'm gonna try searching to the west when Wrench is up, fed, and ready to go unless something comes up."

"Gotcha. Well, today's a new day. I hope you can find somethin'. Your help is invaluable to us."

"Oh, stop~," Sky blushed, though Tay didn't understand why. He merely let her know she was helping by searching for Risky from a bird's eye view. "Anyway, how'd your day go? I heard you stole something from another friend of mine?"

"Ohhh, heh… Funny story about that," he nervously confirmed, getting a gut feeling he might be in trouble. "I'm guessin' you know that Bolo dude?"

"Yeah, he's a friend of mine and Shantae's. Doesn't sound like you and he got off on the right foot, though," she informed him in a matter-of-fact tone, further disquieting the resident time/space traveler

"About that… Y'see, what had happened was…" he began, though his eloquent phrasing immediately made Sky curious. "Shantae an' I were just gettin' out of her uncle's workshop an' we were talkin' about where t' go next when Bolo came runnin' up to us. He said he saw a Tinkerbat with one o' my world's weapons, but as soon as he got a good look at me, he accused me of workin' with them an' tried t' fight me."

"Figures…" Sky shook her head with an expectant sigh, rolling her eyes.

"I ran past him, stole his spiked flail, an' used it t' beat up some monsters an' what not alongside Shantae. We also avoided some Tinkerbats an' soldiers with blue uniforms an' raccoon hats. At some point, I found a weapon o' my own, which I got from a couple o' Tinkerbats that were playin' around with it. After that, we fought these two girls named Twitch and Vinegar. Now that I remember it, I left his mace in the woods once I picked up my gun…" he finished, scratching his cheek in a mix of shame and wonder.

"Huh… Looks like you guys were right to stay behind. Risky really is on the move this time of you already had to fight some of her men off near Scuttle Town. Even more concerning to hear Ammo Baron's goons are snooping around here again, too. Things are about to get crazy all over again… Oh boy… Glad to see you made it out okay, nevertheless. But as for Bolo… I'd hate to say it, but that's pretty typical of him."

"Oh?"

"Yeah," Sky giggled with amusement. "He's been itching to be either in the spotlight or at Shantae's side when it comes to her grand adventures. He's been trying to prove it to her since the time she defeated the Pirate Master, if not a bit before then. Of course, he's had a… less than favorable track record of how many times he's tried to help versus how many times he's actually helped. It's pretty sad, really."

"Sad how?"

"You probably wouldn't relate to it at all, but… he's always tried his best at protecting us when we were kids, doing things like standing up for us against bullies and sticking his neck out to keep us safe. Even back then, though, he'd wind up getting the short end of the stick. Like getting beat up by the people he tried to defend us from and having us save him instead… doing certain things wrong and out of order and having either us or Mimic fix it for him… finding all sorts of special ways to hurt himself or someone else trying to do the right thing, generally… Granted, he does come through every once in a blue moon. He did at least a couple times on our last big battle, when we had to save Shantae's mind from being taken over by an evil doppelganger created from her magic being turned against her, but…"

"Wow… You make it sound like he can't even tie his own shoes without gettin' his hands tangled up in the laces half the time," Tayshan surmised, concerned by what Sky was telling him about the young man he'd presumed was at odds with him.

"You'd be surprised. It's gotten worse now, believe it or not. I love the guy. He's a little brother to Shantae and me, but… I only wonder when he'll realize that with how strong Shantae is and how much stronger she's becoming, his efforts just… don't contribute as much to her role as guardian genie as he wants them to. I hate to put it that way, but… it's true for him and even me, though I'm not exactly starving for praise and adulation from the masses."

"Shoot… Poor kid sounds like he wants t' be important, but he just never gets time t' shine," he analyzed, feeling Bolo's pain. "Maybe I'll talk to him later. Apologize for takin' his mace an' ditchin' it in the woods an' try t' start over."

"Well that's nice of you to do! What's the reason? You seem like you might actually know how he feels or something."

"Because I do know how he feels," he candidly stated, wiping Sky's smile off her face.

"Oh, I see…" she observed, feeling a tad uncertain regarding Tay's response to her words.

"Yeah… Tryin' t' do the right thing over a number of years an' nine times out o' ten, screwin' it up, makin' it worse, or just plain not contributin' when you think you are… I know it all too well."

"Wow… I didn't know it ran that deep…" Sky solemnly acknowledged. "I'm sorry."

"Nah, don't sweat it. It's somethin' ya grow up an' understand for yourself. You said that was true for both o' y'all, though… What do you mean?"

"Well… Whereas Bolo struggles with trying to find a bigger role in protecting Scuttle Town than simply being fodder for small fries, I try to help out by providing air coverage, friendly advice, and even emotional support to Shantae when she needs it. She's like a super powerful younger sister, since we've known each other and have been together so long…"

"Wow… Y'all are one big, happy family, from the sound of it," Tay acknowledged with a nod, touched by Sky's sentiments toward her friends. "Much respect there…"

"Yeah, and we depend on each other just like any regular family would. Of course, I'm perfectly okay with being on the sidelines. The hero stuff is too much of a hassle for me. I'd prefer only getting involved if absolutely necessary. I'm a war bird trainer by profession, so I have no choice but to intervene in conflicts when I can, but… I suppose I don't feel so certain I'd be able to keep it up the way Shantae does."

"Really now? I figured you enjoyed helpin' out when you could."

"Of course, and I would never turn away from anyone in need," she clarified. "I just… Sometimes, I wonder what's in my future; beyond helping keep the town safe from harm and preparing my birds for combat situations."

"Ah, I get it. I… might've figured you were the type t' always be lookin' ahead, in that case," he commented, catching her attention.

"Oh, yeah? How'd you know that?" she asked with utmost intrigue into his perception of her.

"Uh… well, Shantae mentioned how you've got goals of your own t' focus on," he admitted. "That, and… well, from my perspective, you strike me as… well, mature, for lack of a better term. I know we've only met once before, but you give off that kind o' vibe."

"Really? Wow, thank you! I… I don't know what to say…"

"I call it as I see it," Tay plainly remarked. "Still, what sorts o' things do you think about for the future, if you don't mind me askin'?"

"Well… I'm about to be an adult, and I feel like there's no time like the present to get the jump on preparing for the rest of my life, y'know?"

"I understand."

"Yeah. I mean, it isn't like I'm not happy where I am now, but… that's no reason to get complacent. I make a comfortable living as a bird tamer and I've long since moved out of my parents' home. I've also been working on mastering my craft while also sightseeing and camping out around the globe with my trusty partner Wrench whenever I can… just to see what else is out there for me, if nothing else."

"Wow… How proactive."

"Mm-hmm. Believe it or not, I've been to almost every country on the planet… well, at least those whose weather is friendly to Wrench, considering he's helped me get just about everywhere it'd be impossible to travel on foot or by boat," she added with a chuckle. "Whenever I do get the chance to travel, I'm always so excited to experience diverse cultures and learn new things about the world around me."

"That definitely makes sense, as far as I can see. Plus, openin' your horizons is always a good thing. Steppin' outside your comfort zone, embracin' different walks o' life, an' really understandin' how big the world really is…" he agreed wholeheartedly, relating to her. "There's no sweeter treat when you get chances t' travel like that."

"Yes, Tayshan! You totally get it!" she praised with excitement in her voice. "It's a not-so-hidden passion of mine to study the structures and frameworks of places outside of Sequin Land… Some say it's because I've got my dad's Relic Hunter genes, but I'm not really into digging up fossils and discovering remnants of civilizations past so much as I'm into learning about the world around me as it is now… But then, here I am, assuming you know what a 'Relic Hunter' is."

"I've got some idea, considerin' what I've been pickin' up since I got here," Tay countered. "Still, sounds like your long-term goal is in the realm o' sociology. That's pretty incredible, Sky! I won't front."

"Aw, thanks, Tayshan! And you're absolutely right! I love learning about the sheer level of diversity in our society, recording details of my experiences, and indulging in other cultures when the time allows."

"No doubt! Sounds like you really know what you want out o' life, though. The way you're describin' it gives me the feel that you're totally certain about what you want t' do an' how you want t' contribute to the world around you. I respect that."

"Thank you. Also, without question, I do. I feel like that would be my dream job once I eventually got out of the bird training business. It suits me on a personal level, too. There's all sorts of avenues I want to explore, and the possibilities are limitless. Yet, I always find myself wondering if… maybe that's the only thing I'd want as an adult…"

"What do you mean?"

"Well… as much as I'd like to have those experiences for myself, I also acknowledge that the best kinds of experiences… are shared," she hesitantly confessed, hinting at a certain desire of hers.

"Shared? You mean like, between friends or family?" Tay naively asked, uncertain of what she was referring to.

"Close, but not quite like that," she replied, thinking about how to phrase her following statement. "I mean in the realm of… sharing it with a partner…"

"Ohh, so you mean like with a colleague," Tay oh-so accurately guessed. At that, Sky couldn't help but giggle at such a clueless guess.

"No, Tayshan… I mean with a… a romantic partner…" she confessed, flooring the previously-oblivious soldier.

"Oh…" he droned, his heartbeat beginning to race again. "W-well… I'm sure there's… lots of suitable guys… o-out there…?"

"…Maybe… I'm not sure, though…" she further divulged with a heavy sigh as her expression changed to one of somberness. "I mean, all things considered, I've been… worried… about that…" she hesitantly admitted.

"How come, if it's alright t' ask?"

"I… W-well, I don't want to just regurgitate my whole life story to you on our second meeting, so I'll make it quick…"

"We got as much time as you need, Sky. I ain't in no hurry right now."

"Okay, if you're willing to hear me out. In a nutshell, I've… not had very good luck with guys, generally. Much of it is because of my overbearing parents finding some way to scare my past boyfriends off, but I'm… not sure if some of it is because of me, too… It's like… Sometimes, I get the feeling that most guys are intimidated by me because of how serious I am from the start."

"Hey… w-well… look," Tay attempted to console. "I'm sure… that you're… a fantastic woman," he uncertainly complimented, though his hesitant delivery was dripping with awkwardness. "And… well, I don't know you all that well, but you've… got good energy… and you're… You look nice…"

"Uh… O-okay… Thanks?" Sky accepted with a tilt of her head and a puzzled facial expression. Noticing this, Tay shook his head and sighed.

"…I'm not gonna pretend I'm good at this, so bear with me. Romance… is hard. For many reasons. Y'know, just seein' somebody you like is a huge minefield o' choices on how t' approach them. Immediately, you wonder what it'd be like t' just let them know what you're feelin'. But, you start thinkin' about all sorts o' things; how they'd react, if they'd accept you or reject you, if you'd pick the right words, if your breath smells okay, if you remembered to shower that mornin', if you made sure not t' belch in the middle o' talkin', if you can speak a full sentence without mixin' your words up like a salad or like you misread the note cards you wrote all over to prepare, or… What, did I say somethin' weird?" he trailed off, noticing the bird tamer giggling at his loquacious, gobbledygook-riddled tangent.

"You're right… you really aren't good at this," she laughingly observed, shaking her head.

"…Well, it wasn't for a lack of effort…" Tay sighed. "This is awkward…"

"No, no, not awkward," she countered, still smiling. "I kinda got what you're playing at. I respect that you tried. Thanks again for your kind words."

"If you can take any comfort out o' me babblin' like a toddler…" he sheepishly shot back, embarrassed at his lack of success in consoling someone whose background he did not know as he cut his eyes elsewhere and scratched his head.

"Aw, you're so cute," she complimented with another chortle, unwittingly damaging his already-wounded pride further. She found moderate endearment in his uncoordinated, pitiful attempt at making her feel better.

"Gee, thanks," he flatly remarked, trying to hide his immeasurable disdain for being called the least manly thing a man could be called. "Anyway, I wonder… What sorts o' things do you do with Shantae when she's on an adventure?" he asked, changing the subject as he no longer wished to stay on the topic of Sky's love life.

"A few things, but the amount of time I'm involved in her adventures has never been terribly high. Recently, all I've really been doing for Shantae is letting her hitch rides with me to places she needs to go so she can do all the work protecting Sequin Land."

"I gotcha… but at least you're helpin' by gettin' her to the places she needs t' go. Kinda shows that bein' a protector of this place ain't a one-woman show."

"True enough, but anyone with knowledge of how to fly could do that. Heck, there was even a point where she and Risky Boots teamed up for a short breath of time, so she relied on Risky to take her everywhere via pirate ship. At this point, she even knows how to navigate one by herself. Don't even ask how she figured that out. All I know is that the only thing stopping her from traveling around the country all by herself is that she doesn't own one. Granted, I think she mentioned something about Warp Dances, but that since her powers were returned to her, she hasn't been able to access the full extent of her ability there…"

"She told me a little bit about that the other night. She said she thought that would've been a point where she an' Risky could've been friends. Evidently not. I wouldn't know the first thing about her bein' able t' warp anywhere outside o' that platform that showed up when we finished yesterday's quest, though. Anyway, I guess I see where you're comin' from…"

"Yeah. Like I said, as she grows stronger and more confident in herself and her abilities, she becomes more self-reliant; eventually, she'll become so powerful and so capable, she won't need us for assistance anymore," Sky admitted with a somber smile, appearing to accept this prediction as an inevitable conclusion to be reached. "It'll be a sad day when we eventually branch out and go our separate ways…"

"Don't say that," he quickly countered, catching the blonde bird trainer off-guard. "There will never be a point where she won't need you. She talks y'all up quite a lot; you, especially. She even returns your sentiment on you an' her bein' like sisters. I haven't known any o' y'all long, but I can tell she holds you in VERY high regard. Even if she becomes the most powerful force in existence here, I think… no, I KNOW she'll never forget or abandon who helped her get there. Besides, you've got your own unique talents an' skills that make you stand out in a crowd yourself. One way or another, you're special. This is in my own words, so take that as you will, but… yeah."

"Anyone tell you you've got the perfect way with words to make a person feel a hundred times better than they did before?" Sky lauded, smiling as her eyes glimmered, reflecting her confidence in his encouraging rebuttal.

"So I've been told… Heh, but listen: for what it's worth, you're doin' a job I'm positive no one else could do better than you could. Trust me, recon is hard, intensive, an' demanding work. Shoot, even trainin' birds of all the kinds I'll bet you do is the farthest thing from a cakewalk. Yet, word on the street's that you're the best of 'em without contest. If I got t' know you better, I'm sure we'd go on for ages. Regardless, thanks for your help, Sky." At this, Sky smiled proudly at Tay, feeling invigorated by his statement as he gave her a morale-boosting thumbs-up.

"You're right, Tayshan. Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"Absolutely. Call me Tay, by the way. If it's okay, I'd like t' be friends."

"Okay, Tay~," Sky agreed with a rather suggestive wink, immediately startling the serviceman stiff. "As if your name alone couldn't get any cuter… I love the sound of it, too. Tay…"

"R-right…" he replied with slight irritation as he cut his eyes away and puffed one of his cheeks, gesticulating his disapproval of her remark.

"Don't worry, hon, I'm just teasing…" the delighted bird tamer admitted, giggling at her newest friend's nervousness. "Well, I think it's about time I headed out for round two… Need anything before I go? Maybe a ride to Naga Mountain or…" she paused as she got an idea, suddenly smiling lasciviously. "…or maybe you can come with me to see how cool it is to fly on top of Wrench?" she suggested with a tinge of hope in her tone. "We could spend a lot of time getting to know one another…~"

"Hoo wee, you sure do lay it on thick, Sky…" Tay pointed out with a tug of his collar. "…but I think I'll have t' pass on this offer, too. Schedule's still a bit packed with Shantae. Ah, but before you get disappointed, we can definitely do somethin' once the tension clears up with figurin' out what's happenin' with the guns. An' who knows? Maybe we'll swing by later an' we'll all go somewhere together?"

"Alright, I'll hold you to it," she stated as she turned to walk back in the direction from which she came. "I certainly do take a liking to a man who can prioritize his goals. On that note, I'll report back whatever I can find should I wind up leaving on my own. See ya later, Tay!" Sky bade, turning back and winking again.

"Yeah, we'll talk again soon," he bade back, still incredibly anxious of Sky's continued romantic advances on him. With that, Sky strolled away at a casual pace. Tay, at this point as genuinely curious about the hood-adorned young woman as he was intimidated by her, watched her with a cocked eyebrow and a stroke of his chin as she walked away. He couldn't help but find himself… oddly compelled by the aura of confidence and compassion exuded by the admittedly-bodacious bird keeper. He also noted an… alluring serenity in her voice when she spoke to him. As much as this unfamiliar woman unnerved him with her frequent flirting… he had to admit, she did certainly have an enticing charm about her.

Tay took a moment to watch the maiden as she sauntered off. As one might be able to guess, he noticed just a bit more as he observed the enchanting swing of Sky's hips with each step she took. He also took in the sight of the young woman's fascinating curvature that seemed to be accentuated by her… cutely unique outfit. As though he were studying a book, Tay instinctively sized the young woman up, gulping with mildly-flustered inquisitiveness as the distance between them grew. Just watching her leave suddenly made the soldier's heart pound heavy in his chest like a drum. Before he found himself overly mesmerized by Sky's natural beauty, however, Sky suddenly stopped walking.

"Y'know," Sky called back once more, placing a hand on her hip as she turned back to shoot the soldier a flirtatious grin. "Wandering eyes can get you in a lot of trouble. It's always nice to see something you like, but you'd better be careful, Tayshan~," she advised with a wink in a sing-song tone. Tay, realizing he'd been… distracted, flinched at the observation and shot the young lady the most 'caught red-handed' look he could fathom.

"Ah! Wh-wha? Huh?" he babbled, his face growing hot as he snapped out of his trance, darting his eyes around the open environment. Sky merely giggled at his embarrassment as though to imply that she knew what—or rather, WHO—he was looking at. "I-I uh… was just… thinkin' about somethin,'" he managed to blurt out, mortified at the possibility that he'd been caught staring, eventually bringing his gaze to meet hers. "Sorry, what was that about wanderin' eyes?"

"Nothing, sweetie. I'll hopefully see you later," she bade once more, waving to him by wiggling her fingers and smiling at him once more before turning to walk away, leaving the serviceman in a hot-collared stupor. Tay took his time to recuperate from the romantic tension before he did anything else, taking shaky breaths and mentally kicking himself for behaving so uncouthly toward a beautiful woman he'd only recently met. Within a few moments, Scuttle Town's one and only guardian genie, who'd previously been sawing logs in her lighthouse, was up and about, fully dressed in her regular attire.

"Morning, Tay," Shantae greeted with a stretch and a yawn as she stepped outside her lighthouse.

"Ah, I was wonderin' when you'd wake up," he commented, glad to see his friend up and at 'em.

"To be honest, I'd have probably been asleep longer if I didn't hear you talking out here. Did you make a new friend or something?"

"Kinda… Sky stopped by t' give an update on her search."

"Really? What'd she find?"

"She said somethin' about a Naga Mountain an' some suspicious activity goin' on there. Without bein' TOO subtle, I guess that's where we go next?"

"You're 100% correct. See, you're catching on already!"

"Heh heh," the soldier dryly remarked, acknowledging that Shantae was patronizing him just a bit. "She also hit on me some more, so there's that."

"Well… there isn't much I can say about that. She likes you, as you guessed. I also warned you about how serious she is with looking for a boyfriend."

"Yeah…" he sheepishly acknowledged, thinking back to his oh-so smooth move just moments earlier. "She uh… she's… somethin' else…" he further remarked, scratching his head as he took a deep breath, batting his eyes away. Shantae, with ever the watchful eyes and listening ears, noticed the sudden shift in his tone.

"Hmm… That look on your face…" she observantly pointed out, bringing her comrade out of his embarrassed stupor as he looked at her, surprised.

"H-huh? What look?" he queried, unaware that he'd been exhibiting any signs of discomfort. Nonetheless, he experienced a sudden increase in body heat as though he'd been standing in the middle of a housefire.

"The look you just had there… You were staring at her and got caught, didn't you?" she bluntly asked, shooting him a disapproving glare.

"What? How'd you know!?" He was floored that she was able to surmise such an accurate conclusion from so little as a facial expression.

"…Because you just told me," the half-genie revealed with a deadpan expression, shaking her head. Wow, he walked—no, RAN into one of the oldest tricks in the book.

"I…! Uh.…Y-you got me…" he admitted, sighing as he saw no point in trying to explain himself. If anything, he was more mortified by the fact that she tricked him into admitting it.

"Unbelievable, Tayshan… Really, is that a way to treat a beautiful girl who shows interest in you? Gluing your eyes to her like a hungry puppy to a bowl of kibble?" Shantae scolded as though she were the soldier's mother.

"H-hey, it was a moment of weakness, alright?" he defended, flustered beyond belief. "I'm a lot more sensible than that. Usually."

"Maybe not 'a lot' if you still did it," the young woman scolded, her disappointment in her friend as clear as the cloudless, sunny sky above. "You're not helping your case of not being a shameless flirt."

"Aw, come on! I keep tellin' you, I'm not that kind o' guy!" he pleaded, realizing that his mistake did indeed paint him in a bad light. "I have… interests, sure, but I swear t' you, I can control myself! I mean hey, I spent the last two full days with you, an' I never stared more than once!" he blurted out with all the class and refinement of a barbarian.

"Excuse me!?" Shantae justifiably shouted, taken aback by her friend's rather uncouth revelation as she wrapped her arms around herself in case he was staring at her in that most embarrassing moment.

"Wait, no! Th-that ain't what I meant! What I meant was that I… uh… Aww shoot, that REALLY didn't sound as good out loud as it did in my head…"

"…At least you're honest. Jeez…" she muttered, still thoroughly put-off by his bold statement.

"No, no, Shantae. I swear, that's not what I meant at all," he continued trying to explain.

"So what DO you mean?"

"What I meant t' say was that I never made a pass at you or even thought about it, ever!" At that, Shantae scoffed, glaring at him. In response, he mentally smacked himself upside the head.

"And what's THAT supposed to mean!? That I'm not good enough for you?" she asked, offended by his apparent lack of interest in her.

"Wh-what? No, not at all! You're absolutely perfect, as far as I'm concerned!" he frantically admitted, inadvertently digging his hole deeper.

"What!?" she uttered in total surprise, never expecting him to say such a bold and flustering thing. Just as she experienced during her discussion with him on the night the two met, her heart skipped a beat as warmth quickly rushed to her face. "Tayshan, are you serious!?"

"Wait, that didn't come out right, either!" Tay hastily shot back, trying feverishly to remove his foot from his mouth. "I-I meant you're perfect in…" he was about to rebut before he realized something. At that, he shook his head and laughed some of his nervousness away. "Y'know what? I see what you did there. I walked right int' that trap…" At that, the half-genie let out a lighthearted chuckle that confirmed his suspicions, though her cheeks remained rosy and her heartbeat took a minute to calm itself. She took a deep breath before offering a reply.

"I was wondering if you'd catch on eventually. I'll bet you feel a lot better, though, right?"

"Hm? Better?" He was unsure of how he could feel better about being placed on the hot seat.

"As in, you're not so wound up about Sky now because you were more wound up about how to explain yourself."

"Ohh, so that's what your game was… In that case… just a bit. I'm still super guilty for lettin' my guard down like that, though. I-I need to apologize to her," he confessed, lamenting the bad impression he left with the hooded blonde woman. "I feel like such a jerk… She probably thinks I'm a caveman now…"

"Sky's not the kind of girl to hold a grudge… usually," Shantae explained, hoping to assist him in mending things with their mutual friend. "Just make sure to apologize to her next time we see her. Also, please try not to stare at her or any other girls again… It's creepy." Shantae's remark, however accurate, stung the soldier's pride to the core.

"Ouch. Noted," he despondently agreed, frowning as he felt much worse than he did moments earlier. "I'm sorry, Shantae. I… I'm a lot better than that, I swear."

"It'll be alright. Still, I hope I don't have to lug you around with a blindfold on the entire time you're here… I don't really need you staring at me while we're out there."

"No, ma'am…" he submitted, scratching his head in a mix of sourness and embarrassment as he momentarily looked elsewhere.

"That was a joke, Tay. I wouldn't really blindfold you unless you knew how to move around without seeing anything."

"Right, right," he acknowledged with a nod and a nervous titter.

"You're still not allowed to stare at me, though," she added with a mirthful grin.

"…You're not gonna let me live that one down, are you?" he managed to ask after a momentary pause to process her snarky remark.

"Hmm… probably not," she bluntly admitted with a sly smirk, causing the soldier's jaw to drop like a boulder from an airplane. "I won't lie, it WAS pretty funny hearing you try to explain yourself. It's a little funnier now with that look on your face. Kinda cute, too."

"Wow… You're terrible…" he flatly stated, not expecting her to indirectly admit to enjoying teasing him.

"The worst," she jokingly shot back with a mirthful giggle, though Tay took in a slight gasp.

"I… never thought I'd hear that again…" he murmured as he remained transfixed on his team leader. Noticing this, Shantae halted her laughter in the wake of her curiosity.

"What's wrong? You seem like something just popped up in your mind…" she asked, tilting her head.

"Nothin', just… you reminded me of an old friend, is all… She used t' say the same thing…"

"Ohh, wow. What a coincidence," she acknowledged, though she wasn't certain of what else to add.

"Yeah… Er, anyway, you don't have t' worry about me gettin' weird. I'll keep myself under control around you."

"Good. In your defense, though, I can at least understand your struggle."

"What struggle?" he inquired, having little idea what she was talking about.

"Well… if I'm going to be totally forthcoming with this… You're a guy surrounded by a bunch of adorable girls; as both friends AND enemies, if you haven't noticed by now."

"I really haven't," he pensively replied. "Then again, now that you mention it… There's you, Risky Boots—which I will begrudgingly admit… Sky, Twitch, her friend Vinegar… There haven't been THAT many so far. Unless you're sayin' the majority o' the people we'll meet, be they friends or foes, will be 'adorable girls'?"

"Hmmm… yes," she confirmed with a nod, doing everything to make Tay wary of what to expect.

"…Not sure whether t' be excited by that or frightened… but I'm leanin' toward frightened, all things considered," he mumbled, uncertain of how to take such awful, TERRIBLE news. "Why is that, anyway?"

"I can't say for sure, but I will at least warn you that there are many different types of girls out there, many of whom might try to use their appearances and other sneaky tactics to lure you in and get you to drop your guard."

"Great. Of all worlds t' be trapped in, I get stuck in one where my biggest threats will be Femme Fatales; the most vicious of which I lost to already…" he lamented. "So what, the prettier, the more dangerous?"

"Basically," Shantae confirmed again.

"Yikes… I'm really glad you an' Sky aren't evil, then…" he mindlessly stated, catching Shantae by surprise. "Otherwise, I'd have a much bigger problem on my hands…"

"You really ought to watch some of the things you say, Tay," she lightly admonished as her face grew warm with nervousness. "You keep up slick statements like that, and you're bound to get yourself in trouble."

"What? It's true, ain't it?" he countered with a confused shrug, hinting to her that he missed the message behind his own remark.

"Uh… Yeah. Anyway, I had a feeling you might find yourself getting a little distracted here and there, so maybe I shouldn't be too hard on you. Plus, if things were different and I was surrounded by cute guys, I could… see how difficult it would be to focus sometimes. Don't tell anyone I said that, by the way."

"Right, I won't say a word," he acknowledged, though her confession raised an eyebrow. "So what, that supposed t' mean you're testin' me on my ability t' focus?"

"You could say that, but I think it's more that our adventures in general would be testing you on that."

"Well, I assure you, homegirl. I can control myself an' keep my eyes on the prize. Put a little more faith in me. Thanks, nonetheless. I needed that."

"You're welcome, Tay, but I've still got my eye on you…"

"Fair enough, I guess," he acknowledged with another shrug. "Still, of all the women I've formally met here, none o' y'all carry yourselves the way girls in my world do. This ain't t' say that there's no such thing as girls who are… I guess, 'comfortable' in their approaches t' boys. But…"

"Comfortable? What do you mean? Do you think all girls think and act a certain number of ways? Or that any small difference you see from your idea of girls totally confuses you?"

"No… Well, m-maybe. You got me there. On both counts, truthfully."

"Hmm, Tay… You know, us women aren't walking books. You can't read one or two and expect to just know everything about how every one of us works. You're gonna have a bad time if that's how you approach us. That said, I don't know that I appreciate what you're implying here."

"There I go, puttin' my foot right back in my mouth after you helped me pull it out… Shoot. Uh… you probably know this by now, but I… don't have that much experience with girls. Sorry if I sound like a total idiot, babblin' about expectations an' such…"

"No, it's fine. Just… keep an open mind and try not to let your past experiences completely influence how you think about girls."

"Fair…" he admitted, bowing his head in shame. "Sorry…"

"If it makes you feel better, I'm pretty sure I have zero idea on how to figure out boys. Besides what I told you about my… dating profile, or lack thereof, I really don't know anything about how you guys operate. So there, we're both in the same boat."

"I hear you. Thanks for settin' me straight, boss. I'll take that lesson t' heart."

"Anytime, my faithful student!" Shantae acknowledged with a cheerful grin. "Still, what exactly were you getting at earlier?"

"Oh, right. Hmm, how do I put this…" Tay pondered, uncertain of how to make his point as he scratched his head with an index finger. "Okay, so… you an' me, we get along great. We're friends who are workin' together, an' we talk like we've known each other for years. Nothin' wrong at all there. Well, I can't say I ever bathed with a female friend before, an' we did twice at this point despite only knowin' each other a couple days, but…"

"Well if you're gonna put it like THAT…" Shantae countered, just a tad flustered by the soldier's unceremonious observation as a blush crept onto her cheeks.

"…between Risky's comments about me not bein' her type despite me never sayin' anything about bein' interested in her, as well as her makin' flirty remarks toward me t' try an' force me t' slip up durin' our battle… Sky makin' all these propositions an' flirtin' with me, even after she caught me starin' at her… and Twitch solicitin' dates out o' me so soon after she just met me AND tried t' kill us, despite only bein' whatever age she is—and feel free t' call me out on this—it seems like some girls' romantic advances here are just… WayForward," he commented with an odd, indescribable inflection, giving her a mysteriously-knowing look.

"Yeah, you might have a point. I don't know how it works in your world, so I can't rightfully make a statement there. Buuuut, with the things I've noticed about how people pursue love here in Sequin Land, and what I know about girls generally being more… organized on the concept, somebody's gotta be the… Kickstarter in the relationship," she retorted, shooting him an equally-mysterious knowing look.

"Hmmmm…" the two hummed in melodious unison as they stared into thin air, as though they were looking directly at someone watching them. Something about their rather… transcendent exchange puzzles even me, and all I'm doing is narrating the story from a third-person perspective. Kinda does make one wonder if there's a deeper meaning behind this. Hmm…

"Maybe I'm just overthinkin' things," Tay started with a shrug, breaking the metaphysical silence as he turned his attention back to his tour guide. "Anyway, wanna spar before we head out?"

"Now? Are you sure?" Shantae asked back, rather surprised her partner would ask for a practice match first thing in the morning.

"Yeah. It's still pretty early an' I feel like after yesterday, we could use a warm up," he reasoned, stretching as he walked a few paces away from the half-genie and turned to face her.

"A fair point to make, I suppose. Okay, but like I said, I'm stronger than you might think I am," she accepted his challenge with a daring smirk.

"I'll be the judge o' that," he assured as the two did a few practice stretches and assumed battle poses before they set themselves in their own respective fighting poses. "Any ground rules you wanna lay out before we begin?"

"Hmm… Well, let's go by Boss Battle rules."

"…and those are…?"

"We go at it one-on-one until one of us blows up in a Stage-Clearing explosion. Or actually… I'm not sure what happens if I lose all my health points. I've never lost them all before. At least, not that I can remember."

"Fight 'til one of us blows up. Got it… I think," Tay agreed, playing along as though he knew what she meant. "Don't think I'll go easy on you because we're friends, either."

"Go easy on me at all, and I'll make you regret it. Now let's fight!" she shot back, equally determined to win as she was excited to have a new sparring partner. Rather than make any further statements, Tay tightened his focus on his opponent, with Shantae doing the same. As soon as the combatants took their positions, the battle began.

 ** _SHANTAE VS. TAYSHAN: SPOONERISM PERSONIFIED!_**

"Sparring Match! Show him who's boss!" Shantae announced, charging in head-first at the soldier as he shook off his confusion at her opening statement to go on the defensive. The two clashed as they locked hands in a show of physical strength. Shantae, having been the one to initiate, managed to force her opponent backward. However, Tay dug his heels into the ground and pushed back before she could gain an immediate advantage. Steadily, he began inching her backwards, proving his impressive physical prowess. Shantae quickly found herself outmatched in the physical strength department, as her efforts to push back were rendered futile. She countered with a rapid series of hair whips, which Tay had an immediate tough time blocking as he let go of her hands to block.

Each time her ponytail made contact with him, he likened the strikes' impacts to being hit with a belt made of rocks. He also noticed the number "6" coming out of him with each hit she landed. As she warned, she packed a much bigger punch than she let on. Tay retreated by hopping back to create distance between himself and Shantae. Noticing this, Shantae charged in further to keep the pressure going. However, Tay had managed to put enough of a gap between her and himself that on her next hair whip, he caught her by the end of her ponytail.

"Whoa!" She shouted in astonishment. Ignoring the surge of excruciating pain coursing through his hand, he grabbed her by the hand, pulled her close, let go of her hair and hooked his arm around her midsection. Before Shantae could process what was happening, Tay exerted an effortful shout as he jutted his hip out and tilted the half-genie over him.

"Oof!" She fell to the grassy arena with a solid *THUD*, landing flat on her stomach. Tay quickly moved in on his advantage and attempted to apply a submission hold while she was down. Thinking quickly, however, Shantae rolled over and flung a foot upward, landing a swift, unexpected kick to Tay's face.

"AGH!" Tay shouted in pain as he was sent stumbling back, holding his jaw where Shantae had kicked him. Tay was far from finished, however, as he readied himself yet again. Shantae showed no signs of slowing down either, as she was already back on her feet and on the offensive. She ran toward him with the speed of a leopard and threw a running punch. The soldier parried her attack with ease, holding his ground as he directed her fist upward with one hand before reacting with a swift counter. He threw a lightning-quick hook with his free hand that connected with the half-genie's opposing cheek while her guard was down, causing her to stumble back in a mix of shock and pain.

"Wow, I didn't see that one coming at all," she remarked, recovering quickly as she shook her head and rubbed the cheek with the back of her hand.

"Be careful about chargin' in at me without a plan in mind," Tayshan bragged as he kept his fists up. "I'll punish any mistake you make."

"Talking big already, huh?" Shantae shot back, smirking with enthusiasm as she readied herself once more. "Don't get too far ahead of yourself. That punch was quick, but it didn't even hurt that much. Although, I'm borrowing that parry you just did. That was a good one."

"Borrow away. As for that punch, it wasn't supposed t' hurt. That was a warnin' shot. Keep your guard up, even when you're on the offensive," he advised, though he was astonished to hear his counterattack did nothing to faze her. Rather than give a reply, however, Shantae charged at him again. Within seconds, the two were entangled in a friendly brawl, with each of them rapidly trading punches and kicks that either missed or were blocked. The two were locked in combat, each of them searching for an opportunity to gain an advantage as they continued blocking and dodging each other's strikes. Eventually, Shantae found an opening in the form of Tay throwing an uppercut. Reacting quickly, Shantae weaved backward, causing the soldier to miss completely. Capitalizing on the window of opportunity, the determined maiden fired an uppercut of her own. Her fist rocketed upward, making a *THUMP* of an impact on Tay's chin, causing him to lose his balance. Shantae wasn't done, however.

"Eat THIS!" she roared as she immediately launched a powerful hook aimed at the young man's abdomen. She connected with explosive force, the *THWACK* of the impact causing him to double over in agony, wrapping his hands around her golden bracelet. "How do you like that?" she taunted, certain that she showed him why he shouldn't have underestimated her.

"Not… not bad at all," Tay commended, still hunched over with his grasp on his opponent's wrist. "But trust me, I've eaten harder slices o' bread than that," he taunted back as he tightened his grip on her. Realizing right away that Tayshan was planning another counterattack, Shantae attempted to pull her arm away, though it was already too late. Tay dragged her toward him with one arm while releasing his grasp with the other. His free arm found itself wrapping around the genie girl's neck as he positioned himself behind her. He let go of her arm with his other hand and placed the appendage on the back of her head, putting the half-genie hero into a rear naked choke.

"Grrgh…!" Shantae grunted through a restricted breath, struggling to break free from the chokehold.

"Like I said, I'mma punish anything you throw at me if you ain't careful," Tay confidently informed her, applying pressure to the hold to keep her in place. Not one to give up in a compromising situation, Shantae quickly brought her hands to her opponent's forearm and tried pulling it down from her chin to allow herself some room to breathe. Tay, knowing that she would attempt to break free in such a manner, tightened his grip even more. "Not gonna be so easy t' break my grip here… How you gonna get out o' this one, huh?" he further goaded. Shantae, quickly becoming frustrated with the disadvantage she found herself in, reacted with unprecedented speed. She stepped to the side and slid one foot behind Tay's to throw off his center of balance. Without warning, the young woman threw a swift open-palm strike at Tay's face that connected with a frightening *SMACK*. From that point, Shantae slipped her head out of the soldier's loosened grip by twisting further while grabbing his choking arm with both hands. Finding herself at an advantage, she twisted her opponent's arm behind his back and kicked him behind the knee to force him to kneel into the grass.

"Bet you thought I didn't know how to break a chokehold, huh?" she smilingly asked as she kept her grip on his arm.

"Agh…! I won't lie… I thought I had you," he admitted through his efforts to break her hold on him. He nearly succeeded by simply wresting his arm out of her grasp. However, Shantae was prepared. She stretched her leg upward while she held his arm in place. In a fluent motion, she laid her leg over the shoulder of his free arm. Before Tay could figure out what she was up to, Shantae lifted his captured arm upward before jumping and hooking the back of her other knee around the ankle of her the leg she previously positioned across his chest over his shoulder. Her grip remained on his arm once her legs were securely wrapped around it and his neck, as she opted to use her hands to secure her position. Without hesitation, she thrust her entire body backward to bring herself and Tayshan to the cool, damp, dew-laden grass as she trapped him in a triangle choke from behind. "Ghagh…!" Tay choked out, suddenly and unexpectedly finding breathing air hard to come by.

"Welcome to one of my secret techniques!" she triumphantly gloated as she held her extraterrestrial friend tighter than a crocodile's maw on hapless prey. "I call it the Lion's Mane Triangle Choke! Hyah!" she further exclaimed with utmost enthusiasm at trying out her secret move on her newest friend. To ensure her advantage, Shantae curled her torso upward and over her foe's ensnared head, further tightening her grip. Tay, utterly shocked by his opponent's strength and ingenious submission maneuver, struggled to escape as he writhed and twisted to try and break free. Shantae's grip held strong, however, as she kept her legs wrapped firmly around his neck and arm to prevent him from simply slipping free. "Struggle all you want, Tayshan! This move is inescapable! Granted, this is the first time I've ever gotten to try it, but-! Whoah!" the half-genie martial artist found herself surprised as Tay, with a burst of energy, twisted his entire body, causing both of them to flip over. The two found themselves face-down in the grass, though Shantae's hold remained stable. Refusing to give in so easily, the otherworldly serviceman brought his legs up to where he was able to plant his feet firmly onto the ground.

"Ghaaaaaaaarrgh!" he growled, using his free arm and his legs to support both his and his sparring partner's combined weight. He had to move quickly, or else he'd either be forced to tap out, or he'd wind up passing out from lack of oxygen. Without giving it a second thought, he put an incredible amount of strength into his legs, pushing himself up to a standing position while Shantae maintained her grip on him. He nearly lost his balance due to the momentum of his maneuver barely accounting for the added weight of a whole other person clinging to his neck. He remained steady enough to catch himself, however.

"No way! How'd you-?" she was about to ask before feeling something grasping the back of her head. Tay, using his free hand, grabbed Shantae's leg and, with a forceful tug downward, broke the vice grip of a leg-lock she had on his neck. Immediately after, he palmed the back of the half-genie's head, pulling her downward just enough to where he was able to rest his other hand on the back of her neck as she held on, trying to reestablish her grip with her legs. In the exact moment Shantae figured out what he was up to, Tay tilted his body back slightly, lifting one foot upward to build momentum.

"HRAAAH!" he shouted, tugging downward on Shantae as he hurled his upper body forward with all his might.

"WHOA! OOF!" she yelled in surprise as she came toppling over the soldier. She hit the ground with a damp *THUD*, landing flat on her back. She wasn't alone in this sudden meeting with the ground, however. Tay, immediately losing his footing, bowled into the ground alongside her, also finding himself flat on his back. He panted and gasped for air, taking full advantage of his newfound ability to breathe again. The young woman was quick to recover, as her impact with the ground did little to shake her up. She kipped up to her feet without issue. "Wow, I didn't think you'd get out of that one, much less lift me like you did," she commented, both impressed and disappointed by the outcome of her crafty technique. Tay, while still catching his breath, gingerly rolled over and climbed to his feet, stretching his arms and neck as he did so.

"You're lighter than I thought you'd be," he responded through labored breaths. "I'd ask how much you weigh, but… I think I got a bit more common sense than that," he added with a small chuckle.

"Smart, Tay," she shot back with a smirk. "Real smart."

"I certainly try. Still, you got me good with that triangle choke! Color me every shade o' surprised on that one."

"Glad you approve! I learned it, as well as some other moves, from a martial arts guide I picked up a little while ago. I haven't had much time to actually practice the moves I learned lately, but I've kinda been wanting to improve my hand-to-hand fighting techniques so I don't have to rely so much on magic. Y'know, in case I ever wind up having it stolen from me or sealed away again."

"Interesting…" Tayshan acknowledged with an appreciative nod. "In that case, here's your golden opportunity," he challenged as he stepped back and entered his fighting stance. "Let's see what you got, Shantae!"

"You're on! Here I come!" she bravely and excitedly accepted, entering a fighting pose of her own. The duo stared one another down as the gentle breeze wafted through the nearby palm trees and the grass on which the warriors stood. They wordlessly sized each other up, anticipating one another's next move. After a tense, ambient couple of seconds, Tayshan gestured with a finger for Shantae to bring it on. Needing no further prompt, Shantae dashed in, ready to show her sidekick her unrivaled talents. Almost instantly, the two clashed, locking grips with one another in one more show of physical prowess. This time, however, Shantae immediately whipped her hair at her opponent while his arms were busy locking with hers.

"Ouch!" Tay hollered in acute pain, having been struck by Shantae's weaponized ponytail with an almost-deafening *SNAP* at his face. He let go of the half-genie's arms, instinctively covering his face to account for the brutal impact of her hair whip attack. For Shantae, this was an opportunity like no other. While the serviceman was distracted, she charged in, channeling a steady flow of her Light Magic into her fists.

"Here's another one! Hundred Arrow Strike!" she announced as she let loose a rapid flurry of jabs to Tayshan's abdomen. With the speed of a woodpecker, the heroine hammered the soldier relentlessly with punch after punch after punch, each one connecting with so little time between each hit that one could see the wind enshrouding her fists. However, she was too busy to notice that Tay had not only recovered from her hair attack, he was also not even flinching from her machine gun-like barrage of punches. As soon as the soldier regained enough of his composure, he grabbed one of the woman's wrists as she was going in for another punch. "What!?" she cried in utter astonishment as her momentum was stopped dead. To free herself, she tried punching him with her free hand, only for him to catch her by the wrist with his other hand. Before she could conceptualize what was happening, the serviceman reeled her in.

"Hah!" he shouted, driving a hard, swift knee into the unfortunate young heroine's abdomen. His knee collided with her stomach with a voluminous *THUMP*, after which he let go of her wrists.

"Oogh…!" she groaned, feeling the force of the knee thrust. Before she had a moment to breathe and recover, however, Tay was on the move. He charged forward and grasped her by the shoulders. Within an instant, he pulled her toward him, crouching low and rolling onto his back with Shantae in tow.

"Hoo-yah!" he yelled, planting one foot on the half-genie's stomach, tucking the other one toward his own torso as he rolled backward. As soon as his back was in full contact with the wet grass, he thrust his mounting foot upward and released his adversary's shoulders, flinging her up, over, and behind him.

"Ogh!" she grunted, once again finding herself flat on her back in the slippery pasture with an earthen *PLOP*. Caught off-guard once more, Shantae sprang to her feet while Tay backrolled into a standing position. This time, our heroes were all in. They didn't even bother to acknowledge what just happened. Shantae raced in again, hot with a mix of frustration and indomitable determination, unwilling to be done in by her own sidekick. Tay, shocked that she could recover so quickly, did his best to brace himself for her next brazen assault. The two entered another frenzy of trading kicks, punches, and (in Shantae's case) hair whips that largely went blocked or whiffed. The chaotic entanglement was rife with such fiery, exuberant energy that it may very well have been tangible from a mile away.

"You ain't bad on your feet!" Tay found the time to comment as he and Shantae continued to trade blows, locked in combat. She attempted to kick him low, only for him to block her kick with his shin before countering with a jab.

"I could say the same for you," she shot back as she dodged the jab and tried countering with a hair whip that was also dodged by her target. "But I'm only getting started!" she warned, ducking under a left hook and returning fire with a hair whip that grazed the soldier's chest. Even though her amethyst-hued locks only scraped his torso, Tay felt the full sting of Shantae's signature move, causing him to step back and dodge the next one. As soon as he saw her bow her head to unleash another follicle-laden strike, he sidestepped and dashed forward, attempting to follow up with an uppercut. However, Shantae recoiled from her whiffed hair attack quickly enough that she saw it coming. She intercepted the punch with one hand, diverting the momentum of it upward and away from her, successfully parrying her foe. Knowing right away what an opportunity it was for her, she followed suit with a hair whip aimed directly at the serviceman's face. With another startling *THWACK*, she got him.

"OWAOGH!" Tay bellowed in agony, stumbling back. His face smarted like he'd been pelted with a dodgeball full of lug nuts. Thinking quickly and smirking, Shantae channeled some of her Light Magic into her feet before dashing toward her distracted opponent. As soon as she was close enough, she jumped, aimed her feet at his chest while in midair, and unleashed a flurry of rapid, gravity-defying flying kicks.

"Feel my ferocious flying feet of fury!" she somehow uttered a clever alliteration as she pummeled the defenseless soldier's chest with kick after kick after kick, forcing him to stumble backward with each successive impact of her slippers on his torso until she finished her bizarre technique with one more powerful midair thrust kick. Her attack knocked Tayshan off his feet and sent him careening toward the ground, where he landed with a heavy *THUD*. "How'd you like my Soaring Kangaroo Kick?" she proudly asked, her feet finally planted on the ground.

"What… How…? Huh!?" Tay barely had the nerve to speak, he was so dumbfounded by such an outrageous and absurd technique. He rubbed his chest with one hand, the impact of Shantae's feet resonating like he'd been repeatedly hit with sandbags from a catapult.

"That one's my favorite," she further commented with a beaming smile, beyond excited that she could land another of her secret techniques on her friend. Tay, shaking his head in utter disbelief, slowly brought himself back to his feet, dusting himself off and stretching away the residual pain in his chest. "Though, it looks like even that wasn't enough to bring you down. You're tougher than I thought you'd be."

"You got a lot o' weird tricks up your sleeve, I'll give you that," he commended with a nod as he reentered his fighting stance. "I even noticed that you picked up my parry in a snap. I'm impressed! But, if you think you're gonna beat me with fancy, flashy moves like that, you're sadly mistaken, homegirl," he boasted, mildly surprising his team leader. "You're gonna have t' hit me a lot harder!"

"Be careful what you wish for, Tay, because you just might get it! Hyaaaaah!" she yelled, filled with determination to, as she previously proclaimed, show him who's boss. Tay was aware of her method of attacking this time around and, rather than charge back at her, he waited for her to come close. At the right moment, he dodged a predictable hair whip.

"Just like I thought you'd do…" he muttered to himself as he made a swift, flowing motion in which he slipped a leg behind hers, palmed his opponent's face, and brought his leg back and upward to sweep her off her feet and force her back with his hand.

"OWAAH!" It worked, as Shantae went toppling over on her back with another hard *THUD* on the ground. Tay, taking advantage of this yet again, planted himself on top of her, straddling her before she got the chance to kick him again. Shantae, seeming to be getting furious as she became more determined to win, threw a punch, which Tay caught with one hand. She threw another punch with her other fist, only for it to be caught by Tay's other hand.

"Gotcha now…!" Tay taunted through heavy breaths. "I'mma get you back for—HRAUGH! Ohh!" he shouted in pain yet again, releasing her hands to cover his chest. While he was able to subdue her limbs, Tay was unable to account for Shantae's hair in his position on top of her. Even with such little space between her head and the ground, Shantae managed to garner enough force to whip her opponent in the chest while he was preoccupied. She followed up by slamming both her fists into his chest to get him off her. Tay, not willing to give up his advantageous position, anticipated Shantae's next attack following the double punch by bending down and wrapping his arms around her torso. He pulled her upwards and over himself, wrapping his legs around her torso and tucking her head under his arm, squeezing to restrict her breathing.

"Hwwaagh…!" Shantae struggled, ensnared in the soldier's guillotine chokehold. She was unable to see or process what was going on right away, as he was keeping the pressure on to prevent her from retaliating.

"You… can tap out if this gets t' be too much for ya…!" he brazenly advised her as he continued his hold. The soldier's grip on Shantae was like that of a python; tight, unrelenting, and seemingly inescapable. However, the half-genie was not going to throw in the towel just yet. After a moment of wriggling against the soldier's grasp…

"HAH!" she shouted as she slammed her fist against his side to escape.

"DAAGH!" he hollered in agony, releasing her as she'd hit a tender spot in his lower back; incidentally, the area in which he was hit when he was shot during their previous adventure. Shantae took full advantage of the moment, as she climbed onto and straddled him with the intent to punish. She threw a swift jab downward to begin her assault. Tay, thinking quickly, caught her wrist before her punch landed. However, Tay attempted to use his free hand to grab the half-genie, who anticipated this by grabbing his wrist. The two struggled for dominance, though Tay found himself surprisingly challenged with breaking free, as she forced his hands above his head.

"How… are you… so strong…!?" he remarked in complete astonishment at her strength.

"Now I've got you! This is gonna sting," she taunted as she whipped Tay several times in the face with her hair, with him feeling the impact of each hit like a professional boxer's haymaker. Tay felt himself getting weary from her onslaught and had few options on what to do next. Nonetheless, he persevered and with a burst of strength, wrested his hands free and let loose an immensely forceful open-palm push into Shantae's chest, driving her off him and sending her staggering back before she fell backward a few feet away. Tay gingerly picked himself up as Shantae did the same, though she was wrapping her arms around her breasts as she brought herself to her feet.

"I can't believe you did that! That was a dirty move, Tay!" she roared at him, every word laced with rage.

"Dirty!?" He asked in a mix of shock and confusion at the accusation, rubbing his face and checking for cuts or swelling. "What do you mean 'dirty?' I wasn't gonna let you just beat me senseless like that! One way or another, you was gonna get off me! Your hair hits like brass knuckles!"

"So you GROPE me to get yourself out!? What's wrong with you!?" Shantae accused. Tay's jaw dropped harder than a meteor from the deepest reaches of space.

"WHAT!? That couldn't be farther from the reason I had t' push you off like that! What are you even talkin' about!?" the soldier defended, letting his opponent's wrathful accusation get to him.

"You shoved your hands right into me! I shouldn't even have to explain it to you why that's wrong!" the half-genie admonished, her rage building as her opponent refused to admit to his mistake. "If that's how you fight, then I'm not sure we should keep going! There's no point in fighting against a dirty cheater!"

"Cheater!?" Tay boomed, utterly appalled. "Whatever you're accusin' me of, it ain't true! Maybe stop an' think for a second about the position I was in, huh? On the ground, pinned, an' bein' pounded like meat in a butcher shop! Look at that from my perspective!"

"No matter what you say, Tayshan, you can't do that! You're lucky I don't go all out, or you'd regret even THINKING about doing what you did!"

"I don't know what you're so worked up about, but if you're gonna make idle threats t' me, then girl, you'd better darn well be prepared t' back 'em up! I DARE you t' go all out!" Tay warned, not taking her intimidation talk lightly. His lack of penitence for his move, in conjunction with his most recent statement, struck a nerve in the already-furious young woman.

"Grrrrr, that's it! The gloves are off!" Shantae roared again, her temper having flown past the moon by this point in their battle. Tay, still not fully understanding of his adversary's power, silently braced himself as he anticipated her next move.

"Have it your way…" he muttered to himself. Both warriors stared one another down, determination hot in their eyes like the rising sun. Though neither spoke, the glares they exchanged communicated that it was on now. Shantae, without a second thought, began to belly dance. Tay knew he was in for it now, but he steeled his resolve nonetheless.

"Transform!" Shantae announced as she, with a poof, turned into her spider form and immediately began spitting green balls of venom at Tay. The soldier jumped back, watching the slimy projectile land on the ground in front of him with a goopy *SPLAT*.

"So that's how it's gon' be, huh…? Okay, bring it!" he challenged as Spider-Shantae crawled forward and spat more venom balls at him. Noticing quickly that the venom balls arched over instead of flying straight at him, Tay ducked and rolled under the next two she shot, quickly closing the distance. Before Shantae could react, Tay cocked his arm across his chest and delivered a swift, powerful backhand chop to her solar plexus.

"Ohoogh…!" Shantae groaned as Tay intentionally knocked the wind out of her. Barely able to breathe, she was unable to spit any more venom balls. She changed back to her human form, backing up to recover. Tay, needing the time as well to recover from the onslaught, allowed her. "You're pretty good, I'll give you that," Shantae began as she continued catching her breath, holding her abdomen. "…but you won't get the best of me!" she declared, beginning yet another captivating belly dance, this time transforming into a miniature elephant with what looked like a blue carpet on its back and all the half-genie's jewelry adorned to it. She immediately dug her foreleg into the ground, aiming to charge at him like a bull.

"Hmph!" Tay defiantly scoffed. "You think turnin' into a tiny elephant is gonna beat me? That's adorable." Shantae said nothing as she angrily dashed at him at the pace of a rhinoceros; much faster than he expected. Tay vaulted over her as she barreled toward him. Shantae immediately changed back into her humanoid form, appearing to merely distract him with the Elephant transformation. Before Tay was able to recover from hopping over Elephant-Shantae…

"HARAAAH!" Shantae shouted as she leapt and kicked the soldier in his back, hoping to knock him down and finish him off. Demonstrating unprecedented resilience, however, Tay stayed on his feet. Weary as he was, he was not ready to give in. Shantae, quick on the draw, danced again and… seemingly vanished, confusing the soldier to no end as he searched the battlefield for signs of his adversary. Before he was made to wonder for too long, however…

"OUCH!" Tay yelled in severe pain, immediately grabbing his ankle as a felt a sudden, sharp, stabbing series of pinching sensations coursing through it. Just as he knelt, however, he felt another horrible jolt of stabbing pain in his back, causing him to swat away at what he thought was an insect biting him as he remained on one knee. In that moment, however, he noticed a minuscule grayish-blue dot floating high in the air. The dot, in an instant, vanished in a cloud of pink smoke, revealing Shantae, who'd immediately reappeared airborne with a fist cocked, aimed, and ready to knock some lights out.

"HYAAH!" With a couple of vicious *SMACKs*, Tay was sent careening to the grass, as Shantae let loose a merciless descending left hook-hair whip combo that caught the serviceman totally off-guard. "Take that!" she boasted, proud of her sneak attack as she backed up to recharge. "Give up yet?" Tay, being far from amused by Shantae's maneuver, gingerly brought himself to a kneeling position, covering his eye with his hand. His clothes and face were smeared with grass stains and dirt. He wordlessly turned toward her, glaring with vengeful fury as he contemplated what to do next.

"That's it!" he roared, a vein visibly pulsating from his forehead as he aggressively charged at her. Shantae, though alarmed by her adversary's burst of rage, readied herself. He started his onslaught with a powerful, yet slow wind-up haymaker. Shantae dodged it by ducking under, causing him to punch a palm tree she was standing in front of. With an astonishing *CRACK*, Tayshan left a fist-sized dent and a series of cracks in the tree's trunk while causing splinters of wood to sprinkle into her hair. Paying no heed to this, however, Shantae rolled from under him and tried to create some distance. Tayshan would have none of it, however. He shook the resonating pain from his hand and chased after her, his body tingling with unprecedented vigor.

The enraged serviceman hounded Shantae all over the vicinity of her lighthouse, letting loose a slow series of running jabs and crosses, which she found easy enough to dodge as she took defensive measures by performing a series of backward spinning dashes and backflips. Her unrivaled agility proved most fruitful as her infuriated opponent continued his belligerent blitz without success. Shantae found this overly-aggressive fighting style far too easy to predict, smirking at the soldier as he continued to successfully punch the air around her... that is, if he was aiming to do that. If he was trying to hit her, well... he was failing. Miserably.

"You'll never hit me like this, Tay!" she smilingly taunted as she continued dodging, flipping, and hopping backward. "You're too slow! At this rate, you're gonna tire yourself out!"

"Who said I was tryin' t' hit you?" he shot back through his seemingly-uncoordinated punches. Well, I'll be darned. He really DID mean to just punch the air around her! Before Shantae could realize what he meant, however, she found herself low on ground space as she nearly lost her balance on the edge of the cliff of the cape.

"Whoa!" she bellowed, looking backward to see the jagged, craggy rocks of the peninsula meeting the crashing waves of the ocean below. "You…!"

"Gotcha right where I want you!" he boasted, going in for a grab. Shantae attempted to counter with a hair whip. Tay tanked the hit, the half-genie's weaponized ponytail striking him in one shoulder as he wrapped his arm around the back of her neck to draw her in. Immediately after securing his position, he slipped his other arm between her legs and found the leverage he needed. As though it were one fluent motion, Tay leaned in, tightened his grip, pulled his opponent close, and hoisted her into the air before locking her in position laid across his shoulders. As soon as he locked her in, he took a few paces away from the cliff, cackling with malicious intent as Shantae struggled to break free. "Hope you're ready for a ride, homegirl!"

"What the-? Whoawhoawhooaaaaaah!" Shantae hollered as Tay began spinning rapidly to disorient the poor girl while she was in a disadvantaged position. He kept whirling, hoping to totally discombobulate Shantae before he became too dizzy to keep it going. After a solid ten seconds of spinning with the intensity of a blender's blade on full blast, Tay lifted his sparring partner high off his shoulders. Soon after, he flipped her over and slammed the helpless, dizzied maiden on her back with a voluminous *PLOP*, making a Shantae-sized indent in the grass as he knocked the wind out of her. Trying to keep the momentum going in his favor, the soldier moved to grab his opponent by the legs and tried to fold them in such a way that they'd resemble a number "4" around his own. However, Shantae regained enough of her senses to yank one of her feet away and thrust it forward with the strength it would take to break a 2x4 in half, forcefully shoving her heel into a… most unsavory spot for a male to find another person forcefully shoving their heel.

"Dagh…! Not again…!" Tay complained, staggering back and hunching over in debilitating, harrowing agony. Shantae, not realizing what she'd done, got up and almost instantly transformed into a blue-haired, scaly green-skinned mermaid and spat a bubble bomb that made direct, watery *SPLASH* of an impact with the soldier's face. The unfortunate young man was sent stumbling back as the surprise attack disoriented him further. Shantae then transformed back and rushed him while he was vulnerable.

"HAAAH!" she shouted as she executed a powerful spinning thrust kick to Tay's stomach that winded him and sent him flying back, making a sizeable skid mark in the dirt as the damp grass blades of the island clung to him like hair on an electrically-charged balloon. Breathing heavily and clutching her arm, Shantae waited for Tayshan to take another stand. The soldier did not disappoint, though he found it much harder to pick himself up, considering the places Shantae kicked him. Noticing this, the half-genie spoke. "You should stand down, Tay. You're injured. If we keep going like this, you're going to get hurt worse." Tay did not take this suggestion lightly, reading her concern as scathing condescension. He refused to let her look down on him.

"Spare me the pity…! You…! You been gettin' away with a lot o' funny little tricks in the last few minutes… Those transformations, that sneaky hair-punch combo, an' kickin' me below the belt…" he spat as he entered a more aggressive fighting stance, apparently having gained a sudden second wind. "No more foolin' around! You'd better be ready, because I'm about t' take you down!"

"The same could be said of you! Chokeholds, throws, that dirty push, that sneaky chop to my stomach, and tricking me into almost falling off the cliff…!" she spat back, her competitive spirit rising alongside his as she took her own stance. "This is the part where you taste defeat, Tay! And newsflash: It'll taste like my hair!"

"…Interesting one-liner there, if nothin' else."

"Let's just do this!" she shouted, her less-than-stellar heroic remark enraging her further.

"D'AAARGH!" Tay let loose his battle cry as he bolted toward Shantae.

"HaaaaAAAAAH!" Shantae roared back, racing toward him in the same vindictive manner. The two met with a voluminous clash of Tay's wrist and Shantae's bracelet. Thinking quickly, Tay used his other hand to grab Shantae's wrist and yanked her sideways to throw her off balance. "Whoa!" Shantae shouted, not expecting her enemy's sudden move. Tay followed up by positioning himself behind her, though he maintained his grip on her wrist. However, Shantae reacted swiftly by lowering her head, then suddenly jerking upward. With a definitive *THWACK*, the half-genie warrior performed a backward hair whip that caught the soldier by surprise.

"Awgh! Ow!" Tay hollered, clutching his face as he stumbled back. Shantae's hair whip found its mark, striking him in the nose. Free from the serviceman's grasp once more, Shantae performed yet another belly dance number, clasping her hands together above her head and gyrating her hips. By the time Tay recovered from the surprise attack, he witnessed the puff of pink smoke that signified that his adversary had shapeshifted once again. This time, he was greeted by the familiar purple-furred monkey form she'd first shown him. The adorable little primate was on all fours, a determined glare in her eyes as she readied herself for attack.

Without warning, Monkey-Shantae galloped toward her opponent and breakneck speed, her body becoming enshrouded in a strange, sky blue aura as she rushed toward him. Shantae leapt into the air and charged forward to attack Tayshan head-on. The soldier, though somewhat distracted by the unorthodox technique, reacted. He ducked downward and weaved to the side, avoiding the half-genie's attack completely… or, he almost did. Shantae, half-expecting him to dodge, whipped her aura-cloaked tail into his face as her miniature simian form soared by him. She caught him on the cheek with a voluminous *SNAP* that nearly sent him to the ground from the combined shock and impact. Tay, shaking off the pain, gingerly rose to stand. He turned around to face the simian girl, who'd been preparing another attack, and spoke.

"You must think you're so crafty, huh?" he remarked, brushing his hotly-stinging cheek with his wrist.

"Crafty enough to win!" the miniature mammal spoke, immediately charging toward the human once again as she resolved herself to defeat him. Monkey-Shantae sped toward Tayshan with the speed of a race car, planning her next attack in advance. Just as she reached him, she leapt high into the air as though there were springs in her feet. Her goal was to get high above him and use the form's special ability to charge downward and clock him from a position in which he couldn't defend himself. However, she couldn't anticipate what happened next. Without her noticing it, Tay ducked low, planting one foot into the ground behind him as he cocked a fist and prepared himself.

"Hah!" Tay yelled, countering Shantae with a rising, spinning, jumping uppercut that landed squarely on the monkey girl's chin, knocking her off-kilter. "Get over here!" he shouted again, jumping once more as she descended, managing to catch her by the tail. Shantae was rendered helpless as all her momentum was stopped by the sudden countermeasure. Without warning, she found herself dangling upside down as Tay held her high. "Enough o' this monkey business," he quipped as he began swinging the defenseless primate girl by her tail.

"Whoawhoawhoaaaaaaah!" Monkey-Shantae bellowed in horror as the world around her began to blur and mesh together. She couldn't see anything at all, as Tay had put a considerable amount of effort into swinging her like a lasso.

"You're… GROUNDED!" he remarked once more as he used all the momentum he built up to spike Shantae onto the grassy terrain. With a forceful *THUD*, Shantae hit the ground harder than a building being toppled, the initial impact winding her as she collided with the terrain on her side. She rolled away in the direction Tay spiked her by a few feet before stopping, curling up in unspeakable agony. The poor girl could barely catch her breath, much less get up, she hit the ground so hard. Combined with her disorientation from her second spin cycle of the battle, she found it difficult to regain her senses as she gasped for air her eyes squeezed shut and tearing up.

On the other end, Tay had seen the effect his counterattack had on his friend and immediately felt bad for it as he attempted to recuperate from the lasting effects of their fight. He didn't at all mean to cause her as much harm as he'd seen her experiencing; he only wanted to disorient her enough to transform back. To hear her in her tiny monkey form, gasping for air as she curled up into a ball… it worried him greatly. As such, he dropped his guard and approached.

"Hey… M-maybe we should stop here. Sorry about that. You okay, homegirl?" Tay asked, his concern evident as he walked over to her to help her up. However, as he drew close enough to where he was standing over her, Shantae recovered with an explosive fury. Her simian form began to glow with the same luminescent sky-blue aura as she picked herself up off the ground. She glared fiery, tear-riddled wrath at Tayshan, clearly unhappy with his most recent attack. She growled with the ferocity of an aggressive canine, baring her teeth at him as she prepared herself. Before Tay could react, Shantae launched her next move.

"Yaaaah!" the furious primate girl roared, bursting upward and toward Tay with the speed and power of a geyser. Poor Tay had no chance to defend himself as Shantae launched herself directly into the soldier's abdomen, the vicious, thumping impact resonating throughout his torso, emphasized by the *CRACK* that came from seemingly nowhere.

"Gwaagh…!" Tayshan choked out, almost all the air in his lungs clobbered out of him in one hit as he was forced backward. He struggled to keep himself on his feet as he stumbled a few steps back, the sudden, devastating force of Shantae's flying monkey tackle nearly overwhelming him. He also found himself wincing in pain as he tried to stand straight, his side aching like a gruesome stab wound. Shantae, however, wasn't done. She transformed back into her normal self and dashed forward, intending to end the battle while she had the upper hand.

"HAAAH!" the furious half-genie lunged forward with a punch aimed at the solder's face. Thinking on his feet, Tay blocked the punch, catching her fist in his hand as he continued to clutch his stomach with his other hand. Shantae attempted a kick with the opposite foot aimed toward Tay's side, to which he reacted by quickly blocking it with the forearm he previously had wrapped around his stomach. He immediately followed up by wrapping his arm around her ankle, locking her in place. In yet another coordinated countermeasure, Tay straightened himself, drawing Shantae's leg upward as she hopped to keep her balance.

"ORAH!" he shouted as he drew a leg as far backward as he could and swept it low and across, kicking the half-genie's other leg out from under her as he let go of her wrist and other leg.

"Oof!" Shantae grunted in pain as she fell flat on her side with yet another hard *THUD*, making an additional imprint on the ground. "Oww…!" she further groaned as she rose back to her feet, her hair littered with numerous blades of grass and her outfit stained all over with a mix of sweat, dirt, and grass residue. Nonetheless, she charged at Tay again, giving him no time to recover. She threw a series of punches and kicks at him that he, despite his still being winded from her previous gut-smashing maneuver, managed to narrowly block or avoid. Quickly getting frustrated with failing to hit him right away, the anger-ridden maiden began whipping at him with her hair.

"Agh…! Don't you ever let up…!?" Tay commented in a mix of pain and fatigue as Shantae continued trying to pummel her way to victory. The soldier, though injured, did his best to defend against the incoming onslaught. The first few strikes of the half-genie's brutal, belligerent hair attack landed sporadically, mostly grazing Tay as he staggered backward to create enough distance to dodge her hair whips. Thankfully for him, it didn't take long to learn Shantae's pattern as she rushed him down. She mixed in hair whips with kicks and punches that, given the fatigue she'd been experiencing, were all fairly simple to read for Tay. Eventually, an opportunity arose, in which she'd whipped her hair at him again. Thinking quickly once again, he caught her ponytail, tightened his grip, and drew her in, leaving her wide open. This time, however, he meant business. As he pulled her forward with one hand, he cocked his other hand back and released a powerful uppercut to Shantae's bare abdomen.

"Ooogh!" Shantae grunted in unprecedented pain, not at all expecting to be countered in such a brutal fashion. Before she could recover, however, Tay moved to place his hands on the back of her head and on her upper back. He pushed her forward while she was hunched over, sweeping one foot toward the young woman's ankles, again kicking her legs out from under her. Shantae hit the ground with yet another *THUMP*, further dirtying her outfit and taking more damage. However, she showed no signs of slowing down. She immediately picked herself back up, ignoring all thresholds of pain, and valiantly rushed Tay down once more.

"Darn it, how-!?" Tay tried asking as he braced himself, though the time for idle banter had long since been over. Shantae began another flurry of rapid punches, kicks, and hair whips that began to rapidly wear on Tay as he defended himself. His fatigue had long since set in. He'd still not been allowed an opportunity to recover. His side ached tremendously as though his ribs were broken, further complicating his already-limited ability to breathe. Eventually, he caved, as Shantae found enough of an opening to land a punch to his jaw that threw him off. Tay shouted in pain, but his enemy had finally found her edge. Shantae followed up with a combo of body blows, spinning hair whips to the soldier's face, a low sweep to knock him off-kilter, and a devastating spinning, jumping roundhouse kick to his chest that sent him plummeting to the ground in horrible agony once again.

"Had enough yet?" Shantae asked, out of breath, but still standing. She figured that would be the end, though she also understood that he hadn't exploded Boss Battle-style yet. She could only guess what Tay's next move would be, as he remained on the ground, writhing in pain as he lay flat on his back. However, he was quick to bring himself to a seated position. Shantae was no less than utterly astonished to see him rising again.

"Hmph. I'd hate t' say it, homegirl…" Tay breathlessly began, painstakingly bringing himself to his feet, though he winced, clutching his side as it resonated with enervating agony. "…but while you pack a nasty punch, Risky Boots hits harder than that. Suffice t' say, I've still got some fight left in me… even after that," he informed her, stretching and standing tall to power through his injuries as his pain ostensibly subsided. "I will admit, though, you've got a lot o' power yourself. I'm still winnin' this, though, so don't take it personally." With that, Tay put up his fists and prepared himself for the final stage of their match. At that, Shantae smirked and shook her head in disbelief.

"Y'know… You are definitely no ordinary human, Tay," she remarked, both astounded at his willpower and concerned that his stubbornness would get him hurt further than he already was. She, too, was low on steam as she panted to keep from passing out, her heart beating a hundred miles a minute. "Most of the bosses I've faced in the past would've been done in way before this point. You're either really, REALLY strong, or really, REALLY stubborn."

"Heh, can't it be both?" he joked, still breathing heavily. "Besides, we both need t' be able t' push it this far… an' maybe beyond if we hope t' get the job done against Risky… no?"

"Good point," she agreed, nodding as she prepared herself for the end of their somewhat-friendly battle. "You've certainly proven you can go the distance… with or against me. Still, I'm sorry for what happens next," she preemptively apologized.

"That's the kind o' confidence I like t' hear. Now let's finish this!"

"You're on! Hyaaah!" With that, the two charged toward each other and began throwing punches at one another at breakneck speed as they simultaneously blocked each other's attacks. Tay and Shantae were taking this so-called sparring session to a whole different level of competitive, with each one of them trying their hardest to take the other down. When it came to simply using their hands, Tay proved faster and more coordinated despite his injuries, landing many non-consecutive strikes to the half-genie's abdomen and face while also countering and parrying her attacks to keep the momentum in his favor. Though he was still very uncomfortable with the idea of hitting a girl (a feeling he could not and would not let fade, even with how long he and Shantae had been fighting), he was more astonished to see that Shantae was eating his rapid jabs like they were marshmallows.

Worse for the soldier, however, was that Shantae still had an edge in the form of her hair. She began mixing in hair whips with punches that more than made up for her lack of digital speed and power. Already wracked with fatigue, Tay struggled to keep up. Shantae's last-minute change of attack strategy quickly started to wear down on his defensive ability as his onslaught relented. It didn't help him in the least that he burnt up what little energy he had left trying to gain an early edge in their bare-fisted brawl. The second he slipped up, Shantae saw her chance. She landed a decisive hook to the spot in his abdomen where she previously rammed him in Monkey form, the impact causing another disturbing *CRACK* that made me shiver with discomfort.

"Haagh! Ah-hagh…!" He choked out in unspeakable despair as he flinched, stopping his attack completely as he brought both hands to the tenderized area. From there, Shantae ceased with her punches, but belligerently carried on with her hair whips. Valiantly as Tay tried to keep his defense up to plan a counterattack, Shantae's silky-haired assault overwhelmed him until eventually…

"You're finished! Haaaaaaah!" Shantae roared with determination, landing a decisive hair whip that landed on her opponent's face with a voluminous *THWACK*!

"HWAARRAUUGH!" Tay screamed in defeat, his agonized cry echoing throughout the island as he began inexplicably experiencing small detonations all over his body. He was immobilized in place and rendered utterly helpless, his arms stretched out to his sides as he inexplicably levitated slightly above the ground in a state of unrelenting pain. The detonations didn't stop until one final decisive explosion sent him reeling into the air with a blinding flash of light. After a second or two, the light dissipated, and Tayshan fell flat on his back a couple of yards away, breathless and sweaty as the not-so-friendly battle came to an action-packed end. Shantae, who had also been catching her breath, staggered over to her defeated adversary and collapsed face-down next to him.

"Whoo…! What a workout…" she smilingly stated, feeling somehow invigorated by such a brutish show of willpower and unbridled aggression.

"You… can say that again…" Tay agreed, equally invigorated despite the terrible aftermath of the battle. "Not t' say I thought I would lose, but I kinda expected the explosions t' hurt a lot more."

"So far as I hear… they're not so bad once you've been in a couple of boss battles. Still, that was the best sparring session I've ever had…!"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah… I've never had to use any of my dances in a sparring match before. I've never had to rely on my hair as much, either. I've also never had someone actually CATCH my hair as I whipped it. Plus, I got to try out some of my new martial arts techniques! This fight had a lot of firsts in it aside from this being our first time sparring… I think I learned a ton of new things from just this match."

"Heh, I agree. You wasn't playin', though; you are a tough… TOUGH cookie."

"I warned you…" she agreed with a fatigued giggle. "As guardian genie of Scuttle Town and a defender of peace in Sequin Land, I've built up a lot of endurance, strength, and experience, among other things. You should expect me to be pretty strong. Sorry I kinda lost my temper, though…" she apologized as she flipped around to where she was lying on her back. "When the fight gets serious, I'm all in; no questions asked."

"Hard t' blame ya," he acknowledged. "When you're in it t' win it, you're willin' t' do just about anything. Speakin' of… Your fightin' style…" he led on, catching the half-genie's interest as she turned her head toward him.

"Yeah?"

"If you don't mind me sayin'… You're… very aggressive," he began. "You have a great way t' keep the pressure on an' you thought up some very creative tactics t' keep me on my toes. You also know how t' think quick an' improvise when the time calls for it. Plus, your hair REALLY packs a punch. My face still stings from all the times you whacked me…"

"Yeah, it's my most powerful and most useful attack," she laughingly affirmed. "Mind you, I haven't even been using the brand of shampoo and cream that maximizes its power and speed."

"I'm takin' note o' that. DEFINITELY takin' note o' that. But listen… your aggression kinda put you in a couple bad spots." At that, Shantae's smile faded as her expression changed to one of slight worry.

"How so?"

"Once I figured out how you attacked, I used that knowledge t' lure you into a couple o' traps without you realizin' it. Like when I caught your hair the first time an' used a hip throw on you. Or, when I cornered you, dodged your hair whip, an' picked you up for that body slam. There was also the point when you used your spider form t' gain an edge, only for me t' roll under that acid spit ball an' chop you so you couldn't keep spittin' at me. You gotta be conscientious an' observe your opponent so you don't wind up gettin' countered right off the bat. You also don't wanna get predictable when you fight. Otherwise, your opponent, should they be adaptive enough, could read you like a children's bedtime story an' take you down for an early, easy win."

"You're… you're right," she conceded, reflecting on the mistakes she made during their bout. "I do tend to get carried away once I'm on the offensive. I guess it's a matter of how most of my fights have gone, where I'm avoiding a ton of attacks and obstacles while simultaneously dealing massive amounts damage as quickly as possible to end the fight early."

"I hear you. Granted, you still came up with imaginative ways t' catch me off-guard. Your hand-to-hand moves were one thing, but those transformations o' yours especially are a real benefit t' you!"

"They are, aren't they?" she agreed with a confident smirk.

"Yeah! I didn't know you had so many of 'em! Elephant, spider, mermaid, monkey, and… uh, which one was it you used when you got behind me?"

"You mean my Mouse Dance?"

"I guess?"

"That was the one I used to get you with the surprise attack. When you weren't looking, I turned into a mouse, crawled up on your leg, pinching you here and there to distract you as I made my way up to your shoulder. Once I got there, I jumped as high as I could, changed back, and hit you with the two-piece punch-whip combo," she informed him, trying not to brag. She indeed was proud of that maneuver, however, as it was the first time she got to use it in a fight.

"Really now?" he asked, mesmerized by the half-genie's ingenuity. "Wow… as much as it hurt, that was definitely one o' the most incredible moves you made in this fight. Your style, so far as I see, is amazingly effective for wearin' down the enemy as early as possible with an all-out blitz of power, speed, and quick wit."

"Absolutely! Thanks for your input, Tay. I'll keep it in mind."

"No problem. Just… one more thing; please refrain from the low blows next time…"

"Hm? Low blow?" she inquired, eyeing her friend in confusion.

"When I tried t' get you in that leg lock, you took your foot away an' hammered me right where the sun don't shine, if you remember…" he reminded her, cringing slightly as he flashed back to the excruciating moment. Shantae, remembering as well, gasped in shock as she thought about exactly where she kicked him to escape his submission hold.

"O-oh! Oh my gosh, I didn't realize! I saw that you were in a lot of pain when I got up, but I thought I kicked you in the stomach! I'm so, so, so, SO sorry!" Shantae rambled, her guilt evident in how she looked at him.

"It's cool… The residual pain is just about gone now," he forgave, taking a deep breath, though he found taking said breath unusually difficult, due to a sharp pang in his abdomen when he inhaled. Thinking nothing of it, he ignored the jolt of pain and continued conversing with his comrade. "So long as we're clear. That said, what are your thoughts on my fighting style?"

"Oh! You want my opinion?" she asked, surprised that he would make the request. Tay merely nodded as he turned to look at her. "Well… you're very tricky. A lot of the moves you used, I've never encountered before; not even against Bolo, and he's a pretty good martial artist himself. Granted, I've figured him out by now and he hasn't changed. That and he's the only other person I've ever sparred with. But yeah, your style, as far as I could tell, is one focused on defense and analysis rather than straight-up offense. You're also really strong. MUCH stronger than I thought. Seriously, your raw power is something else!"

"Heh, that's surprisin' to you?" he asked in amusement. "I mean, I'm still surprised myself because o' what I mentioned to you yesterday, but…"

"Yeah, kinda," she admitted with a chuckle. "To be honest, I thought that you might've been focused on defense because you didn't have a ton of ways to use your physical strength to your advantage; even when we first started, I forced you back a bit. But then you started to push back. Boy, did you prove me wrong after that. Your throws were powerful, you picked me up while I had you in that triangle choke, and both your submission holds were airtight! Don't even get me started on your striking moves!"

"Glad to enlighten you, I guess," Tay commented with a flattered smirk.

"Yeah. And when you pushed me off when I was on top of you, it was nothing short of literally breathtaking…" she trailed off, her smile fading as she recalled the moment. "Although, when I think back to it, I don't know if the way you pushed me off was intentional or…"

"No, no, of course not," he calmly defended, understanding her curiosity. "I wasn't aimin' anywhere in particular. I just needed t' get you off o' me so I didn't have t' keep gettin' hit in the face with your hair. Sorry that I uh… touched you inappropriately…" he apologized, feeling his face get hot as he looked toward the sky, remembering exactly what happened when he pushed her. Shantae's face became a bit warm as she also blushed with embarrassment.

"N-no, you don't need to apologize. If anything, I do. I thought you did that as a low blow to get the upper hand. I lost my cool because if it, but I get it now… Still, I would never have expected you to push that hard. It hurt a lot…" she commented, bringing her focus and her hands to her breasts. She flashed back to the unprecedented power behind Tay's forceful shove, instinctively rubbing the compromised area as though the sensation was still there.

"I-I didn't mean t' put so much strength into it. It was only meant to escape the situation. It won't happen again, regardless. I-I promise," he nervously replied, the topic making him feel incredibly hot under the collar as he noticed her examining herself for residual injuries. "Anywho, any other input you got?"

"Yes!" she quickly answered, happy that he asked the topic-changing question as she brought her attention back to him and laid her arms across her abdomen. "You certainly didn't make it easy to read you. You took me by surprise at every turn during the battle; especially when you did go on the offensive. Like, I never expected you to intentionally lure me into a corner, so you could put me onto your shoulders for that monstrous body slam! It goes back to how strong you are. You lifted me like I was made of feathers!"

"Heh, I guess all that weight trainin' I've been doin' really HAS been payin' off," he remarked, flexing his bicep. "Other than that, I figured I had t' use the environment t' my advantage t' see how you'd react."

"Yeah, I'm definitely keeping that in mind, so you don't get away with that next time. You're a crafty one. Also, at the part where we were punching each other, your hands were moving much faster than I could anticipate. Plus, you punch like your hands are made of bricks! If I didn't start mixing in my hair, you very likely could've won just by out-punching me."

"Heh, I DO like t' spring things on opponents when they least expect it. I gotta say, though, you certainly know how t' take a punch! If my hands felt like bricks, as you say, then you've got willpower like reinforced steel! You throw a pretty mean punch yourself, though. The shots I took from you really made their mark."

"Aw, thanks! Y'know, I never rely on my hands as much as I should because of my hair and magic. Still, there's no way I can punch half as hard as you can. I'm wondering if it's possible for me to do it. Could you show me your technique? If I could learn it, I'd be that much better equipped for boss battles…"

"Yeah! It'd be my pleasure," he accepted her request with gusto.

"Thanks a bunch! Anyway… don't be upset when I say this…" she forewarned, wanting to avoid hurting her friend's feelings.

"Go for it," he shrugged, acknowledging that she was about to offer constructive criticism.

"If I had to point out anything you did that messed you up, it'd probably be that you had a lot of trouble countering my hair and most of my dances. Also, I think it would help if you were a little more aggressive."

"Oh yeah?"

"Don't get me wrong, your defense is spectacular. It's just… I think relying too heavily on trying to read me left you open to a lot of my hair-based attacks and even when I managed to kick you in the back after I went into my elephant form to charge at you. You were also left wide open when I turned into a mouse. You lost sight of me and from there, I could've done just about anything to put you down much earlier than I did. That combo I did could be considered 'merciful' compared to what I could've done if this were a real fight, thinking back…"

"Yeah… Most DEFINITELY true. I should know better than t' ever take my eyes off my opponent or let 'em fake me out…" he admitted with a furrowed brow and a sharp exhale through his nose as he gazed into the sky, mentally punishing himself for his mistakes.

"Not to mention, when you did counter me or have an advantage, you seemed to hold back… like you were afraid to hurt me. You didn't even use your gun. You weren't going easy, were you?"

"Good points. Good points indeed," he agreed with a nod, though he couldn't hide his disappointment in himself. "No, I wasn't goin' easy. I promised you that. Still, your hair is a force t' be reckoned with. Even catchin' it hurt like you hit my hand with a hammer…" he informed her, flexing the hand he caught her ponytail with. At that, Shantae let out a healthy laugh.

"A hammer, huh? That's hilarious," she replied in full, humored acknowledgement. "Still, if I can't rely on magic, my hair is always my first alternative. Hence, why I take such loving care of it."

"Yeah, I'll bet. I'll think twice before I try catchin' it again. That, or wear gloves next time. Anyway, you're so efficient with it that I really couldn't find a way t' counter it other than by catchin' it or dodgin' and waitin' for you t' slip up. And… I probably could've put a little bit more power behind some o' my moves. I'm still not used t' whatever's goin' on with my body in this world. After what I did t' some o' those goblins an' wild boars yesterday, I'm not sure just how much more strength I've got now… I still feel that tinglin' sensation right now."

"Well, I would've tried figuring it out during the match. Uncle DID say that it may just be your body becoming accustomed to the atmosphere here when we went back to him last night."

"Amongst a whole smorgasbord of other scientific suggestions an' hypotheses that made no sense t' me," he countered. "Between his theories about atmospheric pressure changes, simple application of this world's physics t' my body based on transdimensional mass an' density in relation t' the world I came from, an' the possibility of me bein' imbued with an ambiguous, constantly-flowin', low-level Magic signature as a result o' bein' flung through Risky Boots's unstable portal… I'm still stumped."

"Yeah, it's a mystery like no other…" Shantae agreed. "Knowing Uncle, though, he'll figure it out in a snap! Let's keep our hopes up."

"I don't got a choice but t' trust an' believe," Tay nodded. "Anyway, I didn't wanna just throw every bit o' strength into every attack, because I don't even know for myself what I'm capable of here… except the one point where I punched that tree. I felt such a burst of energy there, an' it was so sudden, too. I think that was the only point I used my full power to attack."

"Oh yeah…" Shantae acknowledged, glancing at the palm tree Tay struck during their battle. She took note of the damaged trunk, examining the splintered chunks of wood and the fist-sized dent punctured into its otherwise-smooth form. "You hit that tree way harder than I thought you would. I'm glad not to have taken that hit… Is your hand okay?"

"It feels alright, t' be honest," he assured, looking at his hand to see no ostensible recoil damage whatsoever. "It aches a bit, but it's very manageable," he added, flexing his fingers. "I also wanted t' pace myself so I wouldn't fizzle out before things got interesting…"

"Okay, so it was a matter of you being cautious. That makes sense," the young woman understood. "That's a clever idea, reserving your energy to last longer. As for the tingling thing… Maybe you'll figure it out a little more once we hit the road."

"Maybe. Uh... I will admit, though, I... I am really uncomfortable with the idea of fightin' against girls," he confessed.

"Oh?" Shantae reacted with slight surprise, lending him an ear.

"Up until Risky Boots, I've only ever fought other guys. I was also raised t' never hit girls, but... I didn't wanna let somethin' like that get in the way of our match. I know by now how strong you really are, so I made sure not t' underestimate you like I did Risky."

"I figured you would be concerned about that," Shantae acknowledged, shocking Tayshan.

"How did you figure that out?"

"That same rule is taught here, too," she enlightened him. "I've seen what you're capable of, Tayshan, and you didn't really show that much of your ability during this fight. Remember, you punched a goblin through two tree branches and clobbered your way through a horde of other goblins, wild boars, and a host of other monsters yesterday. Yet, when you got Twitch out of her airplane, you chose to hold her in place rather than attack her while she was vulnerable."

"...That obvious, huh?"

"Yeah. Your point about pacing yourself aside, I could tell you didn't want to hurt me. You pulled your punches against me more than I think you realize."

"Wow, I... I didn't realize it was that bad...!" he murmured, cursing himself for holding back to such an obvious degree. "I promised you I wouldn't go easy, but..."

"Still, you DID find some really effective alternatives to flat-out attacking me. You also started showing your true power toward the end once you got an idea about my strength, so I understand that you were just trying to be considerate."

"I... I suppose, but I don't want you t' think I'm biased against female fighters or anything... it's just... a matter of followin' what I was taught an' bein' challenged on that principle by fightin' you."

"No, I totally understand, Tay!" Shantae assured him. "You're really sweet for taking that into consideration during our match. Still, you might not be fortunate enough to find ways to avoid attacking female enemies in every situation when we're out on adventures. I'm not saying you should drop your belief in not hitting girls, but I will tell you to keep your guard up if ever you refuse to attack or find yourself uncomfortable. There will be girls out there, Risky Boots being the most obvious example, who will play on your hesitation to their advantage if you show it. There also may be points where you have no choice but to fight, so I hope you're not against the idea of defending yourself against female enemies if they become aggressive."

"Hmm..." he pondered, absorbing his teacher's wise words as he conceptualized her message to him. "You're right... You're absolutely right, without question. Shantae, you're a genius!"

"Oh! W-well, I didn't say anything too special..." she shyly replied, feeling unworthy of such a high compliment.

"But you did! I get it now..." he affirmed with a nod. "I have t' find a balance between defendin' myself an' usin' my judgment t' gauge when to attack. If I can do that, then... then maybe I can at least make things a little bit more bearable."

"Do what helps you get comfortable with the scope of our adventures, Tay," the half-genie offered as advice. "As long as you can make it work for you during our travels, that is."

"Sure thing," Tay agreed. "Again, thank you for enlightenin' me. Much as I am a believer of gender equality, though, I... still have boundaries I don't like crossin', but I'm glad that you could help me understand it a bit more."

"You're welcome, Tayshan," Shantae accepted his gratitude. "Thanks for letting me know about that. I appreciate your honesty."

"Most definitely, boss. As for the gun, though…" he began, changing the subject. "This gun is meant to do much more damage than a practice fight would call for. I didn't find it necessary t' use in this case."

"Fair enough. Maybe if we can find an old flintlock or a pellet gun, you can use that next time. Those are far less dangerous, and it'd give us a chance to explore your skills with firearms in the middle of a fight."

"It's a possibility. You're definitely right, regardless. Most o' the fight was me gettin' a feel for how you move, but I should've gone on the offensive more. I didn't take full advantage of opportunities I had, nor did I go with the right options when I did have the upper hand, now that I think back… Shoot, I didn't even put you in enough positions where I could gain an advantage like I should've…"

"You still had me on the ropes most the time, though," Shantae countered. "You definitely put me in situations where I might've had to tap out or give in if you applied enough pressure. You've just gotta be more aggressive and trust your instincts more. It actually scares me a little to see what you're really capable of next time we spar. Like I said, though, don't be afraid to get a little rougher with me. We're just sparring, sure, but as we discussed, we can both do better. And as we've shown, we can handle it, too."

"Hah, you flatter me. I appreciate your input, an' I'll remember it for next time. Still, you should be on your toes for our next session," he challenged with a smirk. "I have a lot more tricks up my sleeve that you wouldn't even believe."

"Challenge accepted. I will be fair, though… I was holding back a bit, too," Shantae admitted. "I know I said I'd go all out, but I didn't want to hurt you, either."

"I had a feelin' you might say that," he acknowledged in slight disappointment, catching her by surprise.

"Really? How'd you come to that conclusion?"

"Well… I saw a lot o' what you did yesterday, between fightin' through that forest an' our battle with Twitch an' Vinegar. Just from that, I'm aware you're a heck of a lot stronger than even this match would've shown me."

"Yeah?"

"Without a doubt. Plus, you didn't even use any fireballs against me. I also remember you sayin' somethin' about bein' able t' use lightnin' an' a ton of other Magic-based abilities that I didn't see you use here; not t' mention your armor an' other equipment."

"Yeah, but that just wouldn't be fair to you if I did still have all of my abilities and power-ups. No offense, but if you think I'm tough to beat now, then I'd be way too strong for you if I had all that stuff."

"I… I know," he acknowledged, though her remark stung him deeply. "I'd still want t' see everything you were capable of, though," he reasoned, surprising his team leader again. "Crazy as it might sound, I like a challenge. Granted, I'm talkin' like I could realistically handle you if you were throwin' lightnin', fire, supersonic hair whips, AND all those animal transformations at me… or even that fearsome Obliterate attack you have, if I call back t' when you first saved me. I wonder if you'd destroy me in a couple hits or if I could at least survive long enough t' land an attack o' my own or a shot from a gun…"

"I mean… we COULD spar again once I did gather as much of my old equipment as we could reasonably find, buuuut… I think it's better that we're on a more-or-less even playing field now. I think we'll both get stronger in our own ways if we take it step-by-step and help each other improve."

"True, true…"

"And who knows? Maybe by the time we spar at the point where we're at our peak strength and abilities, you might have all kinds of skills I'd need to be aware of, and you might just win," she suggested with a friendly wink.

"Don't get my hopes up like that," he humorously rebuffed. "I'm well aware that both you AND Risky Boots held back on me by a ridiculous margin an' still beat me. Only difference is that I tried goin' all out against her immediately without understandin' what she could do, which definitely played a factor in her buryin' me as quickly as she did. Against you, we're up bright an' early at peak strength, but it's clear you're inherently stronger than I am… That doesn't say much about where I'm at compared t' either of you; even with all the trainin' I've done over the years… It hurts t' say, but… I'm still too weak for my own good…!" he muttered in frustration.

"The fact that you're even breathing and not in a body cast after fighting Risky without any preparation for her is an accomplishment, Tayshan. Believe me, there are VERY few, if any people in this world who can say that," Shantae assured in consolation. "As for me, your martial arts techniques alone completely outclass mine! Let's not forget how much stronger you are than me physically, either! Now I've got a first-person account of how you held your own against Risky Boots, and I won't beat around the bush; I'm super impressed! I think we have a better shot at taking her down than you might believe."

"Heh, wow… I don't know what t' say there…" he stammered, feeling a sudden rush of elation and hope in his gut.

"Just be proud of your own abilities, is what I'm saying. Don't worry so much about comparing yourself to me or Risky. You're so good with your hands and strategizing on your feet that you've got me thinking REALLY hard about what to do in our next sparring session. Seriously, you came closer to overwhelming me than you think. You even taught me a couple moves without even knowing it!"

"Hm… Thanks, I suppose," he accepted with a light sigh. "I won't be satisfied until I actually earn your praises, though. I can only do that by gettin' better an' trainin' harder, like you said," he confessed with a smirk.

"You know, you don't always have to try and show me that you're worthy of praise. I might be your teacher, but I'm not exactly the kind of girl who expects you to go big or go home all the time."

"Fair enough, Ms. Shantae," Tay remarked with a chuckle, though a jolt of pain in his abdomen cut it short as he flinched.

"Class is over, so just 'Shantae' will do," she quipped back. "I totally get your point, though. Simply put, you're an interesting guy, Tay." With that compliment, she smirked back as the two finally sat up, though the soldier appeared to have some difficulty managing this without gasping in pain. He was much slower than his sparring partner in sitting upright. "It's so great to spar with someone who knows how to adapt and has new moves for me to see. I can't wait until next time. In fact… same time tomorrow?"

"Sounds good. For now though, I guess we should probably take another bath, get somethin' t' eat, an' then be on our way t' the Naga Mountain?"

"You took the words right out of my mouth. Although this time, since it's morning, why don't we use the bathhouse in Scuttle Town before we set off?" Shantae asked, bringing herself to her feet.

"Sounds like a plan," he complied as he attempted to get up, though a sharp, debilitating pain in his chest rocked him to the core. The sensation of something grinding against itself, cracking, and pinching him from the inside with the full force of coconut crab claws coursed through his torso like the shockwaves of an explosion. "Agh…!" he grunted, wincing as he failed to push himself to his feet, clutching his side for dear life. He remained seated, holding himself up with his left hand while covering his right side with his right hand.

"Oh! A-are you okay?" Shantae asked, slightly panicked as she worriedly laid a hand on his shoulder.

"No… I'm in a lot o' pain…!"

"How? What happened? Did you pinch a nerve or twist the wrong way, maybe?"

"I don't think so…" he answered, still struggling to take in air. Still uncertain of the sudden burst of acute pain in his side, he tapped and prodded the affected area with two fingers. "Ow…!" he winced again, making evident that he identified the source of his discomfort. "It feels swollen here… Hey, can you… can you lift up my shirt an' see if you notice anything?"

"Sure," she agreed, kneeling beside her ally and carefully pulling his tank top up to inspect for damage. Shantae gasped in horror at the sight, her eyes immediately drawn to the cantaloupe-sized, plum-colored bruise on his ribs. "It's all swollen and purple!"

"That's… what I figured…"

"But how did this happen? Did you get hurt during our adventure yesterday? Or maybe it had something to do with our sparring session?"

"I… I think you might've either cracked or broken at least one o' my ribs when you tackled me while you were a monkey…" he replied through labored breaths, further alarming the girl as she flashed back to the pivotal moment of the sparring match. "I remember you clobberin' the wind out o' me."

"Did… I really hit you hard enough to break your ribs, though?"

"It was a very hard hit," he informed her. "I… didn't really feel the same after that attack, so… maybe. It wasn't that bad until the very end of our sparrin' session, though. I didn't feel it so much at first, but I guess my endorphins are wearin' off an' now my whole right side feels like I took a full-blast cannonball at point-blank…!"

"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry!" Shantae apologized, guessing at what to do as she lowered his shirt and stood. "I didn't mean to hurt you, Tay… I was so caught up in the moment that I just wound up ramming you the first opportunity I saw. I might've wound up punching and kicking you there a few times after that, too… Here, let me help you up. We're gonna need to get to that bathhouse as soon as possible." With that statement, Shantae attempted to help the ailing soldier up by lifting his right arm to sling it over her shoulder.

"AAH! AH-HAGH! Oww…!" Tay cried out in horrible agony, gripping his side harder as he rolled over to his hand and knees, breathing as though he'd run up fifteen flights of stairs.

"Tayshan! Ohh, what do I do…? I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…! Um…" Shantae apologized in rapid-fire form, utterly regretful for her friend's condition as she wracked her brain for ideas on what to do for him.

"It's okay, homegirl…!" Tay forgave, bringing himself to a knee, his breaths still short, shallow, and labored. "It ain't like you meant t' do it. I… I can walk there with you regardle-! Ow…!" Tay attempted to speak further, though as he gingerly brought himself to his feet, another acute jolt of pain shot through his abdomen. Nevertheless, he forced himself to stand, though he found himself hunching over and clutching his side as though his ribs would fall out. His heavy, shaky breaths continued, notifying the half-genie that he was in dire need of help.

"You can't walk like that…" she rebuffed, immensely concerned for his safety. "Why don't I just call Sky? I have this whistle here," she informed, pulling a silver gym whistle out of the breast piece of her costume. Without hesitation, she blew into it. A short, yet catchy jingle reverberated through the open air that sounded nothing like the ear-splitting noise a gym whistle would make.

"Y'know… I really gotta wonder just… how much stuff you keep hidden away in that outfit o' yours…" Tay joked through his unrelenting physical torment to try and lighten the mood. "Also… ain't that the whistle you used t' call that giant bird last time?"

"You'd be surprised, but yes, this whistle is the same one you saw the other day," Shantae shot back with a saddened smirk, acknowledging his curiosity while also continuing to feel bad for the pain he'd been suffering. She approached him and placed a hand on his back, leaning forward in worry as she inspected his condition. "Sky should be here any second. We'll have her fly us into Scuttle Town, so it'll be easier getting over there."

"Cool… but y'know, I'm pretty sure we don't gotta bother her for somethin' like this. I can handle walkin' a little bit t' get where we need t' go. It ain't like my legs are broken…"

"I'd rather we do it this way," Shantae insisted. "It isn't always safe walking from here to Scuttle Town. Sometimes, enemies pop up in droves along the pathways and I don't want to risk you getting hurt any more than you already are. I'm really sorry, Tay… I feel awful…"

"It's fine, Shantae… really," Tay forgave once again, aware of his friend's guilt. "You didn't mean it. Honestly, I should've been more careful anyway. Your monkey form packed a WAY bigger wallop than I could've imagined… That glowin' rush tackle thing you did… It impressed me more than it injured me," he further explained, chuckling before wincing in pain due to laughing causing more jolts of pain. "If pain was a relative indicator of intrigue, then you could say… that I'm VERY impressed."

"Tayshan… you're… one odd character," Shantae commented with a humored shake of her head and a disarming chuckle as she continued to lean beside him, making sure he was okay. After a few seconds, an eclipsing shadow enveloped the grassy plain on which the half-genie and the soldier stood. The shadow grew larger, its casting figure obscured by sunlight until it touched its humungous talons to the wooden plank bridge nearby and folded its wings near the duo. The figure revealed itself to be a very recognizable house-sized rainbow-splashed avian creature fitted with a saddle on its back. Its rider, an also-recognizable hood-adorned blonde woman, leapt from the saddle and approached the duo with immediate concern.

"What happened?" Sky hastily asked, noting the less-than-stellar condition she saw her friends in. "You both look like you were in a life-threatening brawl! Are you alright?"

"Tay's injured. We need your help getting him to the bathhouse, but we can't walk there," Shantae explained, turning to the reasonably-startled bird tamer as Tay remained hunched over. Sky, hearing Shantae's words loud and clear, walked over to him and bent forward beside him to meet him at eye level.

"Long time… no see, Sky…" Tayshan humorously uttered, though his voice was hushed and strained.

"Yeah, I'll bet. An hour and a half can certainly feel like an eternity," she quipped to match his comment. "What's wrong? Are you okay?"

"Oh, you know… just a sudden case o' broken ribs…" Tay confessed, startling Sky beyond belief. "Happens t' everybody, right?"

"Broken RIBS!?" the blonde woman repeated, flabbergasted by the news. "How did you break your ribs!? And for that matter, why do you two look so disheveled? Was there an ambush?" she further pressed, worried to no end about her friends and their collectively-ruffled condition.

"No, no ambush… Just a bit… of a trainin' mishap… Shantae an' I were sparrin'. I got carried away an', long story short, I slipped up an' broke my ribs. I can—! Agh...! F-fill you in more, but… can we get to a hospital or somewhere? I can hardly breathe an' I'm in… a lot o' pain…"

"Of course! Shantae, help me get him into the saddle! We need to get him to the bathhouse immediately."

"W-wait… Why are we goin' to a bathhouse instead of a hospital…?" Tay inquired, understandably confused.

"The bathhouse's water is magic in its quality," Shantae explained as she assisted Sky by slinging one of Tay's arms over her shoulders. Sky moved to sling his other arm over hers, whereas Tay had to resist letting out another pain-induced shout. "It has the ability to heal wounds, as well as restore magic and heart points."

"…Okay, sure… I'll roll with that, so long as you say it works," he replied, his disbelief in miracle healing water evident as Shantae and Sky, with considerable effort and tact, hoisted the ailing man onto the saddle atop the behemoth bird before climbing on themselves.

"Trust us, Tay. This bathhouse is a community-shared miracle without question," Sky assured him. Before long, the three took off, soaring toward Scuttle Town posthaste.

 ** _HOURS LATER…_**

Shantae and her interstellar ally had made their bath a quick one… well, as quick as it could be when you're going in with several broken bones and no medical equipment. Anyway, each of our heroes was itching to embark on the next adventure once the aforementioned miracle water healed all their injuries; especially Tayshan's broken ribs, which normally would've put an individual out of commission for at least a month. Lucky him. Sky, ever the reliable friend, offered further assistance by escorting the two to Naga Mountain once all was said and done. As such, the three fledgling crime-fighters banded together, made their preparations, and rode into the wild blue yonder atop the giant painter's project of a hawk/eagle/falcon thing.

"I still can't believe you two… You seriously beat each other up that badly in what was supposed to be a sparring match?" Sky questioned, as astonished as she was upset with her friends for their barbaric brawl of a practice fight as the trio soared through the clouds atop Sky's trusty sidekick Wrench.

"Yeah… It got a little bit wild," Tay apologetically replied, understanding that, in hindsight, maybe he and Shantae got carried away. At that comment, however, Sky shot him an accusatory look that communicated her continued disbelief. "…Okay, a LOT o' bit wild," he further confessed. "Didn't expect it t' get so competitive."

"Yeah," Shantae agreed, guiltily rubbing her arm with an apologetic look on her face. "It started out innocently enough, but… after a certain point, I guess… we both got caught up in all the action. Sorry I broke your ribs, Tayshan…" she apologized again. "I swear I don't go around beating up my friends when I get motivated to win. I'll make it up to you, I promise."

"For the nineteenth time, I accept your apology," Tay excused once again, patting his torso where his formerly-broken ribs were located, demonstrating that the bathhouse water did its inexplicable job. "I mean, I didn't think I'd EVER see the day I'd hear somebody apologizin' once for breakin' my ribs… Or, breakin' my ribs in the first place. While in the form of a superpowered talkin' monkey. That I basically only met two days ago. On a different planet. That I'm stranded on… Still, I'm not one t' hold grudges, so you don't gotta worry about payin' me back. Besides, that bathhouse really did the trick! Although… I AM surprised we didn't even need t' take off our clothes for it t' work. Even weirder is that when we stepped out, everything was dry an' clean… The hole in my shirt from the bullet I took ain't even there anymore. Matter fact, none o' the damage I took from the last three days is there at all. No dirt, no scratches, no rips, not even a string out o' place…"

"That's the magic of the bathhouse for ya," Sky affirmed with a confident nod. "You go in aching, weak, and weary, and you come out feeling totally refreshed. It also cleans and repairs whatever clothes you're wearing, but don't ask me how or why that happens."

"Interestin'…" Tay slowly nodded, scratching his head. "I guess it's a safe bet t' say Scuttle Town PROBABLY doesn't have a hospital or a laundromat because o' that bathhouse?"

"No, Scuttle Town's economy is too poor to afford a hospital," Sky answered, utterly flooring the soldier. He wasn't alone. Seriously, what kind of city doesn't have enough money to fund a generalized emergency treatment center? "Or at least, too poor to afford a very good hospital," she corrected, bringing about a much-needed sense of clarity. "And… most people wash their laundry by hand. The bathhouse only works on clothes you're wearing at the moment you enter the water, and even then, it won't always do a perfect job like it did with your outfit. Minor to moderate food, dirt, or sweat stains will wash just fine, but it won't do a thing for heavy stuff like... say, grease or squid ink. As for rips and tears, I suppose you were lucky your clothes weren't too tattered up. The bathhouse water won't do anything for laundry either, or else that place would never see the end of a workday."

"Also, the bathhouse is the next best thing to a hospital when you think about it," Shantae further confirmed. "Although, it doesn't do anything at all for sicknesses. I caught a cold not too long ago and no amount of time I spent in the bathhouse was enough to make me feel better. Thankfully, a doctor was there one day and gave me a shot. I was instantly cured in a snap! Other than that, people either rest at home or have to go out of town to get treated for illnesses. Like Sky said, Scuttle Town's regular hospital is… not up to par. By a long shot."

"…Uh, alright…" Tay managed to reply with utmost confusion. "I mean, there's about five or six… or, maybe thirty different issues I have with everything y'all two are tellin' me about Scuttle Town right now, but… I'm learnin' that I probably won't get any answer I think will make even a lick o' sense. So, I won't even ask… The mere thought is givin' me a headache on top of all the other stuff that makes no sense t' me here…"

"If you need a bit more time to absorb everything about this world, Shantae and I can help you with that," Sky offered. "I imagine jumping through an interdimensional vortex and getting stranded in a whole different realm of existence has its… unique share of problems," the understanding blonde woman further sympathized.

"Ooh, most definitely," the soldier agreed. "Culture shock is a horrendous understatement. Still, I have faith that y'all are really good tour guides." Shantae and Sky both nodded in agreement as the trio went silent, letting the whispers of the passing wind fill the atmosphere. It was not long after this point that Tay began to ponder. Of course, he did not forget that he owed a certain someone a sincere apology for his boorish behavior during their previous meeting. His heartbeat intensified as he glanced at the young lady in question, who'd been busy steering her bird through the skies to reach their destination. He opened his mouth to say something, but his words caught in his throat like flies on flypaper. His palms began to sweat as he stroked his chin to figure out how to address the issue with her.

Shantae, who'd been scanning the calm, open air as she awaited landfall, noticed Tay anxiously fidgeting as though he were troubled about something. Concerned, she silently watched him, noticing that he glanced at Sky and gestured as though he were about to say something, but then withdrew before he even uttered a sound. At this, she knew what he was trying to do. As such, she nudged him with an elbow, prompting him to turn to her. When he did, she wordlessly flicked her hand, so as to communicate that he should go ahead and make his statement. Tay, understanding her nonverbal cues, nodded before turning back to Sky, gulping down his nigh-tangible anxiety as he took a deep breath.

"Um… Sky?" he finally managed to speak.

"Yes, Tay?"

"Uh… A-about earlier… I'm sorry."

"Hm? Sorry about what?" she asked, clueless as to why he apologized to her.

"For… well, for disrespectin' you," he barely managed to spit out. "I hope you can forgive me for… that… w-wanderin' eyes problem I had…" Sky, hearing the nature of his apology, chuckled with amusement, confusing both Tay and Shantae.

"Don't be silly! I'm not mad at you for that!" she calmly revealed, stunning both passengers.

"You're not?" he questioned, stunned by her nonchalant response.

"No, no. It happens sometimes. I totally get it. I'm just glad you weren't a total creep about it," the reasonable falconer explained. "Though, I do appreciate that you're taking responsibility for it. Not many guys have as much common sense as you do, so far as I've experienced."

"O-Oh… Uh… w-well, I still want you t' know that uh… that I hope we… can still… um…" he attempted to rebut, but he lost his choice of words as he still felt an incredible pressure mounting on his shoulders.

"Tayshan, it's okay. Really," Sky reassured, patting the anxious young man on his leg to calm him down. "I can tell you have a good head on your shoulders and a good heart. If anything, I'm glad you're owning up to it. It lets me know you're as mature and responsible as I thought you were."

"Right… I uh… I appreciate that. Still, you… you deserve better out o' me. If I can make it up t' you, please let me know."

"Tay, it's alright," Shantae consoled, understanding some of his guilt and discomfort. "We're all friends here, and it was a simple mistake."

"Yeah, it's all water under the bridge," Sky affirmed. "You don't owe me a thing. Just be a bit more mindful from here on, okay?"

"Most definitely…" he nodded in agreement, though his nervous, guilt-riddled tone remained as his gaze fell to the feathery back of the bird they'd been riding on. Sensing this, Sky looked at him and noticed his meek, pensive position and smiled warmly at him. Something about this ethereal man intrigued her greatly. He was grown, tall, and built like a seasoned athlete. At first glance, he appeared to be something of a ferocious fighter; which made sense, since he was part of the military from his home planet. His embarrassment-reddened face bore a mysterious mix of impressionable innocence and solemn maturity that mutually complemented one another, however. Granted, he still made an obvious 'guy' move by ogling her from behind. He certainly was no saint, as far as she could tell. Still, he was quite the catch in her book by all accounts; a fascinating man if she'd ever seen one. She'd be nothing short of hypocritical if she couldn't admit to sneaking a peek at him herself. As such, she didn't hold his error in judgment against him.

Yet, she noted that in terms of personality, he was quite modest, serious, and, as far as she knew, polite to an endearing degree; as she observed of him when she met him. His mannerisms conveyed a sense of perpetual caution that made it appear he always minded his P's and Q's. That, or he was just incredibly shy. Either way, in the event of him making such a mistake as staring at her, he took initiative to apologize for it at the earliest convenience. His guilt over it was evidenced by his repentant disposition in this moment. This ostensible contrast between his hardened appearance and gentle character both confirmed and strengthened her interest in him. She certainly didn't want him to continue feeling guilty, no matter how endearing she found it, however. As such, Sky spoke.

"I gotta say, I thought you were super cute before now. Seeing you all flustered like this over me is icing on the cake," she added with a giggle, finally shaking Tay out of his timid stupor, though his timidity was replaced with his usual disdain for being called 'cute' again as he pouted and groaned, cutting his eyes away. "I've never met a guy as sweet as you before today, Tayshan."

"Th-thanks, I guess…" he shakily replied, his nervousness suddenly mixed with displeasure at being addressed in such a patronizing manner. "With all due respect, though, I am not 'sweet,'" he argued, ironically still pouting and looking away in embarrassment. "…or cute."

"I dunno… She does have a point, Tay," Shantae chimed in, catching him by complete surprise. "You are pretty cute when you get all nervous around us," she admitted with an additional giggle, further irritating the poor guy as she and Sky took humor in his discomfiture. "I've never seen a guy blush and pout like you do. Or as much."

"Wha? Hey! I-I don't blush or pout. I'm a grown man. Men don't do that stuff…" he hypocritically complained, though he mumbled the part about men not doing that stuff, unwittingly adding fuel to the fire.

"D'aww! Oh my gosh, you're so adorable!" Sky exclaimed, smiling with glee at her mortified friend, who tried fixing his face to where he didn't seem like he was blushing… or pouting. "I just wanna hug you! You look like a fierce competitor on the outside, but I bet you're like a big, fluffy teddy bear under that hard, chiseled exterior! Shantae, you really lucked out this time, partnering up with such a cutie!"

"Can't argue with that," the half-genie agreed as she shared in the laughter at Tay's expense.

"Aw, come on!" he protested, astonished that Shantae would partake in such brazen attacks on his manly charisma. "You two are takin' this to a whole different level of embarrassing!"

"Sorry, sorry…" the giggling half-genie apologized, patting him on the back as she tried wiping the smirk off her face, though she failed at doing so. "But y'know, even for all that you and I talked about since we met, I gotta admit, you ARE cute."

"Wh-what?" Tay remarked in utter surprise, taken aback by Shantae's comment.

"Oooh, Shantae, are you getting bold on me all of a sudden~?" Sky teased, apparently proud of the half-genie for her expert observation. All factors considered, such an observation DOES kind of seem… suspect when you take out the context, don't you think?

"Oh! N-no, not like that!" Shantae hurriedly denied in a panic about what she said, her face becoming redder than fresh roses. "I-I meant… like, 'basket full of puppies' cute. Or, like… a newborn baby. A-anyway, I never say that sort of thing to a guy, but in your case, even I can't resist." At that, both girls snickered together, having taken some immense pleasure in poking fun at their lone male comrade. Tay, however, was the farthest thing from amused by their humiliating banter. As such, he cast his irritated gaze downward, crossing his arms in annoyance.

"…Unreal…" he mumbled. "…This is the price I pay for hangin' around girls by myself… I was warned about this…"

"Hey now, don't act like you're not having fun spending time with us pretty ladies," Sky teased further. "Some might say you should consider yourself lucky~!"

"Yeah, Tay, there's no denying it," Shantae smilingly added, keeping up the two-on-one debate. "I bet you're having a blast right now. You don't have to pretend that isn't the case."

"Be that as it may, I will add no further comment," he remarked, simultaneously conceding and denying the girls a conclusive verbal vote of surrender.

"That's what I thought. By the way, you know you're certified adorable if even Shantae calls you cute," Sky joked, amusing her best friend while vexing the young man immeasurably.

"Alright alright, that's enough…" he irritably advised, shaking his head to cease this relentless mockery of his masculinity by not one, but two members of the opposing gender. At this point, he couldn't tell what was worse; Shantae and Sky verbally emasculating him or being beaten up and dominated by Risky Boots. He briefly weighed his options. Giving it little thought, however, he cleared his throat before speaking again. "Anyway, are there any expectations I should have about this next place?" Tay asked his two travel mates as they continued their trip, changing the subject.

"Hmm… There will definitely be more unique enemies to watch out for, for one thing," Shantae warned.

"Like what? Tinkerbats, animated scarecrows, orange men in blue raccoon-themed uniforms, armored black birds that drop bombs, creepy armored ogres, mutant pigs, and little green spike-flingin' blobs with yellow eyes weren't unique enough?"

"You've only seen the beginning of it, Tay!" Sky warned, doing nothing to ease the soldier's nerves. "There are LOADS of things to watch out for in areas like Naga Mountain."

"Yeah," Shantae agreed. "You haven't even seen the machine gun-wielding snake women that we'll be fighting a whole legion of on this next place. Them, the magic bubble-flinging, land-dwelling mermaids, the archer women with colorful skin and hair tones, or the ugly frog-fish monsters that cling to walls and spit balls of foul-smelling gunk at you!" At this. Tay merely sighed with dread as he pulled out his gun and examined it.

"You are gonna be the savin' grace o' this one, I can tell," he informed his weapon as though it was going to speak back to him in affirmation.

"I think for the sake of this one, I'll be joining you," Sky informed her passengers, gaining their attention. "I know I usually try to stay out of your adventures, Shantae, but there are a lot of steep jumps and complicated platforming sections that I'm not entirely sure Tayshan will be able to handle right away. We'll travel together and whatever wide gaps we encounter, I can provide him with a safe method of getting up, down, or across by summoning teams of birds to carry him around for short bursts; especially if it turns out you're too busy fighting off hordes of enemies."

"That makes total sense, Sky," Shantae cheerfully agreed. "I've always wanted to bring you along on an adventure! I didn't think the day would come so soon, though!"

"Thanks so much, Sky!" Tay expressed gratitude as the trio's destination approached. What came into view was a monumental, craggy landmass whose perimeter was traced with a tropical forest rife with exotic shrubbery traced along the rugged mountainsides. While the upper portions of the mountain were mostly bare, earthen terrain, the base was overrun with trees that stood absurdly tall with a rather enticing beach circling around.

"This is gonna be awesome! Ripping through Naga Mountain with my best friend AND a new friend who has a bunch of cool new moves… I can't wait!" Shantae gushed with enthusiasm, eliciting smiles from her companions. Soon enough, the trio arrived on Naga Mountain, the landing spot being a wooden dock on the outskirts of the landmass. The crew got prepared as they marched forward.

"Fair warning, Tay…" Sky advised, taking on a role of mentorship to the soldier on his first excursion into the wild green yonder. "Enemies are going to make themselves known the minute we set foot on their territory. They won't relent or retreat, even if we attack them. If it isn't necessary for you to fight, then take the opportunity to run past any enemies you see; especially since we're here to investigate the suspicious activity I saw. They typically only chase for short distances before losing interest."

"Roger that, Headmistress Sky," he acknowledged with a salute, adding the honorific to humor her. He took her advice to heart nonetheless, as his previous experiences enlightened him that she was not kidding. Although, Sky grinned at the word 'Headmistress.'

"Taaaay, are you trying to score brownie points with me before we get to know each other, hmm~?" Sky asked with mirthful curiosity, shooting him a suggestive look. Suffice to say, he immediately regretted his choice of words.

"Uhhhh…" he nervously droned, looking at Shantae for help, though the half-genie scowled at him as though to communicate that he was not proving his point of not being a shameless flirt. He then darted his eyes ahead to see a hideous-looking amphibian creature hopping toward them as they entered an open, mossy mountainside trail. "Oh look! A frog thing!" he quickly announced, drawing his gun and abruptly ending the conversation. Shantae took point as Sky and Tay lined up on either side of her. The three young warriors all took readied stances to begin their adventure.

"Ret-2-Go!" "Birds of a Feather!" "Semper Fi!" Shantae and her friends announced one after the other, commencing their investigation. The half-genie immediately charged forward and struck the frog fish with her hair, causing it to leap away from her and toward Sky and Tay. Sky instinctually pulled out a blue polka dotted egg from her cloak and launched it at the creature. With an exaggerated *BOOM*, the egg exploded, vanquishing the beast in an instant and sending yolk everywhere. Tay, though impressed, charged forward to follow his comrades into a teeming horde of other frog monsters, beautiful, yet hostile mermaids that ostensibly rose from the ground to shoot bubbles at the team of heroes, and—as the location's name would imply—Nagas: Attractive half-snake, half-human hybrids with orange skin, golden snake eyes, purple and blue-striped snake tails, and spiky purple hair, known for their fiercely territorial nature and low tolerance for intruders. Shantae leapt over an opposing mermaid as it arose and attacked the frog monster behind it as it fired a ball of gunk into the air as an attempt to attack her while she was airborne.

The mermaid blocked the paths of Sky and Tay and prepared to fire a bubble bomb from her golden-bladed trident. Before Sky could react, however, a diurnal burgundy bat swooped from the air, distracting her as she narrowly dodged it and whistled to call an attack bird to dispatch it. In that moment, the mermaid fired her shot at the soldier, who adeptly ducked under it and fired his gun. He struck the mermaid, causing her to disintegrate into seafoam in a manner reminiscent of a morbid folk tale meant to frighten children into behaving. He was quick to notice more bats coming in a team of three and that Shantae was far ahead, taking down a pair of Nagas and avoiding arrows from a nearby archer.

Sky had also pushed ahead, delivering egg bomb after egg bomb to any monster that dared approach her. Tay, taking initiative, pressed on as he unloaded on the descending creatures, taking them out one by one. He also managed to dispose of one more frog fish and another mermaid before having his first encounter with three of the indigenous namesake creatures, who appeared armed to the teeth with shiny red spike-laden armor and machine gun turrets affixed to their hips. As the vicious snake women spotted him, they tensed their bodies up and, with a sudden thrust, fired an overwhelming barrage of sky blue fire balls at the soldier. Thinking quickly, Tay crouched and went prone as the fireballs whizzed past him.

As soon as the Nagas ceased their fire, Tay stood and charged, firing a series of blasts of his own, determined to catch up to his friends. The soldier's blasts struck the three armored snake women until one of them vanished in a cloud of smoke with a wail of defeat. By the time this happened, however, the remaining two Nagas readied themselves for a second onslaught. Tay ducked again, expecting them to fire high.

To his surprise, however, they aimed their shots low to the ground, forcing him to stand and jump backward to give himself enough time to dodge. He leapt over the first barrage of incoming fire, but had landed too early to avoid the next, taking one of his enemies' rounds to his lower leg. The impact was heavy like he'd been hit with a golf club, sending him stumbling back as his shin burned with an expansive, nagging pain. Slightly shaken, but undeterred, Tayshan continued the battle, taking down the second Naga with a series of well-placed blasts from his handgun. The final Naga, her wrath unfaltering, attempted again to riddle her enemy with fireballs, shot low. Tay was prepared this time, leaping over the spray of blue fireballs, running in close, and firing another volley of bullets at the Naga until she too disappeared, dropping a series of gems where she fell.

Tay collected the spoils of his confrontation before sprinting ahead and finally catching up to his allies in the next section, though he noticed Shantae and Sky were on the defensive as they took cover behind a boulder. The section consisted of a series of floating platforms covered in moss and foliage, as well as moss-covered marble statue remnants that appeared to be memoirs of a civilization long gone.

"There are archers lined up on these platforms pressuring us to keep low," Shantae observed.

"Yeah, and I can't call any air strikes on them because they'll shoot my birds out of the air. Maybe you can do something about them?"

"I got this," Tay confidently nodded as he peered ahead to see what they were dealing with. He spotted five slender women with spiky hair and unusual green, purple, and red crayon-esque skin palates on platforms of varying heights over an elongated skull smoke-billowing chasm, aiming arrows directly at them and shooting in bursts of three. It was at this point that he realized that Shantae was NOT kidding about the visual allure of the vast majority of the enemies he'd encountered. Though he'd never admit it, Risky Boots was quite attractive despite her vicious disposition. Here, he faced fierce, but cute-looking Nagas… Dangerous, but incredibly pretty Mermaids… and now, just added to the mix, curvaceous archer women in weather-appropriate, form-fitting garb made mostly from what looked like leaves? If this was to be expected on these quests, Tay feared he'd have a challenging time from here on, as he still felt a nagging discomfort about opposing female enemies like he'd already been. Seriously, what would be next? Succubi in skimpy spandex outfits that would actively try distracting him before launching their attacks? Who even knows?

Nevertheless, he noticed that the fifth archer was not standing on a platform, but instead standing at the edge of the other cliff next to yet another Naga bearing an entirely distinct color scheme from her counterparts, as well as two more mermaids. He, being an expert marksman himself, judged the angles and distances at which he'd need to fire as he took cover alongside Shantae and Sky. He was aware that the inaccuracy of his gun would prove a challenge from a distance, however, but as it stood, he was the only one of the three with the necessary equipment to create an opening. With a deep breath, he stood and charged around the massive rock to closer assess the situation. The archers noticed him and took aim. Tay, knowing that time was of the essence, aimed and fired as he kept a safe distance to avoid the trios of arrows headed his way. Though he struggled with balancing his aim and minding his safety, he managed to take out the first two of the five archers as they each exploded with sorrowful wails and showers of bones.

"Good work, Tay!" praised Shantae as she emerged from the boulder and belly danced to transform into a white and periwinkle human-bird hybrid. Caught by surprise yet again, the soldier gazed inquisitively at her. "In case you were wondering, this is my Harpy form. I'm going to take out the last three archers and the enemies on the other side, so we can advance. Mind taking care of the bats coming down?" she requested as she took flight and began firing talon-like projectiles at the other archers.

Tay wordlessly agreed as he shifted his focus on the flying rodents attempting to swarm the heroic harpy. With the pressure of the archers off, Tay had a much easier time aiming and effortlessly defeated some of the bats. This granted Sky the opportunity to call some of her birds to carry her into the air, granting her the advantage she needed to rain yolky devastation on the final archer and the last remaining bats. Shantae changed back after reaching the other side of the trench while Sky dismounted her bird brigade. Tay was still on the previous side and needed to jump over the platforms to get across.

"Shoot…!" he cursed as his heartbeat became heavy. He was uncertain of how he would make it across or what would happen if he were to slip up and fall. However, he needed to get across to continue assisting the girls. He sheathed his gun, closed his eyes, took a deep, trembling breath, and made a running jump. Surprisingly, the soldier cleared the first of many gaps with relative ease, though he did not celebrate. He noticed that the platforms were not evenly distributed in height, with the next one being higher than the one he landed on. In addition, he had less space with which to work on the diminutive airborne structure.

"You can do it, Tay! It's not as scary as it looks," Shantae rooted for him, taking note of her friend's apprehension. Sky, while she had faith in him, was still concerned for him and gripped her cloak in suspense. Tay wordlessly nodded and made another leap of faith. He caught the edge of the following platform and hoisted himself up onto it. Wanting to get this frightening experience over with, he dared not look down to see what unfathomable terrors awaited him below. He hopped onto the third platform below and breathed a sigh of relief before jumping toward the fourth, which was thankfully even in height with the third. It appeared he had this in the bag. He nodded confidently as he prepared to jump toward the final platform, which was positioned at a lower altitude than the one he was standing on. However, Sky noticed that something was off about it. The platform was crumbling and discolored, as though it would disintegrate the second someone touched it. No doubt a trap set for any foolhardy traveler that managed to get past the archers but didn't have the ability to fly across the gap.

"Tayshan, wait!" Sky called out, though it was too late. The soldier was already airborne and swiftly approaching the final stone structure. As Sky predicted, the platform crumbled into dust the minute Tay landed on it. Shantae noticed this and gasped in utter horror.

"WhoawuaAAAAAAAAAAH!" The soldier howled in horror as he fell into the abyss. Sky whistled as hard and as loudly as she could, sending an SOS signal to an aerial brigade. In a flash, a prismatic team of falcons rushed into the abyss and swooped under the soldier, carrying him to safety alongside his friends. They dropped him off and soared off into the sky as quickly as they appeared. Immediately, the soldier fell backward, sitting up and clutching his chest as he breathed heavy with intense fear. Shantae and Sky, immensely frightened by the near-death experience their comrade suffered, tended to him from either side.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay?" Shantae asked in utmost worry.

"Y-yeah, I'm good," Tay shakily assured as he recuperated from his fall. "At least, thanks t' all those birds, I am. Hoo, I thought I was a goner…" he ruminated before he turned his attention to the purple-hooded young woman that saved him. "Thanks a bunch, Sky. I owe you one."

"Think nothing of it," she acknowledged as she examined him for injuries. "I'm just glad those falcons were fast enough to catch you," she sighed in relief. Before long, the three regained their collective composure and stood to prepare for the next section. "I'm also glad you're safe," Sky added.

"How do you feel, Tay?" Shantae asked, still a bit concerned about the otherworldly young man. She wanted to be certain he was good to continue, as she knew their path would only become more difficult to traverse as they went along. "I get it if that was scary… I wouldn't blame you."

"To be honest…" he began, though he pondered which words to use. His hesitation worried the girls, though they awaited his response. "I… feel… INCREDIBLE!" he boasted with an alarming sense of zeal, shocking both girls. "That was just the adrenaline rush I needed t' get fired up!" Shantae simply smiled with friendly admiration as she took notice of something elsewhere and inspected it, but Sky still felt wary for his safety.

"Honestly…" Sky started, bemused at Tay's boisterous statement. "That was too close a call for me to be excited about. How about I teach you the bird call I used so you can have a better time clearing wide gaps like this one? I guarantee you'll need it later."

"You have a point," Tay acknowledged. "Please, teach me." Sky complied as she demonstrated the bird call, which was a series of chirp-like whistles executed in a particular order. Tay repeated it and summoned a team of transport falcons that momentarily lifted him into the air and dispersed when he dismounted them. In layman's terms, Tay got Falcon Call!

"I recommend using that when you have to clear gaps like that one. The falcons can serve as an extra platform and even carry you a short distance before they disperse from under you, forcing you to jump in whichever direction you're facing. The big caveat to it, though, is that if you use it once, you MUST be sure to land on solid ground or at least grab onto something before using it again. You can't just keep calling teams of birds to continuously carry you everywhere while you're in midair. There's a cooldown time, too. It's not a perfect solution to problems like this, but it's what I have to offer."

"An invaluable technique nonetheless," Tay gratefully responded. "It helps that the call sounds like Morse code, which makes it a breeze t' remember."

"Exactly!" Sky proudly affirmed. "Now let's keep investigating. We haven't seen anything out of the ordinary yet."

"Right," Shantae chimed in after having crawled from a narrow opening in a nearby hill. Her companions were puzzled to see that she had seemingly disappeared and only came back at the end of the exchange.

"Where'd you just go?" Sky asked Shantae.

"While you guys were talking, I noticed this tiny crevice in that rocky hill JUST big enough for me to crawl into. I explored, found a secret room and found two Heart Holders. It's usually just one at a time, but I guess I got lucky! I'm at four hearts now!"

"You sure are fast…" Tay stated, still confused as to what she was talking about.

"You gotta be fast on adventures like this. Every minute counts; especially since finishing it fast enough gets you a pleasant surprise," she hinted with a smiling wink, though Tay did not understand what she meant.

"Uh-huh…"

"You'll get what I mean. Trust me. Now let's keep moving!" she suggested as she eagerly leapt off into the next section.

"She's such a busybody when it comes to these expeditions…" Sky complained as she and Tay followed suit. "It honestly surprises me that she never tires out with all the running, jumping, transforming, magic, and hair-whipping she's constantly doing."

"Got that right, I guess," Tay agreed. "I'm still new t' this, so forgive me for not gettin' it outright." With that statement, the trio bowled through the next squadron of monsters, though this next section was heavy on tight jumps and narrow room for error. The section presented with more forestation as the three entered the jungle, more platforms, vines from which to climb and swing, and giant marble statues of snake women in leafy dresses which looked suspiciously practical for navigation through the area.

Shantae was quick to transform into a harpy and attack from the air, clearing aerial threats while Sky remained close to the ground, demonstrating her acrobatic jumping ability that made it seem very much like she was taking flight, as well as her deadly precision with her egg bombs and attack bird calls. Tay was right beside her as he took down enemies at a longer range with his pistol and used the section as an opportunity to put his new skill into practice. He hopped onto platforms and, when necessary, used the Falcon Call before leaping so that by the time he was airborne, the falcons would be directly under him to land on. He got the hang of it quickly, finding the Falcon Call to be his most reliable means of conquering platforming sections that would otherwise have been impossible for him to complete. How so VERY convenient. Nevertheless, the trio found themselves sweeping through the next portions of the ascending mountain jungle before pausing atop one of the monumental maiden statues to recuperate.

"Y'all sure do have a lot o' talent an' resources for powerin' through dangerous situations," Tay observed, thoroughly impressed with his partners. "I don't think I've ever had this much fun hikin' before!"

"Yeah, once you get the hang of it, exploring Sequin Land is a blast!" Shantae affirmed.

"Of course, we do have to make sure we at least know where we're going," Sky chimed in, pulling out a map of the island to examine it. "It wouldn't make sense to run through an entire island without having the slightest clue how this place is laid out, much less what we came here for." Shantae smilingly nodded, though that point made the soldier curious. He noticed that the map glowed with vague indicators with red dots marking where they were, as well as entire sections covered in blue, which he recognized as places they had already been. Most peculiar, however, was that the map only showed areas where they'd been, while the rest of the map was blank save for multicolored blips that marked points of interest.

"So wait… If this is a map o' the whole island, why does it only show places where we're at or where we've been? How do we know what to expect if we follow an incomplete map?"

"The map will update with each new section we visit so that, as we cut through Naga Mountain, we'll have a clearer idea of where we're going."

"…Doesn't that kinda defeat the purpose o' usin' this map in the first place if this is our first—at least, MY first—time bein' here? I don't see the point unless we had t' come back here later. On top o' that, I can't imagine why we'd need t' come back unless we had to, or if we missed somethin' that was important. An' even if that was the case, wouldn't it make sense t' have a map that was already complete so that on our first run, we'd know where everything would be from the get-go?"

"Yeah, but sometimes, I might not have the necessary power-up to get to a particular area," the half-genie countered as she turned her head upward to examine something. "Like there," she continued pointing toward a particularly complicated system of vines, switches, and platforms very high above that appeared to be host to an enticing red treasure chest. Added to the challenge was a swarm of armored spider girls, more Nagas, and yellow, electricity-discharging bats that appeared to be protecting it. "To get that treasure up there, I'd need a combination of an advanced bubble shield spell, my elephant transformation—neither of which can't be used at the same time as the other—and assistance from you with firepower—very likely from a different, more suitable gun, should you be able to use something other than your current one—to take out all the enemies so I can smash through the boulders to get what was in there."

"From the looks of it, it also requires you to be able to get up there in the first place, which the Falcon Call I taught you wouldn't be able to help you with since they can only carry you a short distance," Sky added.

"Well, do you have any other bird calls?" Tay asked.

"Sorry, not right now…" Sky shrugged. "Any birds that could get you up there are out for the season. And, before you ask, Wrench in his Giga form would be way too big and vulnerable to attacks from enemies, with no way of defending himself. I would never put him through that."

"Real convenient…" Tay flatly remarked, shaking his head. "Shantae, couldn't you carry me up there an' drop me off on a platform? We did it before with your spider form…" Tay asked Shantae.

"Hmm… Nope. I can only spin webs but so far in that form, so it'd be no good trying to get all the way up there. And I'm pretty certain I couldn't carry you up there with my harpy form, either, in case you were wondering."

"Why not?"

"You've seen it. It's hard enough flying up there without a passenger. The wings in that form are surprisingly underprepared for flying. Plus, my only attack with that form is shooting talons; which is KINDA impractical when they only go straight ahead and don't even damage the enemies up there. The only thing strong enough would be my hair, but that's a no-go if I'm hanging from vines or if I'm in a transformed state. The next best thing is a gun you might be able to use to make things easier."

"…Wow… That seems kinda cruel t' have some valuable treasure so close, only t' discover we can't get it because we didn't bring the right equipment… which we wouldn't even be able t' get until we were way past this part. On that, I call shenanigans."

"Good point," Sky nodded, seeming just as vexed as the soldier.

"Yeah… but hey, at least it rewards us by having us learn about hidden secrets, so we don't get bored coming back here!"

"How annoying… Only thing I can imagine bein' worse is a meaningless, half-baked collectathon that for some weird reason decides the ending t' this adventure…" Tay dreaded, causing Shantae to grin sheepishly as she darted her eyes around and pushed her index fingers together.

"Heh y-yeah, that would be really uh… inconvenient," she agreed, seeming to be hiding something. None the wiser, Tay shrugged and prepared alongside his comrades to move into the next section as they climbed up and swung across gaps between the dilapidated marble statues they were perched on, using thick, sap-laden, leafy vines hanging from tree branches in the canopy.

The statues were organized in an ascending order and, while Shantae soon got the idea to go Monkey form to make her ascent easier, Sky gracefully leapt between the vines as though she were on the moon, barely needing them to navigate across the statue tops. Tay made effective use of his Falcon Call, discovering a pattern of calling the flight squads up during periods of clinging to the sticky vines. He also discovered the four-second cool-down time between calls after he landed on a solid surface or grabbed onto a vine, understanding that he was unable to call more of them immediately while dismounting from another flock. Within mere minutes, the trio cleared the section and found themselves on the open, sun-drenched, bush-blanketed mountainside a sizable distance above their starting point.

"Man, oh man, look at this view…" Tay observed in utter amazement, his gaze scanning down the mountain and out toward the sparkling ocean and sandy shores below and abroad. "It's beautiful…"

"You can say that again," Sky agreed, equally as awestruck by the captivating view over the mountainside. "If only we were just taking a casual tour… I'd have totally brought a camera. It looks like a perfect beach spot down there, too."

Shantae, unhindered by the view, discovered a series of golden vases and jugs with red and blue stripes. She wasted no time smashing them with her hair attack. With a series of *CRASH* noises of ceramic shards breaking against the crags, the vases shattered, revealing gems, tiny hearts, and miniature green potions. The vials of potion bore smiley faces. Tay and Sky, shaken out of their stupor, turned to her, though Tay was the only one confused by what he'd witnessed.

"Why did you just break those vases there?" he asked.

"They usually have valuable items in them that I collect to keep myself well-stocked," she cordially explained, gathering up the items that emerged from the broken house decorations.

"Interesting… so, if I ain't mistaken, part o' this is like a scavenger hunt for resources, too?" Tay questioned, still puzzled. "I mean, I'm just sayin' that based on some not-so-random suspicion, so correct me if I'm wrong…" he added, thinking about certain game-related contexts.

"You're totally right! Another big component of our adventure will be hunting for treasures, healing items, and money as we go along," Shantae confirmed. "It's our next best bet if we can't just buy things from an item shop or if we need to stock up on things we couldn't get otherwise. In fact, that's how a lot of my power-ups come along. That could be true for you, too, based on how we found your gun and how you learned Sky's Falcon Call."

"Really, now?"

"Indeed," Sky additionally affirmed. "To some degree, you'll find yourself grinding through areas by deliberately battling and defeating enemies to boost your strength and resources. You probably noticed by now that enemies sometimes drop gems and healing items upon defeat, for example."

"Yeah. I got the gist o' that back when we ran through the forest near Scuttle Town. But… what exactly were those vases doin' here?" he asked again, scratching his head.

"Beats me, but those are usually scattered all over the place," Shantae answered with a shrug, drinking one of the mini-potions to restore her magic. "You'll notice them more as we go along, though there may not be that many in this area."

"…An' the rabbit hole just keeps gettin' deeper…" he murmured, understanding what his friends were telling him, though he still remained perplexed. "Alright, I'll just keep my mind an' my eyes open."

"That's the best way to learn," Shantae encouraged, turning toward a cave entrance a short climb ahead at the end of the stony path. "Now, let's get going! We've still got plenty of ground to cover."

"Aye aye, cap!" Sky acknowledged, ready to move along.

"Roger that, ma'am," Tay added, prompting the three to traverse into the open cavern in the mountainside, which smelled of a pungent, meaty, inside-of-an-open-mouth aroma.

"Ugh, I though Saliva Island was the only place that had a dragon-based water current surging through it…" Sky observed, pinching her nose to shield herself from the offensive stench of the cave as the trio trudged through it. "It reeks of old meat and lizard spit in here…"

"So far as I remember Uncle telling me, there are at least four mountains in Sequin Land that have Giga Lummoxes serving as their main drinking and bathing water supply," Shantae explained, not at all bothered by the smell of the cavern. "It's a little misleading that Saliva Island is the ONLY place of the bunch that gets its name from the spit water current, but yeah. The others were named based on things that happened to them, like Nagas discovering and completely conquering this island to make it their home."

"Good t' know, I guess," Tay acknowledged, also pinching his nose shut to keep from being nauseated by the incredibly musky scent. "Remind me t' not drink the water here if I get thirsty…"

Though put-off by the stench, our heroes observed the flowery, dimly-lit cavern to see no enemies, dangers, or even any platforms. However, they reached the center of the mountain cavity to be greeted with a massive waterfall pouring into a sizable river whose current streamed through an intricate series of glowing canals that appeared to funnel through to the rest of the island. Scattered beams of sunlight had shone through the leaves, crags, and branches high above, moderately illuminating the passageway. Standing at the edge of the secret riverbank was a lone, giant yellow slug with a brown, fuzzy handlebar mustache, a rather lazy-looking facial expression, and an all-too-familiar blue raccoon hat. Shantae and Tayshan looked at one another and shrugged, though Sky appeared to be familiar with it.

"And just what are YOU doing here!?" the livid bird trainer asked with hostility, shocking her teammates. The mustachioed slug neither flinched nor said a word back.

"You… know this slug thing?" Tay found it in himself to ask.

"Yeah, he's my ex-boyfriend!" Sky shouted again, though the confession shocked and appalled the soldier.

"What? You DATED a giant slug?" he asked again, his curiosity growing faster than his disgust. "How would that even-?"

"No, no!" she hastily corrected. "He used to be human, though I have no idea how he wound up like this. Anyway, he dumped me after my dad killed him by turning him into a statue," she further explained, though it did the exact opposite of bringing relief to the extraterrestrial soldier.

"Your dad KILLED him? What?"

"Long story," Sky plainly remarked, seeming to realize that her explanation was doing nothing to help her prospective boyfriend to be any more receptive to the idea of entering a relationship with her.

"…Annnd yet he's clearly alive right here in front of us…?" Tay questioned once more, only becoming more confused.

"I rescued his soul from the underworld of Mud Bog Island and brought him back to life," Shantae attempted to clarify, though Tay's brain was becoming a batch of burnt scrambled eggs because of the disjointed, checkered origin story of this slug.

"…What? I can't even…" The poor, uninformed soldier scratched his head, gawking at the two young women as though they were growing extra sets of body parts on their faces.

"I were human," the slug finally spoke up, its voice low and gruff with a country accent. "I dated bird girl. Bird girl introduced me to 'er parents. Bird girl's daddy stoned me t' death. Genie girl revived me. I dumped bird girl. I'm datin' a desert princess now. Tan Line Island, ta be exact." His speech pattern was rather eccentric and his tone was flatter than fresh pavement, but it did the trick in bringing some clarity about Sky's hostility toward him. However, it also made her angrier.

"WHAT!? YOU DUMPED ME AND WOUND UP GOING FOR THAT-!?" She roared, seeming to be on the verge of assaulting the defenseless slimy creature.

"Yo, chiiiilllll," Tay called to Sky as he gently pulled her back, bringing her out of her wrathful state of mind. "Whatever happened, it's in the past now. Mostly. You don't gotta hold onto feelings o' resentment like that."

"Yeah, I understand you're upset, Sky, but don't let it get the best of you," Shantae concurred, worried about her friend. "Sometimes, things are just meant to work out in a way different from what you'd prefer. It's okay."

"…Y'know what? You're right. You're both absolutely right," she agreed with a sigh, still glaring at the yet-to-be-named slug she apparently hated so much. "I don't need to be upset about it. I'm over it. I should be over it."

"See, there you go!" Shantae praised.

"Yeah. Especially when I've got someone else as well," she confessed, her expression changing to one of a suggestive variety as she turned her attention to the soldier, grasping his hand. The soldier's expression quickly changed from one of perplexity to one of utter shock.

"Wait, WHAT?" Tay and Shantae simultaneously shouted, alarmed at Sky's implication. It seemed the longer this awkward conversation went on, the more it turned into a ham-handed soap opera with more plot twists than actual plot.

"Sky, this isn't what I meant!" Shantae yelled, none too amused by Sky's latest romantic advance on her sidekick. It was to a point where she began to feel uncomfortable FOR the soldier in addition to being increasingly annoyed by it. "Leave Tay out of your lovers' quarrels!"

"Look, we should really get t' the point here," Tay announced, though he did not take his hand away from the disproportionately-vindictive bird trainer. "First off, who are you?" he asked the slug. "I notice your hat looks like you're a part of a certain military club."

"Joe. Barracuda Joe. I work fer Ammo Baron," he plainly replied.

"Nice t' meet ya… I guess. An' you said you used t' be human?"

"Eeyup."

"So, how'd you get turned into a giant slug?" Shantae queried.

"Hangin' around by myself. Needed t' get ma thoughts clear about ma purpose in life. Giant red octopus showed up. Said somethin' about hijackin' this story. Used a magic spell t' turn me int' this an' slithered off," he explained in a manner most matter-of-fact.

"Sounds like the work of Squid Baron," Shantae remarked, making an astonishing deduction.

"Squid… Baron…?" Tay asked with a tilt of his head.

"An admittedly-adorable red squid with a horrendous temper and an obsession with becoming a superstar of sorts," Sky filled him in as she let go of Tay's hand. "Though, it is a bit concerning that he of all people learned how to cast spells. Wouldn't trust him with magic as much as I could squeeze ink out of him."

"I need a favor," Barracuda Joe requested, gaining the attention of the trio.

"What's up, Barracuda Joe?" Shantae asked.

"Turn me back human. Got somethin' t' give if'in ya help me out."

"Somethin' like what?" asked the soldier.

"This here," Joe replied, using one of his thin, slimy arms to pull out a long, neatly-coiled string of a shining brown.

"The Copper Wire," Tay immediately recognized, approaching the slug to take it. However, Joe yanked it away from him before he could touch it. "What gives, slug man?"

"Turn me back first. Then get this wire."

"Are you sure you can't just-?" Tay attempted to ask.

"Nope," he interrupted. "No deal if I ain't turned back. Y'all need this way more than I do. I can tell," he further expertly deduced based on Tayshan's reaction.

"Because it was never gonna be that simple…" Tay complained as he breathed a heavy, frustrated sigh. "I hope this don't take too long…"

"Okay, sure. You got a deal," Shantae happily accepted the mission, shaking Barracuda Joe's gross, goopy slug hand.

"So where is this Octo-Magician?" asked Tay, hiding his endless enthusiasm at their second new side quest.

"You mean Squid Baron?" asked Shantae.

"I guess."

"Somewheres up there," Barracuda Joe gestured upward, implying that the sea creature in question absconded somewhere around the top of the island. "Y'all can get out through that cave exit there behind me across the riverbank," he advised, pointing to an exit to the next section. "It'll take ya up a windin' mountain path leadin' to the summit. Beware the monsters, though. And the pitfalls. Things are gettin' batty up there."

"Gotcha. Guess we're goin' waaaaay up, then?" Tay asked, prepared to make the next step in their journey.

"You guessed it. Let's go!" Shantae readily affirmed as she and her sidekick took off toward the exit on the other side of the cavern, each of them jumping over the Lummox-spit riverbank to avoid getting wet. They rushed on with hardly a second of consideration, leaving Sky and Joe in an awkward silence save for the splashes of the effervescent water current.

"You guys go on! I… I've got something to take care of here," she called after them, though they were out of earshot by the time she uttered her suggestion. For some reason, Sky couldn't find it in herself to leave just yet, as though she had something to get off her shoulders with Barracuda Joe before she set off with the soldier and the half-genie.

"…So… you and Tan Line Temple Princess, huh?" Sky spoke up as a means to begin a conversation with her ex.

"Eeyup. No hard feelings," Joe plainly stated, communicating that he did not want Sky to be upset over their break-up. "You an' the muddy-pants guy?" He asked back referring to the soldier; specifically, his camouflage-styled pants.

"Well… sorta. It's… a work in progress," she explained as the two got to talking.

 ** _Meanwhile…_**

Shantae and Tayshan were well along their way climbing the leafy, craggy heights of Naga Mountain to find Squid Baron, blasting and whipping through more hordes of monsters and parkouring through precarious platforming perils that spelled certain doom if one were to slip and fall. We're talking skull-smoke pits everywhere that became more prominent as our heroes ascended. More vines and scattered floating platforms, some of which were duds that Tay had to rely heavily on the Falcon Call to avoid with utmost caution. There were even platforms that levitated left, right, up, down, and around that both heroes had to time their jumps on while also avoiding fireball-shooting spiders and bomb-dropping crows. It was like an enormous, life-threatening jungle-based obstacle course made by a total sadist! The duo did not make it through these hazards unscathed, as they took sporadic damage as they navigated through. Nevertheless, their determination remained indomitable and they pressed on.

However, Tay was immediately aware of the absence of Sky. Without Sky hanging back with him and providing him time to navigate the platforms of the island, Tay found it much tougher to move along. Shantae, however, did not. Being used to the constant threat of grievous injury and death, the capable young woman made climbing up Naga Mountain seem easier than kicking down sand castles on a beach. Throughout the heavily-forested, winding mountain path, there were teeming hordes of Nagas of varying color schemes, accompanied by more archers, frog fish, trident-wielding mermaids, and the occasional armored troll Viking that charged at her, spear in hand, as she danced, whipped, and leapt her way past them.

One section in particular bore a series of viscous dark green vines hanging in an ascending order that could be described as having textures like tongues. These vines, located within another mossy, craggy cavern illuminated only by sparse rays of sunlight, were heavily guarded by another horde of monsters. Between each gross, sticky appendage was a thin, earthen floating platform guarded by a masked archer that aimed directly at her as she approached. On each of the vines were miniature ashen blue cyclopean spiders that fired tiny glowing, fiery orange balls of energy. Below the vines, as an awful, awful motif of this dangerous island, was another smoky abyss that eagerly awaited any unlucky adventurer should they slip up.

"Too easy," Shantae confidently assured as she performed another belly dance, posing in an unusual stance as she hopped back and forth on both feet with her arms bent at sharp angles in front of and behind her. Before it was long enough for me to provide an accurate description of her enigmatic dance maneuver, however… "Traaaaaansforrrmm!" she excitedly announced, immediately morphing into her monkey form. Swiftly, the half-genie simian bounced. She clutched the first vine, where a spider and an archer attempted to fire their projectiles at her. Knowing this would be the case, she deftly scaled the dangling plant just enough to where she had enough height to jump to the next one, narrowly passing between the first spider's energy ball and the first archer's trio of speeding arrows that whizzed past her while she was airborne. Never braver, Monkey-Shantae repeated this process numerous other times, with her timing becoming more crucial as her approach made it so that between each subsequent vine, more of the archers and spiders would aim at her. Thanks to her increased acrobatic ability, however, she made short work of this section, even finding a treasure chest full of gems at the end of it as her reward.

Up next was a series of levitating platforms that moved up and down, each one supporting Nagas that appeared armed and ready to protect their homeland from any intruder that dared challenge them. The section was outside, just off the face of the mountain, but one look below proved it to be one long, brutal, bumpy ride down should anyone lose their footing. Shantae peered down from the mossy platitude on which she'd been standing and nearly got dizzy from the sheer height of her position. She could see nothing but thorny, leafy vines voraciously enveloping the jagged granite-textured rock formations of the mountain that led down to thick, bushy shrubs VERY far below.

"Better not focus on falling here," our heroic adventurer murmured as she breathed to compose herself. "From the looks of it, though, I might not have too much trouble if I just flew past this part. There are only Nagas and fruit bats here, though these Nagas have bright green skin, icy blue hair, and golden armor…" she observed, noting the aforementioned palette-swapped snake women and rats with wings that she always knew for swarming her when she got close. She further observed her surroundings to see the entrance to the next piece of this convoluted, leafy, rocky maze of a level, a stone's throw upward in the form of another cave entrance into the mountain.

Realizing the basic structure of this part, she made her decision. She danced once more, balancing on one foot as she leaned her head back, arched her back, and rotated her arms in a rhythmic clockwise motion. "Transform!" she announced once more, switching into Harpy mode. Without hesitation, she flapped her giant chimeric periwinkle-toned wings and soared into the sky. As expected, the bats made their presence known as she approached. They attempted to swarm her, only to be shut down by the half-genie's signature move in this form, her Talon attack. She quickly disposed of the aerial threats, though the Nagas were not so ready to let her pass. Each levitating stone platform rose high enough to where a Naga was right in front of her to unload an intense, far-reaching blast of flames that initially caught Shantae off-guard as she barely missed one that almost scorched her wing.

"These Nagas can shoot fire!?" she shouted in alarm as she stabilized herself in the air, further studying her opponents to note the difference in them from the usual Naga. Upon closer inspection, Shantae discovered that each of these Nagas was equipped with some strange series of black metal tubes attached to dark red tanks affixed to their snake tails. "No… There's… there's something strange about their weapons. I've never seen anything like those before…" Just as she made her statement, another Naga on a separate floating platform attempted to burn the half-genie alive with its own fire blast. Anticipating this, Shantae flapped her wings harder to gain altitude, though she felt the sheer heat from the controlled inferno that could very well have melted solid diamond, it was so hot.

"Yikes! I'd better get moving! No wonder these Nagas are off the side of the mountain instead of anywhere near it. They could set this whole place ablaze!" With that frightful observation, Shantae made a hasty aerial dash toward the end of this section, eliminating additional bats with her talons while keeping herself out of range of the flame-blasting Nagas, narrowly dodging additional fire discharges to avoid being roasted like holiday poultry. Eventually, after a grueling pattern of knocking out bats and studying the attack patterns of the beefed-up Nagas to keep from being burned to ashes, Shantae made it through. She landed on the protruding leafy rock platform that led to the entrance of the next cavern within the island, changing back to human form with a smoky *POOF*. Here, she found another chest. After a moment of recuperating from her latest brush with certain doom, she opened it to see that it housed a combination of shampoo and conditioner, as well as hair gel in a matching set.

"Awesome! I definitely needed this! This brand isn't even on the market, it's so rare!" she excitedly exclaimed as she got Double-Whammer Slammer Shampoo & Conditioner and Whacking Wallop Hair Gel. "Now my hair whip attack is faster and stronger. Super convenient, too, because now I don't have to buy them," she further cheered, applying the hair care products before checking her surroundings once more to note that the top of the mountain was in reach. She merely needed to enter the cavern and complete one more section, and she was in the clear. Wasting no time, she charged on.

At this point, you're probably wondering how Shantae got so far ahead without her extraterrestrial friend… or, if you were listening (reading, whatever) up to this point, you're very likely more curious as to how said friend was managing on his end… y'know, without superpowers or magic (as far as we know by this point), and nothing but the wildly-impractical handgun he'd been carrying for protection and a glorified bird call. Well, fear not! We're gonna check in on his progress right now!

 ** _Two Sections Back…_**

Tayshan found himself quickly losing track of Shantae as she sped along without him to the point where, by the time he completed one section and moved to the next, she had already blazed through it and showed no signs of slowing down for him. It certainly didn't help that she also kept skipping enemies she felt she didn't need to fight, which forced him to take more time to dispatch them before he pressed on. As he learned, Nagas had the particularly annoying proclivity of taking much longer to defeat than the other enemies he encountered. He was indeed thankful that his pistol had its inexplicable bottomless magazine. Even more concerning, however, was that it took him longer to navigate the sections because he relied heavily on his Falcon Call to advance. After much struggling with finding a balance between platforming, shooting, and dashing past obstacles of all shapes and sizes, he reached the vine cavern full of archers and took a moment to reflect on his progress.

"This is completely insane… Snake monsters with guns here, crayon-colored women with bows an' arrows there… WHATEVER the heck those hideous slime spittin' frog abominations are… Jeez, an' I thought my training prepared me for anything…" he complained, clearly unamused by the smorgasbord of monsters, death traps, and environmental hazards thrown his way from the start of this bizarre adventure. "Oh well, I made it this far… Thank goodness for this Falcon Call. What are we dealin' with here, though?" Tay asked himself as he took a moment to study the vine-laden, enemy-infested, skull-billowing cave pit. Seeing the sheer danger ahead, the soldier took a deep, frustrated breath, shaking his head in a mix of anxiety and ire. "Homegirl's over here cuttin' corners like cookie dough. Great… I only hope this don't become some runnin' trend…" With that ominous remark, he set forth to conquer the next section as best as he could.

Quickly, Tay noticed the spider on the first vine as he looked upward toward the gooey green plant. Without prompt, the spider slid downward and shot an energy ball at him. It hurtled slowly through the air as it made its course to its intended target. Undeterred by this, Tay merely sidestepped the offending projectile as he placed both hands on his gun and aimed carefully.

"Kinda wish I had my normal gun… or at least, a more stable sidearm than this Desert Eagle, but… beggars can't be choosers, I guess…" he commented, unsatisfied with the lack of accuracy in his current weapon. "Bein' a good fighter's all about adaptation, anyway. As long as I shoot slowly, steadily, an' with an extreme sense o' coordination, I can manage until maybe I find somethin' different. I hope. Of course, I don't know if any other gun I might find will work like this one, with the weaker, but unlimited ammo…" With that, Tayshan steadied himself, watching the spider as it crawled slowly up and down the vine, waiting for the precise moment it stopped to fire another miniature blast of energy at him. He aimed his firearm intently, grounding himself in his readied stance and breathing deeply to shut out all distractions and maximize his concentration. He furrowed his brow, refusing to even blink. Within a moment, the golf ball-sized arachnid paused, preparing to fire another shot at the young warrior. In that precise moment, Tay pulled the trigger. A thunderous, echoing *BOOM* erupted from the chamber of the pistol, sending out a flashing marble that reached its target in a fraction of a second, vanquishing the spider without fail.

"One shot, one kill…" Tay remarked, sighing in relief as he basked in his momentary triumph. Before long, however, he was right back to figuring out how to navigate this floorless cavern. He knew right away that, just as Sky forewarned, he'd need to rely heavily on the Falcon Call to advance. He also noted the empty, smoky abyss and the vines and made an observation. "I… guess I'll have to alternate between the Falcon Call an' hangin' onto the vines t' get past this, just like earlier… But then… how do I deal with them…?" he asked himself, noting the archers on the platforms above. Rather than take aim at him, however, the one nearest to him stared down at him in apparent fear, her cloth mask shrouding most of her facial expression below the eye.

Tay, paying little heed to this, whistled to summon another brigade of falcons. He sheathed his gun and hopped on, allowing the living avian platform to carry him up to the first vine. He jumped as soon as he was close enough, quickly clasping onto the damp, frigid, sticky vine with both hands and knees. Daring not to look down, the soldier quickly wrapped the vine around one of his wrists and around his palm for leverage, squeezing tightly to avoid slipping. Immensely afraid of what might happen to him if the vine broke or if he couldn't keep his grip, he aimed to make his climb as quick as possible. The moment he secured himself, he carefully released one hand from the vine, using it to grab his weapon and aim it upward at the archer guarding the first stone platform, though he couldn't see her from the angle at which he'd positioned himself. He'd been expecting her to fire a barrage of arrows at him the very second he reached this vine, yet he found himself mildly surprised that he wasn't being rained on with them at such a critical moment. Of course, he was more concerned with how to combat the archer to prevent her from getting a chance to strike him down.

"Huh… I'm gonna need a better vantage point than this…" he murmured, swiftly drumming up his next plan of attack. After a brief glimpse of his position and where he needed to be within the next ten seconds, he came up with a strategy. His plan was to summon another team of falcons and ride them up to the next platform, disposing of the archer along the way to minimize room for fatal error. Doing so would also give him breathing room in the form of the platform, as well as a good position to dispose of the other archers. Going for it, he used the Falcon Call once more, summoning another team of birds to leap onto. As soon as he made contact with the feathery makeshift platform, he steered them upward, his gun aimed as he readied himself for the next projectile-heavy close-quarters scuffle that awaited him… or so he thought.

As soon as he reached the platform, he did indeed see an oddly-beautiful, shapely, grape-colored, periwinkle-eyed woman. She wore a gray bandanna tied around her face. She bore wavy hair slightly darker than her skin, but matching in color that stood upward like stationary flames. She also wore an admittedly-seductive emerald green, leaf-themed midriff-baring two-piece outfit replete with a utility belt, a quiver full of arrows, a bow, and brown knee-high boots with black thigh-high stockings and spandex sleeves. Jeez, what a mouthful… Anyway, she was definitely an archer if I've ever described one. However, the woman had still not readied her bow to shoot arrows at him. Instead, she stared at him as he ascended toward her, appearing uncertain of what to do. Tayshan, using the lack of opposition to his advantage, boarded the platform and immediately pointed his weapon at her.

"Stand down!" he ordered, his tone boisterous and authoritarian. He did not know why this particular archer made no move to attack him, though he expected her to take up arms against him once he got close. However, the archer instead silently raised her arms in an apparent show of surrender. "Hm? You… you're actually gonna surrender?" he asked in total surprise as he lowered his weapon.

"Yes, but this does not mean you will get past the remainder of my brigade, foolish spelunker," the woman spoke, again throwing Tay completely off his game. Granted, he knew that his training strictly prohibited him from using unnecessary force to subdue or neutralize his enemies, but he hadn't expected any of the enemies he'd encountered thus far to surrender.

"You can talk, too?" he asked, evidently assuming that his enemies were incapable of conventional communication.

"…Yes," the archer answered, her voice calm, yet raspy and high-pitched like an adolescent girl with laryngitis. "What kind of question is that?" she asked back, none too appreciative of the soldier's assumption.

"No, no, my bad," he apologized, reeling in his surprise. "I was just under the impression you an' the other creatures I battled on my way up here didn't speak an' were only out to attack me…"

"Well of course, we'd attack first and ask questions second," the archer contemptuously replied, clearly upset with Tayshan's ignorance. "You're encroaching upon sacred territory with reckless abandon and, provided you made it this far, you've wiped out droves of my allies, you monster!"

"Monster? Me?" he shot back, swept off his proverbial feet as he stood, befuddled by the purple woman's accusation. "Hey, your friends attacked ME first. As in, every single time I encountered them. Speakin' o' which…" he trailed off, noticing another archer on the platform ahead that fired a trio of arrows at him while he wasn't looking. He dodged the attack as the arrows flew downward past his shoulder. In that moment, the spider on the next vine was preparing to fire an energy ball at him while he recovered from avoiding the higher archer's sneak attack. He carefully aimed and fired, eliminating the threat with another ear-splitting *BOOM* that startled the archer beside him stiff. "I've been doin' nothin' but defendin' myself the whole time," he reasoned. "If that don't prove what I'm sayin', I don't know what will. I'm actually surprised you ain't doin' the same. What stopped you from followin' the trend?"

"I now realize you are simply too powerful. Your miniature arm cannon is exactly as the druids of the Prickle Stitch Valley spoke of. They foresaw a great foreign threat the likes of which this world has never seen, with firearms and explosive mechanisms that possessed far greater efficiency and destructive power than ever previously conceived, barring the recently-vanquished Pirate Master's sinister Dark Magic. We were also given instruction to contain any threat of such a caliber at all costs should it come to threaten our homeland."

"Say it ain't so…?" Tay remarked, alarmed to hear about the possibility that the incident that led to his world's weapons being brought to Sequin Land was predetermined. "I'll have t' make note o' that. Prickle Stitch Valley… Still, if you aren't here t' attack for no reason, then I assure you, I won't attack you, either. Though, that didn't stop any of your friends from attackin' me, if that's true."

"They were forewarned, traveler. If it is true that you acted in self-defense, then I offer you my apologies on their behalf. In fact…" the archer trailed off, turning to face the other archers and spiders above and ahead. "Sisters! Arachnid companions! Cease your fire!" she commanded, causing her allies to drop their readied attack formations. With that, the archer turned toward Tay once more. "I must ask, though… What reason would you have to terrorize our peaceful mountain oasis, traveler?"

"Terrorize?" Tay asked, alarmed again by the presumptuous question. "No, I'm not here t' cause any deliberate harm, I swear," he assured, putting his gun away. "I'm actually here with a couple friends, lookin' for some octopus monster that I heard was causin' a bunch o' trouble here. I just… don't know where such a thing might be."

"Oh, you are here to banish that hideous, tyrannical cephalopod from our humble region?" the archer asked in total surprise, though there seemed to be a tinge of hope in her tone. "He has been running amok for the past week, abusing magic from a powerful spell book to oppress us and seize undisputed control of our resources."

"Part o' that, I've heard… but I didn't know it was that bad. Still, that sounds like who I'm lookin' for."

"If ridding this place of his menace is what you seek, then you will find him at the top of this mountain. All you will have to do from here is scale the rocky heights and walk a short distance once you reach the summit. We will allow you passage through, but you must promise us that you will dispose of that foul creature before he destroys this place."

"Uh… s-sure, you uh… you have my word, Ms. Archer Lady…" Tay accepted this new mission, saluting the now-friendly arrow-wielding maiden.

"Thank you, sir," the archer showed her gratitude with a bow. "You may address me as Priyanka. From this point on, we are allies. With your ominous, prophesied weapon of mass destruction, I am certain you will make short work of that abominable squid-out-of-water."

"Er… R-right," Tay assured with a thumbs-up as he prepared to advance without further conflict. "Thanks for lettin' me through. My name is Tayshan. I'll do what I can to take care o' the octopus infestation here, Priyanka." With that, Tay climbed the remaining vines without further conflict and navigated through the cavern. The other archers and remaining spiders merely watched, following the orders of their apparent leader as the soldier ascended to the next section, pensive about his surprisingly-pleasant conversation with what he thought was supposed to be an enemy. Nevertheless, Tayshan reached the second sun-drenched mountainside, passing by an already-opened red treasure chest along the stony pathway. Immediately, he noticed that this section was rife with flame-wielding Nagas on floating platforms. Not even needing to scan his surroundings to note the inconceivable amount of danger in his path, he merely sighed in dread. However, his eyes were quickly drawn toward the Nagas themselves, who were colored very differently from the ones he encountered previously. However, what really caught his attention was the fact that each of them was equipped with a weapon he immediately recognized.

"Those snake women have flamethrowers…!" he observed, angered greatly by his discovery. "Risky Boots no doubt has somethin' t' do with this…! How am I supposed t' get those things off them? I can't just leave 'em here… I wonder if they can talk, too…" After a moment of considering how to address his adversaries, he spoke. "Hey! Can y'all understand what I'm sayin'?"

"Hah! The filthy invading human wishessss to ssssspeak with usssss," the Naga on the first platform responded, her voice gravelly and her dialect accentuated with hissing noises whenever she spoke a word that possessed an 's' sound. That's totally not going to get annoying at all… Nevertheless, her tone was incredibly hostile. She floated her platform over toward Tay, flamethrower at the ready. "Ssssstate your businesssss, human!"

"Well now… Wasn't expectin' you t' be able t' talk, either…" he remarked, again astounded by the ability of his enemies to communicate with him.

"You dare mock me, human!?" the already-agitated snake woman shot back, unamused by the soldier's remark as she readied her flamethrower to incinerate him on the spot. "I will roassssst you to ccccccindersssss!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, my bad, my bad!" he hurriedly repented, holding his hands up to ascertain that he meant no harm. "Hey, I'm not here t' pick a fight, I swear! Don't burn me!" Though he had VERY little time to correct his egregious mistake, he managed to stay the Naga's hands as she paused her attack. Of course, she remained volatile and ready to destroy him if provoked again.

"You've one chancccce to either depart or exxxxplain yourssssself, human!" she threatened.

"Look, I'm not here t' cause you any harm or disturb your peace. I'm here for a very specific purpose, an' I need t' catch up t' my friend who I'm guessin' was just through here."

"You ally yoursssself with the shapeshifting genie menacccce known for the havoc she wreakssss upon Naga-kind?" the Naga asked, evidently angered by Tay's implication.

"She… wreaks havoc?" he asked, understandably confused by the accusation hurled his way.

"Don't play dumb with me, human, or I will sssscorch you like rabbit meat!"

"Hey, hey, cool it!" he defended once again. "I honestly don't have a clue what you mean… I'm new here an' this is my first time really explorin' my surroundings. If my friend did somethin' t' harm you, then I apologize."

"Hmm… You don't ssssseem to be lying," she observed, flicking her forked tongue out, though she remained wary of him. "If that is the casssse, then why do you ally yoursssself with her? She is a sssssworn enemy of my people."

"I see. Well, I didn't know that. Then again, not even your allies from down below explained anything t' me. They only tried attackin' me on sight up until a hot minute ago. An archer lady actually stopped her attack t' let me through once I got the chance t' explain why we're here."

"Intriguing… However, it'sssss to be exxxxpected when you tressssspasssss upon our territory," she explained, making a solid point. "If you do not plead your casssse, we will not hesitate to defend our homeland. All thingsss conssssidered, we were alsssso forewarned about a mysterioussss intruder with highly-dangerousss weaponry encroaching upon our territory. We were alsssso made aware that our equipment is part of ssssuch a collection."

"An' the prediction was made by some folks from a Prickle Stitch Valley, I hear?"

"Yesss… and it appearsss this prediction hasss come to passsss, though not in a way we were exxxpecting, as evidencccced by thissss converssssation," she observed, her tone calming down considerably.

"You're tellin' me. I guess I should go t' this place t' figure out what else they know. Anyway, despite my conflicts with your friends below, I assure you that I come in peace."

"That remainsss to be sssseen. Mind you, I care very little for what happenssss to the inferior clique of Nagas that foolishly choose to inhabit the lower half of our island."

"Fair enough, I suppose," he conceded. "In that case, I'm sorry for tresspassin' without warnin'. I also apologize if my friend hurt you. Although, why don't you care about your friends down below?"

"Not that it would conccccern you, human, but we have been at a heated political impassssse ssssince our leader, the Naga Queen, left. They believe Nagas should reign as the undissssputed power, while allowing otherssss to live as ssssubordinatessss with limited accesssss to our resssourcessss. My ssssissssterssss and I believe our island should be governed in a way that promotessss equality for all sssspecies of being here. It hasss torn our once-unified community in half, and it'ssss all their fault."

"A political disagreement, huh? That's rough… When did that start?"

"It sssstarted a week ago, when the Naga Queen disssssappeared without a tracccce and was replacccced by that obnoxioussss, incompetent Sssssquid Baron and his abominable all-powerful ssssspellbook. Sssssince then, he hasss done nothing to mediate our cccccivil disputesssss. In fact, he has only made things worssssse by hoarding a great deal of our ressssourcesss for himsssself and abandoning ussss to sssquabble for ssscrapssss. He threatensss usss with ssspellsss from that accursssssed tome if we object, and we are powerlessss to ssssstop him…"

"And it ALL comes circlin' back t' this octopus monster," Tay nodded in understanding, sighing with sympathy.

"You alsssso have a quarrel with the desssspotic Ssssquid Baron?"

"Well… kinda. We're lookin' for him because it's apparent he's been terrorizin' this place. Your story gives me all the confirmation I need. I uh…" he paused to think back to his conversation with the archer a few minutes prior in relation to the one he was having at this point. "…I-I am here to… to liberate your people from his… oppressive regime, I guess." As one might expect, the Naga became skeptical of Tay's overly-heroic statement.

"What would you and that rotten genie have to gain from deposing the Sssssquid Baron?"

"Nothin' much, t' be honest," he shrugged. "But we're gonna do it anyway. It ain't right that you gotta live under the thumb—er, tentacle of some totalitarian sea creature with no regard for those he harms. You have my sympathy."

"Hmm… I did not take it that any humansss cared about the plight of ussss Nagas. Very well, then," she acknowledged, still flicking her tongue out toward the soldier.

"Indeed. Though, I gotta ask… Where did you get that weapon?" he took the opportunity to ask, seeing as his conversation had been going in such a way where his supposed-adversary had been calm and willing to talk.

"Thissss? It was besssstowed upon me by the Queen of the Sssseven Sssseassss. Or at leassssst… we disposed of sssssome of her henchmen and claimed their weaponry as our own. Why do you assssk?"

"Because it belonged t' me at one VERY recent point," he informed her.

"That sssso? Are you accusing me of sssstealing it from you?" she asked, her apprehension building once more.

"No. It was stolen from me by that so-called 'Queen o' the Seven Seas,'" Tay explained. "She robbed me an' I need t' get all that stuff back. What are the odds of you handin' that flamethrower over t' me?"

"None at all," the snake warrior refused. "Thissss flame-blassssting device issss not leaving my handssss."

"Then we have a problem…" Tay lamented, scratching his head in expectant frustration.

"You could try to pry it from my cold, dead fingersssss, human, but I doubt you'd have the sssskillssss necesssssary to defeat me… or my ssssisssstersss, for that matter. Even in the unlikely event that you could, you'd faccccce much trouble assssscending these moving platformsss without the gift of flight."

"After what I've been through, I'm pretty sure I can handle scalin' some floatin' platforms hangin' over the rocky mountainside. Although, just because I said I wasn't lookin' for a fight, it doesn't mean I won't use force should you continue t' threaten me," he sternly warned, his patience quickly wearing thin as he rested his hand on the sheath pocketing his handgun.

"Relaxxxx, human! I was jusssst kidding," the Naga revealed with an ill-timed chuckle, laying a hand on the soldier's chest to assure him she was not a threat. Upon laying her hand on his chest, however, the Naga became curious as her laughter halted and her attention was directed toward the man she'd tried to intimidate. Her smile faded as she squeezed and poked at his pectoralis muscle, humming with intrigue as she inspected him. Tay, in response, switched from wary to reasonably confused.

"What… what are you doin'?"

"I can tell that, desssspite your being human, you possesssss the sssstrength, figure, and resolve of a mighty warrior," she complimented after conducting her mildly intrusive experiment. "Quite a charming one, I might add," she continued with a grin.

"Oh, uh… th-thanks?" he awkwardly acknowledged, uncertain of if this creature was hitting on him or trying to clear the tension between them.

"Indeed. However, how do we know you are up to the tassssk of dethroning that tyrant?"

"Well, I'm teamed up with Sequin Land's most powerful half-genie, for one thing," he reasoned. "Evidently, you already know who she is. Also, if I made it this far with basically no help from her, you gotta admit that says somethin'. I'm no slouch myself."

"Yessss, but what have you accomplished as a warrior that makes you worthy to passss?"

"Things I don't think you could comprehend, lady…" he warned, his tone serious as he looked her directly in the eye.

"Enlighten me. Actionssss sssspeak louder than wordssss."

"Gladly…" he accepted the challenge, drawing his gun. "How about this, then? Pick any target, an' I guarantee I can strike it down in one shot."

"Are you professssing yoursssself to be an exxxxpert markssssman?"

"Perhaps. Though, you won't find out unless I show you."

"Oh, now THISSSS will be interesssssting… Hmm…" the Naga delved into thought, scanning the mountainside for suitable targets. Given that they were standing high above ground in an open, airy terrain, she could find little… that is, until she looked upward and noticed a series of bats of varying colors perched on a stalactite-riddled overhang above them toward the upper half of the level section. As though they knew they were being summoned, they swiftly took flight, heading directly for the soldier who dared oppose them. "Of the ten batssss coming your way, you will hit at leassst eight of them in sssssuccession. You will not be allowed to missssss oncccce before you hit that mark. Additionally, the batsss cannot get closssse enough to touch you before you complete your tasssk. Otherwise, you will have failed, and you will not be allowed passsst. Should you attempt to passsss us in the event of your failure, my ssssissssterssss and I will incccccinerate you where you ssssstand and feast on your blackened bones."

"Yikes… No pressure," he commented with a nervous gulp, though he never backed down from a challenge.

"On the other hand, if you manage to sssssurpassss eight batssss, I will conssssider reaching an additional agreement with you regarding these weaponssss."

"Uh-huh…"

"What'll it be, human? Feeling lucky?" she prodded with a sinister grin, eagerly awaiting his reply. Tay paused at this offer, carefully weighing his options… Accept the terms and be placed into an unfair, possibly one-sided carnival game of a challenge to test his skills? Or decline and be forced to test his luck against multiple Nagas with flamethrowers while he had nothing but his pistol to work with? Neither option appealed to him, but he knew he had little in the way of options. After a moment of consideration, he spoke.

"…Against my better judgment, fine. What choice do I have?" he acquiesced with a shrug, knowing that it was his best shot at reclaiming the flamethrowers… even if the odds were horribly stacked against him.

"Exxxxxcellent. Your trial ssssstartsss now, human!" With that boisterous declaration, Tay's challenge had commenced.

"Alright, time t' shine…" he mumbled, placing both hands on his firearm and aiming high toward the approaching bats. As the Naga had indicated, ten of them opposed him. The first three, mauve in color with amber-tinted eyes with black snake-like pupils, came directly at him while the rest maintained their distance. The determined serviceman closed his eyes, taking a deep breath to calm his mind. He opened his eyes once he exhaled, maintaining an intense level of focus, mentally drowning out all distractions as he steadied his hands. As he built his concentration, the bats he aimed at appeared to slow down. From his perception, the bats nearly came to a screeching halt, as though time itself had frozen them in place. At this precise moment… "Go!" Tay shouted. Within a second, he fired his first shot. The round came blasting out of the barrel, doing its usual unintended job of frightening the Naga from the sheer noise as she flinched in surprise. The bullet ripped through the air, striking its target and sending it barreling off into the craggy trench below. Tay followed up by immediately firing two more rounds, each one colliding with and disposing of their intended targets.

"Very impresssssive," the snake woman praised, breathing to recollect herself from the jarring effect of the soldier's handgun's noise. "Let'sssss sssssee if you can handle the nexxxxt round," she dared, snapping her fingers to send in the next wave of bats. This time, the bats were sunset red with white, blue-pupiled snake eyes. They hovered in faster than their counterparts and in a vertically-oriented zig-zag motion. Noting this right away, Tayshan grinned.

"Gettin' tricky on me already, huh? Alright…" he murmured, taking another deep breath to calm his nerves. His heart pounded as he made his best effort to remain calm. He could not afford to mess up, for there would be no telling what would happen if he did. Nevertheless, the young man retained his concentration as he studied the patterns of the bats as they neared him. He had little time to work with, as they were approaching quickly. However, if he rushed, he'd be certain to miss. There was a trade-off of accuracy and timing he was painfully aware of, though it did not stop him from keeping his resolve strong. Tay breathed another rush of frigid mountain air, relaxing his every muscle as his eyes followed the trail of one of the crimson bats.

After yet another tense moment of observing them, the bats appeared to slow down in his eyes the same way the last wave did. "Fire!" he shouted again, pulling the trigger the exact moment he was ready. Rather than wait for the round to make contact, he fired two more at differing angles from one another in steady succession to account for his pistol's heavy recoil. As planned, each round struck its targets one after the other, knocking them all out of the air as they fell into the leafy shrubs beneath them.

"Oh, my…" the Naga remarked in surprise yet again. "I wasss cccccertain you wouldn't be able to get those onesss. How did you manage that?"

"Different flight patterns didn't account for predictability. That was just a matter o' aimin' where they would be by the time the round was near 'em. I would hope to have figured out t' some degree how fast my gun's rounds travel when they're not actual bullets…" he explained, still wondering why his gun had been firing hot, flashy marbles that traveled so much slower than regular bullets that the naked eye could actually see them moving when fired. "It helps a bit that I can track where my rounds are goin' just by seein' 'em, though…"

"Fassssscinating… Well then, human. You have eliminated sixxx of the mimimum eight batssss. Two more, and you will have completed my trial. Feeling lucky?" the Naga teased, certain that she had one final trick up her sleeve.

"Luck ain't got a thing t' do with it," Tay boasted, confident in his sharpshooting skills. "I'm a professional."

"Ooh, confident, are we? Then let'ssss turn it up a notch for thissss final round!" the snake woman challenged, snapping her fingers once more to summon forth the third and final wave of bats. This time, Tay was faced with four of them; one mauve, one scarlet, one sunflower yellow with black sclera and red snake-like pupils, and the last one cloaked entirely in an extravagant flashing rainbow glow. They each flew toward him at very different speeds from one another, which served to complicate things for the young sure-shot as he raised his gun once more to read the patters in which the bats were flying.

Just by looking, he already recognized the patterns of the mauve and red bats, as they were identical to the ones he'd dealt with previously. However, he noticed that the yellow bat remained stationary and seemed to be giving off a crackling lightning-like aura. Additionally, he glanced at the rainbow bat to see that its patterns were haphazard as though it were alternating between previously-established motions of flight to avoid being attacked. While uncertain of what to do with the new bats, he did know that his best chances for success depended on his ability to strike at least two of the remaining four bats down.

"This is no curveball too wide for me t' take a swing at…" he confidently assured himself, breathing deeply to calm his heart and steel his nerves. With that, he positioned himself once more, aiming intently as he judged the distances of the remaining bats. Within an instant, another air-splitting *BOOM* rocked the vicinity as Tay's first shot, almost immediately connecting with the mauve bat. It was sent spiraling away and out of sight. "Three more left…" he muttered, the pressure building as he tried not to lose his nerve. It was impossible not to think of the stakes, however. He needed to make this shot to make it past the Nagas without a fight. If he failed, he'd have no choice but to shoot, jump, and push his way through. If he could avoid that, he'd be golden. If not… there was a chance he'd LITERALLY be toast.

His chances of making it with nothing but the gun in his hands on narrow, floating stone platforms heavily guarded by a team of flamethrower-wielding Nagas and a teeming swarm of bats? That would prove challenging enough, if one did not pay attention to the MINOR detail that he was far beyond a high enough threshold off of stable, solid ground that falling from here would also spell certain doom for him. The risk of falling to his invariable end and the risk of his being burned to ashes played off one another; a morbid double-whammy that spiked his anxiety through the roof. Certainly, he had Sky's Falcon Call to rely on. However, its obvious drawback was apparent; he could only activate it for a short time before the birds dispersed from under him, no matter where he was. Additionally, he could not summon the birds more than once between each time he landed on solid ground, which did nothing to put his mind at ease.

Tay's heart was beating rapidly. He'd broken a nervous sweat as though he'd just run ten miles without stopping. His hands were jittery with fear for what he might have to endure if he messed this up. Shantae was nowhere to be seen, having made it past this section by her own skill, so she could not help him. Sky was also mysteriously absent, having evidently chosen to stay back. He was all alone here with no one to rely on but himself. Time was running short, as the rainbow and red bats were closing their distance. Tay snapped out of his nervous trance to realize the red one had already made it close enough to where it had become futile to attempt reading its pattern before it reached him. The rainbow-themed one's patterns were too erratic and haphazard for him to gamble on hitting it. That meant his only suitable option was the yellow bat that floated far behind the others. However, he noticed that it had been glowing and crackling as though it were about to let out an electric discharge.

"Hmm…" he hummed in deep thought, considering his actions carefully.

"What'ssss the matter, human? Not up to the tassssk?" the Naga teased, though her taunt fell on deaf ears. Tay, though he thought of what to do, was low on options and lower on time. In that moment, he made his decision. He breathed again, reinforcing his focus as he took aim at the yellow bat. He channeled all of his concentration on it, though it was much farther away than he'd have liked, limiting the accuracy of his shot. The other two bats were close enough that in mere seconds, they could perch on his gun. Again, time seemed to slow down for him as he studied the yellow bat. As soon as he found himself ready, he fired once more. With a decisive, pulse-pounding *BANG*, the gun-propelled marble raced toward the airborne creature as Tay mentally crossed his fingers that it would work. However, just as the round reached the bat, it generated a magenta-tinted forcefield, deflecting the round back toward the soldier at a different angle.

"WHAT?" Tay shouted in a mix of anger and total astonishment, unhappy with what he just witnessed. His heart sank with dread as the bullet came careening back toward him.

"Haaahahahahaaa!" the Naga cackled in triumph, basking in Tay's disappointment. "You have failed, human! Looks like our agreement is n-!" she was about to taunt before the utterly inconceivable happened. As Tay looked up to let his rage at the Naga's apparent betrayal sink in, he drew his attention toward the red bat. It was in the midst of floating upward in its zig-zagging pattern when, just as it reached the crest of its flight pattern, the marble struck the creature from behind, sending it hurtling forth. It spiraled toward him, helplessly spinning through the air until he caught it in one of his hands. The deceitful snake woman was tipped off by the sound of the bat being struck by the deflected projectile and thus, could only stare in open-mouthed bewilderment at the soldier.

"No way…!" he breathlessly muttered, staring at the creature in his hand. The bat, though it appeared injured from the gunshot it took, was safe. Reading this as having completed the challenge, Tay let out a much-deserved laugh of both victory and relief, raising his hand high. The injured bat picked itself up and took flight out of the vicinity, disappearing into the distance, joined by the other nine bats that were previously used for Tay's impromptu target test. Oh, right, I forgot to mention: No bats were (grievously) harmed in the making of this fraudulent trial. There, disclaimer posted. Anyway… "I did it!" Tayshan cheered.

"Imposssssible!" the Naga angrily commented, her disbelief written all over her face as she tried to fathom what just happened. This lowly human actually managed to complete the trial she had rigged for him to fail. "You cheated, human!"

"No, YOU cheated, snake lady!" Tay argued back, deflecting her accusation back at her. "You knew I was gonna aim for that yellow bat at the last part, didn't you?"

"Why would I know anything of the ssssort!?" she asked, though her complicity was written on her face and her frightened tone of voice.

"Because you also had t' know it had its ability t' deflect gunshots with whatever barrier it used," he deduced, catching on quickly to the Naga's trick. "That's why it was the only one that didn't move when the other three were comin' at me in different patterns. You figured I'd shoot that one, it would bounce the bullet off, an' I would've lost right then an' there… unless…" he trailed off, realizing something about the nature of the challenge he accepted. "Y'know what? You said I only had t' HIT eight bats in a row t' be allowed t' pass, not knock 'em out! Technically speakin', I hit nine bats with eight shots! So, your little scheme double backfired on you!"

"Ergh…!" the Naga grunted, realizing he was right, based on her wording of the arrangement. She also knew he was right about her plan backfiring… in more ways than one, considering how the soldier landed his last shot. She glared at him to nonverbally communicate her dissatisfaction with losing her bet with him, though it did nothing to intimidate him. The Naga, after a moment of silence to process the event, took a deep breath to quell her irritation and refocused her gaze on the adventurer standing before her. "You are right, human, and it is only fair that I honor the agreement I ssssset with you. Ssssso, as I sssstated before, I shall ssssstrike a bargain with you in recognition of your exemplary effortsssss."

"…Alright, I'll bite," Tay warily accepted, reasonably distrustful of her. "What are your conditions?"

"Rid thissss island of the accursssssed Sssssquid Baron, and I will sssssee to it that my sssissssterssss and I return your weaponssss to you."

"Hmm… How do I know I can trust you t' hold up your end o' that deal after that trick you tried t' pull on me?"

"That is a fair sssstatement to make, human. You have my apologiessss," she conceded.

"Sure, fine, apology accepted. However, I still don't know that I can trust you."

"Hmph," the snake lady scoffed in disdain. "You humanssss may unjussstly believe ussss to be sssssavage beassstssss, but we are more cccccivilized and honor-bound than you realize. That sssssaid, we are women of our word."

"I don't doubt you based on your race. I have no reason to, an' I would never judge somebody based on their looks like that. I'm not even from this world, believe it or not. So aside from that test you rigged, you're more or less a blank slate in my book," he assured, though it took the Naga by utter surprise. "No matter who or what… trust is earned, not given."

"Not… even… from thissss world…?" she repeated, though she seemed to have a tough time believing it. She took a moment to silently observe him from the floating platform, scanning every inch of his body for any hint that he was trying to deceive her. She stuck out her forked tongue and hissed with curiosity to subtly read the air around him to see if he was lying. After doing so, she momentarily closed her eyes and nodded. "Very well. I ssssenssse no disssshonesssssty in your ssssstatement. You may passssss. However, we will complete the Naga Mountain ritual of trusssst before you do, sssso that we may finalize our agreement."

"Ritual of trust?"

"Yessss. As part of our agreement, we musssst form a nonaggression pact that esssstablishessss our alliancccce and bindssss our word. Only then, can our arrangement be valid and worthy of fulfillment," the snake woman explained with utmost sincerity. "Refusing to do ssssso will nullify any negotiationssss we had beforehand, and you will not be allowed to passsss. It is a fundamental tradition in Naga culture, human. If you truly wish to aid usssss in reclaiming our homeland, you would be wise to comply."

"Uh… Okay…" he acknowledged, though he was perplexed as to why they had to engage in some foreign (to him) ritual before he could continue with his quest. Moreover, he was apprehensive about what said ritual would entail. "So, once we do this, you'll give the flamethrowers back if my friend an' I take out the octopus monster?"

"Indeed. Now, to complete the cccceremony, copy my motionssss as you ssssee them…" the Naga instructed, preparing to begin the ritual. She clasped her hands together above her head and began to sashay her hips in a slow, rhythmic, fluid motion. The end of her serpent tail lifted and wagged as if it were mirroring her movements. The Naga's torso swayed back and forth in tandem with the rest of her body as she began to hum during her intiation of the ritual. Tay, perplexed by the eccentric dance routine the Naga was engaging in, stared with a mix of intrigue and uncertainty. "Well, human? Do you wish to sssstrike our deal?"

"O-oh! Right, sorry. So…" he trailed off, doing his best to mimic her movements, immediately feeling self-conscious for doing so. "…like this?"

"Yessss. Now then…" the Naga confirmed as she focused intently on the procedure. "Aam sangharsh se ekata aatee hai ekata ke saath satta aata hai ekata ke maadhyam se shakti jeet laatee hai yah anushthaan hamaare panth ko majaboot kar sakata hai…" she chanted slowly, her voice carrying a melodic tone as though she were singing; to the point where she wasn't hissing her 'S' pronunciations at all during chant. Tayshan, however, found himself completely unable to understand what she said as he continued to swing his hips in the same provocative motion as the eccentric snake woman in front of him.

"…I don't have t' repeat that, right?" he asked, never breaking the routine as he did so.

"No. It is merely the chant of camaraderie that pertainssss to our ritual," she informed, her focus holding strong. "Ssssimply continue to follow my motionssss…" she instructed, continuing to sway her hips back and forth in a mesmerizing flow of movement. Tay did his best to follow the snake woman's instructions, though he glanced downward to see exactly how he looked. Suffice to say, he was suddenly glad Shantae had dashed so far ahead of him. Surely, she would never let him live it down that he was basically doing a crude interpretation of her belly dances, so far as he saw it. Who even knows how Sky might've reacted. His cheeks flushed with embarrassment, causing him to redirect his attention to the Naga in front of him to temper himself. If nothing else, the enigmatic dance number they were engaging in looked far better on the mythical amalgam in front of him than it did on him.

The Naga eventually halted her hypnotic hip swaying and separated her hands, though she kept them raised high above her head. Next, she slowly rotated her arms until they were down to her sides. Afterward, she stretched her arms outward toward her impromptu dance partner, her hands facing downward. She flipped her hands and brought them toward her. She then placed her open palms over her forehead, sticking out her long, thin, slithery two-pronged tongue as she made direct eye contact with the thoroughly-bewildered soldier. Slowly, the chimeric warrior dragged her palms over her face, her tongue still extended. Soon, she brushed over her tongue with both hands.

"Nnnnnnnah~…" she let out a whispery moan, provocatively licking her hands up and down as she continued making direct eye contact with Tay, who unsurprisingly found himself mildly uncomfortable, though he was unable to avert his eyes. However, he pressed on, ready to get this… unique truce ritual over with. He mirrored his soon-to-be ally's motions, placing his palms flat on his forehead and sticking out his tongue. Soon after, he brought his hands downward, dragging them over his hanging tongue just as the Naga had done. However, he failed to account for the taste of his hands until it was too late. The poor soldier nearly gagged, instantly regretting his actions immediately once he remembered what he'd been touching since he arrived on Naga Mountain; his gun, rocks, dirt, slimy green vines, and a slew of other inedible objects.

"Ugh… My hands taste like metal, wax, grass, an' sweat…" he muttered as he reveled in the exquisite flavor of his own fingers. The Naga did not hear him as she waited for him to finish. Once he was done nearly making himself vomit, she spread her arms wide and backed up slightly on the platform to make room.

"Ssssstep onto the platform and embracccce me, human, ssssso that we may complete our ritual!" she commanded with a bright, unexpectedly cheerful smile on her face. Wordlessly, Tay agreed. He hopped from the rocky ledge on which he'd been standing, again refusing to look down at the crags, bushes, and ocean FAR below. Wasting no time once he landed, he followed the Naga's last instruction by hugging her. Immediately, he picked up on her scaly, frigid, damp, clammy skin and aroma of leaves and wet dirt. She was definitely part snake, alright. The initial coldness of the Naga's skin alone sent a chill up the soldier's spine. "Hold me tighter, human! We musssst feel the commitment in one another as we complete the proccccedure!" she demanded, pulling him in and clenching him tightly as though she were hugging a long-lost family member.

"Alright, alright. Jeez…" he reluctantly complied, tightening his grip on the peculiar snake woman, laying one hand on her back while the other found its resting spot on the back of her head. It went without saying that hugging this Naga in such an informal manner was comparable to hugging an alligator right after it took a long, freezing dip in a bayou.

"Hmmmm… Sssssuch heavenly warmth and masssssculine cozinessss that only a human male of your caliber could generate…" the Naga sighed with unwarranted satisfaction as she wrapped her arms tighter around the soldier's waist and pressed him closer to her. She laid her head onto his chest, instantly startling the soldier as the platform on which they stood began to levitate upward toward the end of the section. "It has been ages ssssince I lasssst indulged in thissss wonderful sssssenssssation…"

"No offense, but uh… that's kinda creepy," he admonished, put off by the forwardness of her statement.

"It is merely a compliment," she excused, unrepentant for her creepiness as the platform continued to levitate toward the upcoming section. "You should be ssssso lucky to get thissss clossssse to me in sssssuch an intimate ccccircumsssstancccce… Not many human males have lived to tell about sssssuch an assssstounding exxxxperiencccce."

"Whatever you say…" he dismissively mumbled, justifiably unclear on the nature of the Naga's 'compliment.' He was merely grateful that he'd managed to get past such a difficult portion of this perilous mountain without having to fight, though it took him much longer than he'd have liked it to. It was additionally upsetting to him that Shantae had not only left him in the dust, but also left so many obstacles in his path to clear up on his own that he could've gotten stuck without her even noticing. He understood that he was lucky this time around, as the locals around here, despite their fear-inspiring looks, were not completely volatile. Eventually, the platform reached a grassy ledge, on which rested another already-opened red treasure chest; a telltale sign that the half-genie had passed this part on her own.

"Here we are, human," the now-friendly Naga announced, which Tay took as the signal to end their embrace. Although, the snake woman did not completely separate from him, as she kept her arms wrapped around the young adventurer's torso.

"Ritual complete?" he asked, still a bit on-edge about this strange creature still hugging him after he'd let go.

"Not yet," she answered, though she lifted herself up to meet him at eye-level and hissed quietly, repeatedly flicking her tongue on his cheek. As you might imagine when scary snake monster women sample you as if they planned to eat you, Tay flinched with a mix of shock and terror, though he contained his reaction for fear of breaking the treaty he'd recently set with her. The Naga eventually let him go, allowing him to step off the platform and onto the ledge. "Now our ritual is complete," she finally confirmed, smiling with a strange sense of satisfaction. "You will find the top of the mountain through thisssss cavern and upward passssst a roundabout path. For the sssssake of Nagas everywhere on thisssss ssssacred oassssissss, I humbly wish you luck on your endeavor to end the terrible week-long reign of the vile Ssssquid Baron."

"You uh… Y-you have my word," Tay assured, still rubbing his cheek. "Since it's likely that we'll be meetin' again, what was your name, for future reference?"

"Ssssssana," she courteously revealed, because of course her name began with an 'S.' "And yourssss, human?"

"Somehow, I knew it would be somethin' like that. My name is Tayshan. In any case, I… I won't let you down, Sana."

"I trusssst that you will not, Tayshan. Ssssseee you ssssoon," she bade. Tay watched in slight confusion as Sana (Sssssana?) smilingly waved at him while her platform descended once more. With his task finally complete and a couple of (read: many) lessons learned about adventures in Sequin Land, he pressed on, hoping to find his partner as soon as possible. At this point, he was just about ready to be done with Naga Mountain, but was aware that there was more yet to come.

 ** _At the Top Already…_**

"I wonder where they went…" Shantae pondered as she sat on a nearby rock, already having reached the top of Naga Mountain. "I hope they didn't get lost." As she ascended to the canopy of the skyscraper-like mountain jungle, Shantae eventually noticed her partners were far behind her and decided to wait for them. She was used to traveling alone, as she did on most of her adventures, so traveling with friends was somewhat foreign to her. Nonetheless, she waited patiently, as she at least understood that her allies were likely still getting used to the pace of her expeditions. Even more eventually, one of them caught up.

"Yo!" Tayshan called, jogging through the open, stony path atop the mountain to rendezvous with his tour guide. He was slightly perturbed to see she'd been casually waiting for him rather than going back and seeing if he needed any help. However, he was at least relieved to see that she was safe.

"Tay! You made it," Shantae cheered, hopping off the boulder on which she'd been sitting as he approached.

"Jeez, you're just zippin' through this place," Tay complained, catching his breath. "You're makin' it kinda hard to keep up."

"Yeah," she nonchalantly replied, reading his concern as praise. "I'm pretty agile when it comes to this part of my adventures. These sections are a total breeze for me," she bragged, wanting to impress her partner/student. "You'll get used to it as we go along."

"Right," Tay acknowledged, though somewhat disappointed that the oblivious young woman didn't understand him. "Anyway, I spent the last couple sections playin' diplomat to an archer an' a bunch o' Nagas back there, if you're wonderin' why I took so long."

"Really, now?" Shantae asked in alarm. Evidently, she'd never experienced such a possibility before.

"Yeah. They let me through without me havin' t' fight them," he confirmed.

"What? How?" the young heroine asked, utterly stupefied by such a revelation. "I've always had to fight them or find a way to avoid them! You managed to just talk them into letting you pass?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Tell me! How?" she asked, incredibly and understandably curious about how Tayshan, or anyone could be able to hold conversations with monsters known for trying to grievously maim anyone they did not recognize.

"In a nutshell, I told them I was comin' here t' get rid o' this squid monster we're lookin' for. They basically said that if my goal was t' get him out o' here, they had no problem with me passin' through. Apparently, he's been causin' trouble for more than just our slug friend since he's been here…"

"I don't doubt that one bit… If Nagas and archers are actually letting you pass without a fight because of him, I only WONDER what kind of a ruckus he's been brewing here."

"We'll find out in more detail soon enough, I guess. All I really know is that he's abusin' whatever power he used t' turn Barracuda Joe into a slug, t' torment an' oppress everyone else here, steal their food an' resources, and cause a societal shift where Nagas are fightin' each other over how t' cope with their newer, more miserable lifestyles under his rule. Also, the Nagas back there are armed with flamethrowers from my world."

"They were? I KNEW there was something fishy about them!" she exclaimed. "They almost barbecued me with those things! They're hundreds of times more powerful than any fire spell I know right now…"

"Yeah, flamethrowers are not t' be trifled with," Tay warned. "How'd you get past them without takin' 'em down?"

"I turned into a harpy and flew past as fast as I could. It sure wasn't easy, though… One mistake and I'd have instantly become a phoenix instead of a harpy."

"Yikes… yeah, that sounds about right. I'm glad you're okay."

"Thanks, Tay. How'd you get by them?"

"Diplomacy, like I mentioned. As in, I talked t' one of 'em, she put me through this target practice trial with my gun, an' once I finished it, we made a deal."

"You made a deal with a Naga, too? Whoa, I didn't even think they were capable of negotiation!"

"Evidently, they are. I even got her name, which is Sana."

"You're kidding! Tayshan, that's incredible!" she praised in utter surprise at his accomplishment. "I've never gotten the chance to do that! It kinda makes me wonder if enemies in other places are capable of civil conversations like Sana and the archer lady you mentioned before."

"We can only hope they do… Also, the archer lady's name was Priyanka, if my memory ain't shot."

"You got her name, too?" Shantae asked again, even more surprised.

"Indeed. But yeah, the deal is that once we get rid o' the octopus monster here, those Nagas will give us back my flamethrowers without a problem. Granted, I don't know that I want to tell you what I had t' do t' even convince her t' strike that deal…" he shamefully clued in, scratching his head as his face grew hot. Shantae, reading her friend's face, instantly became curious.

"Was it that bad? I mean, you don't have to tell me anything if it was that embarrassing…"

"…I-I'll… tell you when I build up the nerve," he offered, shaking his head and sighing away his bashfulness. "Maybe when we're done. Anyway, she let me go after we struck our deal. All we gotta do now is get rid o' the octopus an' they'll give back the flamethrowers without a fight."

"That simple, huh? That's interesting… In any case, good work, Tay!"

"Thanks, I guess…" he acknowledged before remembering another important point in his time climbing Naga Mountain alone. "Oh! Before I forget! Priyanka mentioned somethin' about a Prickle Stitch Valley."

"Prickle Stitch Valley? I… don't think I've heard of that place before," Shantae admitted, scratching her head. "Is there something there that she told you about?"

"Apparently, some druids who live there predicted Risky's plan t' invade my world t' steal those guns. Maybe it could be a point of interest next time we go explorin'?" the soldier suggested.

"Hmm… We could make a trip there," she agreed, her intrigue undoubtedly piqued. "If there are druids there with the power of clairvoyance, then we'd be crazy NOT to investigate. Maybe they know something about what we can do to stop Risky. Let's make it a point to go there!"

"Sounds like a plan," he nodded, confirming their next destination.

"Of course, we'll probably need Sky's help in even finding this Prickle Stitch Valley. I don't have a clue where it might be," Shantae confessed with a shrug.

"That makes sense. She's probably more familiar with other landscapes, all things considered. She's also got a bird's eye view of everything," Tay agreed, though the mention of the absent bird tamer piqued his curiosity. "Where is Sky, anyway?"

"She wasn't with you?"

"No, I was more or less on my own since we got done talkin' t' the slug man…"

"That's odd… But then, I think she probably stayed back with Barracuda Joe if she didn't come along to help you," she answered as they continued their trek, strolling past an enormous, incredibly obese leaf green dragon. It was comparable to a scaly blimp in size. The gargantuan creature was perpetually and lazily barfing a waterfall of drool down a cliff next to a roasted rotisserie chicken on a stick during their stroll across the summit of Naga Mountain. They… really weren't kidding about the dragon spit water current. Go figure… though it begs the question of how this thing never runs out of spit… or, like, who puts the meat there? Or even, who feeds this thing? And how much does it eat? Does it ever move? But I digress. Anyway, Shantae continued her speculation. "She wasn't very happy about his break-up with her at all."

"From the way he told that story, it sounded like it was a very blunt, very short conversation," Tay observed.

"That's putting it lightly. He flat-out dumped her right after I saved him from the Village of Lost Souls. I watched the whole thing… She blamed her parents for it and never saw him again after he broke up with her."

"I… can imagine why they'd never see each other again, considerin' her dad basically killed him, so far as I understand…" Tay cautiously remarked. "Not t' say he shouldn't be blamed for just leavin' her like he did, but it's not hard t' believe he didn't feel safe around her after such an incident. I'm honestly surprised he wasn't cowerin' in fear an' runnin' as far away from her as he could at the very second he saw her. Meanwhile, she flipped out on him at a moment's literal glance like he shot one of her birds."

"Yeah, but he didn't give her an explanation at all. As soon as he was revived, he barely gave her five words about how things weren't going to work between them, and then left. I honestly don't know if she cried about it, but I know she was super disappointed… I felt really bad for her, because she really liked him… Don't ask me how or why."

"Ouch… That's no good," he commented, suddenly feeling bad for Sky.

"Y'know, between that and her meeting you, she hadn't mentioned anything at all about wanting another boyfriend, now that I remember…" the half-genie recalled, gaining a premonition about her best friend. "What we saw between her and Joe earlier wasn't such a good sign, either…"

"I feel you… Sounds like she ain't come t' terms over it," the serviceman guessed. "Maybe she stayed behind t' reconcile with him, if that's the case?"

"I'd only hope. She hadn't even mentioned the whole ordeal to me since it happened; sort of like she was trying to put it behind her before she dealt with it. This kinda would be a golden opportunity for her to deal with her anger over it. Though, I'm a bit worried that she might have taken such a strong liking to you as quickly as she did because she's trying to avoid being single or thinking about how she and Joe broke up…" Shantae theorized.

"Oh, yeah?" Tayshan asked, his gut suddenly feeling heavy with apprehension.

"There's not a lot of doubt in my mind, Tay. I know Sky and, when she's upset, she tries harder to be mature about it. A lot harder. It's just… sometimes, I don't think it works the way she wants it to."

"How so?"

"She generally gets over things faster when she gets mad, unless she really doesn't like the person she's mad at; in which case, she'll sort of..." she trailed off, uncertain of how to finish her statement.

"Hold a grudge?" Tay finished for her, drawing from the context of his mentor's previous statement. "Although, you did say she doesn't usually do that, right?"

"Kind of, but she's never been totally mean-spirited about being upset with someone, to my knowledge. I still worry that some lingering feelings might have some influence on her, though. Remember how she immediately clung to you when she found out Joe moved on and started dating the Tan Line Temple Princess?"

"Yeah. That's… a good point," Tay simultaneously agreed and realized, his heart sinking at the possibility of merely being Sky's rebound guy. He called back to his conversation with Sky earlier in the morning, remembering her confession to him that her luck with finding a relationship wasn't the best. Unaware of Sky's full history, he was unable to get a full grasp of her plight, but he understood enough to draw a conclusion. "I'm gonna guess you're implyin' she did that just t' try an' make him jealous? Or maybe t' jump-start a relationship on impulse?"

"Without putting it too bluntly…" she uneasily confirmed.

"Shoot, that ain't a good feelin' at all…" he lamented, clutching his chest with a hand as he bowed his head in disappointment. "Man…"

"Don't worry, Tay. If anything, she'll probably clear her thoughts once she comes to terms with her break-up. She's always pulled through in the past, and I'll bet she'll get over Joe sooner than we might think. Also, she's a wonderful friend through thick and thin. She's just going through a rough spot right now, so I hope you understand," she naively informed her dissonant friend, though their conversation was cut short as the two came across a group of Tinkerbats. They were located at the other end of a wooden bridge just ahead. The henchmen seemed to be nonchalantly messing around at a glance. Immediately, Shantae and Tayshan crouched low, concealing themselves to avoid being spotted.

"More Tinkerbats…" Tay whispered as the two ducked behind a nearby bush.

"Four of them, from the looks of it. There's a strange green treasure crate near them, too," Shantae observed. She also took note of the other two, who were incompetently playing a game of Hot Potato with a murky green pineapple. "What's that pineapple thing they're tossing around…?" Before the soldier could answer, a world-shaking *BOOM* ripped through the air, causing the duo to instinctively panic and hug each other close, startled by the blast. After they took a few seconds for their hearts to stop pounding like speakers on full blast, the two each realized they were holding one another and swiftly separated.

"O-oh! Uh, sorry… about that, heh," Tay sheepishly stammered, scratching the back of his head to play it off, though his face was hot with embarrassment.

"No, no… I-I grabbed you first. No worries," Shantae stammered back, equally as embarrassed. "A-anyway…"

"Yeah," Tay nodded as he peered over the bush to see that none of the Tinkerbats were there anymore. In their place was just the crate that was left unscathed in the explosion. "That 'pineapple' thing was a frag grenade, t' answer your question. From what I can see, it blew up in their faces."

"Frag grenade? That's kind of a silly name for something that can make such a loud boom," she remarked as they walked across the bridge. "It sounds like a fruit that would grow here…"

"'Frag' is short for 'fragmentation,' hence the weapon's full name: Fragmentation Grenade. It's designed so that when it blows up, it sends hot metal shrapnel and debris in every direction at such a speed that if you're anywhere near it with no protection, you're about as likely t' survive it as an ice cube would survive in an open flame. They're mighty strong, too. Anything within just about fifty feet, or fifteen meters, will take heavy damage. Any closer, an' you're a goner unless you're lucky."

"Oh! Wow, that's really dangerous," Shantae observed, unable to fathom how something so small and so harmless-looking could be so destructive. "I guess Risky didn't teach those Tinkerbats how to use it if they were just playing catch with it."

"Lucky us. If we'd have had t' fight them an' they threw these grenades at us, we would've had a huge problem," Tay replied as he approached the weapons crate. "Still, if they got one o' these crates out here, I only wonder if they're startin' t' set up camp in certain spots t' practice with…" he theorized as he went to inspect the crate, which mysteriously vanished as soon as he touched it. "What the…?"

"Don't worry, you should have a special inventory space for your weapons. That way, you don't have to worry about lugging them along," she reasoned, though it made no sense to him. He did not question her, as he was already thrown for enough loops to last five lifetimes by his short stay in this world. Nonetheless, Tay got Weapons Crate #1 and four grenades. The grenades, rather than disappear like the crate, found themselves adorned to his belt, neatly tucked away in pouches.

"Huh… I didn't think I'd come across these things, but it certainly helps t' have 'em," he stated as he noticed a fifth grenade, inactive, floating nearby. He attempted to pick it up, only for it stay in its spot, unable to be interacted with.

"Looks like you can only collect four of those things at a time. Hope that isn't too inconvenient."

"Nah, I can kinda understand that. These things are powerful, so it would only be fair to have but so many. Plus, it gives the added challenge of knowin' when t' use the ones I have, if I'm startin' t' really comprehend how things work around here. I mean, it doesn't do much for me actually collectin' every weapon like I thought I would've, but… the fact that they're bein' used the way we've seen makes it pretty much impossible t' reclaim the whole collection unused."

"Yeah, but we really couldn't expect Risky and her Tinkerbats NOT to use those things. At this point, it's a matter of collecting as many as we can so we can at least cut down on her access to them until we find and defeat her."

"Just as I thought," he nodded. "In that case, I don't have t' feel so torn about usin' some o' them myself. So long as it contributes t' puttin' an end t' her evil schemes, I'm all for it."

"Now you're speaking my language!" the excitable young woman praised her friend, causing him to chuckle in mirth.

"I guess you're startin' t' rub off on me," he deduced, eliciting a smile from his partner. "Still, I wonder if we'll be findin' the rest o' the weapons the same way we found the grenades," Tay pondered, looking around himself and checking to see if there were any other weapons that may have been lying around. After a moment, he surmised that he only had the grenades to work with and that there were no other weapons in sight.

"It's a possibility," Shantae affirmed, though she was uncertain herself. "I mean, I found a couple power-ups for my hair whip attack on my way up here. I usually have to buy them to boost the speed and strength of my hair, but finding it was much more convenient."

"Huh… so your hair whip is stronger an' faster now?"

"Totally! It'll make things a little easier for us as we go along. Chances are, you'll be finding power-ups in the form of weapons and equipment other than your gun, too… or even upgrades FOR your gun, if my hunch is right."

"Are… you sure? I mean, that makes as much sense as I think it will, but are you sure that's how it'll work?"

"Yeah," Shantae affirmed, certain of her assertion. "That's how it's always worked for me. You saw it when I found the Heart Holders earlier, as a matter of fact. Still, the only way to know for sure is to keep up our search for Risky."

"Duly noted," Tayshan nodded in understanding. "I actually can't wait t' figure that out. Now, let's go find that Squid Monster," he suggested as they regrouped to move. However, before they took another step…

"It's Squid BARON, you noobs!" shouted a boisterous voice as its owner came plopping down in front of Shantae and Tayshan. The two found themselves faced with an angry-looking red cephalopod with yellow eyes and a body size comparable to a minivan.

"Squid Baron!" Shantae announced, though she did not come across as hostile. If anything, she seemed happy to see him. "Long time, no see!"

"LIES!" the apparently-frustrated gargantuan animal denied. "It's only been a couple of weeks since you ruined my chances for a spin-off game and a lucrative merchandising career!"

"Rrrrriiiight…" she sheepishly and guiltily acknowledged. "Sorry about that. At least I gave you that cool poster, though!"

"Yes, because that's totally compensation for a ruined career in superstardom," he bitterly shot back. "A lousy poster."

"Sorry, sorry," she continued to apologize. "Anyway I have to ask: Is there a reason you turned Barracuda Joe into a slug before you climbed up here?"

"He was asking for it! That mustachioed numbskull thought he could move in on my undisputed boss status here! Speaking of which, what are you even doing here!? No one invited you!" At that, Tay scoffed, viewing the bulbous, boisterous animal as less than threatening.

"Who died an' made you the boss o' this place? No one gave us permission t' come here. Matter of fact, you're not welcome here, either," the serviceman bluntly informed.

"Says who?"

"Says the Nagas an' archers who live here an' want you gone. Whatever you're doin', you're disturbin' their peace an' muckin' up their entire livelihoods with your magic-fueled rampage." At that, Squid Baron gasped in horror at such a bold accusation.

"Those ingrates! After all I've done for them to create a just and fair society that mirrored the one created by the Naga Queen… only, fairer to me, because they outnumber me a thousand to one and, unless I keep that in order, I won't have any reason to rule over them."

"Hoarding their resources, subjugating them, dividing their population, and forcing them to fight each other is hardly what I'd call 'just' or 'fair,' Squid Baron," Shantae worriedly informed him, unsure about the cephalopod's ability to rule over an entire island. "If anything, it sounds like you're making things worse for them."

"Don't tell me how to do my job!" Squid Baron complained. "You have no idea how hard it is, being an all-powerful totalitarian leader who rules with a stern, swift, but laissez-faire iron fist! It's a hard job, but I'm darn good at it. Naturally, as I'm a natural-born leader."

"…So, takin' all their food an' power, then makin' them squabble with each other while you do nothin' but indulge yourself, oppress them, an' watch the fruits of your hedonistic efforts unfold is what counts as bein' a good leader?" Tay quizzed, also uncertain of Squid Baron's ability to be a leader.

"And what's it to you? It's none of your business, so why do you care?"

"We've been assigned the task of puttin' a stop to your madness," Tay challenged, pointing a finger at him. "That's why." Squid Baron's giant face took on an expression of such shock that one would think he'd just been insulted by his own mother… if he even had one of those.

"Why those conspiring, treason-committing, mutiny-loving traitors! They'd dare hire assassins to depose me!? How rude!" he griped, offended that his subjects would ever want him to abdicate a throne that apparently wasn't even meant for him.

"Actually, for that matter, you sure don't seem like an appropriate resident of a place called NAGA Mountain t' be talkin' about invitations or who has business with whom around here, much less bein' a stand-in leader," Tay challenged further, immediately noticing that the giant red squid standing before him was suspiciously (read: obviously) dissimilar from the Nagas that made up the main theme of their current location.

"He has a point there, Squid Baron," Shantae agreed, realizing the discrepancy for herself. "You're not actually the boss of this place, are you?"

"Ah, but I AM the boss!" Squid Baron set the record straight with an air of unwarranted arrogance. "At least, technically, I am. More so in the 'you'll need to defeat me to move on' sense, not the 'I own this place and have legal authority to kick you out of here' sense, which is LAME! I mean, no one died to make me the boss, either, to answer that question, but my point still stands! Though it isn't like I had a choice… I owed the Naga Queen a huge favor, so she made me fill in while she's vacationing halfway across the globe on a journey of good fortune and self-discovery. I've been stuck here for the past week and I'm not even getting paid for this. It's actually a good thing you came, genie girl, because I need to talk to you about something," he addressed Shantae, abruptly changing the subject.

"Okay…?" Shantae started, puzzled by Squid Baron's monologue and request. "So… what's up? Looking to bounce more ideas off me on how you can land a more significant role in the next game? Because as it stands at this point, downloadable content has already been made for the latest game in the series, and that one was crowd-funded from top to bottom. So, there are no new games planned, to my knowledge. I also won't make any promises about you getting in as a playable character or final boss in either scenario, regarding D.L.C. If there was a new game in the works, you'd probably only get called in as a filler boss to make the game's story a little longer," she rambled, casually laying down the Law of the (Sequin) Land regarding the game development process. Tayshan, unaware of what she meant, scratched his head in utter bewilderment at the mention of downloadable content and a game series.

"I was hoping you'd ask that. And no, this time, it doesn't involve the games," Squid Baron answered, evidently understanding his supposed-enemy's points, though his reply confused the poor soldier further. "You see, I heard you were starring in your own spin-off story and I heard it was going to combine elements from your past adventures with new and original ideas while introducing a compelling, plot-driven, episodic narrative approach. I also heard that they were adding a new main character in as your sidekick for the duration of said story. On that note, I came to audition as your sidekick! If you can't beat 'em, join 'em, as they say! Plus, I could use the screen time… or, page time. You know what I mean. I need more exposure."

"Uhhh…" Shantae scratched her head in confusion, unsure of how to address Squid Baron's rather ambitious aspirations.

"Hear me out! Since we're so familiar with each other, we'd be an unstoppable force! Witty, self-referential dialogue! Intricate, yet charming, comedic plot with lots of suspenseful twists and room for thought-provoking character development! An ending so spectacular that the readers would be BEGGING for more! If it does well enough, then it could totally get published as a novel, where we could split the profits 70/30!"

"Um…"

"Okay, maybe 80/20. We'll call it 'Squid Baron: The Totally True, Accurate, And Definitely Irrefutable Autobiography: Featuring Shantae! I already thought up some awesome new team attacks that'll have us dominating all who dared oppose us in-!"

"Sorry t' interrupt," Tay interjected, though Squid Baron glared fiery death at him for doing so. "Buuuut… I think the position of Shantae's 'sidekick' has been filled," he explained, pointing toward himself. Squid Baron merely paused, letting an awkward silence take over the atmosphere before he spoke.

"…Y'know, I was going to save it for later, Shantae, but who's this loser?" the indignant cephalopod rudely asked while also totally disregarding the soldier's presence.

"He's my-!" she was about to reply.

"Beat it, kid, the hero and I are talking business. Take your toys and go home!" Squid Baron demanded, giving Shantae approximately zero time to answer his question.

"These 'toys' could turn you into fried calamari, Squid Man!" Tay indignantly spat back, none too amused by the Baron's disrespect. "Don't test me! Anyway, I'm the deuteragonist in this story, so you can chill with tryin' t' step on my toes," Tay followed up, though he was minimally aware of the topic of the conversation and was likewise befuddled by how little sense it was all making in context with the reason they were in this situation. Squid Baron, however, was unmoved by Tay's explanation of his role as he looked him up and down.

"Listen, kid, that's cute and all…" the condescending cephalopod started, instantly infuriating the soldier.

"I swear, if somebody addresses me with that word one more time…!" he muttered through teeth clenched so tightly that he might've been able to bite through a coconut. Men are NOT SUPPOSED TO BE CUTE.

"…but clearly, the story called for Shantae to have a sidekick, not a boyfriend," Squid Baron casually retorted, ticking off both protagonists.

"Aw, come on, man!" Tay complained, unhappy with the sapient cephalopod's assumption. "How-?" he attempted to ask, though Squid Baron was not listening.

"I'm sure you'd AT LEAST be halfway decent as a love interest on the side that was only there to help push her character development along, but you can't have your cake and eat it too. Only I should be able to do that. Shantae would be better off separating her love life from her life as a hero, so it creates a deeper sense of self-reflection for her, warranting a relatable intrinsic dilemma regarding the duality of her identity as both a defender of the defenseless and a growing young girl with normal personal and romantic interests. You being her boyfriend AND her sidekick is just plain unrealistic. The readers would hate you in an instant for being a bland, faceless Gary Stu who stole their adorable genie waifu from them. You really should've just gotten your own story somewhere else and let us 'Shantae' series O.G. veterans have the spotlight."

"Okay, now-!"

"Oh, for the love of-! He's not my boyfriend!" Shantae shouted loud enough for her comment to echo across the Naga Mountain skies. At this point, she was fed up with the insinuations of romance between her and her disciple, though her burst of blazing anger startled said disciple silent. "Why do you assume that we're going out!? Why can't I just have a friend or sidekick or protégé or whatever who happens to be a really cute guy around my age whose company I enjoy, who shares a lot of my personal interests, and who makes me feel comfortable in my own skin without people assuming we're dating!? That's totally unfair for both of us!" the frustrated maiden aggressively asked, though she kind of oxymoronically answered her own questions simply by asking them. "Oh, no. Don't YOU start!" she further screamed at me, the poor, hardworking narrator. Sheesh, TOUCHY!

"…Hoo, I was not expectin' that," Tay mumbled, Shantae's unceremonious confession making him hot under the collar as his heart skipped a few beats. He was too shocked to even get mad that she called him 'cute' again. So, I guess if a pretty girl says it a certain way, it must be an exception or something. How droll…

"See, THAT'S what I mean by 'having your cake and eating it, too.'" Squid Baron cleverly pointed out. "Totally why you guys should at least be considerate and share some of the spotlight with me."

"…Can we fight now?" Tay asked with a bemused sigh, impatiently waiting for the plot (and this conversation) to move along.

"Oh, right," Squid Baron snapped back into focus as he cleared his throat. "PREPARE YOURSELVES, DASTARDLY ASSASSINS! THIS IS WHERE SQUID BARON ASSERTS HIS DOMINANCE AS RULER OF NAGA MOUNTAIN AND JUMP-STARTS HIS PATH TO SUPERSTARDOM, FORTUNE, AND A HIGHER PURPOSE IN LIFE THAN A THROWAWAY FILLER BOSS AND A CHEAP PLOT DEVICE!" Squid Baron screamed without taking in a single breath as he prepared himself to fight.

 ** _SQUID BARON: CHEAP PLOT DEVICE (also astute story critic)!_**

"Beat the Squid Baron!" Shantae called out as she sprang into action alongside her partner.

"So what's the game plan on this one?" Tayshan asked as he and Shantae created distance between themselves and their adversary.

"He's actually really simple. He'll just bounce and spin around a bunch; super predictably, at that. There's also the occasional shockwaves he makes when he does his ground pound. Just avoid him and damage him. He shouldn't take too long."

"I heard that! I'll have you know that this time, I cast a spell on myself that doubles my health and damage output! I'll show you predictable, you hair-whipping tomboy!" Squid Baron insulted as he began spinning faster than a rigged merry-go-round before rocketing toward the duo.

"Who are you calling a tomboy!?" Shantae yelled, fury in her eyes as she jumped and cleared the Baron as he careened toward her partner. Tay, uncertain of whether he could jump as high as his partner, dove out of the way as Squid Baron bounced against an invisible wall and came barreling in the opposite direction at the same speed. The angry sea creature made a couple of rounds with this rather basic method of offense, though Shantae and Tayshan were quick to discover and exploit its flaws. For every time Shantae managed to jump over Squid Baron, she whipped him with her hair once or twice. Tayshan kept a safe distance, quickly getting the idea to use the Falcon Call in steady bursts to gain temporary vantage points from which to easily damage Squid Baron from above. This made avoiding being hit easier for him as the rampaging sea creature spun around, bouncing back and forth under him. Whether airborne or on the ground, Tay fired his pistol as rapidly as he could without sacrificing too much of his accuracy. He was also cognizant that he did not want to accidentally hit the half-genie with any stray shots.

Squid Baron, after taking a fair amount of damage, switched his strategy up to where he began to levitate over the heads of the fledgling heroes and periodically pound the ground with his body, generating the aforementioned shockwaves that coursed along the rocky surface from either side of him. The shockwaves moved slowly enough that both heroes found little trouble simply jumping over them to avoid taking damage. They worked around this move and continued whipping and shooting the cephalopod with no real challenge despite his supposed magic-related advantage.

Squid Baron's next maneuver was to levitate and rapidly slam the arena as he bounced back and forth along the narrow mountaintop, causing slight quakes as Shantae and Tayshan were careful to avoid being crushed. This attack left little opportunity for either Shantae or Tayshan to counterattack, as the pressure was placed on them dodging Squid Baron's relentless onslaught. Before long, however, Squid Baron was back to the original, proven-to-be-ineffective attack pattern of spinning like an angry dreidel on the ground and veering blindly toward the duo, who had little trouble once they figured him out.

"How are you doing so far, Tay?" Shantae asked as she and her partner lined up on opposite sides of the battlefield to prepare for the next bumper car-like spinning barrage.

"I'm good. He's at least fast, I'll give him that," Tayshan commented as he summoned another team of falcons to levitate out of the way of Squid Baron's next wall bounce and fired three calculated shots at him before landing back on the rocky surface of the mountain summit.

"Yeah, he's not to be taken too lightly," Shantae affirmed as she leapt over the pivoting squid and attacked him with two more hair whips. "When he gets riled up like this, you gotta be on your toes."

"You think you have me all figured out, don't you!?" Squid Baron jeered as he stopped and began levitating again. "Well I still have an ace up my sleeve!" he announced as he reached into his mouth with one of his gross, slimy tentacles and pulled out a rather foreboding-looking brown book with belt buckles on the front cover.

"Ew…" Tay recoiled in disgust.

"That must be the spell book you used to turn Barracuda Joe into a slug and oppress the residents here!" Shantae deduced, pointing accusingly at the floating villain, who was much too high for the half-genie to hit with her hair.

"Yes! All thanks go to Hypno Baron for letting me permanently 'borrow' it! And now I'll use it to turn you two into ants, so I can squish you and take the reins as the main character of this story all for myself!" he announced as he flipped to a page deep within the apparently-stolen text and began chanting. As Squid Baron chanted, his eyes glowed a menacing lightning blue and the light of entire environment suddenly dimmed around the three battlers. Swirling winds stirred around the arena as Squid Baron conjured up magic for his spell like an anime super warrior charging up a planet-sized ball of energy in an attempt to obliterate his enemy.

Shantae stood her ground, preparing herself for the worst. She was anticipating this new, ostensibly ultra-powerful attack that she'd never have expected Squid Baron of all bosses to access. She considered transforming into her harpy form and firing talons at him, but she feared that it may have been either ineffective or unsafe for her to do so. She wanted to be ready to dodge the cephalopod's next attack when he launched it.

Tay, however, was aware that Squid Baron, while making himself safe from Shantae's available offensive options, left himself wide open in the most obvious way imaginable. With that knowledge, the soldier aimed his handgun and fired, as his opponent was taking an impractical amount of time to cast his spell. Tay's bullet made direct contact as it ripped through the book, causing pages to fly out everywhere. The winds and foreboding darkness enveloping the arena dissipated instantly.

"NO!" Squid Baron bellowed in disappointment and panic as he floated back to the ground. "Hypno Baron's gonna have my ink sacs for stealing his spell book and letting this happen!" he confessed as he glared at Tay, who had been pointing and laughing at him. "You think this is funny, mud stain!?" He insulted, pointing out the soldier's attire. "You just cost me my most useful asset in this battle!"

"Yeah, I did. That's kinda the point," Tay shot back with a casual shrug. "Wouldn't have made sense t' just sit here and wait for you t' try turnin' us into bugs."

"He's right," Shantae interjected. "I'm really not sure what else you'd have expected either of us to do in that situation, Squid Baron."

"Aw, come on! You of all people should know!" the livid cephalopod indignantly yelled back. "You're supposed to wait patiently while I demonstrate the power of my mega-awesome, nigh-unbeatable new move. Then you're supposed to try to figure out a way to avoid or counter it! We've been doing these boss battles for years, genie girl! You should be mad, too! This no-good, rotten, cheating, trigger-happy noob just soiled an ages-old tradition!" Squid Baron bellyached as he turned his attention back to Tay. "I call hacks! Your gun is totally OP! Completely unfair!"

"Oh okay, but lettin' you turn us into bugs with a magic spell from a book that apparently didn't even belong t' you, so we couldn't defend ourselves was a more reasonable choice than shootin' it out o' your slimy tentacles. Cry me a river, Octopus Baron," Tay callously remarked, caring little for Squid Baron's spoilsport tirade… or his species, for that matter.

"River… Oh, I'll give YOU a river to cry in!" Squid Baron shot back, seeming to have gotten an idea as he grinned with malevolent intent. Squid Baron rose high into the air with the determination to do something truly awful.

"Wait… if you're just gonna give me a river, wouldn't that mean you're more or less doin' exactly what I just told you t' do?" Squid Baron merely screamed like a spoiled child in a supermarket in response as he prepared his next attack; the most sensible and rational answer to someone poking a glaring hole in his comeback. "…Okay, then. Just makin' sure," he acknowledged with a look of perplexity and an uncertain shrug. The half-genie, while aware of the imminent danger Squid Baron posed, snickered at the exchange between the soldier and the misfit island boss.

"You've made him mad now, Tay," Shantae informed her partner as they stood and waited for the Baron's next attack, though she couldn't hide her amused grin. "Now he's really gonna turn things up a notch."

"Should I be scared?" he asked with genuine curiosity. "He seems like kind of a pushover. I thought you said he was gonna be tough."

"Oh? Are you saying this was too easy for you?"

"Shantae, I've had harder times pickin' what I wanted t' eat for lunch than I did fightin' this goofy, ill-tempered, beach ball-lookin' thing. Stop playin'," he flatly quipped, shooting her a deadpan look. The young woman giggled at her friend's remark, knowing that he may have caught on a bit sooner than she expected.

"Well… I won't spoil anything since you've been doing such a good job helping me. But I will at least warn you to be prepared."

"And for the record, I'm A SQUID, NOT AN OCTOPUS!" Squid Baron roared his war cry as he came plummeting tentacles-first into the ground with the speed and power of a boulder made of condensed titanium before Tay could utter a reply. With an intensely-destructive *CRASH*, Squid Baron tore through the apparently-hollow floor of the arena, punching a huge gaping hole in it. Before the heroes could react, the ground they stood on crumbled.

"D'AAAAAAAAH!" Shantae screamed in horror as she fell into the abyss before she had a chance to save herself. Tay, though panicked, attempted to grab onto a ledge to keep from falling himself. It was to no avail, unfortunately, as his grip on the silky texture of the rocks slipped like his fingers were coated in oil.

"WAAAAAARGH!" He let out his own terrified scream as he fell into the trench alongside his ally and enemy. It did not take long for him to catch up to Shantae and Squid Baron, who were surprisingly not fighting or panicking when he reached them. Instead, they seemed to be pondering their situation as the three combatants plummeted through woody, dragon saliva-soaked foliage into the dank caverns below.

"…So, in hindsight: This MAY have been a bad idea on my part," Squid Baron admitted, unsure of what his next move was.

"Ya think?" Shantae flatly and rhetorically asked, folding her legs together, as well as crossing her arms. She was clearly not amused by the cephalopod's rather impulsive substitute for a surprise attack, though she noticed something sticking to the squid's appendage. "Hey, what's that on your tentacle?" Squid Baron, puzzled, looked down and saw a dingy yellow slip of paper sticking to one of his front tentacles. He lifted it up and was amazed to see what it was. Doing nothing to hide his malicious motives, he grinned with mischievous glee.

"The super slugger spell I used earlier… I still have a chance!" the cephalopod unwisely announced, alerting his enemies to his next move. He attempted to read it off as they continued to fall, but Tay and Shantae quickly began grappling with the monster for the spell, determined to keep from being turned into slugs. "What-? Stop! You won't ruin my plans this time! Get off!" Squid Baron complained as the duo struggled and wrestled with him. Due to how wet and slippery the Baron was, it was difficult for either hero to get a solid grip on him. Conversely, Squid Baron had his tentacles full, trying to fend off his attackers in the midst of this childish slap-fight while also attempting to turn them into masses of sentient slime. Worse still was that he was becoming more and more agitated as the scuffle dragged on. "Seriously, you guys, stop! You're gonna make me-!" he tried to warn, but it was too late. A spray of thick, oily black liquid squirted out from Squid Baron's ink sac that struck with a goopy *SPLAT*. Tay managed to move out of the way. Shantae, however, was not so lucky.

"Ew, ew, ew, ew, ew!" the rightfully-disgusted girl shouted, immediately trying frantically to wipe the ink off her face, hair, and body. "So gross! Bleagh! And it's warm!"

"Aw, now that's just nasty, bro," Tay admonished as he stopped tangling with Squid Baron and cocked an eyebrow in a mix of perplexity and disgust.

"It's your guys' fault. Don't you know squids shoot ink when they're in imminent danger?" Squid Baron shot back, pouting with embarrassment as they neared the end of their very… eventful fall. Squid Baron had even given up trying to cast the spell.

 ** _Meanwhile…_**

At the base of the waterfall, Sky and Barracuda Joe seemed to be on a much better page (no pun intended).

"Thanks for your advice, Joe. Next time he and I get to chat, I will definitely make my intentions known rather than just flirting and hoping the signals are read. So, you'll keep me posted on the next time you're free to chat?" Sky asked in much higher spirits than when they began talking. "I want to hear more about your travels. I still can't believe you used to be an accomplished interpretive dancer before you joined up with the Ammonian army."

"I've had a long career," the slug man casually acknowledged with a nod of his… slug body before he paused. "Hey, you hear somethin'?" he inquired, picking up a rush of noise in the distance.

"Something like wh-?" Sky was about to ask. In that moment, the stream was met with a disastrous *CRASH* as the Squid Baron flopped into the body of water with all the grace of a miserably failed bungee jump, sending a tidal wave of dragon spit washing over the hapless bird trainer and the mustachioed slug. Tay was next to fall, bouncing off Squid Baron's head and plopping facedown onto the wet ground in front of Sky, who was hard at work recovering from the bombardment of water that ambushed her. Shantae followed suit, also bouncing off Squid Baron's head.

"AAHOGH!" Tay shouted and coughed in pain as Shantae landed with a *THUMP* in a seated position on his back as he tried to get up, pinning him to the ground. Shantae was none the wiser, however, as she still had repulsive squid excretion all over her and was too busy trying to wipe it off.

"Wha…? What happened up there?" Sky asked, managing to regain enough of her composure to assess the situation and noticed her friends in varying states of dismay. Tay was sprawled out on the cavern floor, appearing to be in severe pain as Shantae sat on his back, frantically trying to rub thick black goop off her body. The slightly-disoriented young woman then peered toward the stream to see a mostly-incapacitated giant red squid monster in a dizzied trance, his eyes rolling around with no coordination. The slug man she'd been talking to appeared completely unfazed by the ordeal save for his soaking wet moustache. Once she had a good idea of what was happening, she quickly turned her attention to her friends. "Are you guys okay?"

"I can't get this disgusting goop off of me!" Shantae shouted in a raged panic as she continued to scrub herself off.

"Urgh, my ba-ha-ha-ck, ugh…!" Tay weakly croaked out in terrible agony, barely even able to move.

"Now you guys can't do a thing to stop me!" Squid Baron announced, regaining his senses as he motioned to prepare another attack. He planned on taking full advantage of his sudden… er, advantage over the now-incapacitated heroes. However, he noticed a sizable green fruit sitting at the floor of the waterfall base. It was at this point that Squid Baron realized… that he was incredibly hungry. He had spent the whole week running amok in Naga Mountain, eagerly awaiting Shantae and her boyfriend sidekick to arrive and challenge him to the ultimate showdown of ultimate destiny like no other. As such, he had given himself basically no time to settle down and have a decent meal all day in the wake of his anticipation. He grabbed the 'fruit' and raised it high, about to drop the strange plant into his open mouth.

"No…! Don't… don't eat that," Tay choked out as he noticed Squid Baron about to eat something he shouldn't. He futilely reached for Squid Baron, still stuck under Shantae as he warned the cephalopod to not eat the forbidden 'fruit.' He recognized the item as the grenade he was unable to pick up.

"Why not? You know something about this fruit?" Squid Baron actually paused long enough to ask.

"That AIN'T a fruit... that's a grenade. Eat it an' you'll blow yourself sky high…" Tay warned through pained, labored breaths.

"HMPH! A likely story. You're probably only saying that because this fruit will blow my strength sky high, so I can crush you! A 'Grenade' must be some form of new delicious super food that only grows here! Don't think I didn't see the bunch you have stashed away on your belt. Your mind tricks won't work on me, fool!"

"No…!" he denied, realizing that Squid Baron had no idea what a 'grenade' was. "Grenade means 'kaboom!' That one was on the ground up there… I'm tryin' t' keep you from makin' a big mistake, Octopus…! Put it down…! Now…!"

"You should probably listen to him, Squid Baron. That thing definitely doesn't look like any fruit I've ever seen," Sky attempted to reinforce. "What sense does it make eating strange things you find on the ground simply because they look appetizing, anyway?"

"Tons of it, thank you very much. Finders keepers, as they say," he remarked, grossing out Sky.

"Ew…" she remarked, sticking her tongue out in disgust.

"You must take me for the most gullible sap on the face of this mountain. Little do you simpletons know, I already know the fruit here are delicious, rare, and pack a huge punch when it comes to strength boosts! The Nagas here do a wonderful job cultivating the best vegetation this side of Sequin Land! This fruit will grant me all the power I need to destroy you all without breaking a sweat!" With that boisterous refusal to obey Tay's and Sky's pleas, Squid Baron swallowed the 'fruit' whole and immediately regretted it. "Eugh, that fruit tasted like gunpowder… Ugh…" In an instant, Squid Baron fell violently ill.

"Like I was sayin'… That wasn't a fruit, you idiot…" the soldier chided, recovering as he motioned to get up, prompting Sky to help the still-preoccupied Shantae off his back. "I told you, that was an explosive you just ate," he continued as Squid Baron suddenly belched loud enough that one may have thought he'd broken the sound barrier as he, with a muffled *BOOM*, almost instantly inflated to the size of a hot air balloon.

Sky and Tay ducked for cover, bringing Shantae along as they braced themselves for impact. As expected, Squid Baron's barbaric belch triggered a familiar series of small detonations all over his body before a final, epic *KABOOM* of an explosion rendered the cephalopod defeated. Squid Baron lay unconscious in the near-empty pool of the waterfall, smoke billowing from his open mouth as he shrunk back to his original size.

"What a hassle…" the soldier remarked with a sigh, stretching to try and relieve the pain still lingering from the perilous fall. He was thoroughly astonished to see that Squid Baron survived his fatal mistake, which should have left anyone foolish enough to eat a live grenade a scattered mass of meat chunks sprayed all over the terrain. "He gonna be okay?"

"Yeah, he'll be fine. Boss battle explosions usually never keep anyone down for long, as you might've experienced in your violent sparring match with Shantae earlier," Sky assured as she noticed a single sheet of paper floating through the air. She grabbed it and examined the writing on it. The paper itself was damp and covered with splotches of ink. Unsure of what to make of it, she handed the sheet of paper to Tay. "You know what this might be?"

"Ah, this must be the slug spell he had from earlier," Tay deduced as he got Super Slugger Incantation. "Though I don't know if we could use this t' turn you back…?" he further remarked, referring to Barracuda Joe, who merely tried to shrug as though he had no clue. "Shantae, what do you…? Oh, right…" he trailed off, noticing Shantae busily and fruitlessly scrubbing herself to get Squid Baron's ink out of them.

"Ohh, this stuff's never gonna come out…!" the dismayed young woman complained. "This was my favorite outfit, too… Darn it."

"Sorry about your what happened up there... Maybe when we get back t' your house, we can clean 'em up," Tay consoled, approaching his partner in crime-fighting. "But hey, do you know anything about how t' reverse this?"

"Um…" Shantae paused to think, uncertain of if it was possible to use the spell itself to reverse the effects it caused. "No, I don't think so," she added, remembering something. "Squid Baron said he stole that book from Hypno Baron. Hypno Baron's spells usually only work one way, so far as he's said in past conversations I've had with him. Spell reversals aren't his specialty. Something about never having to undo his magical perfection, ever…" Her answer filled Tay with dread.

"…That means we gotta go look for somebody, if not this Hypno Wizard, t' undo this mess then, huh?"

"Yeah… but for now, I could use a long, hot bath, and a LOT of time to recover from this…" she admitted with the fatigue in her tone evident as she looked around for the Stage Clear platform. "Where's the platform? It usually appears right next to us when we finish…"

"Beats me…" Tay remarked, looking around as curiously as the half-genie. After a few silent moments of looking around, Sky looked upwards and saw something shining far above them and gathered a clue.

"Looks like it might be way up there, where I guess you guys first encountered Squid Baron," she deciphered, causing Tay and Shantae to groan.

"We're gonna have to climb back up there to get it," Shantae woefully informed her friends.

"Can't we just leave?" Tay asked, a bit perplexed about the necessity of the platform. "I mean, I don't know much, but all it's gonna do is send us back t' Scuttle Town, right?"

"Yeah, but using that platform signifies the end of our quest here and grants us an opportunity to save our progress when we run into the Save Guy mid-trip. Otherwise, we'd have to do this all over again."

"…Wow. Just… wow," Tay dryly replied, speechless at the inconvenience, his exhaustion getting the better of him. "I… I don't even wanna ask about why that short guy in the green robes, the long white beard, an' the shiny glasses always waits for us in that empty void right after we finish up a quest. I'm more stuck on why we need t' use those platforms in the first place instead of just scurryin' off once we're done somewhere…"

"Lucky us, Wrench can fly us back up there this time," Sky confidently stated, eliciting a sigh of relief from her best friend. "I'm already here, so I can save you a second hiking trip instead of taking you back to Scuttle Town like I usually do."

"...and yet, another question that will never get an answer. Cool," Tay murmured to himself.

"Oh, thank goodness! You're the best, Sky!" Shantae praised as her friend summoned her gargantuan sherbet-colored transport bird.

"It's what I do. Now get on," she commanded, prompting her friends to climb aboard, though Barracuda Joe did not budge. "Do you need a ride, Joe?"

"Nah. Gonna stay here an' wait. More convenient," the slug bluntly declined. Sky merely nodded in agreement as she motioned for Wrench to soar to the top of the island, where the hole Squid Baron pummeled into existence was. On the farthest corner of what was left of the grassy field was the group's target; the Stage Clear platform. Sky directed Wrench to land just a few feet away and let Shantae and Tayshan off to complete the stage.

"I'm gonna go ahead and do a little bit of recon around the area to see if anything else suspicious makes itself apparent. We can regroup back in Scuttle Town and discuss our findings."

"Sounds like a plan," Tay agreed with a salute to the bird commander.

"See ya in a bit, Sky," Shantae waved as Sky motioned for Wrench to take to the skies to continue searching for clues regarding Risky Boots. With that, the two adventurers were about to climb onto the platform. Although, Shantae was less enthusiastic than usual to do so. "Mind if you be the one to do the 'Stage Clear' pose this time? I'm not in a celebratory kind of mood right now," she requested, still bummed about being covered in squid ink as she continued trying to wipe the goopy sludge from her face.

"I… guess so," the soldier reluctantly agreed, understanding his friend's frustration. "Before we do, though, shouldn't we go back an' let the Nagas know we beat up the octopus an' got rid of his spell book? We should reclaim those flamethrowers while we still can."

"We can always come back and do that," she assured him. "When we complete a quest, the place we visited usually changes so that nothing we do will be undone, so long as we use this platform to confirm it. The only things to be careful about are the enemies and environment hazards. They all respawn as though we never went through."

"Oh. Well in that case, shouldn't we backtrack t'-!" Tay was about to rebut.

"Tayshan!" shouted a familiarly-serpentine voice from the distance. The duo paused, turning their attention across the Squid Baron-sized gap in the mountain summit to see a flamethrower-adorned Naga smiling and waving her hands to catch their attention.

"Sana! Hey!" Tay called over, somehow able to recognize this Naga as the one he became friends with previously.

"You have sssssuccccceeded in dethroning that pessssstilent Sssssquid Baron!" she cheered with relief as some of her friends, which included other Nagas and archers joined her in celebrating. "We may now reconsssstruct our ssssociety in the image the Naga Queen previoussssly essssstablished! We owe you our gratitude!"

"We're glad t' help!" he called back, waving in appreciation as Shantae looked on in total, speechless astonishment.

"As promissssed, you will be granted your weaponssss back!" she informed, keeping her end of their bargain.

"Thank you! Is there a chance y'all can hold onto 'em for a bit, though? We gotta get goin' for now, but we'll be back soon enough!" he requested, though it was laced with uncertainty as he looked at Shantae for confirmation. The half-genie, while still shocked at this turn of events, returned the soldier's glance and nodded to assure him that his choice was correct.

"Come back anytime to reclaim them! You and your friendssss are welcome to return to Naga Mountain in peaccccce!" Sana disarmingly extended.

"Alright! Sounds good! We'll be on our w-!" Tay almost bade.

"Thank you, kind sir and madam!" a familiar purple-skinned archer called, stepping up to stand beside Sana as she waved to the heroes.

"Priyanka!" Tay called.

"Yes, it is I! Your efforts have paved the way for us to attain true peace and tranquility! It is all thanks to you and your foretold weapon of mass destruction that the tyrannical Squid Baron has been vanquished! If there is anything I may offer you, you may ask of me freely, and I will be certain to deliver it to you!" she offered.

"Uh, r-right..." Tay nodded with a nervous titter at Priyanka's poor choice of words regarding her description of his weapons. He noticed some of the Nagas, mermaids, and archers gasping in shock and conversing with one another about what the archer woman meant, evidencing that not all of the mountain's inhabitants were aware of this 'prophecy.' However, Shantae was reminded of an important mission-related detail.

"Hey, you wouldn't know if those druids at that Prickle Stitch Valley place know anything about how to undo a magic spell or change a slug back to a human being, would you? Or at least, how we can get there?" Shantae asked, hoping to get some clues on how to complete their latest side quest.

"Good question," Tayshan approved with a pensive nod. "I can't believe I didn't think t' ask that..."

"I am afraid I do not know," Priyanka somberly answered. "The Prickle Stitch Valley is accessible only by individuals whose destinies are linked to it. I have not been able to return there since I was enlightened of the arrival of your ally and his world-ending weaponry in our land, as well as the approaching conflict with the Queen of the Seven Seas. I am sorry that I am unable to provide you with the answers you seek," she apologized with a bow toward the duo, though her reply again caused concern amongst the crowd of adorable mythological women behind her.

"Darn... Well alright, we'll keep our eyes peeled," she assured, waving to her she and Tayshan prepared to board the Stage Clear platform. "Thanks for at least letting us know about this place! Hopefully, we'll be able to find it!"

"I am glad to assist you! If there is anything else I may do for you at any time, you may find me in the area where you first arrived on Naga Mountain! I will await your return!" she suggested with a wave.

"We'll keep you in mind!" Shantae assured. "Any help you can give us is appreciated!"

"Sana, Please keep those flamethrowers safe an' in your possession until we can come back t' get them!" Tay requested of the now-friendly Naga equipped with one of his world's weapons.

"You have our word," Sana assured. "We will guard your deviccccces with our lives until you ssssssee fit to reclaim them, Tayshan! We bid you farewell until our nexxxxxt encounter!"

"Till next time!" Tay bade as he and Shantae finally boarded the platform.

"Looks like we're all wrapped up here," Shantae observed, breathing a sigh of relief. "Now, when we come back, it looks like we won't have to fight them anymore. We can just pass through and get what we need. That'll make things much easier on us. Good thing you talked to them and worked things out."

"Ah, well... I'm just glad they were willin' t' do anything other than try t' kill us," Tay replied, unwilling to entertain the idea of coming back to a series of hostile Naga Mountain residents after what he and Shantae had been through. "Who knows what would've happened if we just fought our way up here."

"You can say that again," she agreed with a nod. "Let's get going, though. Strike your pose and end the adventure for us, please."

"Are... you sure you don't wanna do your pose?" he asked Shantae, fearing that he may not be able to activate the platform as she'd shown in their previous adventure... and that he might look silly trying.

"No, this one's all yours. Just do what comes naturally to you, and you'll get it," she instructed him. "Plus, the longer I'm soaked in Squid Baron's ink, the more I'm reminded of how long our next bath is gonna have to be until it's all washed off me. Speaking of, is there any in my hair?" she asked with utmost concern that Tay could practically feel just from the sad, pouting look she gave him. He hesitated for a moment before very tactfully delivering his reply.

"...Now, which answer will cause you t' panic less? Yes, there's a ton? Or, yes, but after maybe a day's worth of hardcore scrubbin', your hair will eventually go back from black t' purple?" Tay warily asked, by this point well aware of the splotches of ink coating the poor girl's lavender locks. At that very uncomfortable confirmation, Shantae sighed in intense vexation.

"It's a good thing I got that shampoo and conditioner..." she mumbled, rubbing her forehead in burgeoning frustration. "Can you help me wash it out when we get home?" she innocently asked, shocking the young man almost beyond words.

"You... you trust me enough t' wash your hair? I-I mean, of course I'll help but... I-I don't wanna do somethin' t' mess it up worse," he admitted, his face getting a tad warm. "Also, are you... sure you'd really want my assistance?"

"I'm 100% sure I'll need your help. I need to scrub everywhere to get this ink off me," she plainly explained. "Squid ink is notoriously hard to clean off, and I don't think I have the energy to scrub it all off my body and my hair. That would take me close to a full day. Plus, I'm sure it's probably in areas I can't even reach... Unless, you want me to wash my hair, so you can help scrub the ink off my body," she innocuously requested. The instant Tayshan heard this suggestion, he nearly fainted from the absurd levels of shock he experienced. Seriously, the guy was about to burst out of his skin over something so simple as helping a girl clean herself up. However, he brought his hyperactive anxiety down just enough to attempt to play it cool.

"...S-sure," he agreed, acting as though the request didn't faze him in the slightest. "I uh... I think I can handle that. Plus, nobody knows how t' keep your hair in peak whippin' shape quite like you do," he further stammered, scratching his cheek in wonder at how such an arrangement would work.

"Thank you, Tayshan," she responded in appreciation. "It's a little weird of a request, I know, but I could really use the help in this case. This'll be the only time I ask. I promise. Are... you okay with that?" she asked with a sense of apprehension.

"Yeah, sure," he answered, nervously continuing to play it cool. "N-no big deal. It ain't like you're askin' me t' drink a cup of ink straight from the source or somethin'," he babbled with a disquieted chuckle, followed by a subtle anxious gulp. Shantae, reading his apprehension as nonchalance, giggled with him.

"Awesome," she concluded, cheering up a little. "Now, let's go home. I can FEEL the tingles of a nice, long, hot bath calling."

"Okey doke, then..." he uneasily accepted as he set to complete his most daunting challenge of striking a level-concluding pose. He had no idea what he was doing, so he followed his friend's suggestion and did what came to mind. He stood tall on the platform, folding one arm behind his back while using his other to salute to no one in particular.

"Mission Accomplished!" he proclaimed as he heard a stylish congratulatory fanfare blare out from thin air. Before he could question this, he and Shantae were teleported away, concluding their most perilous (and most ridiculous) quest yet. I bet you're asking how things could get more outlandish and utterly preposterous, aren't you? Well, fear not, diligent reader(s)! There is indeed more to come, as our heroes tirelessly take strides to find and stop Sequin Land's self-proclaimed Pirate Queen from wreaking utter havoc upon the citizens of Sequin Land. Stay tuned!


	5. Interlude:Misappropriation & Machination

Interlude: Misappropriation & Machination

LOCATION: [TELL ANYONE, AND I'LL GUT YOU WITH A RUSTY DAGGER AND USE YOUR ENTRAILS AS FISHING LURES], SEQUIN LAND (She definitely didn't threaten to barbarically eviscerate me for spilling her secrets, I swear)

DATE: SEPTEMBER 16TH, 16 P.G.F. [I MEAN IT]

TIME: 1310 HOURS (Help me…)

"PULL!" screamed a domineering, feminine voice, its owner barking an order at a nearby bat creature. The servile little red-garbed minion obediently threw a gray frisbee-like disc high into the air. As the object ascended, the woman carefully aimed her semi-automatic rifle, studying every aspect of her target's flight pattern. As soon as the frisbee reached the apex of its ascent, the gunslinger pulled the trigger. Instantly, a fiery barrage of rapid *BANGs* rang out, echoing throughout the spacious cavern in which she stood, though she nearly lost control of the firearm as it jumped and jittered in her hands with every shot fired. The hail of rounds propelled from the weapon rocketed toward the object at such a blinding speed that they couldn't be followed by the naked eye. In less than a second, two of the rounds from the sport shooter's rifle struck the disc, causing it to crack and shatter into bits that rained back to the cavern floor. Observing her work, the woman spoke again.

"Incredible… These weapons are far more powerful than I could've ever dreamed…" a certain sticky-fingered, dimension-invading pirate captain mused to herself as she examined the semi-automatic rifle in her hands. "And so far, I've mainly only tested the handguns and rifles!" she further soliloquized, admiring the weapon as she disengaged the magazine. "The only problems here are the absurd levels of recoil and the woefully-low supply of extra ammunition… The problem presents itself with every weapon I've tested, too. Hmm… If I hope to make full use of these guns, then I'll need to find a way to optimize their usability for myself and my men… Hopefully before we run out of ammo," she observed, peering into the magazine to see only three rounds that hadn't been used. "We've gone a full three days or so, and not even I have made much headway in mastering anything other than the handguns; everything else nearly flies out my grasp."

Alright, so before you get too lost, Risky Boots was hard at work in her secret base, attempting to figure out how to utilize the contents of her stolen arsenal by herself. As she already pointed out, she'd been having some trouble getting accustomed to the firepower of even the smallest of her firearms.

"Laying low instead of immediately launching a full-scale assault may have been the right choice, after all," Risky begrudgingly admitted with a frustrated sigh. "I suppose it's good that the ammo from my flintlock can at least be used on the handguns after a few small tweaks to them, so that's something. It may also potentially work for the rifles and even the shotguns, but that remains to be seen…" she further pondered, shifting her attention to the heavily-damaged Tinker-Portal that droves of Tinkerbats were trying their hardest to repair. "And until my Tinker-Portal is back in commission, there's no way to get more of the correct ammunition. Heck, I still have to find out how the coordinates set in my device sent me all the way to that parallel dimension in the first place…" she observantly remarked to herself when she noticed one injured Tinkerbat, evidenced by its tattered clothing, flying in with a propeller pack and landing in front of its ferocious, cutthroat leader.

"What took you so long?" she asked, immediately irritated by its tardiness. "You and the rest of your squad were supposed to be back here three days ago after disposing of that impudent punk from the other dimension. Speaking of, where IS the rest of your squad?"

The Tinkerbat, in response to Risky's inquiry, made a series of gestures and nonverbal cues to explain the situation.

"What do you MEAN he escaped and defeated the rest of your squad!?" Risky roared loudly enough to startle not only the Tinkerbat in front of her, but her entire legion, each of them immediately halting their respective tasks as they drew their attention to the irate buxom buccaneer.

The Tinkerbat, understandably frantic by this point, made a few more gestures that provided Risky with more details of the blunder that led to a certain prisoner's escape.

"…You've got to be kidding me…" she mumbled in observable annoyance, lowering her head and pinching the bridge of her nose. "You're seriously telling me he cut the ropes off himself despite you tying his arms up, ran off into the desert with nothing but the tattered remains of the rope that was SUPPOSED to be holding him in place, and… and used it to bludgeon you and most of your brigade into submission until you—or at least, your squad cornered him in that tower? That about right?"

The Tinkerbat nodded, its brow sweaty from immeasurable fear and anxiety stemming from its embarrassing failure at its one job.

"Okay… So, I imagine that, even with that baffling barrage of bungles and boners, you managed to at THE VERY LEAST, take him out like I asked you to?" she asked in a very mature and eloquent manner that did not at all sound totally gross. If you're laughing, stop it. There is nothing funny about the way she phrased that statement. At all.

Ahem! A-anyway, the Tinkerbat frightfully shook its head, indicating that it and its squad pulled one more boner to put the icing on the cake of disappointment. Hey! Stop laughing! Stop it right now. There is nothing funny about that Tinkerbat's massive boner. In the least. This is a very serious discussion here, and such boorish humor is n-not appreciated around these parts... Heh heh heh... That's not me laughing, I just had something in my throat. Totally seriously, actually.

"…Sometimes, I wonder why I let you imbeciles handle some of the jobs I give you. That's just peachy…" she remarked with another sigh of great vexation, so angry that one could see the veins protruding from her forehead as she massaged it. "So now, not only do we not have a portal to get more ammo for our new guns, in addition to having nowhere near enough experience to even use our arsenal, we also have that hapless, overzealous idiot from the other dimension wandering around Tassel Town like he belongs there…"

Of course, the thoroughly-mortified Tinkerbat made more frantic gestures that it hoped would curb her wrath.

"You'd better swear on the Pirate Master's grave that that boy is buzzard food by now, because if it turns out he somehow survived long enough to miraculously get rescued by that irksome little ponytailed half-breed pipsqueak, I will personally attach ten cannonballs to each of your ankles, and then kick you off the plank myself!" she roared again, further petrifying her entire army as her words echoed throughout the cavern. "We don't even have time to go over there and search for the body, because we're two days behind schedule!" she furiously berated. Just as she was done chewing this Tinkerbat out, however, she turned and noticed another one off to the side, clumsily brandishing a rocket launcher as though it had trouble lifting it, much less aiming it.

"HEY! PUT THAT THING DOWN BEFORE-!" but it was too late. The offending Tinkerbat accidentally dropped the incredibly dangerous weapon, causing it to fire the round that was already loaded into it. With a *FWOOSH* of pure destructive firepower, the rocket ripped across the base, narrowly missing Risky Boots as she dropped her rifle and ducked for cover. The rocket, within the span of another second, collided with the wall on the other side, where another group of Tinkerbats had been working on tampering with some of the handguns from the weapons cache.

With an ear-splitting *KABOOM*, the warhead exploded, annihilating the group of Tinkerbats and blasting an enormous, smoldering hole in the wall big enough that a team of full-grown hippopotami could walk through it with ease. Afternoon sun rays shined through the hole, providing a much more efficient source of luminous light than the torches pitched along the walls of Risky's makeshift bunker. Or course, Risky was as enthused as ever to witness her men screwing up and, as such, handled it as she did best.

"I WILL BUTCHER YOUR HIDE AND FEED IT TO THE SHARKS!" she again screamed as she got up and observed the damage, incensed by the incompetence of her men that nearly did her in. She raced toward the now-petrified Tinkerbat, snatching the empty rocket launcher from its creepy little claws. "I specifically told you never to even touch these things unless I said so! We barely have enough ammo as it is, and it's cod-brained, butter-fingered dipsticks like you who ruin it for everyone!" she furiously chastised, for some reason unhappy with her soldier's mistake. "You'll be joining your mission-failing pal over there in earning an early watery grave if you keep these idiotic antics up, do you hear me!?"

This second Tinkerbat, frightened into a sweaty, quivering panic, rapidly nodded its head like someone was forcing it to do so. With this sycophantic act of affirmation, Risky took a moment to mentally step back and take a breath before examining the gaping, crumbling, smoking, tank-sized hole in her base, where some of her remaining men were already on the task of putting out the smoke with buckets of water.

"At the very least, I know that these rockets are a much bigger force to be reckoned with than I'd have thought," she observed, looking at the brighter side of things… kinda-sorta literally. "Though, it further demonstrates that we need a ton more room for us to practice. That only adds to the problem we already have with the limited ammunition. I know a place a fair distance from here, but I don't want to waste too much time and resources just practicing away…" the Queen of the Seven Seas mused, considering her next steps. She pulled out a tattered, yet functional paper map from her breastplate (don't ask me how she fit that in there), unfurled it, and briefly studied it. Within a moment, she put the map away and made another announcement.

"Avast, men!" the Pirate Queen commanded, again halting all operations of her Tinkerbats around the base. "We're going to need more space and time than I previously calculated to master our new arsenal before we launch Operation: Bombardment of Artillery Rainstorms and Fusillades Across Regional Territories! For the next two days, we will focus our attention on modifying our equipment for more accessible use and gearing up for a training trip to another designated location! We still aren't ready to make ourselves known just yet, but so long as there haven't been many terribly huge hiccups, we're still moving toward carrying out our plan by the end of the week while the designated team continues to work tirelessly toward repairing the Tinker-Portal! Are we clear!?"

Rather than be met with a resounding and collective vote of verbal affirmation, the legion of Tinkerbats stood tall and silently saluted their leader in unison before hurriedly rearranging themselves to complete the tasks Risky gave them.

"As much as it digs in at me to delay our inevitable conquest of Sequin Land, I have to plan this out as carefully as I can. Too many times, have I relied on manipulating that gullible brat for my own gain, only for it to eventually backfire on me. This time, the proverbial lamp is in my hands," she murmured to herself. "In the case that she HAS somehow caught wind of my latest caper, I'd only hope the traps my other squads have set for her will slow her down enough to where it buys me a good deal of time. Who even knows if that insubordinate alien boy is even alive… With my luck, he probably is, and she could very well have linked up with him by now and had him spill his guts about what he witnessed of me, but I've only got a hunch to go on… Granted, the chances of that happening are incredibly slim, so I won't sweat it. For now, I initiate the next phase in my plan…" she concluded before walking toward a group of Tinkerbats that were disassembling a series of handguns and shotguns to modify for their unsavory purposes.

As we can clearly see, Risky Boots was well on the move herself in mobilizing her bolstered might. She was more determined than ever to make sure it played out in her favor, too. Our heroes were on the move and were already working their hardest foil her plans before she realized them. However, the race is on, and the clock is ticking. At this rate, who knows what will happen next? Will Risky remain unfound and be allowed to tinker around with her stolen weapons collection in ironic peace leading to inevitable war? Will she find trouble in the form of her enemies discovering her and her hideout before her devious plot comes to fruition? Will she actually attach cannonballs to that poor Tinkerbat's feet and kick him off the plank of her ship if (let's not kid ourselves... WHEN) she finds out about the fate of Sequin Land's interdimensional resident alien? Will my internal organs remain un-gutted? I don't know! Stop asking me so many intrusive questions! Stay tuned and find out! In the next episode—er, chapter! See ya!


	6. Search & Seizure

Chapter 5: Search & Seizure

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN LIGHTHOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 18TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1030 HOURS

Three days had gone by since our heroes valiantly dueled the ink-squirting, magic-abusing political despot known as Squid Baron and the two had found some downtime between subsequent environmental expeditions to recuperate as they planned their next move. At this point, the two had been contemplating where they would begin their search for any clues regarding a Super Slugger Spell Reversal, in addition to where they would go next to search for clues to Risky Boots's whereabouts. This time, we join the dynamic duo in the midst of some rigorous training routines, accompanied by none other than Shantae's science-loving legal guardian.

"27…!" Tay grunted with considerable effort, having been doing push-ups in the warm autumn sun just outside of his team leader's lighthouse. "28…! Hah…!"

"Come on, Tay! Just two more! You can do it!" Shantae cheered on as she sat comfortably on the soldier's back with her legs folded. From the looks of it, she was serving as extra weight for Tayshan while he exercised.

"29…! Haaaagh!" Tay growled, giving it his all as he lowered himself to the ground.

"One more, then you're done all three sets! Push it, Tayshan! This is the final stretch!"

"Haaaaaagh…!" Tay growled again, struggling to push back up for the final time, but refusing to give up. After a burst of adrenaline that would normally indirectly cause someone to faint… "30!" he triumphantly shouted through a torrent of workout-related fatigue and burning before immediately letting his arms give way. He plopped flat on the grass face-down with Shantae still sitting on his back. His breaths were heavy, deep, and labored as though he'd pulled a truck-sized boulder for a mile. Concerned that continuing to sit on him would contribute to his breathing difficulty, the young woman climbed off him and brought herself to her feet.

"That's incredible, Tay! You did a total of 90 push-ups and 60 squats with me on your back and shoulders, respectively! Not to mention the 60 bicep curls you did, using me as your weight! I'm impressed!"

"Ye… yep…!" he tiredly accepted, flipping over, but still breathing heavily.

"You gonna be alright there, though? You almost seem like you're ready to conk out any second," she humorously asked, observing his exhausted disposition.

"Don't count me out yet," he countered, sitting up and taking a deep breath. "After a couple years, I'm used t' pushin' myself like this."

"My word… What a peculiar phenomenon…" Mimic commented, staring intently into some strange-looking device.

"What'd you find, Uncle?" Shantae asked.

"It appears that there are indeed some unusual characteristics regarding this young man's energy signature," he murmured, approaching the soldier with the device in hand.

"Hm?" Tay hummed in wonder, having little idea as to what Mimic referred.

"What unusual characteristics?"

"Well… for one thing, my readings on my electrocardiogram are off the charts! Drawing comparatively between the incredibly low pace of your resting heart rate and the nigh-supersonic speed of your active rate, Mr. Tayshan, this is abnormal; no human of your stature or with physical ability like yours has had readings like this. None that I've met in my time, at least. Shantae's readings don't even come out like yours have."

"Sorry t' ask, but could you explain it a bit more?" Tay inquired, unable to grasp the concept of Mimic's observations from his statement.

"Of course. A human's resting rate should be somewhere around 60 beats per minute, as per average. An active athlete's is usually down to 40. Shantae, being half genie and a seasoned explorer and adventurer, has a resting rate averaging at 25. That's usually a cause for concern, as that would be far too low for any human, which leads me to yours…"

"Uh-oh…"

"I don't quite know if it's a cause for alarm, lad, but your resting heart rate over multiple tests have yielded an average of 20 beats a minute. One isolated test even showed it as being 15!"

"Whoa, what?" Tay asked, flabbergasted by the revelation as he clutched his chest with a hand.

"That's super low!" Shantae remarked, just as dumbfounded as her comrade.

"But get this, young'uns! Your active heart rate reported an average of well over 250 beats per minute, as opposed to the average 200 for someone your age! Such a wild, excessive difference between rates is unheard of for anyone without a serious medical condition here in Sequin Land! And you told me you had no preexisting heart conditions, correct?"

"Yeah, I don't have anything," Tay answered, confused by the news as he brought himself to his feet. "Not that I know of, anyway…"

"Most peculiar… and speaking of peculiar, my Arcanogram—my magic signature-reading mechanism—has picked up faint traces of both Light and Dark Magic residing in you at this very moment!" That revelation floored both Shantae and Tayshan.

"What?" they both questioned in unified shock.

"The signals have been weak, but there's something there. During your resting periods, I could pick nothing up. However, it would appear that some semblances of magic manifest when you're under high stress. Typically, any magic-wielding being would have either Light Magic or Dark Magic exclusively. The presence of both in your body, even in trace amounts, raises some very pressing concerns."

"So… is it possible that he has some form of magic ability, Uncle?" Shantae asked, astounded by the revelation.

"I… wouldn't jump to conclusions," he uncertainly replied, scratching his head. "It isn't unfeasible, though. Maybe you can provide us with a bit of background on how it feels to use your magic to clarify."

"Well… it really depends on what I'm doing when I use it. If I'm dancing or transforming, it feels like a dense, thick humidity that surrounds me while I dance. If it's me using a fire-based spell, it's like a warm flow of energy traveling from my core to my hands. If it's a lightning-based one, I feel like there's a steady, harmless flowing current of electricity coming from my body. That usually goes for lightning spells and just about everything else I can do. It's sort of a tingly feeling mixed with sunlight-like warmth."

"Hmm, yes… This is what you said you felt at least a couple times, right, Mr. Tayshan? In the form of some inexplicable electric current running through your body?"

"Yep. But what confuses me most is how much stronger I feel, even though it's mostly in short bursts… I don't know if it has t' do with the magic or my polarized heart rates, though… Not to mention how some o' the damage I took on past trips felt like nothin'."

"Well, lad… much as I'd hate to say it, you're the first individual I've ever seen this happen to. I don't have much more than a theory or two to run off of, and even those would require months, if not years of research to prove or disprove."

"We don't have that kind of time, though," Shantae interjected, her concern evident.

"As I am aware. I'll try to run the numbers and decipher what exactly is causing your body to react to this world the way that it is. What would really help is if we had access to that portal. I have a sneaking suspicion that your trip here through it may have played a significant factor in your physiological abnormalities… and even the presence of magic in you. To be crystal clear, though, you are…?"

"Completely, undeniably, 100% human. No heritage of genie or other fairytale-related creature whatsoever," the young serviceman confidently assured.

"Right… Considering that, here are my theories. One: There is an unambiguous discrepancy between your world and ours, which may explain the changes in your vitals, as well as your physical strength. However, that doesn't take into consideration the magic in you or whether that tingling feeling is related to it."

"What's the other theory?"

"Theory number two is that you were imbued with an unstable mixed magic signature because of the Light and Dark Magic shards in my Dynamo that Risky repurposed into a world-invading portal. As a result, the magic is in constant flux, causing these inconsistent bursts of strength you're exhibiting, as well as the numerous physiological changes you reported to me. Why this magic only appears to surface while you're under duress is still a mystery, however…"

"…That makes about as much sense as I think it's goin' to, at this point," Tay mulled, nodding his head as he studied his hands. "Thanks for your input, Mr. Mimic, sir."

"Yeah, thanks, Uncle. Do you think you'll be able to crack this mystery while you work on the Heart Monitor?" Shantae queried.

"You kids can count on me, without a doubt!" Mimic proclaimed, trying not to sound too excited about the scientific challenge presented to him. "That Heart Monitor may prove more useful than we initially thought, now that this is on the table. I only hope this further convinces you to search for the remaining pieces, my boy." At that, Tay chuckled.

"Yeah, it does…" he admitted. "Speakin' of, I'm sorry about bein' so short with you last time, sir… I was out o' line."

"Ah, it's all peanut butter on the chocolate, son!"

"…What?"

"I mean that you never know just how good something might be until you experience it for yourself."

"…Y-yeah, I think I get it," he responded with a cocked eyebrow and a scratch of his cheek, possibly not actually getting the expression.

"Finally, we're on the same page! Anyhow, I'll be taking my leave," Mimic bade as he collected his materials and got set to return to his workshop. "I'll continue to study this anomaly while you two are off defending the land from evil, and I'll pop in with any answers I might find. Best of luck, now!"

"Bye, Uncle!" Shantae bade back while Tay wordlessly waved. Mimic gave a jolly smile and nod as he turned to cross the creaky wooden bridge leading from the lighthouse and traverse the grassy, palm tree-laden plains in the distance. Once Mimic was out of sight, Tay and Shantae turned to one another.

"Your uncle's a cool guy," Tay professed, to Shantae's humor.

"Once you get past all the cryptic metaphors and the confusing science babble," she joked, poking fun at her sidekick for his previous conversation with the retired Relic Hunter.

"Oh, hardy-har-har," he sarcastically remarked, having gotten used to his tour guide's offhanded quips by this point. "Stop readin' my thoughts. Anyway, I hope he figures somethin' out. I'm itchin' t' figure out what's goin' on…"

"That makes three of us, including Uncle. If it really is true that you have Light AND Dark Magic in you, I wonder what that means about its effects on your alignment…"

"My alignment? What do you mean?"

"Well, it's pretty cut-and-dry. Good magic wielders, like most genies—myself included—have exclusive access to Light Magic, but no access to Dark Magic unless under special circumstances because they counteract each other. On the other hand, evil beings, like some of the monsters we faced, Tinkerbats, and especially Risky Boots, are filled to the brim with Dark Magic. They may not always be able to actually USE that magic the same way I use mine, but it's a big part of what drives them to be evildoers. Likewise, they can't use Light Magic because of the mutually adversarial relationship between them. If you have tiny traces of both in you right now…"

"What, you're sayin' I might be neutral?" he guessed, becoming slightly nervous at her inference. "Because I don't feel like I'd ever be driven t' become anything like pirate girl, no matter how bad a time I had here."

"That's good to know. I was thinking more along the lines of it maybe being a thing where, depending on the things you do, they strengthen one kind of magic while weakening the other."

"Hm… That's a good point. Still, if that was the case, then I figure there'd be some changes in how the magic would feel. I'm nowhere close to as experienced as you are, an' I have no idea beyond what you told me about how Light Magic is supposed t' feel…"

"Well… to tell you the truth… I know what Dark Magic feels like, too," Shantae hesitantly admitted.

"Do you now?" Tay remarked, taken aback by his partner's revelation.

"Yeah. Not too long ago, Risky used the Dynamo as a Magic Polarizer on me that turned me completely evil by turning every ounce of Light Magic in me into Dark Magic."

"…Why am I not surprised…?" Tay asked himself, angered at the knowledge of yet another one of that conniving pirate's dirty tricks.

"The sudden change in my energy nearly had me destroy Scuttle Town in a blind, vicious rage, though I can't remember much of what happened when I became evil. All I can remember is that my body felt like it was on fire… like every inch of my skin was burning with an unquenchable thirst for violence and destruction… and Uncle and my friends would've been the first people my overwhelming wrath would've been taken out on… It was completely opposite of me in every way…" she explained, cringing at the harrowing memory. "Thankfully, my friends got through to me in whatever way they did and restored me to normal before I completely lost control. I can't even imagine what would've happened if I was allowed to stay in that evil form. I… I don't want to, either…"

"Jeez…" Tay barely found it in him to comment, astonished to hear such a traumatic experience. "I'm… sorry you had t' go through that," he cautiously offered, unable to even fathom the torment his mentor must've been put through. "Even more reason for that witch t' never be allowed t' get her way. We don't have t' keep talkin' about this if it makes you uncomfortable…"

"It's okay now, Tay… I'm learning how to keep that from ever happening to me again."

"Right… If there's anything I can do for ya, don't hesitate t' let me know."

"Thank you, Tayshan. A-anyway, have you ever felt anything like that since you've been here?"

"Hmm… No, nothin' like that at all," he uncertainly denied, trying his hardest to think back to a situation where he might've summoned up some form of Dark Magic. "Nothin' beside the time we fought off that horde o' wild animals an' troll things in the woods… and maybe our sparrin' matches… There might've been a tiny bit of it when we fought the octopus… an' I definitely felt it just a little while ago, when we worked out. Even then, it's just been tinglin' like electricity that I've felt. No burnin' desire t' destroy anything. I… guess I'll try t' keep a lookout for if it does happen in the case that there is magic in my body…"

"Good. Maybe we don't have to worry about you being tempted to turn evil again, in that case," she concluded with a sigh of relief, though her comment hit a sour spot for Tayshan.

"Evil again? What do you mean 'evil again?'" he queried, put off by the statement.

"You know, like you were telling me the other day. About how you used to commit crimes?" she elaborated, causing Tay to go momentarily silent with mild anger before he reeled himself in, figuring that she meant no harm.

"…Shantae, I thought I clarified that. I was never a villain of any kind. I struggled t' find a sense o' purpose in my younger days, an' I did the things I did because I was tryin' t' survive," he explained.

"Right, I remember. You said it yourself that you were good until a certain point, after which you became a bad guy because of the circumstances until you found a reason to switch back, no?"

"No," Tay rebutted, visibly irritated as he was confused by such a myopic understanding of his background that he thought he'd dealt with when the two first began adventuring together. "I said I was never a bad guy. I was just a kid who made a lot o' the wrong choices. Where did you get the idea I used to be evil, anyway?"

"Well… That's just kind of what I figured. I've never heard of anyone with a background like yours," she admitted, picking up on her friend's discomfiture with her assertion. However, the half-genie found it to be an opportunity to assess his alignment for clarity. "And, based on what you shared with me, it sounded like you were really struggling with finding a way to prove yourself as a good guy. It's why you wanted my help with becoming a hero, right?" At that, Tay breathed a sigh of moderate vexation before he answered.

"…Excuse me for sayin' this, but I think you got me pegged wrong, homegirl," he rebutted. "After everything you've seen o' me since we started workin' together this past few days, you're tellin' me that you had the idea that I was just some lost soul in need o' savin'?"

"No, not at all. I thought that was your idea, though I wouldn't put it in those words."

"No, my idea was that we work together t' stop Risky Boots from usin' a stolen weapons collection for her own disastrous purposes. I never said I was lookin' for guidance on how t' be good," the serviceman clarified while trying to keep his cool.

"Oh. Okay," Shantae plainly replied, somewhat hurt and unsettled by his aggressive tone, in addition to the rather rude remark. Seeing her reaction caused Tayshan to take a mental step back.

"Look… I… I'm sorry about that," he apologized. "What I meant was that I understand what it means t' be good, but that I thought bein' honest with you right off the bat would help us sort of… I dunno, solidify our workin' relationship while breakin' the ice. Y'know, so you wouldn't be surprised about anything I'd done in the past once I told you about it."

"Oh, I see now," she commented with a nod, relaxing herself a bit. "You were just concerned about how I'd react to the things you shared with me while we worked together. That makes sense. But then, other than that, why even share those things with me, if you weren't looking for help with turning over a new leaf?"

"It's not that I couldn't use a couple pointers on doin' the right thing, don't get me wrong," Tay clarified once again. "I appreciate what you've shown me an' helped me learn thus far, an' I'll admit that I hope t' learn more from you. It's just… I really don't want you t' see me as a bad guy because o' what I told you about my life before we met."

"I can understand that, too, Tay, and I'd be glad to continue showing you the way. But, at some point, you have to take a look at your past for yourself, not for what you think I see of it."

"Fair, I guess, but I'm a bit concerned that you're seein' things in a way I really don't appreciate…"

"Trust me, Tayshan, I don't see you as any less of a friend or ally because of your past. I told you that before."

"That's not my poi-!" he tried to correct.

"Although, it sort of brings me back to our first talk," she reminisced. "I remember telling you at some point that your situation was out of your control. I also remember you telling me that once your parents were gone, you did your best to shape up. But then, what you told me after that the next day, with the trouble you got into… It makes me wonder. Was shifting your outlook on your situation a quick, easy change of pace for you, or did you take some time to adapt?"

"I… It took time to adapt," he confessed. "A lot more time than I'd care t' admit. I did say I managed t' get into a lot o' trouble along the way. All things considered, you don't just decide t' live a new life one day an' shed every aspect of your old one overnight. There were a lot of… gradual processes involved."

"Interesting. So, that kind of gets me to wonder about some of the things you did back then over the course of that time."

"Such as?" he defensively challenged.

"I don't want to pick at examples, Tayshan," Shantae countered. "At least, not yet. In general, the things you admitted to me and told me you weren't proud of… Were you aware that they were wrong?" she carefully asked, aware of how delicate the topic was.

"Of course," Tay plainly answered. "At least, on certain moral scales, but come on."

"Then, I hope you don't mind me asking this, but… Did… you ever stop and think about what you were doing during those times, or maybe how they affected people around you?"

"Not… really," he cautiously admitted, uncertain of why she would ask him such a thing. "I was focused primarily on myself back then. Myself, my parents, an' some o' the other kids in my neighborhood."

"Understandable," she nodded, finding a point to elaborate on. "I… I don't want to upset you by saying this, but if you knew those things were wrong, or against the law, or were aware they'd harm other people, but you did them anyway, then I don't think they could be considered anything but… y'know, bad," she meticulously reasoned, unwittingly lighting a fire of frustration in the soldier's gut.

"I… don't think I like what you're implyin' here," he shot back, growing steadily more perturbed. "I thought you said you weren't gonna judge me about my past. I trusted you with what I said, hopin' you'd understand me."

"I'm not judging, Tayshan. I promise you, I'm not. If I did that, we wouldn't have become friends," she defended. "And believe me, I'm glad you shared those things with me. I know it must've taken a lot of courage to do that. I just wonder… if some of the things you told me about could really be considered 'good,' even with the reasons you had for doing them."

"Meanin' what?"

"Well… I just feel that… that there's a definite line between good and bad. Some of the things you told me about either straddle, or outright cross that line. I wonder… if you took those things into consideration at some point or another," she reasoned, becoming more cautious as the conversational territory became tenser.

"You're askin' me if I ever thought about whether I was truly good or bad in my younger days? Because I gave you that answer already," he sternly rebutted, his patience dwindling as he grew more uncomfortable with the topic at hand.

"Yeah, but justifiable bad deeds don't equal good deeds, Tay," she replied, finally getting to one of the focal points of her discussion with him. "I'm sure there are plenty of good reasons people give for doing bad things, but that has to come at a price. If I were to do something bad, and then give a good reason for it, then should I be able to walk free without consequence? Should I be allowed to do it again?"

"Shantae, it ain't that simple," he argued. "If I had better options or a bigger knowledge base at the times that I did some o' the things I did, then you can be sure I'd always pick the option that was most beneficial and/or would cause the least amount o' harm. Sadly, it wasn't like that for me. It was mostly 'do bad for the greater good' or 'do bad with self-servin' intent.' If it was that pure an' simple t' understand good an' evil, then at what point do you draw the line between the two? Better yet, what would you classify your past self as, once you drew that line?"

"Good point. Those are tricky questions, but good ones, too," she acknowledged with a contemplative nod. "I don't know where I'd draw the line, to be honest with you. I won't pretend some of my actions back when I was little couldn't be considered evil as well, either. Being made to pull pranks and help other kids steal things from stores, as well as exploiting my powers just so I could fit in… Yeah, they're not good by any means, and I could never justify them with all I've learned up till now. But, I never chose to harm anyone deliberately."

"Alright, but you didn't answer my question about where you draw the line between good an' bad," he pointed out. "Not meanin' t' hurt somebody is irrelevant if you did anyway. You're basically sayin' that-!"

"Let me finish," she cut in before he made his argument. "I never harmed anyone out of my own will or without someone forcing me to do it, but I still took full responsibility for what I've done. I was aware that, even if I didn't mean it, I was still guilty because I had a hand in causing someone else's misfortune. Any time I did do something, I always tried to do the right thing afterward to make up for it. For example, I explored around town and found ways to collect money, so I could pay for the things stolen from the store clerks after apologizing profusely to them. I helped pranking victims get cleaned up and apologized to them too, even if they said they'd never forgive me and that I should be punished for using genie magic to cause trouble. I gave people everything I could at that time to make sure no one got mad at me; especially Uncle, who'd scold me relentlessly whenever he found out I got in trouble. He was—and still is—very stern with me, but he was also very understanding of what I went through. That said, I… I eventually became an introvert and hid from the rest of the other kids, so they wouldn't bully me into causing any more harm… Deep inside, I felt awful doing the things I did, so I figured that if I stayed away from everyone else, I wouldn't wind up hurting anyone… If that answers your question. I draw the line at hurting other people in any capacity when they don't deserve it."

"Wow… You… you were a good kid to the core, huh?" he understood, pensively nodding.

"I tried as best as I could. Still, the things you said you did before you turned over a new leaf… I'm sorry to say this, but I can't see them as being good, even with thorough justification," she confessed, knowing that such an inflammatory statement might rub him the wrong way.

"…Oh," he remarked, feeling a sudden burst of emotional tension that nearly made the world around him disappear as his skin began to heat up like he was surrounded by towering flames.

"I… I want to be honest with you, rather than hide that; especially since you were so honest with me. That said, I'm just hoping you have a better understanding of good and evil now than you did as a kid," she worriedly concluded. As Shantae predicted, however, Tay became more irritated, his facial expression changing to a displeased frown as he scoffed.

"So what, I'm a villain in your eyes because I didn't go back an' apologize for what I did? Is it really that simple t' say that?" he asked, his skin growing hot with discomfort and frustration.

"Well… no, but… other than justification, I think it comes from your intentions at the time."

"An' what's that mean?"

"I mean that… that it really depends on your motives and what you feel you might've gained from doing certain deeds. I understand that you didn't have much in the way of options when you were younger, but I have to ask: What were your true motivations for, say, taking things from other people? Or fighting with other kids in your neighborhood?"

"Back then, I was tryin' t' survive, help my family provide, an' keep younger kids out o' harm's way. I also wanted t' keep from bein' tormented by my peers an' some older folks, but I let you know how well that worked," he matter-of-factly stated, confident in his reply.

"Right, I remember. But then, if it didn't really work the way you wanted, then did you keep doing it?"

"Yeah, but I figured that other people would eventually accept me for what I was doin'. I tried real hard t' earn some form of approval or recognition for my efforts. I…" he trailed off, pausing as though he'd seen a ghost. The sudden halt in his statement worried Shantae, who observed that he may have come across a haunting memory. Nevertheless, Tayshan continued. "I… even lost one o' my closest friends because of my store-thievin' escapades, but even that wasn't enough t' keep people from messin' with me. If anything, it got worse after that…" he realized. "But, I kept doin' my thing, hopin' that eventually, somebody saw the good in me."

"Oh… I'm sorry to hear that, Tay," the young woman offered her condolences. "But I wonder, what good would it have been for you to have the approval of your peers for what you've done? How far would you have gone until they gave it to you? Or, how much farther would you have gone to keep it once you had it?"

"What do you mean 'how far'?"

"Doing something that helps someone out once earns you their appreciation. Doing it a couple times earns you their trust. But doing it too much will earn you their expectation," Shantae clarified. "And meeting someone's expectations can be a really grating process when you're giving them the same thing over and over. After a certain point, their expectations might rise to a point where you have to do more and more to satisfy them; even when it harms you or costs you something. Let's not even mention if you're doing it without the thought of return. That said, how far would you have gone? Especially if you had to go as far as stealing limited resources from other impoverished people in your community to get other kids to be nice to you?"

"Stealin' from other impoverished people?" he repeated in surprise, not immediately understanding what she meant.

"I might be jumping to conclusions a bit, so you can correct me if I'm wrong, but that's another point I wanted to make. The way you describe your neighborhood… It seems like most people really struggled to make a living; yourself included. Is… that inaccurate?"

"No, you ain't wrong there," he affirmed.

"Okay. Then, if I'm not mistaken, you said that everyone in your hometown was dealing with poverty and a lack of reliable resources in some way or another, right?"

"Yes, but at what point did I mention that the store owners were poor?"

"You didn't, but I made a guess of my own there. Now would be a good time to ask, though. Were the store owners poor? Or was it that the stores were big and that they brought in a lot of money?"

"…If I remember right, they were mostly pretty run-down places where the owners were lucky t' make a decent end-o'-day profit margin, considerin' people barely had money t' buy much," he clarified. "But, that was the easiest option I had. There were bigger, more affluent food stores farther out from the area I lived in, but… they were too far away, an' even then, they were impossible t' take from, because somebody was always watchin' you… if I'm gonna admit that."

"That's what I was afraid of," she admitted, though it gave her incentive to make her next point. "I wonder if you ever considered that the idea that taking from the poor to give to the poor does more harm than good. As a sort of long-term consequence, I mean."

"Hm…" he contemplatively droned, beginning to connect the dots on her observations as he grew steadily more dissonant. However, as he understood just from her statement, he may not have entirely been in the right. His heart sank as a result. Nonetheless, he made another point. "Still, I figured back then that if any store owner had access to resources like shipments by the truckload, then they wouldn't miss a package o' meat here, or a few bunches o' fruit or boxes o' candy there…"

"I… can sort of understand that, but if the store owners you took from were already trying really hard to make a decent living with limited success, but they lose merchandise when people go in and take things without permission or payment, that causes them to basically lose money in the long run. If they can't make money, then they can't afford more supplies, which then possibly leads to the store having to close down or move away to an area where they can make money… or at least minimize the losses. It's… kind of like what happened to my old Dance Parlor, if you remember… Even though I never actually physically stole from them, I did indirectly rob them of business and revenue because I never gave back a share of my profits from shows where I performed…" Shantae deciphered, feeling a tad guilty.

"Huh…" Tay exhaled, a sense of guilt creeping up on him as he was gripped by the gravity of his past misdeeds, as reviewed by his kinda-sorta teacher. He was beginning to see her point.

"While it might seem like you're doing other people a favor right then, Tay, taking supplies from stores without paying potentially dries up that resource until it can't provide any more after a certain amount of time passes. Did you ever consider that?" Shantae continued to drill him.

"…N-no, actually…" he admitted, his gaze momentarily falling to the grass they were standing on. "Not at all…"

"Oh… Well, that kinda leads me into the other things you said you did. I remember you saying you ran 'errands' for the gang you used to be in. Right?" she questioned, seeing that she had been getting through to him.

"Right, but the things I did in that respect were for my own safety!" he defensively argued, unwilling to take on more guilt facilitated by his friend's grilling of him. "It was that or let myself get ripped to shreds by the others! I explained that t' you!"

"I understand that, Tay, but what gets me about that is that you were aware that what you did caused harm to other people, but you went on without ever going back to understand the impact of what you did. You haven't even told me what exactly those 'errands' were," she pointed out. "You mentioned that you didn't have the courage to tell me. Are you… that afraid of telling me?"

"I… I'm not sure…" he stammered, wanting to come clean. However, he was aware that what he had to tell her could potentially change her view of him for the worse.

"How come, if you don't mind my asking?" she curiously, yet carefully prodded.

"I-I mean… I know that I did a lot o' messed-up things back then…" he quietly admitted before taking a deep, stress-riddled breath. "But, I… I guess it wouldn't make sense t' keep hidin' it from you at this point, after what I already let you know, huh?"

"I appreciate your honesty, Tay," she commended, though she found herself tense with anticipation at what her extraterrestrial comrade was about to confess to her. "Please, let me know. I promise, I won't change my opinion of you."

"Yeah, sure. If you really wanna know, then here," he began with a deep, very heavy breath. "I… I helped set people up for muggings. I pickpocketed people young an' old. I've verbally an' physically attacked people on a whim if I thought they disrespected or threatened me, my family, or any friend o' mine. I purposely misled police when they conducted investigations t' keep my… 'colleagues' from gettin' in trouble… I've even vandalized other people's property… and… and I even let people d-!" he nearly spat out in his guilt-laden monologue, freezing before he uttered his next word. Hearing the first letter of Tay's unfinished word made the concerned young woman shudder with fear. The soldier's eyes widened and became glassy with regret as he looked into Shantae's eyes without even blinking.

"You… let people… what?" Shantae shakily pressed.

"Sorry, I… I misspoke. I meant t' say I let people down by makin' them… p-pay the consequences of my actions while I ran away…" he hesitantly corrected himself, his voice quaking with a sudden rush of sadness before he cleared his throat and wiped his face with his hands, taking a deep breath all the while. He spoke again after regaining his composure. "That's just scratchin' the tip o' the iceberg. Truth be told, I suppress feelings that I hold onto every day because o' many o' the things I did. But please, you have t' understand that I didn't have a choice in most o' those situations. I… I was just tryin' t' live my life, keep myself safe, an' do some form o' good for the people I cared about. What do you think I could've done?" he asked, at this point wondering if she had an answer for him as his initial hostility was replaced with repentant sadness.

"I understand that you were in a tough spot. I'm not even sure I'd have been able to handle what you've been through. I have to say, though, that there is never a point where you don't have a choice, Tayshan," Shantae assertively informed him, picking up on the growing apprehension in his tone. "That's what Uncle taught me, anyway. He also taught me that, to know what's right, but not to do it, is lack of conviction. I don't want to sound harsh, Tayshan, but, after all you've let me know… I'm… I'm worried about you. This isn't out of pity, either. I know you don't like that. As your mentor and your friend, I just want to make sure you know what it really means not only to turn good, but also to stay good. I know what it's like to turn evil; even if I was only conscious for a few minutes of it. I don't want that to ever happen to you, or any of my friends."

"Well then, it's clear you still view me as a villain, but all I can say is that I'm not," Tay acknowledged with a shrug laced in a mix of disdain and hurt. He had quickly become tired of going back and forth with her on the matter. "What is there t' worry about?" he defensively dismissed. "I mean… I get it, a lot o' choices I made were outright terrible, but I'm tellin' you, I wasn't evil. I might not have gone back an' apologized for much, if anything at all, or… or even taken responsibility for my actions like you did, but I swear, I was never evil. I have no intention o' goin' back t' my old ways, either. Even if there is the possibility that there is Dark Magic in me, I will not go back t' those ways or turn evil like you're implyin' I might."

"I get that, but your past decisions don't show a lot of good, based on what you told me," she countered, shocking him stiff. Seeing him flinch in discomfort nearly caused the half-genie to stop prodding him. However, she was certain she had to get the point across. "For example, your gun."

"What about it?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You said you basically stole it from your old friend after he injured someone with it and tried to pin it, AND the blame on you, only for you to hide it and report him to the authorities so you could keep it while he was punished… right?"

"…Right," he acquiesced, glancing at his weapon in immediate regret. "When you put it that way, I… I guess that IS pretty messed up… More so than I realized…"

"I hate to say it, but that's a prime example of knowing what's right and not doing it. I know that friend of yours made bad decisions as well, but two wrongs don't make a right. If anything, that's… that's an evil-based decision without question," she stated, unknowingly hitting the soldier at his core. "One that you acknowledged, but never seemed too concerned about, as far as I saw. That also ties back into what you were saying about the muggings and violent acts. Heroes don't do those sorts of things. Ever."

"…True…" was all he managed to reply with in a near-whisper as his heart sank low enough that one might've been able to pick it up off the ground.

"Part of being a hero is taking responsibility for your actions and letting them guide you to a brighter future. Learning from past mistakes, building on your strengths, and stopping evil wherever you can, are my core principles for being someone every citizen in Scuttle Town can rely on to save the day. If I didn't have those, I wouldn't be fit to call myself guardian genie, much less a hero."

"Wow… Good point…" he somberly nodded, drawing some inspiration from her in the wake of his cognitive dissonance.

"Glad you agree. If you don't mind me asking, though… Did you ever get the chance to talk to that friend after everything that happened? Maybe cleared things up and came to an understanding, at least?" At that question, Tayshan went eerily silent, which caused her to worry even more. The sound of the wind blowing through the nearby palm trees made the moment even more heart-wrenching. "…Tay?"

"…No…" he hesitantly confessed after the silent moment had passed. "No, I… I never saw him alive again after that…"

"What happened?" she cautiously asked, stunned by his answer.

"I don't know many details, but… he uh… he… didn't make it in prison, as far as I heard…" he confessed, shocking her yet again.

"Oh…"

"I only heard about it close to a year after, but when I did, I immediately buried that knowledge in the back o' my mind out of a mix of selfish desire t' keep myself free… an' heavy guilt; guilt that I still cling onto t' this day. I let people think what they wanted about him, let them believe the rumors… while I hushed up, kept the truth locked away in a cage, an' continued usin' this thing until I decided I didn't want it anymore… but when you think about it, this is the last relic of our former friendship, or whatever you might call it. Now I can't even look at it without thinkin' about what happened t' him after he got locked up…"

"Tay, I… I'm sorry," she apologized, understanding that maybe this discussion had gone a bit too far. Shantae began to feel bad for digging into her partner the way she had been, making him admit progressively worse deeds perpetrated by him in his past. "I… We don't have t-!"

"Maybe you're right after all, Shantae… Maybe I really could've been a villain. Or rather, maybe I was," he reluctantly admitted with another heavy-hearted sigh. "I… I can't keep denyin' my past actions as though they were committed by someone else or actin' like addin' a 'because' statement would really mask them from what they truly were. No matter what way we cut it, I'm the one who made those decisions, an' I… should take more responsibility for them. They don't lose their impact on me simply because they happened so long ago. Man, what was I thinkin' before…?"

"Hey, don't get so down on yourself," she countered, approaching him and placing a hand on his back to console him. "The most important thing is that you're doing what you can to be the good guy you always wanted to be. I'm glad to be able to help you, too. Together, we'll make a new path, where you'll become a hero like we've been working on, and we'll totally celebrate once we take down Risky Boots," she offered, smiling at him with enthusiasm.

"…Yeah," he weakly acknowledged, feeling an overwhelming wave of guilt as he ruminated on his past and let his gaze fall to the ground once again. Shantae's smile faded into a guilty frown at his lack of energy, though she was painfully aware of why he was suddenly so downtrodden.

"Tayshan… I… I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings," she apologized, feeling a shocking pang in her heart resultant of his reaction to her words as her own eyes welled up. "What I said about your past was really insensitive, now that I realize it… I… I just wanted to be a good friend to you and to make sure nothing bad happens while we're under the impression that there's Dark Magic inside you. Are you okay?"

"I'll be fine," he dismissed, shaking his head and rubbing the back of his neck as he took a deep breath through his nose. "So, where are we goin' next?" he immediately redirected the conversation with his question.

"Oh. A-are you sure you don't want to-?"

"No. I need some time alone t' think about that, but now ain't appropriate. I'd rather focus on the present," he curtly affirmed, shooting down her attempt at consoling him. "Any ideas on where we go next?"

"Well… we could try to go to that Prickle Stitch Valley place you mentioned the other day, but I don't know if Sky had any luck finding it just yet. We should probably go to her and find out if she at least spotted anything else unusual."

"Sounds like a plan. I'm ready when you are."

"I think we're good to go. Let's head over there now," she suggested as the two embarked on what would be a very long, very uncomfortable trek toward Scuttle Town… Man, I would not want to be either of them right now. Awkward, tension-drenched silences are definitely not my thing. Anyhow, moving on…

 ** _A quick, intensely-silent hike later…_**

LOCATION: SKY'S HOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 18TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1127 HOURS

"Hey, peeps! How's it going?" Sky happily greeted as her guests strolled in.

"Hi, Sky," Shantae plainly greeted with a smile, whereas Tay merely waved. Sky immediately picked up a resounding lack of enthusiasm and brought it to the forefront of the conversation.

"Why so glum?" she asked, practically feeling the morose climate brought in by the duo; particularly, the soldier. "You seem like something's on your mind, Tayshan."

"Me?" Tay questioned, seeming not to think Sky would pick up on his dejected disposition. "No, nothin' is wrong. I'm okay," he insisted, scratching his cheek with his index finger.

"That… isn't what I'm picking up," she deduced. "You look like you lost your best friend or something," she remarked, though she was unaware of the stinging closeness of her comment. At that, Tay went silent, his gaze slowly falling to the floor of Sky's humble abode. The silence, shared by all three participants in the awkwardly-paced conversation, carried on for a gut-rending ten seconds before anyone said anything.

"Tay, why don't you get some fresh air?" Shantae suggested, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"Huh?"

"You said you needed some alone time, right?"

"Yeah, but now?"

"We aren't really in a rush at the moment and while it's still early, you can take some time to gather your thoughts. Meanwhile, Sky and I will figure out our next move. Okay?"

"…Sure," he acknowledged. "You might be right about that. I'll be nearby, so just holler at me when y'all are done," he further requested as he turned to leave.

"Sure thing, Tay. We shouldn't be long." With that, Tayshan exited the apartment and went about his business. Sky, curious as to what was happening, motioned to ask what was going on, but Shantae shot her a worried look that she read immediately. The two young women waited until their comrade was out of sight and out of earshot to say anything.

"What's with him?" Sky asked to begin the discussion.

"He's… upset right now. I don't know if he's mad at me or if he's just got a lot on his mind."

"I can imagine he'd be a bit upset about being trapped here. Poor guy was ripped from his home world on a whim and has no way of getting back, as far as we know."

"No… Well, yeah, there's that, but he's upset about something else."

"What?" Sky dared to ask. Shantae, trusting her best friend, enlightened Sky on the events of her discussion with Sequin Land's resident alien and its lead-up into his current mood.

 ** _After the recap…_**

"…So, I… I might've made him think about a lot of his past, and made it sound like I was blaming him for what happened. I haven't been able to cheer him up because of it," Shantae apprehensively explained.

"Wow, girl… You really know how to make an impression on someone with words, huh?" Sky stated, shaking her head.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that your words can have an enormous impact on how someone feels. The way you told Tayshan your perspective of the stories he shared with you… I won't lie, it was a tad too blunt for something so delicate."

"Oh…" she somberly replied, her head lowering as she began nibbling on her index finger. "R-really?"

"From the looks of it, he feels really bad about whatever happened," Sky expertly pointed out. "Speaking of, he explained his reasons as best as he could to get you to understand, but you insisted on calling him something he didn't like, and then you tried to explain to him why your perspective was more correct than his. That's how it sounds, at least."

"No, no!" Shantae disagreed. "I was trying to get him to understand the difference between good and evil! I wasn't trying to shove my opinion on him!"

"Look, I get it that some of what he shared with you was… pretty dark, but if he asked for you not to judge him for his actions because he wants to change, only for you to deem him 'evil' for them without listening to him, then you've done just what he asked you not to do."

"I wasn't judging him, though… That… that was the best way I could make sense of it," she regretfully admitted. "I thought he would've been okay with that and maybe understood where I was coming from…"

"'Former villain,' though? Shantae, that's like if I called you a 'former commoner' after you got your genie magic back," Sky boldly made her point. "What's more, I know the baddies we deal with here are mostly one-note and very easy to define because of what they've done and what they continue to do, but there are other facets out there regarding good versus evil. Believe it or not, there do exist people who do bad things with good motivations, like Tayshan tried to explain regarding taking things to feed starving children. Or, like Ammo Baron fortifying the defenses of Scuttle Town when he became mayor… Granted, I know that's the worst example I could bring up, but when I think about it, Scuttle Town IS pretty defenseless without you here, and considering how often it gets attacked by anyone and their grandmother, you'd think someone would do something about it by now… Even for what a creepy, scheming jerk he is, I DO think Ammo Baron had a point about Scuttle Town needing an extra line of protection when he got the job as mayor of this city. You'll never hear me say that again, because I almost lost my house in his aggressive 'Weaponize the World' campaign, but yeah…"

"I… I guess I can understand that, even though we can never be totally sure of what Ammo Baron wants…" Shantae begrudgingly conceded. "I personally don't think Scuttle Town needs to be armed to the teeth with guns, cannons, and bombs to be protected, but I understand what you're getting at…" Shantae added, revealing some of her political beliefs.

"Please don't take that as me supporting that creep. I'm only trying to make a point. Anyway, there also exist people who do good things with bad intentions… Like, Risky Boots helping you save Sequin Land from her old boss, just so she could keep trying to dominate the world herself. Or, say… if I were to take over Scuttlebutt's position as mayor and I got every citizen motivated to change Scuttle Town for the better, only for me to embezzle money, sit on my butt, and watch other people do my work for me while I took credit for all the labor they put out…"

"…You mean, kind of like how Mayor Scuttlebutt already does that, minus the embezzlement piece?" she asked, solidifying Sky's point.

"True. Though, I AM pretty sure I've seen him walking out of the food market with a suspiciously-large supply of Bento Boxes and Monster Milk jugs on at least one occasion, and he wasn't donating them to charity…" the knowledgeable bird trainer pondered mometarily. "Anyway, my point still stands."

"Y-yeah… but I was only trying to get Tay to understand that you can't always justify a bad deed simply because your intentions were honest. I was also trying to use his examples to show him the line between good and evil and what kinds of consequences follow evil-based actions as opposed to good-based ones," Shantae explained.

"Calling Tayshan a 'former villain' in response to him telling you about his past completely disrespects and belittles his perspective, not to mention that it comes across as judging him." Sky clarified, much to Shantae's shame. "I'm not saying this as a way of taking anybody's side, don't get me wrong. I agree with you that anyone who commits a crime of any variety should be held responsible for their actions. I also think you were well-intentioned with making sure that he wasn't the same person he was back in his past. But, it sounds like he was struggling when he was younger because of his harsh environment, which is a whole different monster to tackle. In a few words, environment, culture, and opportunity play a HUGE part in how people grow up and make their decisions, Shantae. Never forget that."

"I… I understand."

"Good. In that light, there is no clear-cut line to draw between good and evil when you factor in all those influences. Also, it sounds like Tay was already trying to change for the better on his own. That said, you can't just draw such hasty conclusions about someone based on what they tell you about themselves, and then try to change them faster than they're ready to change on their own. If it ain't broke, don't fix it."

"Oh…" the half-genie sulked, feeling the bitter sting of the remark.

"After everything you told me about how much you didn't like being a regular human and how much of a struggle it was for you to adapt, to the point where you didn't want to tell anyone about it for fear of people losing their faith in you as guardian genie, how would you feel if you opened up to me when you got your powers back, just to have me brand you with some compartmentalizing, oppressive, degrading label? Or even, how do you feel when some of Palace Guards talk down to you now because you're part genie, not even bothering to understand how unique of an experience you have because of your heritage?" she lectured, drilling her point home like a woodpecker drilling into a tree trunk… Fitting, because Sky IS a bird aficionado.

"I… I see your point now, Sky…" Shantae realized, understanding for herself what it meant to label someone as something they were uncomfortable with, in addition to understanding the deeper aspects of good and evil. "Gosh, I feel like I really messed up…"

"Well, it isn't the end of the world, at least," Sky offered her consoling words. "It still seems like he's willing to work with you."

"What do I do, though? I tried changing the subject and talking about some of the hobbies we share on the way here, but he was just… silent the entire time. I feel really bad, but I'm no good at cheering people up. At least, not if I'm the one who made them upset in the first place. I… I hope he doesn't hate me…"

"We don't know him like we know, say, Bolo, who gets over things at the drop of a gem. For now, we'll give him time and when he's ready, he'll maybe talk to at least one of us."

"Yeah… That makes sense. Thanks, Sky. I hope he comes around," Shantae perked up, breathing a sigh of relief, though she still held onto some of her apprehension about speaking with him again.

"I think he will. He comes off as the kind of guy who keeps his emotions in unless he's comfortable talking about them or if they spill out into his interactions with other people. That's as far as I've seen of him, anyway."

"Right… Thank you for enlightening me, Sky. You always know what's going on."

"I try," she acknowledged with a nonchalant shrug. "You know me by now. I like to keep myself informed. Y'know, keep a bird's eye view of things," she added with a wink. "Not literally, of course."

"Without question," Shantae agreed, though she soon went silent, thinking of ways to cheer the soldier up and apologize to him.

"Right. So, what else is on your agenda today?" Sky asked, changing the subject.

"Well… I was wondering if you found any clues for any potential places to explore."

"Hmm, I don't know if you'll like the answer I have for you…" the bird tamer worriedly warned.

"If you didn't, then that's okay," the half-genie acknowledged.

"No, no, I found a couple points of interests here and there," Sky corrected, causing Shantae to perk up with curiosity.

"You did?"

"Of course. It's just… Wrench isn't used to flying around quite as often or as long as we've been doing over the last few days. Poor little guy's all tuckered out, and I haven't had much time to get more of my special bird seed. Unfortunately, until I get my hands on more of it and Wrench gets his rest, I can't help you get anywhere today."

"Oh…" Shantae commented in disappointment. "I guess it HAS been a busy few days for you, huh?"

"You guessed it. We've been at it nonstop, considering the emergency on our hands."

"You don't have to tell me twice," she understandingly commended. "In that case, I guess I'll ask Uncle if he has anything that might help us."

"Sorry, girly… I really would like to help, but my hands are tied this time."

"It's okay, Sky. I'm glad to have your help, regardless."

"Of course!"

"Yep! Although, that DOES bring up another point I wanted to address with you…"

"Oh? What's that?"

"We need to hang out sometime!" Shantae sprung on her best friend, again changing the topic. "We went the whole season without even going to the beach together once before Risky Boots stirred up her usual brew of trouble. It almost feels like we only see each other when there's an emergency."

"I feel like I mentioned this to you before…" Sky curiously pondered. "Still, I haven't had much time. It's my fault this time around, though."

"Oh, yeah? What have you been up to lately?"

"I've mainly spent my time taking care of my birds, studying for my entrance exam at Sequin Land University up in Genie's Hem, and traveling from town to town, visiting landmarks and sightseeing. More of the ol' 'preparing to become an adult' stuff. I haven't really been available for anything else as a result. Well, except the occasional hot date here and there, though you can imagine without me telling you how that's been for me."

"I suppose, but I'm sure Mr. Right will come along eventually," Shantae rather avoidantly addressed the topic. She didn't really want to talk about Sky's dating profile at this point in time, all things considered.

"Yeah, and with some luck, Mr. Right could potentially be Mr. Right-Outside."

"Mr. Right-Outside? You mean like, he could be standing outside your door right now? Or, do you mean you'll fall in love with someone who lives in Scuttle Town?"

"…I knew you wouldn't get that one right away. No, I meant that Mr. Right could be the guy who just left and is waiting for us outside right now."

"Oh! Y-you mean Tay?" she asked, feeling somewhat uncomfortable at the mention of him.

"Now you got it! Also, yes."

"Uh, o-okay… I'm… not sure about that," she murmured, a series of thoughts running through her mind all at once.

"What's there not to be sure of?" Sky asked, uncertain of what Shantae had meant.

"…Nothing. Never mind," the ponytailed young woman dismissed. "You're not kidding, though. I had no idea you were that busy, Sky. I didn't even know you were trying to get into college!" she exclaimed in surprise and excitement.

"Yeah! I never told you? I finished up my last few credits at the Oasis Town Technical Imstitute this past spring. My entrance exam is coming up pretty soon, and then I'll start picking my first classes in November. If all goes well, I'll start in the next spring semester."

"You never mentioned that! See, this is what I mean! We never hang out anymore, and then while I'm busy either doing odd jobs around Scuttle Town, trying to run a monthly belly dance class, or trying to keep the town—and by extension, the rest of Sequin Land safe from harm, you're well on your way to becoming an accomplished scholar! Shoot, I wish I had time to go to school and learn stuff…" Shantae jealously complained, cutely pouting while she crossed her arms.

"Aw, Shantae!" Sky remarked, giggling at her friend's comical envy. "I have a college tour coming up in about three weeks. Maybe if you and Tayshan wrap things up with Risky soon enough, you can tag along?"

"Of course! I've always been curious about what the school life is about! This is one of the biggest reasons we need to catch up!"

"Sure, whenever there's time. I'd be happy to let you know what's been going on lately!"

"Awesome! For now, though, we should probably discuss some of the places you said you found that might clue us in to where Risky Boots might be hiding," Shantae suggested, remembering the reason she visited her best friend this morning.

"Right," Sky nodded, walking over to a nearby wooden table with a map of Sequin Land neatly laid across it. "So, this place right here…" Sky began as she and Shantae began their discussion of points of interest within Sequin Land.

 ** _Meanwhile…_**

"Vinegar, what are we doing back here?" a certain adorably-tiny airplane pilot complained to her taller comrade as the two strolled the busy streets of Scuttle Town. "I thought the boss told us to keep an eye out for the weapons we heard about."

"Yeah, but we still haven't actually seen any of them in action since our battle with those two nosy troublemakers," Vinegar shot back. "We were also tasked with finding and gathering more intel from our so-called 'allies' if we came up short. As a matter of fact, your new boyfriend is the only one we've seen with such a weapon at all. As for why we're here, we already know Shantae lingers around these parts like a foul odor. We're bound to find her somewhere."

"I guess, but didn't some of the grunts say something about running into Risky's creepy little bat slaves and some of them having a different kind of gun or bomb here and there?"

"Yeah, but of course, when we go and investigate, there's nothing to be found. Either those Tinkerbats are covering their tracks really well, or our men are even more incompetent than I thought."

"Who knows?" Twitch shrugged. "We do at least know they're out there somewhere. But do we really need to find those two to make any headway? I mean, I'd love to see that handsome hunk again, but still…"

"Since all else has failed so far, we're left with no choice but to talk to Shantae and that guy to squeeze some intel out of them. It'd be a bonus if we found him alone, but-!"

"We may not have to look very far, in that case," Twitch remarked in a sudden burst of fangirl-level excitement.

"Why?"

"Because my beefcake is right over there, sitting on that bench by himself!" she proclaimed, pointing straight ahead. Vinegar peered in the direction Twitch was pointing. Lo and behold, Tayshan was lounging on a wooden bench nearby, his gaze lazily fixed toward the cloud-laden blue afternoon sky above.

"Well then. This certainly makes things a lot easier," Vinegar commented with a sinister smirk. "Let's see if we can get him to cooperate."

"Way ahead of ya, sister," Twitch slyly assured, winking at her comrade while possibly confirming her relationship to Vinegar… I-I think. She could've just been using an expression, but I'm not sure. Don't quote me. "Hey, Tayshaaaaan~!" Twitch sang as she sauntered toward her target.

"Hm…?" Tay grunted, jarred out of his pensive stupor as he heard a feminine voice singing his name in the distance. He cut his eyes to the side, barely moving his head until he noticed who was calling him. Understandably surprised, he propped himself up on the bench, his full attention now focused on his addressers. "Oh, it's you two. What's goin' on?" he greeted. Rather than answer him right away, Twitch gleefully hopped onto the bench, plopping herself right next to him and grabbing his arm.

"We were just thinking about you!" Twitch excitedly answered, throwing him off.

"Rather, we were thinking you could give us a hand with finding some of those weapons you warned us about the other day," Vinegar corrected, casually strolling up and finding a comfortable seat on the opposite end of the bench.

"Y'all ain't havin' much luck findin' anything either, huh?"

"Not really… I mean, our guys DID have a couple of brushes with Risky Boots's army, but we still haven't been able to collect anything or at least capture one of them to figure out what they're planning," Twitch explained, still clinging tightly to Tay's arm as though he were a stuffed animal.

"Shoot…"

"We've sent out a few search squads to scout different areas of Sequin Land for more activity, but we've mostly been coming up short."

"Gotcha. So, what can I do t' help y'all out?" he asked, understandably wary.

"We might need you to come with us to one of our designated points of interest. Turns out we might need a bit more clarification. Also, how familiar are you with that arsenal?" asked Vinegar.

"Enough that I've been able t' survive this long without bein' taken out by any o' the weapons that were used against me by this point," he explained, surprising them both. "Though, it probably helps that Risky's men are super inexperienced with them, as far as I saw."

"You've seen some of them in use already? What kinds?"

"At this point… This gun in my holster, two different types o' grenades, an' a few flamethrowers. Though, I got my hands on some o' the grenades before they could be used. We still need t' go back an' collect the flamethrowers from the Nagas armed with 'em right now. I have a sneakin' suspicion Risky's startin' t' pick up steam. We still haven't caught wind of anything super dangerous, though."

"Like what?"

"Semi-automatic rifles, rocket launchers, flashbangs, land mines, Claymore mines, submachine guns, sniper rifles, an' shotguns, t' name a few off the top o' my head…"

"Whoa…" Twitch droned in awe, practically drooling with interest.

"You actually fought some Tinkerbats and got back some of your stuff?" asked Vinegar.

"Where would Nagas of all things be able to get their hands on any of your equipment?" Twitch followed up, quickly snapping out of her stupefied trance.

"Yes, but only the tiniest fraction. Also… it's a long story," Tayshan explained. "In a nutshell, the Nagas said they're willin' t' givin' us back the flamethrowers after we beat up an' dethroned this humungous red squid thing as substitute Naga Queen. That's also when I got these grenades from some Tinkerbats durin' our trip t' Naga Mountain."

"Wow. You've been busy since our last little playdate, huh, stud?" Twitch rather lasciviously commented, smiling with overzealous intrigue, though she soon snapped out of it once she realized the name of the place Tay mentioned. "Wait… Naga Mountain?"

"Yep."

"Funny…" Vinegar pensively remarked, scratching her head in wonder. "We sent a few guys out there not too long ago. When did you go to Naga Mountain?"

"Three days ago, if I'm not mistaken. We went there in the early afternoon," Tay answered. "Why?"

"Did… you happen to run into some of our men while you were there?" Vinegar asked.

"Yeah, we haven't heard from any of them since they made their trip there," Twitch added, equally as curious.

"No… Well, except for that one dude, now that you mention it," Tay recalled. "His name was… Barracuda Joe, or somethin' like that? As far as I know, he's still there. Alone, I might add."

"Joe's still on Naga Mountain!?" Vinegar asked in alarm.

"Why didn't that numbskull tell us!?" Twitch asked in mild annoyance. "We've been trying to contact his platoon for the last three days!"

"It… could have somethin' t' do with the fact that he's currently a giant slug right now," Tay cautiously informed them, though both girls shot him a shared flabbergasted look.

"…What?" the two blonde young women asked in understandable confusion.

"In ANOTHER nutshell, we ran into him an', as it turns out, he got turned into a giant slug by the obnoxious red octopus after it stole a magic spellbook from some wizard," Tay tried his best to explain, though he could barely believe the utterly-preposterous words coming out of his mouth. Seriously, tyrannical octopus monsters with magic books stolen from wizards that turn grown men into gargantuan gastropod mollusks? You'd have to have eaten the wrong brownies in your fridge to even conceive such nonsense. Anyway… "We offered him a lift, but he said he wanted t' stay there an' wait until we got back with a way t' change him back. In return, he'd give us some uh… 'special' Copper Wire we need," he finished, still questioning exactly what the heck he was saying as he realized how… strange it sounded.

"…Wow, and I thought he couldn't be more incompetent," Twitch complained with a frustrated sigh, understanding every bit of the absurd explanation. "He had ONE job…"

"…And he winds up letting Squid Baron of all things turn him into a slug…" Vinegar also complained, shaking her head in disapproval as she rubbed her forehead. "How ridiculous… Also, what's so special about some copper wire that he's making you look for a way to change him back to get it from him?"

"Beats me," Tayshan admitted with a shrug. "All I know is that I need it specifically from him, an' we agreed t' help him as a result. That said, y'all wouldn't happen t' know any wizards around here, would you? Namely, one who might be missin' a now-destroyed spellbook an' might possibly know a way t' undo slug spells? Granted, I DID hear he only casts his spells one way, but I can only hope…"

"The only wizard we're aware of is Hypno Baron, but we don't usually associate with him," Twitch plainly answered, giving Tay a clue. "He's a total weirdo creep, so don't bother with him if you don't have to. Just thinking about him makes my skin crawl… Ugh," the shorter young woman added as she shuddered in disgust.

"Yeah, we… try to steer clear of guys like him. Pretty hard to miss, if you're looking for him, though," Vinegar added.

"…In the unlikely case that we are…?" Tay prodded, hoping to get some information.

"Bigger guy with a huge purple-and-gold, hooded cloak," Vinegar succinctly provided a description. "Has a neon-outlined skull with hideous yellow eyes for a face."

"Neat," he nodded, barely able to conjure up a mental image of such a spooky-sounding creature as he pondered. "Though I'm startin' to wonder about all these 'Baron' folks… This Hypno guy is the third one I've heard of."

"Don't read into it, honey," Twitch dismissed. "There are four in total, just so you know, though. The fourth one is Techno Baron. They all might share the 'Baron' title and trademark, but they all mostly work on their own separate wavelengths. Very little, if any relation at all."

"Techno Baron, huh? Hm… If you say so," Tay let go with a shrug. "But yeah, that's what happened on Naga Mountain. I didn't see any other personnel o' yours, unfortunately. No sign of 'em anywhere that Shantae, her friend Sky, an' I looked…"

"Figures… They probably got wiped out by the wildlife over there, like they tend to do despite being heavily armed," Vinegar rather dismissively predicted with a shrug as though this sort of thing was normal.

"Meh," Twitch shrugged in agreement. "At least we know where Joe is… and that he won't be going anywhere for a bit. We appreciate you volunteering to help him out, regardless."

"Sure, but y'all don't seem all that concerned," Tay acknowledged, puzzled by their callousness.

"These things happen," Twitch uncaringly confirmed. "Anyway, it sounds like you really did your thing over there!"

"Eh, it wasn't without extensive effort an' a lot o' teamwork with Shantae an' Sky, but that place wasn't too hard t' comb through," Tay modestly acknowledged the Ammonian acolyte's praise.

"Well if you're already on such a roll, why don't you tag along with us for a bit?" Vinegar offered. "I'm sure we'd make a ton more progress working together."

"I… I guess, but I'll have t' run it by Shantae once she's done talkin' t' Sky."

"Nonsense. You don't need her permission to come with us, do you?" Vinegar persuasively prodded.

"Yeah, we don't bite… hard," Twitch added.

"I'm… sure you don't, but let's not pretend your bite didn't almost leave me riddled with holes or missin' a chunk o' my torso last time we met," he reminded, calling back to their previous battle. "Still, why would you two want me t' come along without Shantae?"

"We thought you two were just working together that one time but were mostly doing your own respective things."

"I'm afraid t' say that ain't the case. I've been workin' with Shantae an' Sky basically since I got here."

"Oh. Well, why don't you give yourself a break from that boring little goody-goody girl scout? Take a look at the wilder side of things?" prodded Twitch, hoping he'd willingly come along.

"You'll find that we're much more… compatible as allies than her," Vinegar reasoned, expecting him to agree. Her suggestive tone, however, only succeeded in raising suspicions.

"Thanks, but no. We already had an agreement that we'd all help each other out. Either she comes with, or y'all can stop playin' an' get a move on," Tay spurned, growing somewhat wary of the girls' 'offer.'

"That your final answer?" Twitch asked with an unusually-jovial smile, seeming to be suspiciously hiding something.

"Yes. With all due respect, if y'all got time t' fraternize with me here, y'all got time t' contribute t' the search," Tay firmly stated, putting his foot down.

"The hard way it is, then," Vinegar mumbled with a sigh before standing and sticking her thumb and index finger into her mouth. With a mighty rush of air from her lungs, the taller Ammonian acolyte whistled loud enough that she could've possibly broken a drinking glass with the pitch alone. Within seconds, an enormous blue two-seated biplane swooped in with a powerful *WHIRR*, stopping a few feet above the three. Before Tay could figure out what was happening, a large, long metal claw rocketed out of the hub of the plane's front propeller. As though it had a mind of its own, it hurtled toward the soldier, ensnaring him with a *CLANG* before he had an opportunity to move.

"Hey! What the-!"

"Sorry, babe, but we figured you wouldn't be likely to come willingly," Twitch apologetically clued him in.

"So y'all plotted t' kidnap me!?" he complained, rightfully furious as he squirmed and kicked to try and break the machine's iron grip. The extending claw raised him high into the air as he struggled.

"Short answer: Yes," Vinegar confirmed. "Much as we'd like genie girl to bring that irritatingly magical charm of hers, we figure we'll get what we're looking for with just you. Nothing personal. This is the boss's orders."

"So instead of askin' him for help, y'all dimed me out an' he told y'all t' bring me to him. That it?"

"Hmm… Not exactly," Twitch denied. "He actually told us to squeeze as much more info out of you as we could, but if you're already out there, collecting and using those weapons yourself, you're much more valuable to us in more ways than one. Of course, we also had another errand to run before we got back to him, so… you're gonna help us with it before we report back."

"Why you connivin' little-! Whoa!" Tay was about to insult before being hoisted into the passenger seat of the two-seated vehicle. "You're both gonna regret this!" he further threatened while still bound by the crushing metal grip of the plane's hostage-proof extendo-claw. Twitch and Vinegar both activated their sporty blue jetpacks to ascend to their seats in the plane. Vinegar took the front seat at the cockpit. Twitch made herself comfortable sitting on the lap of her fresh-from-another-dimension, brand-new hostage. Just then, Shantae and Sky came rushing out of Sky's apartment to investigate the noise. Upon sight, the half-genie and the bird trainer became irate.

"Tay!? What's going on!?" Shantae shouted, appalled and bewildered by the commotion.

"And what are YOU two no-good shysters up to this time!?" Sky added, none too pleased to see Twitch and Vinegar.

"They're kidnappin' me! I can't break free!" Tay yelled, still squirming to try and slip out of the grasp of the mischievous mechanism.

"What!? What do you two think you're doing with him!?" Shantae yelled, clearly unamused by her acquired knowledge of the unfolding kidnapping plot.

"He's ours now, genie girl! You snooze, you lose!" Vinegar taunted, sticking her tongue out and making an L-sign with her hand. How incredibly sophisticated and mature.

"What about our deal!? You said we were supposed to work together to find Risky Boots!"

"Yeah, well this is much more beneficial to us," Twitch shot back, waving her hand while her index and middle fingers were crossed. Looks like Tayshan's hunch was right after all. "Don't worry, we'll take good care of him! Bye-bye!" she further teased as the plane set to take off.

"Oh, no you don't!" Shantae warned, hurriedly dancing to transform into her harpy form to give chase. "Don't worry, Tay! I'll save you!" she promised, taking flight toward the plane. However, in a wings-versus-airplane race, Shantae hardly stood a chance. With another powerful *WHIRR*, the plane took off with Twitch, Vinegar, and Tayshan aboard. The only clue to where they were taking him came in the form of a thick, murky gray smoke trail left by the plane as it took off. "Darn it! I knew we shouldn't have trusted them! Sky, I'll be back!"

"Great… the PERFECT time for Wrench to be out of commission…! Are you sure you can track them down and get him back!?" Sky worriedly inquired.

"One way or another, he's coming back with me. Those two are gonna pay for blowing the smoke in our mirrors!" And with that marginally clever remark, Harpy-Shantae set off as fast as she could to follow the smoke trail that would invariably lead her to her friend and his kidnappers.

"I'll try to see if Wrench can gather up enough strength to help us out in the meantime! If he can, I'll catch up! Be careful, Shantae!" Sky called after her as she rushed back into her home to alert her resting transport creature.

 ** _A Little Bit Later…_**

LOCATION: HIGH IN THE SKY, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 18TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1253 HOURS

"I sure hope y'all know our deal is off!" Tay complained, still being held by the claw that trapped him while Twitch sat on his lap. Vinegar took point piloting the aircraft in the seat up front as they ventured off toward a destination that had yet to be revealed.

"Eh, it was kind of a bum one, anyway," Twitch nonchalantly shrugged. "This plan works so much better. We get our hands on those guns of yours, we finally get the firepower we need to eliminate that crotchety old crow Risky as a threat, you show us how they work so we'll be prepared, we rightfully reclaim our H.P.G., Ammo Baron takes all the weapons in the name of the Ammonian Army, and I get to have you all to myself as a bonus!"

"Darn it, I should've known better than t' strike that deal with you two! I knew you'd stab me in the back!" Tay further griped, clearly unhappy with this new… arrangement. Twitch merely giggled at his frustration

"Heh, if it makes you feel any better, my intergalactic boy toy, then I'll have you know that we aren't doing this to betray you. We just have our own interests to look out for. There's plenty of room in the Ammonian Army for a guy like you, who apparently already has a military background. Plus…~" she trailed off, scooting back and hooking her arm around the hapless alien soldier's head. "A strong, handsome guy like you, with all your weapons knowledge, would make the perfect boyfriend for me~! It's a win-win, no matter what way you slice it!"

"Hmph! The fact o' the matter is that you planned this an' are now in the act of draggin' me off against my will t' fulfill your own goals, despite what we agreed on! That's betrayal through an' through! An' while the offer t' join your ranks is temptin', that's a definite 'No!' Also… I'm sorry, exactly how old are you?"

"Eighteen. Why?" she plainly answered.

"Wh-what!? Eighteen!?" Tay reacted with such immeasurable shock that I think I felt the jolt of electricity all the way from over here in… wherever a narrator is when they tell readers a story in which they may or may not have had direct involvement. Just know it was, like, super far away.

"Yep! I know, Vinegar and I look a lot younger than we are. Believe it or not, she's twenty," Twitch informed him, already aware that Tay may have made the mistake of believing them to be kids.

"No way! Th-that's impossible!" Tay stammered in complete befuddlement upon learning that these girls were actually grown women.

"Believe it, Tay-Tay," Twitch remarked with a wink, though her name instantly made Tayshan's body flash with chagrin-related heat. Evidently, the moniker she addressed him with struck a particularly tense chord with him that made him immediately drop his surprise at Twitch's age.

"…Never call me that. Ever," he advised, irrevocably displeased with his new nickname.

"No promises. Still, what'd you think? That I was just some little girl with a crazy crush or something?"

"Weeeellllll… Maybe not the bit with the 'crush…?' I just thought you were a crazy little girl who was actin' grown," he rather carelessly admitted, offending his adorable captor as she steamed with ire.

"Oh, so you're a comedian too, huh?" Twitch sarcastically shot back, scowling at her captive. "You've got a lot of nerve, making smart remarks like that when you're pretty much at our mercy! Just because you're cute doesn't mean you can't find yourself swimming with the sharks after a 15,000-foot drop!"

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry," he humbly apologized, unwilling to call her on her threat as he also ignored her calling him 'cute.' "All jokes aside, I had no idea you were a grown woman. Can you really blame me for takin' note of your uh… youthful an' energetic demeanor?" he asked in a manner meant to keep Twitch calm enough not to throw him overboard.

"Hmm…" she hummed in thought, uncertain of how to receive his comment. "In what regard?"

"I mean in the sense that, barrin' that you look young, you have a certain… er, enthusiastic, passionate charm about you? At least, that's what I picked up from our battle before," he cautiously stated, really not wanting to test her willingness to turn him into fish food.

"Oh. Well, then. That's more like it, Tay-Tay," she appreciatively accepted his 'compliment,' though she infuriated him to no end with her humiliating pet name for him. "I'm glad you at least know a good woman when you see one," she added, cradling his face again.

"Uh… Sure, let's agree on that," he acquiesced, pulling his head out of her grip. In that moment, however, he heard what sounded like hissing coming from behind the aircraft. Looking backward to face the source of the noise, he immediately spotted something that alarmed him out of his wits. Instead of panicking, however, he remained calm. "Uhh… S-So… if you don't mind me askin'…" he started, turning his attention to his captor while trying not to look or sound distressed.

"Yes, I… I do actually have a crush on you. I wasn't just pretending so I can string you along," she preemptively and blushingly answered without needing to hear his question. "I can tell you're not a total blockhead like other guys, so I didn't even think to do that to you. Or rather, I didn't think you'd fall for it."

"Oh," he so eloquently replied, being completely caught off-guard by Twitch's brazen confession. "I thought you were just tryin' t' manipulate me int' cooperatin' with you, t' be honest."

"Nope. Though, there may be some incentives you can earn from me if you let us pick your brain for info about those guns and bombs of yours…" she teased, grinning as she reached and tickled his chin with her fingers, wiggling her hips into his lap. Tay flinched in sudden discomfort, though he tried his best to contain his reaction. Noticing the… racy effect she had on him, the mischievous young lady cutely giggled in elated satisfaction.

"O-Of course, because why bother actually takin' a vested interest in somebody when you can try an' beguile 'em int' spillin' secrets?" he sardonically and flatly spat in embarrassed disdain.

"Aw, don't look at it THAT way, Tay-Tay~!" she teasingly remarked.

"…Stop calling me that…!" he irritably requested with a growl through teeth clenched tightly enough to bite through rocks.

"I still have every intention of making you mine. Well, more so getting you used to the idea of being mine, since you're already here with me."

"Uh, okay, whatever you say. Anyway, that wasn't my question," he hurriedly redirected, painfully aware of the impending threat as the hissing got louder.

"It wasn't?"

"No. My actual question was this: Does this plane have decent defense mechanisms of any kind regardin' anti-air attacks?"

"What? What do you mean?" she asked, eyeing him in confusion at such a bizarre, arbitrary question.

"I mean we're under attack from behind and, unless your friend up there is an excellent pilot, we're in for a real nightmare… Take a look behind us if you don't believe me."

"What!?" Twitch shrieked in horror, climbing off her human chair's lap to peer out of the airplane. Of course, she saw what Tay meant; a long, cyllindrical, rapidly-accelerating black rocket gaining on them with the intent to obliterate. FAST. "How'd you know we were under attack!?"

"I heard the sound of somethin' bein' shot from a distance an' noticed it comin' a few seconds ago."

"Why didn't you say anything!?"

"Because you were busy confessin' your love to me."

"D'oh, you…! Vinegar! Serpentine! We're about to take-!" before she could finish her remark, the plane took a devastating *BOOM* of a direct hit. The plane was heavily damaged, debris raining off it like an open piñata as they began a terrifying, smoking nosedive.

"Shoot, that's one heavy impact…!" Tay commented as the plane hurtled at mach speed toward a nearby island. "I never thought I'd be on the business end o' one o' those things…! An' survive long enough t' see what it can do, no less…!" he barely managed to choke out, the sudden turbulent rush of chilly crash-related wind restricting his breathing.

"What the heck happened!?" Vinegar screamed as she tried to bring the plane under control, barely managing to stabilize it as it remained on its sudden crash course.

"We were targeted and shot at!" Twitch answered back, putting on an oxygen mask before gripping the plane for dear life. "We're under fire! Can you get this thing under control!?"

"Not for long! We'll have to eject! The plane's too heavily damaged!" Vinegar warned, putting on a turbulence mask to maintain her ability to breathe.

"Roger!" Twitch acknowledged as she pulled out a spare mask from a secret compartment in the passenger seat to put on Tayshan. She then pulled a pair of heavy-duty shears from inside her pale brown rucksack and used them to hurriedly slice through the long, thick metallic wire attached to the claw that held Tayshan in place. With that cut, the claw released itself from its hostage. Tay, realizing this, lifted the offending device off himself and let the vicious gale force winds tear it from his hands.

"What's the plan!?" Tay asked, witnessing the girls' swift emergency procedure as the tumultuous gusts ripped past them.

"Grab onto me and don't let go!" Twitch instructed as she sat on his lap again, prompting the soldier to wrap his arms around her bare midsection and squeeze for dear life. "Ooh, tight grip… I like that… Anyway, I hope you're prepared!" she warned, inching herself further onto her hostage's lap as he helplessly watched the fiery, windy pandemonium while he was trapped. Twtich proceeded to pull what looked like a series of orange safety straps from the backpack and, with the press of a button, used it to tether herself to her captive and the seat he was sitting in. Afterward, she quickly reached down and pulled a lever under the seat.

Within a second, the passenger seat was shot out of the doomed aircraft like a cannonball out of a cannon. Just as it reached the apex of its launch arc, Twitch pulled a string hanging from the side of the now-airborne, disembodied passenger seat. An enormous blue raccoon-themed parachute emerged, expanding to a size nearly rivaling a hot-air balloon to bring a sudden, nigh-instantaneous decrease to the speed of their fall to a crawl. Vinegar had made a similar series of moves with her own seat, joining them in lofting about in the sky over a small, mountainous island that was shaped very similarly to the laces on a football.

The three watched as their only means of transportation spiraled into a rapidly-descending, fiery ball of mechanical carnage headed straight into the canyon below. With an extravagant, incendiary *KABOOM* of an impact with the mossy, bright, sparkling silver crags below, the wreckage formerly known as an airplane burst into a mass of scattering, burgeoning flames. The explosion immediately engulfed everything around it in a blanket of ravenous blazes as thick, murky torrents of smoke billowed heavily from the remains of the plane.

"You alright, Twitch?" Vinegar asked from the safety of her own parachute-chair as she floated down near her comrade.

"As I'll ever be," Twitch assured with a confident nod. "I don't even know who or what attacked us, though!"

"From what I saw, it might've been a round from a heat-seekin' rocket launcher," Tay explained, catching the attention of his kidnappers.

"Heat-seeking rocket launcher?" Vinegar asked in utter shock.

"Yeah. I caught a glimpse of it, an' it looked like a round from what's known in my world as a Stinger."

"Stinger?" Twitch pressed, curious about what he meant.

"Basically, a Man-Portable Air-Defense System fitted with some pretty heavy, state-of-the-art, technologically-enhanced Surface-to-Air missiles. The fact that we're even alive right now is nothin' short of a miracle, simply put."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa…" Twitch interrupted. "I'm still stuck on 'heat-seeking.' You're seriously telling us that your world's arsenal even has anti-air warheads that can lock onto sources of heat and take them down from the ground?"

"That's correct," he confirmed as they descended near an open, grassy plain below. "I don't know where that last missile was fired from, but considerin' how fast we were goin', as well as how high we were, that thing took no more than thirty seconds to blow us out o' the sky. All things considered, though… There's no doubt Risky or one of her Tinkerbats fired it."

"…We REALLY need to get those weapons off her, then. There's no way we can compete with THAT kind of firepower," Vinegar worriedly commented. "Is there anything else we should know about?"

"Tons, but we should probably focus on gettin' off this place we're about t' land on," he advised as they touched down on a seemingly-unpopulated emerald-green pasture near a sandy coastline. Once the trio made landfall, they wasted no time undoing the seat straps that kept them secure during their descent, rising to their feet to regroup. They also discarded their oxygen masks. "I don't suppose either o' you knows where we just landed, do you?"

"Hmm…" Vinegar pondered, walking over to Twitch and pulling a map out of her bookbag. After a moment of studying the map, she answered. "Looks like we landed on a… Prickle Stitch Valley?" At that, Tay's eyes went wide.

"Of all places…" he murmured. "How convenient…"

"You know about this place?" asked Vinegar, her curiosity at her captive's reaction piqued.

"Not that much, really. I was tipped off about it a few days ago. It's just odd t' find myself here on basically a whim after so long without any luck findin' it on purpose. Anyway, before I get too friendly with either of you… What's the deal with you snatchin' me up like you did?" he questioned, still on high-alert because of the unceremonious manner of his arrival to the Prickle Stitch Valley.

"We already told you; we were going to interrogate you for more info about your world's weapons since we hadn't seen them in action until just now. We were also going to 'convince' you to ditch Shantae and join us. As a matter of fact…" the orange-garbed Ammonian associate trailed off, pulling what looked like a revolver from a holster on her utility belt and pointing it directly at Tayshan.

"Whoa, whoa, Vinegar, relax! Do we really need to be so drastic?" Twitch worriedly protested.

"If you want to survive long enough to meet our leader, you're gonna cooperate with us as long as we see fit. You're gonna cough up your intel and you're gonna swear your allegiance to the Ammonian Army. If you don't, you'll find yourself pushing up daisies faster than you can say 'No'," Vinegar demanded, ignoring her ally's disagreement.

"…Really? You're gonna threaten me with a gun here an' now when we're all stranded with no way out o' here?" he asked, alarmed that she would take such extreme measures to control him with little to no provocation. "Unless you got another fancy airplane you can just whistle t' summon up."

"Whether we have spare aircraft doesn't matter right now. What matters is that we have you right where we want you, with no hair-whipping genie girlfriends of yours to save you."

"Oh, is that right? You think I've just been hidin' behind Shantae's back this whole time?" he dared to challenge, approaching Vinegar with both hands reached behind his back. As a nonverbal warning, Vinegar cocked the hammer of her revolver.

"Get your hands from behind your back! Now!" she ordered, ready to shoot if he did not comply.

"As you wish," Tay further dared, though the moment he revealed his hands, Twitch and Vinegar noticed something that frightened them both stiff; Tay had what looked like a metal ring around one finger on one hand… while the other held what looked to them like a dangerous weapon. The soldier's hand was wrapped firmly around the device, his fingers tightly squeezing a lever attached to it.

"What is that thing?" asked Vinegar.

"A frag grenade," Tay clarified.

"Frag grenade?" Twitch queried, not understanding the term.

"Yep. As in, fragmentation. In a nutshell: I pull this pin here, give the grenade a good toss, an' in four seconds… BOOM! The only things keepin' that from happenin' are my fingers squeezin' on the spoon here," he boldly threatened.

"What!?" both girls bellowed in horror, tensing up as the stakes were raised exponentially in a matter of a single second.

"Are you crazy!?" Vinegar asked, fervently aiming her weapon at the seemingly-deranged alien madman. Twitch hurriedly ran and took refuge behind her partner in crime. "You really plan on blowing all of us up with that thing!?"

"Dunno," he teased, walking toward the two with a serious expression on his face. "You think you have the accuracy with that revolver t' stop me?"

"Tayshan, don't do this!" Twitch warned as she and Vinegar backed up.

"Y'all got the drop on me earlier, but now it's time t' stop beatin' around the bush. You wanna keep playin' games? Here's one where we all get t' lose together if we make the wrong choices," he further dared, continuing to walk toward the two blonde bombers.

"Oh yeah? Well, we have bombs, too!" Twitch threatened, pulling out a melon-sized orb with an unlit fuse hanging from the top of it. Upon seeing it, however, Tay was unfazed. Despite this, he was mildly surprised to see such a cartoonish-looking explosive in person.

"Hmph. In the time it takes you t' light the wick on that glorified bowlin' ball-shaped candle, my grenade will have already blown up," he warned with a sneer.

"Don't toy with us! I will shoot you if you don't put that thing down! Drop it!" Vinegar barked, in no mood to continue this high-stakes verbal scuffle that, for all she knew, could get… explosively physical at any given second.

"I could, but then the four-second countdown would start. Shoot me, an' I guarantee you won't make it far enough t' escape the blast or the spray of mach-speed shrapnel flyin' in every direction. That a gamble you two are willin' t' make?"

"We could just run in separate directions and leave you to blow yourself up, you moron," Vinegar snidely remarked. "Then you'd just be an idiot with a live explosive in his hand and nowhere to go with it."

"You could, but… who's t' say I won't be able t' catch you? I'm pretty fast on my feet. Plus, I'd only need t' catch one of you," he dared, standing his ground. "After that, it's basically a matter of how far the other is willin' t' go t' save her partner."

"Oh yeah?" Twitch defiantly countered. "Well, we have jetpacks, too. There's no way you can fly!"

"Fair enough, though I doubt they'd get you that far. Where I'm from, jetpacks can only get you about five minutes of air time at best. Plus, they're super slow an' impractical for use over long periods of time before they run out o' juice. Unless yours are special in some way?" he shot back, catching the girls by surprise once again as they went silent.

"…Darn it, he caught me on that one," the shorter girl mumbled in frustration. "What technology DOESN'T his world have…?"

"I wonder… What if I DID blow myself up an' y'all managed to get away?" he dared again, stopping in his tracks while the girls backed up to what they judged to be a safe distance. "In that case, neither of you would get that precious intel you're so hungry for. When you think about it, I'm the only person in this universe with useful knowledge about those guns. An' from what I can guess, y'all need that info t' stop Risky Boots. That's why you kidnapped me in the first place, no?"

"Who says we actually need you or your information? We're trying to play it safe by making necessary preparations against her!" Vinegar shouted, fed up with this enmity-riddled death negotiation.

"Oh, so you DON'T need me? Then I guess I'll be on my way with this live grenade," he shrugged, turning to walk away. "Have fun navigatin' this place on your own with the loomin' possibility that Tinkerbats are out here with weapons way stronger than you could dream of, ready t' tear you ladies t' pretty little pieces on-sight."

"Enough of your games! Get rid of that bomb and I-!" Vinegar was about to threaten when Tay raised the grenade high into the air and lifted his index finger off the spoon.

"Oh look, now there are only three fingers keepin' this thing from blowin' up instead o' four. How'd that happen?" he rhetorically asked. At this point, Vinegar held her ground and came to a conclusion.

"…You wouldn't actually blow yourself up with that thing. Why would you ever be THAT reckless?" Vinegar called out, smirking with confidence.

"You don't really know me, so that's a good question. Why WOULD I ever be that reckless? It could have somethin' t' do with a policy in my world's faction about goin' down in a blaze o' glory before we ever get captured by the enemy an' pried for info. Y'know, death before dishonor. But… who's t' say?" he suggested with a nonchalant shrug. Vinegar, though pressed further for reasons to keep this high-stakes negotiation going, kept her resolve and logical reasoning strong.

"We don't necessarily have to take you with us. You need us way more than we need you right now. Twitch and I can find our way around this place, no problem. We even have emergency flares to call for backup and to get a lift off this island if we get lost or wind up in danger."

"Actually, Vinegar… no, we don't," Twitch sheepishly informed her teammate in a hushed whisper.

"What? Where are our flares and emergency signal remote?" Vinegar whispered back.

"They were in the Vicious Velocity and the Turbulent Terror, our first airplane and tank from the other day. They were blown to smithereens when we lost that battle to Tay-Tay and genie girl…" Twitch informed her comrade. The shock and ire on Vinegar's face in that moment was so intense that one could FEEL the heat radiating from her body. "Any spares we might've had were in that other plane and… well, we already know those are as good as gone…"

"…You're kidding me…! You're just letting me know about this now? We should've resupplied!"

"Sorry… I was thinking about it, but then we got sidetracked looking for those weapons…"

"Sounds like y'all don't have as many options as you thought you did," Tay observed, overhearing their bantering as he turned to face them again.

"I have half a mind to blow you away right here and now! You're getting annoying!" Vinegar responded, aggressively marching toward him with her gun still aimed at him. She stopped dead in her tracks and gasped when he raised the grenade and lifted his middle finger from the spoon.

"An' you're runnin' out o' time t' make a decision," he countered. "Now there's only two fingers keepin' us alive right now. My grip's startin' t' slip, too. If I let go o' this thing for even a fraction of a second, the countdown begins, an' there'd be nothin' we could do about it. Matter of fact, since it's just my ring an' pinky fingers holdin' on, we technically only have one more chance. My fingers ain't quite so flexible, unfortunately," he warned, brandishing the explosive as he stepped toward Vinegar.

"Tayshan, wait!" Twitch called, still standing a few feet behind her teammate, who'd found herself right in front of him.

"What do you think would happen if we DID dispose of you or leave you here?" Vinegar asked again.

"Long story short, you'd be totally blind fightin' Risky Boots an' she'd probably make drapes out o' the tattered remains of your army's clothes in as little as a single battle, provided you even make it out o' this place without bein' noticed by Tinkerbats that might be here. Your leader wouldn't be too happy with that, now would he? You just saw for yourselves what kind o' power that pirate woman packs now."

"…What are you getting at?"

"At this point, we're gonna need each other, whether you wanna admit that or not," he suggested. "Threatenin' an' extortin' me won't get you anywhere but int' situations like this," he advised. "Put the gun down, an' we can start talkin' real cooperation. No backstabbin', no tricks, no gimmicks."

"Get rid of that explosive, then!" Vinegar demanded, masking her apprehension as frustration.

"Nuh-uh! You pulled that gun on me first. Plus, I won't know that you can be trusted until you stand down. Put it away," the soldier ordered.

"…Fine," Vinegar acquiesced, disengaging and sheathing her firearm as she desired to bring this tense, stressful standoff to a reasonable end.

"Good," Tay commended, letting the spoon of the grenade go before turning and quickly launching the weapon as high and far as he could. Afterward, Tay rushed toward Vinegar, grabbing her by the hand and dragging her toward Twitch, where he crouched and wrapped his arm around Twitch's abdomen. He pulled both girls to the ground with him and held them close to avoid taking damage from the grenade he threw.

With a startling *BOOM*, the grenade detonated, its fragments scattering all around the field at lethal speeds. Thankfully, none of our heroes (er, anti-heroes in this case) were injured. As soon as the coast was clear, Tay helped the girls up. Vinegar slapped his hand away as they arose, opting to get up under her own power. Twitch, more receptive of the protective maneuver, allowed him to help her to her feet. The three dusted the long, rigid, needle-like grass blades and patches of dirt from their clothes as they observed the heavy smoke coming from the mark the exploded weapon made on the terrain.

"Now, let's talk co-op," Tay calmly and cordially offered, wanting to draw up a truce right away.

"Sure… So what's your bargain this time, Mr. Negotiator?" inquired Vinegar, who'd eyed him up and down with stark distrust.

"I'll give you ladies some intel about the guns an' some o' their specs if you release me as a hostage. We can team up together an' explore this valley instead. I've been needin' t' come here t' investigate somethin', so there's a chance we could all learn somethin' useful about Risky Boots's plans, whatever they might be."

"Uh-uh. Not good enough," Twitch countered with a shake of her head. "After that little stunt of yours, we're gonna need a little more of a committed, collateral-based offer from you."

"That's… fair," he admitted with a knowing nod. "What can I offer, then?"

"You have to let us take some of those guns for ourselves," Twitch demanded. As one might expect, the request immediately made the serviceman uneasy.

"You know I can't let you-!"

"You will, or we won't have a deal, and we'll leave you here to fend for yourself," she interrupted, standing her ground. "Your knowledge about your guns would make things a lot easier for us, but it doesn't make us incapable of figuring things out ourselves if you don't agree."

"I understand that, but those weapons are not toys. They can cause some catastrophic damage in the wrong hands, an' my biggest goal here is t' round up as many as I can to minimize that threat as much as possible. Simply handin' them off t' anybody who doesn't know what they're doin' would go directly against that goal."

"If knowledge of how to use a firearm is all you're worried about, then I assure you that we're expertly trained," Vinegar countered.

"Plus, like I said before, if we got our hands on some of them, we could take Risky's forces down much easier," Twitch finished.

"That… doesn't help t' sway my opinion. With Risky in possession of most o' that arsenal, it's already a worst-case scenario. Givin' anything t' anybody else, no matter what the purpose was, is basically just choosin' the lesser of two evils; which is still very bad. That's a lose-lose for me, an' disaster waitin' t' happen for everybody else," Tay elaborated, intent on not giving the girls any of recovered weapons for fear that it would perpetuate the crisis situation at hand.

"Tayshan, listen," Twitch interjected, reading his apprehension about the deal's stipulations as concern for their safety. "You may not know this, or maybe you forgot from our last conversation, but Vinegar and I are also part of a military-based faction. We not only have the skills, but also the discipline to handle a couple of foreign weapons. You don't have to worry so much about the dangers of us using some of yours. Besides, you asked for our help first. How do you expect us to help you if you don't give us a method of doing so?"

"Wow, good point, Twitch," Vinegar praised her comrade.

"That's… fair, I guess," he begrudgingly acknowledged. However, Tay was still not sold on the idea of letting anyone (especially Twitch and Vinegar) take possession of his world's weapons. "However, the point still stands that you don't know what kind o' power these things pack."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure we do," Vinegar argued. "We did just get blown out of the sky in just one shot from one of your dimension's weapons, like you said. That's all the confirmation we need to understand that we'd be better off getting help bringing that pirate witch down. What better way to collaborate than by letting us use some of the things we recover from her Tinkerbats? Do you think we can't handle the task?"

"No, I don't doubt your capabilities; t' be honest, it's mainly your intentions I'm wary of," Tay reasoned. "Y'all have a point about needin' a basis from which t' work with each other, but even if I WANTED t' give you any o' those weapons, how do I know you won't wind up becomin' a threat yourselves?"

"If you think we're anything like that thieving spinster Risky Boots, then you're sadly misinformed. We never attack anyone without warning or try to just take over Sequin Land by force!" Twitch assured him, though he wasn't buying it.

"Somehow, I find myself doubtful o' that assertion… y'know, based on how you got me here in the first place."

"…Okay, SOMETIMES, we attack without warning," she corrected in annoyance. "There, happy?"

"You're not doin' a very good job convincin' me that you can be trusted not t' use those guns for the wrong purposes," Tay shot back in annoyance.

"What she's trying to say, is that what we do may not necessarily be considered 'good' in the eyes of the public, but we aren't bloodthirsty, ruthless savages like Risky Boots," Vinegar cut in. "We don't go around attacking anyone or taking anything for our own unless we're absolutely sure it spreads Ammonian influence across the land, bolsters our might, or that whatever we're doing is worth the effort. We may have abducted you without warning, but that's because we have the idea you may be useful to us," she further explained in hopes of clarifying their motives. "You should consider yourself flattered."

"Couldn't have said it better myself, Vinegar!" Twitch praised, though Tay scoffed, finding himself the farthest thing from pleased about such a callous, insensitive clarification.

"Oh, where are my manners, in that case? Let me sing your praises t' the high heavens an' rejoice about you kidnappin' me t' try an' force me t' spill my guts about my stolen arsenal. At gunpoint, no less!"

"That sounds like a 'you' problem if I've ever heard one," Vinegar coldheartedly countered, further appalling Tayshan. "Don't be such a baby about it. You're still alive, aren't you?"

"A 'me' problem? Are you serious!? I wouldn't have this problem if it wasn't for you two an' that ridiculous abduction ploy! All y'all had t' do was gather some o' your own intel an' figure out how we'd coordinate, Vinegar! Like I said before, I had a feelin' y'all would stab me in the back anyway, but I gave y'all the benefit o' the doubt! Thanks for provin' my hunch right, at least!" he indignantly shouted, their discussion quickly derailing into an argument about who did what.

"We did what we felt was necessary to get the results we're looking for," she plainly corroborated. "Why would you even strike a deal with us if you knew it'd go sour, or if you didn't think you could trust us? From the sound of it, it's all your fault for even letting us know about your weapons."

"Vinegar, hold o-!" Twitch tried to intervene as Vinegar and Tayshan began to argue.

"After YOU accused me of stealin' that propulsion generator thing an' tried t' kill me without so much as a passin' thought!" Tay yelled, his frustration with Vinegar reaching a boiling point. "It was that or keep squabblin' with you an' get nowhere fast! If anything, y'all could've just asked me if I knew anything about your generator! That would've made a ton more sense an' avoided a totally pointless fight!"

"Tayshan, cool it for a-!" Twitch tried to cut in again.

"Well excuse us for not exactly being psychic. Whenever something goes missing or wrong, there's usually only one or two culprits to choose from, and Shantae has almost always been our prime suspect. You were palling around with her at the time, so we figured you were in cahoots with her."

"So now you're blamin' her for choices you made without anybody forcin' you? Moreover, you seriously expect me t' believe Shantae of all people would REALLY try t' steal from you? As far as I know, that girl wouldn't even call somebody a bad name on her worst day! On what planet does it make sense to accuse her of stealin' anything from you?"

"Look, we're sorry about that, alright? There, you have your apology. Happy now?" Vinegar condescendingly shot back.

"Wow… I don't think you could be more insincere if you tried. Could you at least make it sound like you mean it? Or like you actually cared t' put some thought into it?" he remarked with a perturbed frown, bringing Vinegar's anger to a frightening boil.

"Ugh, of course you're one of those…" she complained, scratching her head in frustration. "You're so rude! Do you think you're macho or something, talking to me like you are!? Because it only makes it apparent that your ego is about as sturdy as a cracked eggshell!"

"Come on, you guys, stop!" Twitch once again tried to settle the mounting tension, though she continued to go unheard.

"You're not exactly a portrait o' good manners or perfect self-confidence either, homie. All that bitter sarcasm won't do a thing to intimidate me or make you sound smart." At that insult to her intelligence, Vinegar scoffed in disgust.

"Smart? I'll have you know that I've accomplished things in one week that it probably took you months—no, YEARS to even comprehend with that tiny peanut brain of yours! Don't even bring up 'smart'!" she insulted, causing Tay to suck his teeth.

"Because that's supposed t' hurt my feelings, right? A generic assumption turned into a personal attack. Whatever you're implyin' ain't even relevant to the argument. Yet, I'M the one with the fragile ego…" he flatly and callously retorted with a shrug.

"Oh, for pete's sake! You're both being immature! Stop it!" Twitch angrily called an end to the senseless fighting for the umpteenth time, only to get ignored for the umpteenth time.

"Excuse you!? Who do you think you are!?" Vinegar roared, marching up to Tay as though to attack him. "You've got some nerve, you know that!? It's pompous, disrespectful jerks like you that give men a bad name!"

"An' it's loudmouthed, bitter, hair-trigger-temper-havin' little girls like you that creates 'em," he returned her insult with another. "Don't act like you're any better than me," he shot back, crossing his arms and glaring at her.

"Oh, you're such a pain…!" Vinegar growled through her teeth, though she took a moment to breathe an angered sigh hot enough that she could melt a cooler full of ice. Afterward, she refocused. "Anyway, the point is that you're already here, so what's the use in going back and forth with me about who did what?"

"You started it, though! Tellin' me I should be flattered about bein' captured, stuck up, an' extorted like some pirate with a treasure map… Have you lost your mind?" Tay indignantly accused, sending Vinegar over the edge again.

"Keep that smart-aleck attitude up, and I swear you'll regret every word you said!" she warned, reaching toward the holster sheathing her revolver. "You know what? Forget about a deal! We'll handle things ourselves! Stand in our way, and you'll be eating hot metal in an instant!"

"Is that a threat?" Tay calmly, yet angrily asked as he placed his hand on his gun in case things got physical. "Because I will defend myself; by any means necessary."

"So what if it is? Try me, little boy!" she spat as she placed a hand on her own firearm, causing Tay to shoot her a malevolent scowl that radiated with his building fury.

"That's enough! Vinegar, stop!" Twitch shouted for the final time, standing between the two and pushing Vinegar back. "We're all supposed to be on the same side! We won't get anywhere arguing with each other like kids!"

"Then tell your boyfriend to keep his dirty mouth in check," she suggested in a calmer tone, though her agitation remained as she rubbed her forehead. "The nerve on him."

"Er, Tay, why don't you stay put for a sec?" Twitch suggested with a suspiciously-cheerful smile. "Vinegar and I have… something private to discuss. Be riiiiiight back, okay?"

"Hmph. Go for it," he permitted, remaining stationary and dropping his defensive stance as Twitch requested. With that, Twitch nudged Vinegar a little further to create some distance to make sure Tayshan was out of earshot. The two girls huddled together and began a private discussion as Tay waited for their next move.

"Alright, look… The hostage thing didn't work out, but this deal we're about to make could be so much better. I'm not sure why you guys don't get along, but let's try to play it cool so we don't spoil our chance," Twitch whispered.

"And drag this ungrateful meathead along with us while he throws his temper tantrum? Is that really worth the headache?" Vinegar objected, still fuming with anger.

"To be fair, we DID wind up catching him by total surprise. It's understandable that he'd be at least a little upset. Still, if we can work together, we'll get what we want without another unnecessary fight. Just think about what sorts of artillery we'll be cashing in on once we're done here. Or even, further down the line when we really get moving. We'd be unstoppable once we got our hands on those interdimensional weapons. Working with the one person in this world who knows how to use them potentially gives us the upper hand over Risky Boots if we play our cards right."

"That's true…" Vinegar agreed before taking a deep breath to dispel her aggression. "In the end, it IS more about what we get out of it."

"Yeah. And let's not forget that we're better off making friends instead of enemies since we were asked for help knocking Risky off her high horse. Take her down, and we're next in line as the undisputed most powerful force in Sequin Land. It's killing two birds with one bullet! How often does that happen?"

"Good point. Putting it that way, this does come across as a golden opportunity like no other… Much as it pains me to admit, we'll probably get farther along with his and even Shantae's help than without. In that case, how do we keep him under control so he doesn't step out of line? It's more beneficial to us if we-!"

"You know, I can hear everything you're sayin'," Tay called, causing the two blonde girls to jump and face him directly. "If all you wanna think about is how y'all can get one over on me, then I'll make your previous point for you, Vinegar! Y'all can forget about makin' any deals! If y'all can't be trusted t' even hold a private conversation that doesn't involve betrayin' me, then it's clear I'd be better off navigatin' this place alone!" he boldly stated, angrily marching past them. "Good luck findin' your own way off this rock. I'll warn you not t' get in my way."

"No, no, wait!" Twitch called, running toward him and grabbing his hand, stopping him in his tracks. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry… We weren't planning to stab you in the back, honest."

"…You expect me t' believe that, after what you just said?" he questioned, not believing for a second that Twitch was being sincere.

"Tayshan, I'm dead serious," Twitch urged, holding his hand tightly. "We didn't mean it like that. We were only brainstorming how we'd cooperate with each other. Let's be logical here, babe. Come on."

"Yeah, it's logical that I don't trust either of you," he dismissed, wringing his hand from Twitch's grasp as he began marching off again. The eager bespectacled woman, unwilling to let him walk away, hurriedly grabbed onto him by his arm. "Girl, if you don't get-!"

"Tay, please! I really think we should work together! We'll have a much easier time exploring if we stick by each other. Three heads are better than two, y'know?"

"Not if two of 'em are conspirin' against the third! Now let me go!" he demanded, trying to pull away from the shorter of the two girls once again, though her grip held firm.

"Listen to me, will you!?" she yelled, fervent in her efforts to keep him there. "We're not trying to take advantage of you! Just wait a minute and let us explain!" she continued, clenching on to keep Tay from leaving.

"I've heard enough! There's not one more thing you can say t' change my mind! Every word out o' y'all thus far has been laced with contempt, disrespect, an' treachery! I'd appreciate if you would let go of me now, please!"

"No! Not until you hear me out!" Twitch vehemently denied, clinging tighter to his arm as the two played an impromptu game tug-of-war, with Tayshan's arm as the rope. Before too long, however, Tay lifted his arm with another tingling rush of unprecedented strength that surprised even him. Twitch, still clinging on, wrapped her legs around his forearm and used the leverage to squeeze his wrist into her chest.

"Yo, stop playin'! I am not a jungle gym!" Tay complained, nearly losing his balance as he stumbled around the open, windy, spiky plains. He kept his ensnared arm raised high while his adorable goggle-adorning frenemy-turned-bracelet held on tight.

"It's not like I climbed up here on purpose! Jeez, what kind of milk do you drink!? You're stronger than a gorilla!" Twitch commented, hugging the soldier's arm for dear life for fear of falling into the spiny grass.

"Laced with treachery…?" Vinegar, watching this absurdly childish display, murmured as she began to ponder about the recent events of their encounter with the mysterious alien soldier. She ruminated on the nature of hers and Twitch's encounters with him and, after a moment, she spoke up. "Tayshan, listen," the pensive, orange-clad young woman called, approaching him from the other side. "I… I'm sorry for losing my temper with you," she apologized, catching him by surprise as he and Twitch stopped in their tracks. In that moment, Tay quickly lowered his arm, causing her to fall to the ground with a comedic grunt. "I'm… WE'RE also sorry for dragging you out here and… for attacking you the last time we met."

"…How do I know you mean that?" he warily asked as he eyed both girls up and down. Twitch picked herself up and walked toward Vinegar, moving to stand side-by-side with her.

"Apologies aren't my strong suit," she admitted, raising her hands and shrugging to emphasize her point. "…but maybe… you deserve one after all we did to you since we met."

"They aren't mine either, but yeah… and I'm sorry we double-crossed you," Twitch added, repentantly stroking her own arm with her opposing hand. "We were only trying to figure out what worked best for us in this situation, but that really isn't fair to you since this is where we wound up."

"…Uh-huh," he acknowledged, turning to fully face them, though he was still suspicious of them.

"We mean it," Vinegar asserted. "You don't have to believe us, but that's the truth. We're all for cooperation if you're still up for discussion about it."

"…Against my better judgment…" he muttered to himself after a moment of trying to read their intentions through their body language. "Fine, I… I accept… your apology," he pensively remarked. "I… I'm sorry for losin' my cool, too. It's just… stressful, bein' kidnapped onto a plane, blown out o' the sky with a dangerous weapon, an' then stranded on a random island, y'know?"

"Of course," the two girls affirmed with simultaneous nods.

"I'm… willing t' talk cooperation, if y'all really mean it. For real, though. No games, no duplicity, no collusion."

"I'm sure we can work something out," Vinegar affirmed once more.

"Before we start though, I'm curious… Based on what I observed about how y'all operate up t' this point, where would you two consider yourselves on the good versus evil scale? I can't imagine bad guys bein' willin' t' negotiate like we're about t' do. At least, not unless y'all were plannin' somethin' else on the side that would spell deliberate disaster for everybody else."

"Um… I'm not sure how to answer that," Twitch admitted, scratching her head.

"What a weirdly-subjective question," Vinegar replied with some confusion, electing to answer his inquiry nonetheless. "Well, we aren't heroes by any means, if you haven't noticed by now. We normally do what we feel is necessary to advance our agenda. Whether it helps or harms others is, at its very least, pure coincidence. We don't go out of our way to harm anyone unless they have something we want, though. Of course, 'good' and 'evil' are basically irrelevant to us when you take that into perspective."

"So… Neutral?" Tay guessed with a perplexed shrug.

"If that's how you can make sense of it, then yes," Vinegar confirmed. "You could consider us 'neutral.'"

"Mind givin' me an example or two?"

"Sure. To give you a scope of it, we don't necessarily get along with Shantae because she always gets in the way of us, our leader Ammo Baron, and even some of our undisclosed business partners. But, as it's stood up to this point, we're far more likely to help her save Sequin Land than we are to ever join forces with Risky Boots and help her destroy it. When we take control of Sequin Land, it'll be for our own interests; no one else's," the taller young woman explained, choosing her words carefully to earn some consideration from their prospective ally.

"That's about as clear-cut an explanation as you're gonna get from either of us, Tay-Tay. Hate it or love it, that's just how we roll," Twitch conclusively agreed.

"…Right. So that leads me t' my next question: Why should I trust you?" Tay warily asked.

"Like we already said before, you don't have a choice here," Twitch answered. "At least, not one where you won't put yourself in danger if you don't work with us. If you want to get out of here alive, you'll be wise to stick with me and Vinegar. Plus, on the larger scale, we're working together to stop Risky Boots, right?"

"Right."

"See, we're already on the same page! Also, don't tell me you're not the least bit curious to find out what it's like working with us instead of Shantae for once."

"I haven't been workin' with her that long, but… I'll admit, I'm… mildly curious," he nonchalantly admitted, crossing his arms and cutting his eyes away. "Though, there are better ways t' solicit my help than what you chose. I'd still prefer it if she was here, too…"

"Ahh, I hear the intrigue in your tone~! Trust me, you're gonna love it! You won't even be thinking about that boring ol' frumpy genie girl once we're done here."

"That 'boring ol' frumpy genie girl' is my friend. Watch it with callin' her names, please," Tay defended, alarming Twitch.

"Alright, alright, fine. Anyway, I think we'll work well together. And… just for you, Tay-Tay, I'll be a good girl," she suggested as she temporarily removed her goggles to reveal her shining, captivating red irises. She shot him a flirty wink that sent shivers up the soldier's spine, in addition to causing a sudden flare-up in body temperature resultant of his intense loathing of being called 'Tay-Tay.'

"Uh… alright, sure. You don't have t' keep pretendin' t' like me that way t' get me t' help, though. I'm amicable enough without you needin' t' seduce me int' cooperatin', I assure you. I like your eyes, though. Nice color," he admitted, surprised to see such a vivid shade of red as anyone's eye color… well, other than Risky Boots, who seemed to be the very personification of evil. In Risky's case, it made more sense for her irises to be red like the blood of her enemies. Twitch's were red like brilliant, gleaming rubies.

"Aw, thanks, Tay-Tay~! Also, who's pretending?" she plainly asked, making him incredibly nervous right away as butterflies erupted in his stomach. "You're totally worthy to be my man. I'd never lie or play around about that."

"Oh… Uh… I'm flattered," he stated, startled out of his wits once again at the shorter girl's blunt, super-assertive confession. He averted his gaze toward Vinegar, who merely tilted her head and shrugged. "I uh… don't know what t' say…"

"She means it. Trust me, I know," she consoled with a blank facial expression.

"It uh… it sure is humid out here," he babbled with a nervous titter and a scratch of his cheek with his finger, blaming the rise in his body temperature on the thick, muggy air and blazing sun. "Man, what a scorcher…"

"You're such a cutie," Twitch laughingly complimented, causing the unfortunate soldier to frown. "It's adorable how nervous you're getting right now. You don't have to be so pent up around me, though. I'm all about getting you nice and comfortable in any way I can."

"Jeez…" he mumbled, crossing his arms as hs face grew warm. "This couldn't get more embarrassin'…"

"Alright, lovebirds, let's focus," Vinegar thankfully interrupted. "Anyway, I can't speak for Ammo Baron on what he'll do with the weapons you let us take, but I'll try to put in a vote of confidence that he shouldn't get any crazy ideas," she assured, reminding him of the stipulation the Ammonian affiliates set for his part of the agreement.

"I suppose that might work, but… are you sure there's NOTHING else you might want from me?" he urgently asked, still quite reluctant to hand over such sensitive, highly-dangerous equipment to the girls.

"Nope. Not unless you know how to manufacture those weapons yourself," Vinegar posed.

"I don't, unfortunately. I only know how they work an' their intended purposes. I also know how t' use most of 'em, but no, I couldn't build one from scratch. I'm not a gunsmith; I'm a marksman."

"Oh, well that'll definitely help us along with navigating through here. Though, the stipulation still stands. Either let us take some of the weapons we find, or no deal."

"…Shoot…" he murmured to himself, acknowledging the girls would not budge further. However, he was aware that they did have a point about being equipped enough to fight Risky Boots alongside him. Additionally, he realized that even surviving their time on the Prickle Stitch Valley, much less finding a way off, would require a team effort. As such, he made his choice… as if he had one. "…Fine. Whatever we come across here, should there be anything worth note, I'll let you take. But, only if you at least promise not t' double-cross me or Shantae again. We don't have time for three-way skirmishes, an' with every passin' day Risky is left alone t' play with that weapons cache, she becomes that much more dangerous. If you wind up betrayin' us again, we will find you, take back every weapon you might've gotten your hands on by force, an' we will fight again if it comes down to it; with much less regard for mercy. You don't have t' be afraid o' that, because I'm not tryin' t' intimidate you; I'm just givin' you fair warnin'. Understand?" he warned with the solemnity of a hardened warrior.

"Of course, Tay-Tay," Twitch agreed with a smirk. "I think our interests line up pretty well, so you don't have to worry about us pulling the wool over your eyes again. Let's shake on it!" she further suggested, offering a hand. Tay, though incredibly reluctant to agree to such terms, realized that in his current situation, he had little else in terms of options. Shantae and Sky were not available for help. He was miles upon miles away from Scuttle Town. His only hope of returning to Scuttle Town was in the form of cooperating with two girls of Ammonian persuasion who'd recently betrayed him and his half-genie tour guide and kidnapped him to yet another unfamiliar landscape. Let's not even forget that they tried using their marginally-successful kidnapping plot as an elaborate ploy to badger him for weapons from his world and/or intel about them. The mere thought left a bitter taste in his mouth, but he had to think about the bigger picture.

"One thing before I shake: I need t' see your hands. Both o' y'all," he commanded. "I'm aware at least one of you crossed your fingers last time we made a deal."

"Ooh, clever boy!" Twitch cutely teased as she and Vinegar raised their hands to their sides, fingers extended. "I like the way you think, Tay-Tay! You too, in that case. Y'know, so you don't get that idea yourself."

"You'll find that I'm a man o' my word," he assured.

"Oh yeah? How much?"

"Enough that I would've seriously gone with you t' that restaurant had the old deal remained unbroken," he clarified.

"Ooh~! In that case, would you want to sweeten this one with a little one-on-one time once we get everything squared away?" she asked, her hopes in his answer high.

"Not this time," Tay refused with a shake of his head. "At this point, I still need a reason t' trust you, much less consider takin' you on any private excursion," he sternly rejected, catching Twitch by surprise. Her heart sank in a rush of disappointment as she sulked.

"Hm, I knew you'd say that. Oh, well…" she shrugged, aware that the opportunity was lost. "I'll still win you over, regardless…" Twitch mumbled to herself, evidently eager to prevent him from slipping from her grasp over as little a hiccup as kidnapping him to a foreign terrain.

"In any case, I suppose we should seal our deal," he advised, raising his hands high. Without another word, he offered both hands to shake. Twitch and Vinegar, each with one hand extended toward the soldier and the other raised where he could see them, approached him. He shook hands with both girls simultaneously, instating their new agreement.

"That settles it, then," Vinegar observed. "For real, this time. From here on, you're an honorary Ammonian soldier."

"Alrigh-! Wait, what?" he asked in confusion, not understanding how he could be considered as having joined their organization with nothing but a handshake.

"Aww yeah, now we're talkin'!" Twitch excitedly exclaimed, turning to face the dangers ahead. "Teamwork makes the dream work! Now let's move out, troops!"

"Copy that!" Vinegar enthusiastically responded.

"Ma'am, yes, ma'am," Tay additionally affirmed as the newly-allied trio charged valiantly into the Prickle Stitch Valley. Once the three military personnel reached the starting point, they took their positions, with Vinegar taking point while Tay and Twitch lined up on either side of her. Tay drew his chrome-clad pistol and readied it for combat, though he felt a familiar guilty pang in his chest as he looked at it. Vinegar unveiled a bayonet-adorned rifle. Twitch reached into her backpack and armed herself with a bomb while unclipping her ludicrously-oversized revolver from her thigh.

"Mission Start!" All three of them simultaneously announced, beginning their impromptu expedition as they dashed into the mountainous region. With that underway, why don't we check on a certain someone else's progress, if you catch my drift?

 ** _Meanwhile, miles behind… like, SO MANY miles behind…_**

"Hah… Hah… Shoot, this… This is harder than I thought…" complained a quickly-tiring Harpy-formed Shantae as she continued to flap her wings to keep herself aloft over the sparkling ocean waves below. She tried valiantly to track down her friend and his kidnappers, but as we already established, her Harpy transformation was far outclassed in both speed and maneuverability when compared to an industrialized aircraft. However, she had no choice but to keep flying, as there were no nearby islands or landing locations for her to rest. To make matters worse, the trail of smoke left by Twitch and Vnegar's airplane had been fading fast. Nonetheless, she carried on. "I don't know how long I can keep this up for…" she lamented as she sluggishly hovered over the Sequin Land sea. "If I don't find a way to kick it up, I'm gonna lose the trail…"

"There you are!" called a familiar voice from behind her, its owner closing in. "Need a ride?"

"Sky!" Shantae exclaimed in immense relief as she turned and saw her best friend riding atop her trusty kaleidoscopic feathered companion. "You and Wrench made it!"

"Thankfully, but we don't have much time!" Sky urged. "I managed to find just a few extra bits of my bird seed, so if we hurry, we'll hopefully have enough to get us where we need to go and back! Hop on!" With that suggestion, Harpy-Shantae hovered over to where she was above Wrench and immediately poofed herself back to her human form and found a comfortable spot on the creature's saddle behind Sky.

"Thank you so much, Sky! You're the best!" Shantae cheered in relief, rubbing her arms. "Seriously, my arms are gonna be sore for the next week…"

"I try," the reliable bird trainer proudly acknowledged. "Now, where are we headed?"

"Follow the smoke trail!" the half-genie instructed, pointing toward the linear formation of woman-made clouds.

"Got it! Hang on tight, because we're going full blast!" Sky warned, ready to thrust it into maximum overdrive in an instant.

"Okay!" Shantae complied, wrapping her arms around Sky's waist.

"Here goes! Wrench, step on it!" Sky commanded. With an energetic cry qnd a mighty *WHOOSH*, Wrench rocketed off at mach speed, whipping up Category 5 hurricane-levels of wind current as he sliced through the brisk, open air.

"Waaaaaahhahahahaaaa!" Shantae uttered in terror as she squeezed her friend tighter and clenched her eyes shut. Of all the experiences our fabled heroine has had… flying on her friend's giant bird at top speed… was one of her least favorite. "T-Tell me when w-we get there! I'm just gonna… gonna… yeah," she frightfully informed her pilot, barely resisting the urge to vomit. Poor Shantae would be lucky not to have developed a crippling fear of flying just from this one horrid experience.

"At the pace we're going, we should catch up to them in a flash, depending on how far they made it!" Sky assured, so unfazed by the blistering speed of Wrench's flight that she wasn't even wearing goggles or blinking. Instead, she held tightly onto the reins that allowed her to steer him in the right direction. However frightening the pace of Wrench's flight was, it was indeed effective for keeping up with the steadily-darkening smoke trail. Any faster, though, and one might've presumed they were trying to create a horribly-impractical, not to mention ludicrously-illogical time portal that would send them 30 years into the past, where they'd meet younger versions of their own parents and be forced to facilitate said parents' respective love connections to ensure their existences came to be, or else they'd magically disappear… or something. But, as we have been reminded multiple times by Shantae the Half-Genie Time-Travel Buff… that just ain't how it works.

That aside (clever transition, right?), after a full hour of such unspeakable, traumatizing terror that was riding on a giant bird thousands of feet in the air over an endless watery blanket of crashing daytime ocean currents, the girls and their bird came to a halt near a totally unfamiliar, very small, isolated island far offshore from any place either of them was familiar with. While observing the grassy, sparkling, craggy landscape where the smoke seemed to lead them, Sky quickly noticed a puffy cloud of thick, black fumes rising high off the surface of the landmass. She further scanned the anomaly to notice a field awash in crimson and tiger-hued flames. At that, she drew in a dismayed gasp.

"Oh, no…!" she muttered in sudden, intense dread as she brought her hand over her mouth.

"What?" Shantae asked, picking up on Sky's worry as she opened her eyes and sat up to see what her friend was looking at. Once she caught sight of the carnage below, the terrified maiden took in an astonished gasp of her own. "Oh, no! Wh-what happened!?"

"I… I don't know," Sky managed to utter, though her tone was quaky with anxiety. "…but it sure doesn't look good down there…"

"You don't think… that they… that they crashed, do you?" Shantae inquired, her tone just as worried as both hers and Sky's thoughts raced with a sudden rush of hypothetical scenarios in which their friend and his abductors may have possibly met with a terrible fate.

"We gotta get down there and find him!" Sky urgently remarked, causing Wrench to immediately nosedive toward the inferno so the girls could begin their investigation.

"Please be okay, Tay… Please…?" Shantae murmured in a mix of anticipation and gripping fear for Tay's safety. Now that everyone's in the same place (more or less), we make yet another transition.

 ** _Within the reaches of the Prickle Stitch Valley (and NOT in the mangled wreckage of a doomed aircraft) while Shantae and Sky were en route…_**

Twitch, Vinegar, and Tay were quickly making strides as they trudged into the heavily-vegetated ravine, ready to tackle whatever challenges came their way… The only thing, however, was that, as approximately none of them would expect, there were no level-specific challenges to conquer as of yet.

"It's… awfully quiet around here, isn't it?" Vinegar observed, scanning the sparkling silver mile-high cliffsides and the jade-tinted needle-shaped foliage surrounding them in every direction.

"Yeah, there's nothing here…" Twitch further commented, just as confused as her tag partner. "All I hear is the flow of the river leading all the way through and some distant mountain goat and bird noises. Heck, I'm almost considering coming back here for a camping trip, it seems so peaceful…"

"Not t' sound cliché, but the quiet is probably the biggest reason we should be cautious out here," Tayshan advised, his gun at the ready in his hands as he scoured the landscape. "It's too quiet…" Twitch and Vinegar, less than impressed by Tay's predictable line, began to snicker behind his back.

"Oh, boy, look out everyone," Vinegar taunted with a humored smirk. "That bush over there is rattling. I think a bunny rabbit might attack us. Better hide behind our big, manly action hero tour guide so we don't get hurt."

"Oh, what ever shall we do as just a couple of gorgeous damsels in distress?" Twitch added as the two of them continued snickering.

"Laugh all y'all want, but I've got a bad feelin' about this…" Tay again predictably warned, causing the two of them to giggle at him some more.

"Lighten up, Tay-Tay! We've been pacing down this long, straight, narrow stream for like, the last fifteen or twenty minutes, and we haven't run into anything that could actually hurt us," Twitch nonchalantly dismissed. "Except maybe all the porcupine quill-like grass around here. I get it if you're trying to act all brave to impress us, but you really don't need to go the extra mile."

"Right, because I'm more worried about how cool you think I am than about who shot us down an' if they're snoopin' around this valley in case they weren't sure they finished us off."

"I won't say you don't have a point there, but we don't necessarily have a reason to be as high-strung as you're acting right now," countered Vinegar. "What's the hang-up? Why so paranoid?"

"Hmph. I suppose it's worth mention by now that I know about this place because I was told a few days ago that it was inhabited by clairvoyant druids o' some sort, but I don't know if they'll be hostile or friendly."

"Druids?" Vinegar asked, her interest piqued, though her tone was a tad disbelieving. "You heard there were druids that can see the future? In this forsaken wasteland of all places?"

"You got it. I was told that they predicted everything that happened with Risky stealin' weapons from my world an' usin' them t' terrorize Sequin Land. I was also told this place was at least a little bit… livelier than this."

"Well then… That's gonna need a further look into this valley, in case that myth actually turns out to be true," Twitch commented, also disbelieving of such an uncanny tale.

"So, here's a thought: If they knew about what would happen, then why didn't they warn anyone before it happened?" Vinegar questioned, raising a point. "Or at least try to stop it themselves? It wouldn't make much sense for these magical druids to know about such a huge threat and do nothing about it."

"Maybe they thought it better t' bounce up out o' here before Risky Boots launched her scheme? I mean, I heard this from an archer over on Naga Mountain, an' she seemed convinced that was the truth. I don't know anything else at this point."

"Oh, good. Now I know that's all made up," Vinegar rebuffed, disappointed as she was annoyed to have wasted brain power considering such a preposterous assertion.

"Excuse me?"

"Really? One of those primitive, arrow-happy crayon women with the leaf clothes told you about that? I didn't exactly have you pegged for brilliant, but I didn't expect you to be gullible. Way to lower the bar for yourself."

"What is that supposed to mean!?" Tay remarked, quickly angered by Vinegar's cold, antagonistic observation.

"It means you shouldn't believe every fairytale you hear; especially if you don't have the resources to fact-check against the word of a simple monster."

"You say that like you've actually held a conversation with one of 'em before."

"No, but come on! That's ridiculous! Clairvoyant druids… What a load. You almost had me going there, I'll give you that much."

"Yeah, Tay-Tay… That story doesn't make a lot of sense to me, either," Twitch agreed with Vinegar.

"…Whatever," he ceded with a shrug, irritated by his failure to convince the girls to believe the rumor he'd heard. "The fact is, we should still keep on our toes an' keep our eyes peeled. We don't know what kinds o' danger might lurk around here…"

"Give it a rest, dude!" Vinegar continued to disagree. "We're fine, aside from being stuck here! Seriously, the most threatening thing we've seen thus far is-!"

"Get down!" Tay interrupted, quickly rounding both girls up and dragging them into the grass with him, getting stuck with some of the pines along the way. Before either of the young ladies could fully grasp what was happening, however, a series of distant, yet voluminous, rapid *pop* noises rang out, shattering the otherwise-serene ambiance of the valley. Immediately following the noise, a series of projectiles rained on them, narrowly missing the trio as the rounds kicked up dirt and grass blades nearby. As Tay, Twitch, and Vinegar looked up once the opening barrage of gunfire subsided, they spotted very familiar-looking anthropomorphic red-garbed bats with propeller packs swooping in, armed exclusively with weapons from Risky's contraband cache aimed directly at them.

"Tinkerbats!? They're actually here!?" shouted Twitch in total surprise as she stood and readied her oversized revolver for combat.

"A bunch of them, too!" Vinegar added, readying her rifle and returning fire as she got up. "Seriously, there's a whole swarm of them up there!" she further commented as she and her comrades prepared to defend themselves.

"No joke! It's like a cloud of 'em, an' they're out for blood! We gotta take 'em down as fast as possible, because they're armed with guns from my turf!" he warned, popping out of the leafy, prickly bush he and his allies were hiding in and began firing rounds on the run. The Tinkerbat squad, without much provocation, spread out and arranged themselves into a collective arrow-shaped formation, their otherworldly semi-automatic rifles and shotguns locked, loaded, and ready to wreak havoc. With a point by the squad's leader, they began raining a hailstorm of flashing marbles on their adversaries. Tay, Twitch, and Vinegar were forced to strategize on the fly as they avoided being overwhelmed by the ambush.

"So, you MIGHT'VE been right to be cautious," Vinegar admitted as the three dashed through the open, shrubbery-infested field while avoiding sprays of gunfire.

"I'll remember t' say 'I told you so' later. Right now, we need t' find out how we get rid of 'em," Tay suggested as a few flashing high-velocity marbles careened past his and his allies' heads.

"This might be a real chancy call, but if we split up, they might disperse into smaller squads," Twitch offered. "If they do that, then we'll have an easier time taking them out."

"Why not stick together and hold our ground?" Tay asked, still firing potshots as they sprinted across the grassland.

"We could do that too, but there's so many of them against just the three of us! If we huddled together, we'd just be one big, easy target instead of three smaller, more mobile, more evasive ones! Weigh your options now, because we're only gonna get out of this in one of two ways! Dead or alive!"

"Good point," Tay agreed as they narrowly avoided another fusillade of rounds from the Tinkerbats' aerial assault. "Fine, let's split up!"

"I already see a spot where I can go," Twitch alerted her comrades as she split off and sprinted toward it.

"I'm gonna try to get to higher ground and get an advantage!" Vinegar also alerted, running off in the opposite direction of Twitch to search for a suitable vantage point. At this point, Tayshan was all alone, running straight through prickly foliage and the shallow, crystal clear stream.

"Shoot…! Gotta find somethin' quick before they gun me down…" he murmured as he and his Ammonian allies continued to run in separate directions while under the heavy pressure. As speculated, the Tinkerbats responded by splitting off into designated execution squads to try wiping out all three of their enemies at once.

"These hideous little jerks think they can get the drop on us, do they!?" Twitch rhetorically asked, ducking low and sprinting toward am enormous bright silver boulder for coverage. "I've got something special for an occasion like this…!" she further ominously remarked to herself, narrowly avoiding a spray of rounds as she dove and secured herself behind the boulder. She quickly adjusted her chamber, took a deep breath, and made her move. "Suck on this!" she roared as she pulled the trigger. With an ear-splitting blast and so much recoil that it nearly seemed the goggle-sporting young woman would've flown into the bushes behind her, a brightly-flaming firecracker-like round soared into the sky, a high-pitched whistle emphasizing its flight. Within a second, the round struck one of the airborne Tinkerbats headed toward her, exploding with a massive *BOOM* on impact. The blast sent the creature flying across the horizon while three others who were caught in the crossfire lost control of their propeller packs and dropped their weapons as they spiraled out of control. The rest of the squad took evasive maneuvers as Twitch prepared her next attack. "Hah! Bullseye!" she cheered, taking cover and waiting for the next opportunity to strike as she reloaded and cocked the hammer of her pistol.

Vinegar, taking quick note of the situation, continued to run and gun, firing short, controlled bursts of rounds from her rifle as she searched for higher ground. Some of the offending Tinkerbats, not keen on letting her out of their sight, gave chase as they fired rounds from the air. The determined buxom bobcut-rocking blonde scoured her surroundings and soon, found a glimmering ledge from which she could find a comfortable vantage point.

"I just need to get up to that ledge," she murmured as she continued to sprint through the unusually-prickly weeds and tall grass. "What I've got for these interlopers is sure to make a real splash…" Vinegar continued her mad dash around the vicinity, keeping some of the Tinkerbats busy while they were hot on her tail. She continued firing bursts of potshots at them to keep them from locking onto her until she was close enough to her target area. As she closed in, she planted her feet into the grass and jumped with all her effort. The instant her feet left the ground, her jetpack immediately activated in high gear, propelling her to the ledge above. Thankfully for her, there was a small boulder she swiftly used for cover. However, just as she reached the ledge, she was hit by two rounds of enemy fire.

"Agh! Darn it…!" she cursed, a stabbing pain manifesting from her leg as she barely made it behind the boulder. Ducking close to the rock formation, she unloaded the magazine of her rifle and emptied it. Reaching into her utility belt, she loaded a different clip into it and reinserted the magazine. Cocking the rifle, she was ready to dish out some serious payback. Just as her assailants loomed closer, Vinegar pulled out a Molotov cocktail and launched it high into the air while still under cover. The Tinkerbats, none the wiser, watched cluelessly as the incendiary device fell aimlessly toward them.

"Here's a free meal! Hope you boys like it hot!" Vinegar taunted, hastily pulling herself from cover and peering down the scope of her weapon. With a precise, well-placed shot, she struck the Molotov cocktail in midair with a burst of three modified explosive rounds, causing flames to scatter upon impact with a *CRACKLE* of the incendiary-filled bottle. Immediately within harm's way were at least five of the Tinkerbats pursuing her. Their propeller packs caught flame as they suffered fire damage from the initial blast. They all frantically dropped their weapons into the valley as they tried desperately to put out the fire on their flight-granting equipment. It was no use, however, as their packs burned up, causing them to plummet into the rapids below. Vinegar wasn't done, though. She activated her jetpack to take flight, immediately opening fire on the rest of the Tinkerbat squad, wiping some more of them out with a rapid burst of ear-splitting *BOOMs* from her rifle. Alert to their enemy's intent, the remaining loyal soldiers of Risky Boots, quickly joined by a back-up squad, took evasive maneuvers and engaged her in a twenty-to-one dogfight like no other.

Down in the needle-sharp grass, Tayshan was doing his best to pick off members of the portion of the Tinkerbat squad that had taken a special interest in him. He'd bore witness to the capabilities of his Ammonian comrades and found himself confident in them… so long as they remained on his side. He saw that Vinegar was engaging an entire squad while in the air with her jetpack and rifle. She was under incredibly heavy pressure and taking moderate damage from the rapid bursts of rounds from Tinkerbat rifles, but she was managing as best as she could as she and her enemies raced around the open skies while locked in combat. He also noticed Twitch hiding behind a nearby boulder situated very close to one of the mountainous silver, moss-covered, ridged walls of the valley. She was putting that revolver of hers to a most explosive test. She scored a couple of direct hits on her targets, eliminating them in substantial bursts. She had to have, on average, taken out at least five Tinkerbats per blast. Tay did, however, see the very long pauses between her attacks, which suggested her weapon constantly needed reloading. She'd blown away a sizable portion of the squad attacking her, but she had her work cut out for her. It didn't help that Tinkerbats with shotguns and semi-automatic handguns were pinning her down behind the boulder with a firestorm of bullets.

"If we don't do somethin' fast, they're gonna overwhelm us!" he acknowleged, wondering how his allies would manage under such aggressive duress. More important, however, was his ability to contribute to the battle at hand. With nothing on his person but his handgun and three grenades, he was pressed for options in terms of defending himself. Although, he'd seen something of an opportunity in the making while he kept up a steady balance of running to avoid enemy fire and shooting back at his attackers.

"Some o' them dropped a couple o' their weapons," he reminded himself. "If I can get to one useful enough, then…" he trailed off, focusing some of his attention on searching for guns dropped by the opposing forces while the platoon of airborne Tinkerbats kept on an unrelenting pressure. Certainly, stomping and leaping through blades of grass sharp enough to cut did our resident alien soldier no favors. The difficulty in maneuverability in such an unexpectedly-hazardous landscape caused enough slowdown that he'd been wounded by rounds from the Tinkerbats' rifles. "Shoot…! There's gotta be…! Aha!" he emphatically remarked, spotting something lying in a patch of grass near the cascading stream. Without much time, he lunged, leapt, and sprinted his way toward the weapon. Much to his situational delight, he rejoiced.

"A Stinger launcher!" he exclaimed in excitement, wasting not even a second to sheathe his handgun and pick up the specialized rocket launcher. "There's already a round and B.C.U. loaded into it, too," he observed as he kept his feet moving through uneven landscape. "I just need a place t' hide, an' I'll hopefully buy enough time to—WHOA!" he was about to comment before being caught off-guard by a deafening *BLAST* nearby. He turned in the direction of the explosion to notice grounded Tinkerbats armed with shotguns, though they appeared incredibly disoriented by the sheer noise and recoil of the weapons. "Heh, those pump-actions ain't no joke," he remarked, though he had little time to pose a counterattack. He was still under fire, on the run, and was now without a practical method of defending himself as he held the Stinger in his hands.

"Hey, you repulsive little mutants! Over here!" Vinegar called out toward the Tinkerbats gunning for Tay as she fired a barrage of rounds at them from her rifle. The taller Ammonian acolyte was still airbone using her jetpack and had continued to hold her own. "Try and catch me!" she taunted, drawing the full attention of the squad as they gave chase.

"Shoot…!" Tay cursed, worried that his ally put herself in danger to bail him out.

"Tay! Over here!" called Twitch from her coverage spot. Noticing right away, Tayshan made a wide 180-degree turn and leapt his way over to his ally, ducking with her behind the boulder. "How you holding up so far? I saw that you were having some trouble, so I signaled for Vinegar to distract them to buy you enough time to duck for cover."

"Trust me, I was. Thank you for that," he agreed and showed his gratitude as he inspected his newly-acquired Stinger launcher to see if it was ready to fire. Upon giving it a once-over, he took careful measures to load the weapon and took a deep breath. "I only hope this thing can lock on… If they give off a good enough heat source, I just might," he murmured to himelf before turning his attention to Twitch. "Hey, wanna see somethin' cool?"

"Something cool?" Twitch asked, raising an eyebrow. "Like what?"

"Watch…" he affirmed with a smiling nod as he readied the Stinger launcher over his shoulder. He stepped out from behind the boulder and carefully took aim, waiting for the precise moment to fire. From his point of view, Vinegar had been doing well keeping the Tinkerbats at bay, but it didn't take rocket science (no pun intended, for goodness sake) to figure out that she couldn't keep it up forever. "She's gonna need t' get down from there if I wanna use this thing… Twitch, can you find a way t' get their attention?"

"Unfortunately, I don't have a way to do that," she somberly admitted. "My revolver's totally out of ammo."

"Already?"

"Yeah. It's a total powerhouse, but it can only hold six rounds. I don't have any extra ammo right now, either…"

"Shoot. In that case, take my handgun from the holster an' fire it as carefully as you can. One or two rounds should be enough…"

"You don't have to tell ME twice…!" she grinned with a dark enthusiasm for finally getting a taste of the power of a weapon from this mysterious alternate dimension. Meticulously, Twitch pulled the chrome handgun from Tayshan's holster and was mesmerized by its design and its weight. "Whoa… This thing is so cool…!"

"Turn the safety off, aim carefully, use both hands, and keep your stance firm," Tay commanded. "That thing has a ton o' recoil for how small it looks compared t' other guns."

"Yeah, yeah, I know how to use a handgun. Don't worry about me, Tay-Tay!" she naively dismissed, stepping from cover and taking aim.

"Don't say I didn't warn you…" he mumbled before turning his attention to the Tinkerbats in hot pursuit of the other Ammonian servicewoman. He engaged the targeting system of the weapon, desperately hoping that something on his enemies; namely, their propeller packs, gave off a decent heat signature the anti-air weapon could conceivably lock onto. After a moment of carefully watching the dogfight, he noticed that two of the Tinkerbats' packs had caught fire resultant of Vinegar striking them in her efforts to defend herself, emitting more than enough infrared radiation for the Stinger missile to lock on. That was his chance. "Vinegar! I need you t' get down!" he shouted, managing to grasp her attention. "We got you covered, but you need t' get somewhere safe t' hide!"

"Say no more…" Vinegar murmured with a sigh of relief, powering down her jetpack as she searched for cover. The remaining Tinkerbats were in belligerent pursuit, refusing to let her get away.

"Take this, you obnoxious little flying sewer rats!" Twitch roared as she aimed and pulled the trigger of Tayshan's Desert Eagle. With a startling *BANG*, the handgun flew out of her grasp, causing the poor girl to stumble back in total shock. "Whoa! This thing's firepower is insane! How do you even aim it, much less shoot!?" she further asked as she went to pick it up and examine it further.

"I'll explain later. Good job, though!" he commended while trying not to laugh. "As haphazard as that shot was, you got their attention," he further pointed out, gesturing toward the battalion that was rushing toward them after they left Vinegar alone to descend safely to the ground. "You didn't hit any of 'em, but it must've been close. Now, the fun part…" he remarked, turning his full attention to the approaching enemy forces, all making a beeline toward him in an enormous, collective swarm… See what I did there? Beeline? Swarm? Seriously, I'd be doing standup if it weren't for this sweet narrating gig. Anyway…

"Thanks, I guess," Twitch shot back with a shrug. "You'd better make your shot count, though, because it looks like they noticed your new toy there," she further warned, stepping behind him.

"I know, an' I will…" he commented, ducking behind cover as the Tinkerbats rained a full-scale united aerial assault on him. Evidently, they noticed Tay standing with the Stinger launcher and every single Tinkerbat in the air made it an utmost priority to take him out before he fired it. Mostly unfazed, Tay judged the conditions of his shot and, once he was sure of his plan, he prepared himself. "They're a perfect distance away, too. I sure hope y'all enjoyed your time in the spotlight, because you're about t' become stars…" he morbidly quipped, taking aim through the scope and readying the weapon's locking system. With a series of beeping noises, the Stinger was fixed onto its target.

"Does that mean it's ready?" asked Twitch, taking the moment to study the soldier's fearsome-looking weapon.

"Affirmative. Cover your ears an' stand beside me," he warned. Twitch, heeding him, covered her ears with her hands and moved to stand next to the soldier. "Fire an' forget!" he declared, ready to bring this ferocious battle to an equally-ferocious end. Within three seconds, a sudden *FWOOSH* of pressurized air rushed through the barrel of the Stinger, firing its round with extreme prejudice. Tay jerked back from the sheer force of the launch, but held his ground as he, Twitch, and Vinegar watched from a safe distance. The Tinkerbats stood no chance. In just two seconds, the entire platoon was hit with a startling, deafening *KABOOM* of a direct impact that put on a captivatingly destructive fireworks display.

"…Whoa…!" Vinegar commented in wide-eyed amazement from her hiding spot, awed by the unadulterated power of the explosion. The blast was so huge and so devastating that one would have assumed the squad of Risky's unfortunate soldiers were vaporized in the destructive carnage. However, I will break the news to you right now that the Tinkerbats had somehow survived the explosion. Instead of meeting with a fate so gruesome that it would render this story dark enough to need a parental filter, they were catapulted high into the sky, their propeller packs rendered utterly useless due to the sheer speed of their rocket-propelled ascent. They were flung so far into the stratosphere in all manner of directions and with such blistering force scattering them across the horizon that, to our fledgling hero and his morally-ambiguous travel partners, they disappeared with classic *dings* and twinkles, certifying their status as Star K.O.'ed. It was like watching the world's most extravagant light show while listening to someone hit the jackpot at a casino, there was so much noise and flashing.

"…Man, that wasn't even close t' what I was expectin' t' happen…" Tayshan ironically mumbled, lowering the Stinger launcher and scratching his head in utter confusion.

"That… was… awesome!" Twitch excitedly cheered, starstruck (seriously, NO pun intended!) at the wonderfully destructive display. "You totally blew them away!"

"Yeah… I literally did…" he uncertainly agreed, setting the weapon down and studying it. He was still curious as to why those Tinkerbats weren't immediately incinerated by the blast.

"Why do you seem like you didn't mean for that to happen?" she asked in wonder, picking up on his bewilderment.

"…It's nothin'," he dismissed, shaking his head as he regrouped. "That's definitely what was supposed t' happen. I just wasn't expectin' them t' go flyin' off int' space like they did. Anyway, bad news: That was the only round I could pick up and, unless there's another Stinger missile and Battery Coolant Unit layin' around, this thing is as good as useless now," he informed her, removing the battery from the gripstock of the Stinger launcher and storing the launcher itself into his invisible inventory, which he evidently figured out how to access without me knowing… I guess, since we're still following impractical game logic here.

"Bummer. So we'd better hope not to get ambushed from the air again, or else we'll have a much tougher time against the next wave," she commented before hearing a *click* coming from nearby. "What was that?"

"Shoot, they found us…!" Tay whispered in dread.

"Who? Are we still not safe?" she asked. Just as she uttered the question, two Tinkerbats revealed themselves on either side of the giant boulder Tay and Twitch were hiding behind, each armed with a shotgun cocked and aimed at them. "…Yeah, we're still not safe…" she lamented, forced to back up as she raised Tay's pistol and aimed it back at the Tinkerbat trying to stick her up.

"Perfect time t' get caught without a gun…" he murmured, his anxiety spiking instantly as he was made to back up to where his back was pressing against his partner's. Utterly defenseless, he held his hands up high. "Dang it…!" At this position, the Tinkerbats had the two explorers trapped and cornered. "Any ideas you got on how we can get out o' this one?"

"Not really," Twitch plainly answered, keeping her eye on the enemy. "Think now's a good time to use one of your frag grenade things?"

"I don't think I have enough time t' pull one out, much less pull the pin an' throw it. Plus, we gotta be PRETTY far away from it so the debris won't rip us t' shreds. So basically, that's a no-go."

"Fantastic… In that case, leave it to me!" Twitch exclaimed, steadying her aim as best as she could.

"Twitch, don't do anything ra-!"

"Eat lead, freak!" Twitch exclaimed, firing off two haphazard rounds at one of the shotgun-wielding Tinkerbats. Her first shot struck the creature, knocking it out of commission as it dropped its weapon. The second shot, she fired by total accident, which caused the gun to collide with her face with a discomforting *CLACK*. "Ouch!" the poor girl shouted as she lowered her guard to rub her head. In that moment, Tay nearly panicked as the other Tinkerbat, furious at the display, aimed its shotgun with murderous intent.

"Aw, no!" he yelled, turning to pick up Twitch while she was distracted. The Tinkerbat, seeing no other choice, pulled the trigger, firing an explosive blast at the soldier as he ran around the boulder. With another ear-splitting *BOOM* ringing out from the shotgun, the red-garbed bat minion accidentally stunned itself again as it dropped its gun. Nonetheless, instead of regular metal pellets ejecting from the barrel of the weapon, a scattering array of glowing marbles sprayed out in at least eight varying angles forward at high speed. Above all else, this made it evident that Risky Boots had also tampered with the shotguns she stole. Some of the marbles struck the soldier in the back as he ducked around the other side of the boulder, causing him to grunt in hot, stinging agony as he ran. He winced as he pressed his back to the boulder and set his comrade down, panting heavily as he did so.

"Hey, are you okay?" Twitch asked, greatly concerned for her comrade as she recovered from her self-inflicted injury.

"Could be better," Tay replied through heavy breaths as he searched the ground for the weapon the other Tinkerbat dropped. "I ate some o' that shotgun blast, so my back stings a bit."

"Oh!"

"Yeah, that was a real reckless move you made there…! Effective t' some degree, but super reckless," he critiqued, locating the weapon and sliding it toward him with a foot before pulling out another grenade.

"Sorry," Twitch apologized. "I just went on a whim! It worked, though, so you can't complain too much."

"I wouldn't be complainin' at all if I didn't get shot for it. Still, it looks like pirate woman made the shotguns weaker, too…" he informed her, holding the grenade close to his chest, squeezing the spoon with his right thumb while hooking his left index finger into the key. He hurriedly ripped the key from the detonation mechanism and leaned toward the side of the boulder from which he carried his partner. Within a second, he tossed the live grenade into the area behind the boulder, hoping that the Tinkerbat would stick around long enough to eat the mach-speed shrapnel from the grenade's blast.

"What do you mean she m-?"

"Come here!" Tay beckoned as he quickly grabbed the rambunctious young woman, squeezing her face close to his chest as he pulled her to the ground, causing her to drop his handgun. He positioned her to where he was huddled over on top of her in the grass for protection in case the grenade stood a chance of damaging them.

"Tayshan, what-?"

"Cover!" he shouted, tucking his head next to hers to cover one of her ears while he clasped his hand over her other one. While in this position, he used the shoulder of the arm he used to cover Twitch's ear to pin his congruent ear closed while using his free hand to cover his other ear. Uncertain of what was happening due to the sheer speed of her former captive's movements, Twitch responded by trying to push the soldier off, her hands shoving into his chest before the *KABOOM* of the grenade's detonation frightened her nearly stiff. Almost as soon as the explosion occurred, Tay raised himself to where he was holding his torso up with his arms while Twitch was under him, her hands still laid on his chest as she stared up at him in confusion.

"You alright?" he asked her.

"Yeah, but… What… What was that all about?" she asked, blushing with embarrassment.

"Sorry… I was tryin' t' keep us both from possibly bein' hit by the grenade. Once those things are thrown, we have t' duck for cover t' minimize risk of injury. Remember last time?"

"I understand that much, but…" she nervously trailed off as she lay under him, noticing something that he didn't.

"But… what?"

"Well… l-look at us…" she sheepishly suggested as she bashfully brought her fists to cover her face, looking downward to see that the two were uncomfortably close to one another. Tay, still not understanding right away, followed her gaze. Upon further inspection, he realized they were in a rather… uh, compromising position, with his body lying parallel on hers. Her legs were parted as she lay flat on her back, nearly paralyzed with an unfamiliar emotional tension while Tay propped himself up by his arms without using his knees. Despite the sudden flush of heat rising to his face, he remained calm. "This is… a bit sudden for us, isn't it?" she 'innocently' asked, doing nothing to make their position less awkward.

"Oh, of course. My bad," he acknowledged and apologized as he pushed himself off of her, climbing back to his feet and lending her a hand in the process. Twitch grabbed his hand with grace, allowing him to pull her up to her feet. She brushed off the cactus quill-like grass blades from her skirt and tank top while Tay nervously scratched his head, thinking of a way to address the mutually-shared discomfort. "Uh… in case the wrong message was sent there, I didn't mean t' make you u-!"

"Relax, Tay-Tay, I know…" she smilingly dismissed, though her cheeks were rosy with nervousness and her eyes were looking elsewhere as she rubbed her arm with her opposing hand. "You were just protecting me again. Um… Thanks…" she sincerely offered as she looked at him.

"Uh… y-yeah, anytime. Just… let's try t' be mindful about how we handle situations like this in the future. Still, good job takin' out that other Tinkerbat," he hesitantly replied with a nervous nod, picking up vibes from his teammate that made him just a TAD uneasy. He quickly turned his attention to the shotgun lying in the grass. Tay got Shotgun and examined it closely. "A standard issue pump-action model… an' this one is in near-mint condition," he muttered, evidently impressed by its quality. He unloaded the shells from the barrel of the weapon to see that it was fitted with eight rounds. "Extended magazine, too? Good… Of course, no unlimited ammo like that Desert Eagle… Wonder what stopped her from modifyin' this one t' have unlimited ammo…" he pondered, reloading the shells into the shotgun.

"Oh, yeah, that reminds me… What did you mean when you said-?"

"Look out!" Vinegar called from a distance as she hovered in with her jetpack, her rifle at the ready. Before Twitch or Tay could realize what was happening, Vinegar fired a short burst of rounds toward the boulder while she floated toward her teammates. She hit the Tinkerbat that Tay had previously tried to dispatch with his grenade, sending it hurtling away to explode in a magenta-colored *POOF* of smoke as it dropped a food item and its weapon.

"Whoa, wha…?" Tay murmured in confusion, inspecting the area Vinegar used for impromptu target practice. Upon inspection, he noticed the items dropped by the enemy foot soldier and had recognized the danger he and Twitch were in. "Wow, how did it survive the grenade…?"

"Before you get too certain of yourself next time, maybe you should pay more attention to see if you confirmed your target as neutralized?" Vinegar suggested, making landfall next to her fellow blonde friend. "Nrgh…!" the young woman winced, kneeling down and taking a heavy breath. "My knee…!"

"Vinegar!" Twitch called in worry, noticing right away that her friend was in pain. The bespectacled maiden rushed to Vinegar's side posthaste. "Oh, no! Are you alright?"

"I'll be fine… I took some hits during that little firefight, but I can shake it off," Vinegar assured as she tried to stand, only to have her leg buckle under her as she tried to straighten it. The poor girl fell into the needly shrubbery below, picking up some additional scratches to add to her injuries. "Darn it, maybe I took more fire than I realized…"

"I think you're probably gonna need this," Tay offered as he went to put the shotgun down, only to notice something slung across his shoulder. "Huh…?" he grunted in bewilderment, grabbing the beige-tinted strap crossing diagonally over his chest. "What the…? Where did this come from?" he asked himself, looking behind himself and grabbing at the mysterious object. "A scabbard? How did…? Where did…?" he continued to ponder, utterly dumbfounded by the discovery of his magically-manifested piece of packing equipment.

"What exactly am I going to need?" Vinegar asked, having been left hanging by Tay's sudden bout of distraction.

"Oh! R-right," he remarked, snapping out of his befuddled stupor long enough to place his newly-acquired firearm into the scabbard and pick up the food item left behind by the Tinkerbat. "I was sayin' you might need this," he reiterated as he approached the injured young lady, holding a plate containing lemon-soaked Smoked Salmon dish. "I don't know why it's there or how it could show up fully cooked t' perfection like this, but if I understand the laws of physics here, this can heal you?"

"That won't do me any good," Vinegar declined in disappointment.

"Why not?"

"I'm allergic to fish…"

"Oh. How incredibly inconvenient."

"You're telling me," she agreed before turning her attention to her Ammonian comrade. "Twitch, do you have any rations or first-aid supplies packed?"

"Hmm, I'll check…" Twitch uncertainly replied, taking off her rucksack and searching through it. In the process of her search, she carelessly tossed out a pair of shears, a makeup kit, a set of safety straps, a spare exploration outfit, a spare parachute, an extra set of goggles, a two-piece red and white-striped bikini, a glasses case, a tiny, yet thick cobalt blue book that fell open near Tayshan's feet, and an astounding surplus of other situationally-useless paraphernalia. While Twitch continued searching for food and/or bandages, however… a certain alien soldier got a little… inquisitive as he examined the reading material he found lying right in front of him.

"What is this…?" he murmured, picking the book up to study its contents. On the page it was opened to, Tay read:

 _"Today, I think I, like, totally met the man of my dreams… Seriously. Like, for real this time. Not like Bran-Son, or Ammo Baron, or that guy from the Men's Desert, who are total beefcakes themselves, but tend to be oblivious airheads. He's the epitome of tall, dark, and handsome. And get this: He's from another planet! Mind = Blown! This guy has a much more modest, yet still far above-average build as compared to other guys I've fancied in the past, but I'm starting to think it isn't all about big muscles and bravado these days. A guy's gotta have a brain and a good personality, too, as I've learned. Oh, and let's not forget about that rugged goatee! Men with muscles and facial hair = Win!"_

 _"Even so, I could tell just from his touch when he held me in his muscly arms today that he's strong as an ox! Oh, his enshrouding manly embrace was so enthrallingly comforting that I could've just melted into him… My fluttering heart couldn't keep still, I was so ecstatic! Plus, he knows a ton of stuff about weapons, just like me! We're a match made in heaven, I tell ya! Only thing that stinks is that he's all buddy-buddy with that annoying purple-haired menace who's probably stringing him along with that cheesy goody-two-shoes act of hers… Still, I hope I get to see him again… He's so hot that he totally makes me all melty inside… Oh gosh, I'm totes blushing just thinking about him… holding me close and protecting me even though we were on opposite sides of the battlefield… taking the time to get to know me, and even accepting an offer for a date… Could it be any more of a perfect romantic start? I almost forgot to mention he's such a gentleman through it all that it makes me wanna grab him and…"_

He trailed off, wisely stopping before this reading material got too… intense. Nevertheless, the damage had already been done. "Somethin' tells me I should not be readin' this…" he mumbled in moderate (read: traumatized) worry before hearing a *click* coming from in front of him.

He lowered the book to see an infuriated, red-faced Twitch pointing his own Desert Eagle at him, ready to destroy him. He could tell she was mad, as he even saw the face on her hat make a frighteningly angry expression, complete with a red outline of a vein popping out of it. Vinegar, still waiting for some medical assistance, covered her face as though she were about to barf… though one could hear the raucous, poorly-hidden chortling and snorting going on under her gloved hands. She'd been eating the scene up like popcorn.

"Read one more word, Tayshan, and I swear I'll blow both your eyes out with your own gun!" Twitch threatened, managing to scare the hapless soldier stiff. Nonetheless, the soon-to-be-blind young man took a deep breath, closed the book and focused his attention on Twitch.

"…This is your diary. Ain't it?" he asked, irrevocably mortified at his most recent blunder.

"Yes, you blockhead!" she screamed, clearly very upset that he was foolish enough to just pick it up and read it. "What kind of moron just picks up a random book and reads it without any sense of restraint!? This isn't a library, you know!"

"Look, I'm sorry… I barely saw anything in it, I swear. I'll make sure t' scrub my brain clean, too, so you don't have to blow it out with that gun," he nervously offered (wishing he could actually scrub his brain to delete the last five minutes or so he spent with Twitch), gingerly approaching the flustered girl and handing her the diary. Twitch snatched it from his hand and hastily shoved it back into her bag, though she still had his gun aimed at him.

"You better not utter a SYLLABLE of what you saw in that diary!"

"Twitch, relax, I won't say anything. I'll completely forget about it. Or, at least… I-I'll try…" he murmured, uncertain of how he'd unlearn what deeply impure thoughts Twitch had of him.

"Grr, you-!" she was about to roar.

"Hey, hey! I mean it! Just put the gun down an' take a minute t' decompress," he desperately urged, still keeping his hands up.

"Promise me," she demanded, still sticking him up.

"Fine…" he acquiesced with a sigh. "I promise never t' say anything about your diary, ever."

"Good. And if you don't keep your promise… then… then I'll have you dropped off in the deepest pits of Mud Bog Island, where no one would find you! Got it?"

"Loud an' clear, I got it," Tay nodded with a dismayed sigh. "No need t' threaten me with fates worse than death. Your secrets are safe with me… even if they're about me," he assured with a nervous gulp that made him realize his throat was drier than beach sand.

"Good, good. Thank you, Tay-Tay…" she replied with a deep breath as she lowered the gun and relaxed her stance. Vinegar had gone from snickering to full-blown cracking up at the dangerous display, much to Twitch's chagrin as she groaned at her partner and turned her attention back to Tay while pondering the gravity of the situation.

"Whew… Finally…" the soldier murmured, lowering his arms as he sighed away some HEAVY tension, ignoring Vinegar's cackling in the wake of fearing for his life. "After the third occurrence, I don't know how many more times I need t' get stuck up in one day before somethin' goes right around here…"

"Actually… Maybe this isn't such a bad thing," Twitch led on after a moment of thought, capturing the young man's attention once more. "It might be good that you know how I really feel now…"

"Hm?" Tayshan grunted in apprehensive curiosity, raising an eyebrow as his heartbeat quickened to the pace of a galloping horse's hooves. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that now there are no secrets between us, even though you discovered mine in the most embarrassing way imaginable. But, since the cat's really out of the bag now… How's about you make it up to me by helping me make some of my fantasies a reality later, hmm~?" she rather… inappropriately asked with a very inappropriate wink, stunning the already-flustered soldier into a catatonic state. How inappropriate, indeed. One could HEAR the glass that was Tayshan's comprehension shattering into a million pieces.

"…Uhhhhhh…" he droned on and on with an understandably-shocked expression glued to his face, certifying that program Tayshan .EXE has stopped working. The poor guy's luck would have it so that he would never catch a break as long as he was around Twitch.

"Twitch! Ew, gross!" Vinegar shouted, reasonably put off by her friend's… lurid statement as she nearly gagged. "That's disgusting! Reel it back in, would ya!?"

"I-I didn't mean it like that! I meant like spending some quality time together and stuff! Jeez!" she protested, appearing to realize the egregious timing and phrasing of her statement as her face became redder than tomatoes.

"That… doesn't make it sound any better, girl," Vinegar unfortunately had to inform Twitch, further driving in the shared embarrassment factor.

"Anyway, did you have anything in that bag t' help Vinegar?" Tay hastily changed the subject, his limit far past reached in terms how much of his comrade's advances he could tolerate.

"Oh, right. No…" Twitch confessed in disappointment after having been redirected to the main point of the discussion.

"Wow, Twitch… Strike two for you today," Vinegar chided in mild annoyance.

"I wasn't expecting us to get stranded and ambushed like this!" she hastily defended herself. "Otherwise, I'd have packed enough for both of us to last two weeks or until a search team could locate us!"

"And you're sure you can't eat this Smoked Salmon?" Tay asked for verification.

"No, Tayshan, I cannot eat the salmon," Vinegar very carefully reiterated in slight annoyance. "I'd break out in a horrible rash and get violently ill if I did. Unless that's what you WANT to happen…"

"No, of course not. No ill intentions from me at all," he assured as sincerely as he could. "Twitch?" he called to the other Ammonian employee, offering her the tasty seafood.

"Nah, I'm good. I'm not hungry," Twitch casually denied.

"So be it, then," he understood, stashing the healing item in his tank top, where it magically disappeared into his inventory. "But still… if eatin' salmon ain't gonna be an option, an' you can't walk on your injured knee, Vinegar, then the only alternative I can think of is for you t' be carried the rest o' the way."

"Carried? I'll pass," she sternly refused as she carefully picked herself up. "I know I joked about it earlier, but I'm not some damsel in distress waiting to be swept off my feet by a knight in shining armor," she further rebuked, strolling toward Twitch with a heavy limp to pick up some of the belongings her friend pulled out of her bag.

"It ain't like I'd have fun doin' it either, sister," Tay dryly shot back.

"I'd only hope that's the case…" Vinegar snidely agreed as she kneeled to pick up the safety harness. "Agh! You're kidding me…!" she winced, inadvertently lowering her knee into a collection of spiky grass blades that dug into her injured knee. She collapsed, catching herself with her hands as she took in a sharp inhale of air in response to the fiery pain shooting through her leg.

"Vinni, maybe you should reconsider," Twitch suggested in concern.

"I thought I told you not to call me that while we're on duty!" Vinegar barked, unreceptive to being addressed by an apparent nickname. "Also, no, I can manage. I just picked the wrong place to kneel is all."

"Oh good, you've got a nickname too…" Tayshan acknowledged, no longer feeling alone in receiving a moniker he didn't want.

"Can it, Tay-Tay," Vinegar spat, immediately irritating the soldier to no end as he scowled with disdain. "You'll forget you heard that name, too…"

"…You are such a thorny rose… It almost seems fittin' I got stuck in a place called Prickle Stitch Valley with you…" he muttered.

"What was that?" Vinegar dared him to repeat, hearing his inconsiderate mumbling. "If you've got the guts to whisper it under your breath, then you can say it to my face," she added. She didn't appreciate anyone talking behind her back.

"I said you are a thorny rose," Tay unabashedly remarked, taking up her challenge. "As in, very hard t' get close to, despite your charmin' appearance."

"That your idea of a pick-up line, slick? Because it isn't working," she spurned his unwanted advances. "Back to the drawing board for you." Tay, never intending to make a move on Vinegar in the first place, immediately became irate.

"See, that's exactly what I mean. All I've gotten out o' you this entire time is scathing sarcasm, threats, contempt, an' orders bein' barked at me like I'm your pet. What's your problem, huh?" Tay asked, quickly growing tired of the disrespect. Twitch gasped in shock at the soldier's outburst.

"Wow, can't you take a joke?" Vinegar shot back, Tay's remark striking a chord with her. "I thought we were on good terms, but I suppose I have to watch my mouth or the baby's gonna throw another tantrum."

"Vinni!" Twitch called, dreading the fact that her allies didn't get along with each other.

"There we go. Provin' my point right there," Tay pointed out, identifying Vinegar's sarcasm as one of the very reasons they were at odds with each other. "T' be perfectly clear, your 'jokes' are mean-spirited an' offensive. Let's get that right. Second, you an' I are not friends. I'd prefer that you didn't go talkin' down t' me like we were. You are not my superior, either."

"Like I care about what you consider us!" Vinegar roared back, offended by Tay's statement. "I don't really care for your outbursts and name-calling, either! You think you're so much better than us that you can just talk to us any way you want? Who do you think you are!?"

"Ah! Twitch is fine," he corrected. "Even after all y'all did t' get me here, she's still the only one who at least tries t' talk t' me like a person an' be real with me. YOU are the only one I have the issue with!"

"Guys, come on!" Twitch tried to intervene, wanting neither of her allies to bicker any longer. "We were doing so well together! Let's not start this again!"

"I really don't understand why you're still bein' so cold t' me when I just offered t' carry you t' make things easier on you."

"There's that macho bravado of yours again," Vinegar remarked with contempt. "Let's see you keep that attitude up when we're-!"

"Vinni, look…" Twitch cut in as she took a knee next to her companion. "I get it if Tay-Tay rubs you the wrong way or if maybe your personalities clash, but we don't have time to go back and forth. If you can stomach it, let him carry you through the rest of this valley. It's the safest bet we have until we at least find something to heal you up with, okay?"

"Ugh… Fine," Vinegar reluctantly caved, rolling her eyes. "Alright, let's do it. Pick me up, Tayshan," she ordered with a callous flick of her hand.

"Please?" Twitch added, shooting him a cute smile and cupping her cheeks with her hands. Tayshan examined Twitch up and down, silently considering his answer to the request.

"…Man, what a drag…" Tay unenthusiastically submitted. While still quite sour about Vinegar's tone when addressing him, he bit his tongue and begrudgingly obliged. He walked toward her, turning around to where his back was facing her before he squatted low to allow her leverage. "Get on," he suggested. Vinegar, needing no further prompt, lifted herself up enough to sling her arms around the serviceman's neck. From that point, she slowly rose to her feet, wincing in slight pain as she wrapped her legs around her ethereal ally's waist. Tay, hooking one arm under Vinegar's leg, rose to a standing position and adjusted his shotgun to where it was hanging from his front before hooking his other hand under Vinegar's other leg.

"Don't think this arrangement changes anything. And don't get any funny ideas," Vinegar warned.

"You're welcome," Tay sarcastically shot back, totally enjoying the new procedure.

"Here, let me add a little something extra for security…" Twitch offered as she picked up the harness Vinegar had attempted to give back to her. "I'll need you both to hold still, so gimme a sec…" Twitch advised as she set to complete a quick task.

"For what?" Tay asked, though his question went unanswered. Within a couple minutes, Tay and Vinegar were tethered together with an elaborate series of cobalt blue straps that ascertained Vinegar was secured to Tay's back. "…Oh… Good, I get t' play the horse in a game of Tour o' Duty Derby…"

"Yeah. The only things missing are a riding crop and a muzzle to feed you with, my trusty steed," Vinegar coldly teased with a snicker, which Twitch shared. Tay, feeling the sting of the insult, was hot with a tightly-contained rage.

"Oh man… You are gettin' me SO angry…" he warned them through his clenched teeth. One could see the steam hissing from his ears.

"You'd better pull off some fantastic feats, too. No one-trick ponies allowed," Vinegar added without an ounce of consideration for his mood, further humiliating him as he grunted in intense frustration.

"…I was wrong before. Turns out I've already been subjected to a fate worse than death," he mumbled, so angry that Twitch could see the vein protruding from his forehead.

"Aw, Tay-Tay, we're just kidding!" Twitch reassured through her giggles, though it only made the poor guy even angrier. At this point, I was afraid he was going to bust a blood vessel.

"…Wow. An' here, I thought I couldn't get more annoyed…"

"All jokes aside, this is super practical. This way, the chances of Vinni falling off are next to zero!" Twitch approvingly informed with a nod. "Also, Tay-Tay, you should have an easier time carrying her while we…" she was about to add before she caught a pungent scent of burning leaves. "…What's that smell?"

"Yeah, I smell it, too…" Vinegar agreed, sniffing the air and picking up the same stench. She craned her neck to look behind her. In the distance, she noticed thick, inky smoke clouds billowing heavily from seemingly nowhere. Upon further inspection, she noticed something… figures with propeller packs and tube-like devices that spouted concentrated blasts of flames. At that, she came to a startling realization. "There are Tinkerbats up there setting this whole valley on fire!" she warned in alarm.

"What!?" Tay reacted in a mix of intense anger and anxiety, whipping around to witness the egregious atrocity for himself.

"Hey! Easy!" Vinegar chastised, nearly falling out of the harness connecting the two. However, her admonishment fell on deaf ears. Immediately in Tay's view was an entire squad of no less than ten Tinkerbats, each armed with a flamethrower, spraying blasts of fire across the Prickle Stitch Valley with despicable reckless abandon. Their wanton destruction was emphasized by the towers of fire that quickly swallowed the landscape in an unforgiving inferno as the perpetrators approached.

"No! They're gonna burn this whole place t' ashes with those things!" he roared in an infuriated panic, his fists clenched tightly enough that he might've been able to crush apples between his fingers. "They… they can't be allowed t' get away with this!"

"Then we'd better make sure we don't get caught up in their arson spree!" Twitch warned, readying Tay's pistol and tugging on the soldier's shirt to get him (and by extension, Vinegar) to move. "We've gotta find a way out of here before they cook us along with this island! They're headed right for us!"

"With a vengeance, too," Vinegar added, drawing her rifle and aiming it as best as she could while mounted on Tayshan's back. As the trio took off and began the next round of their violent encounter with Risky's ruthless army, the Tinkerbats spotted their targets and began to home in on them, sweeping the foliage below with waves of controlled blazes. "We're in for it now! Tayshan, don't stop running! Just make sure you keep me steady! I'm gonna try to take them out before they cause too much more damage!"

"Heard!" Tay remarked, doubling down and tightening his grip on Vinegar's legs as he burst into a hurried sprint. As he looked ahead, however, he noted a thick, needle-riddled wall of cactus-like bushes. Thinking quickly, he whistled and jumped, a team of falcons making themselves available as a makeshift platform in front of him that allowed him to leap over the harmful shrubbery. Meanwhile, Twitch activated her jetpack shortly after jumping herself, providing her with enough altitude to vault over the tall bushes and land on the other side along with her teammates.

"How did you do that?" Vinegar asked as they kept going with outpacing the encroaching inferno being set by the Tinkerbats.

"Falcon Call! Learned it from Sky! Very useful! Gonna need it a lot more for this upcomin' part!" Tay revealed in shorthand as he kept his focus on the next series of pitfalls, walls, levitating platforms, and spiky bush beds awaiting them. "If you can help it, take out those Tinkerbats as soon as possible! Can't have them scorchin' us or this place t' cinders!"

"Count on it, soldier!" Vinegar nodded, focusing her attention on the Tinkerbats above as she resolved to provide coverage fire.

"I'll try to contribute by taking some of them out with your handgun!" Twitch informed, trying her best to multitask in the form of running alongside Tay and providing that extra bit of return fire to either buy them time or eliminate the latest threat to their wellbeing.

 ** _In another area, mere moments earlier…_**

We rejoin Shantae and Sky in the midst of their investigation of the scene of what was possibly a horrific plane accident. The girls landed atop one of the numerous gleaming silver, sun-bathed mountains that made up the wall of the valley, quickly making a desperate attempt to either confirm or rule out the chilling possibility that their ally and his kidnappers perished in a most violent and gruesome manner. The very second Shantae and Sky landed, they rushed toward the source of the smoke clouds and fire. Shantae, thinking on her feet, transformed into a mermaid and spat out a series of oral water spheres around the vicinity to contain the blaze. Meanwhile, Sky ordered teams of eagles, hawks, and pelicans to further contain the fire with aerial splashes of seawater and buckets of dirt gathered from the surrounding area. Wrench, having shrunken down to the size of an average parrot/wren/finch thing, perched on Sky's protective bird glove as she ordered the other birds to contribute to the firefighting effort. After an extensive period of collaboration, our heroines managed to extinguish the nearby fires, leaving only the mangled, smoldering wreckage that used to be an Ammonian aircraft.

"Quick, let's see if they're still in there…" Shantae commanded, changing back to human form and hurriedly rushing over the scorched, rocky crags toward the disabled plane. Sky, though wanting to go and search with her, found herself hesitant to approach as a paralyzing mix of anxiety and fear crept on her like a team of roaches in the dark.

"I… I don't know if I want to… I'm… afraid of what we might see," she confessed, her heart pounding hard enough that she clutched her chest and drew a heavy, shaky breath. Shantae, hearing her friend's concerns, stopped just shy of reaching the smoking plane.

"I know how you feel," she informed her, turning toward Sky and shooting her an equally-worried look. "But if there's a chance they survived, then we have no choice but to look. I'll… take a quick peek and see," she further informed her partner with a nervous gulp.

"Okay, but just… be careful, Shantae…" Sky advised, fighting through waves of anticipatory angst to take a step forward. Shantae nodded in understanding as she crept toward the plane, immediately catching a whiff of the stench permeating the air. The closer she got, the stronger the smell of burning metal and gasoline became. She covered her mouth and nose with one hand as she slowly approached. It was at this point that Shantae's thoughts began to race. She began mentally asking herself if Tayshan, Twitch, and Vinegar were okay. She questioned if it were possible for them to survive such a tempestuous, blazing crash, considering the thoroughly-obliterated condition of the plane. She pondered just what she was getting herself into, going in first to check the plane for the possible presence of human remains. Then, she froze as she reached the plane's melted undercarriage.

"Come on, Shantae…" she encouraged herself. "There's a chance they won't be in there… They could be alive… But no matter what, you won't find out until you look inside… so just… do it…!" she further motivated herself. She took a deep breath through her hand, though her heart began to pound with the intensity of a mallet on untenderized meat. She gulped again, fearing the worst. In one fluid motion, she ran toward the other side of the plane, grabbing onto it to see that, even though the cockpit and passenger sections were charred black, there were no signs of any bodies. There weren't even any signs of seats within the two sections of the plane. "Oh, my gosh!" she hollered, hastily retracting her hand from the twisted metal.

"Oh, no! Th-they can't be!?" Sky called, alarmed beyond belief about the fate of the three missing persons. Judging by Shantae's reaction, the scene must've been something truly horrific. "No! He… he didn't deserve to…!" she murmured, tears welling up in her eyes as she tried to keep it together. Wracked with grief, however, her tears ran freely down her cheeks, quickly staining her plum-colored scarf.

"Hm? Oh, they're not here," Shantae calmly answered, causing Sky to gasp immediately wipe her face dry. She, of course, found herself unamused by her friend's misleading reaction.

"Are you kidding me!?" she screamed in a mix of embarrassment and relief. "Don't scare me like that!"

"Sorry, it's just… I touched the plane and it is scorching hot!" she reasoned, shaking her hand to rid herself of the residual burning sensation. "Anyway, it looks like they ejected from the plane before it crashed. The seats are missing and there's no sign that they came down with the it."

"Well that's good news if I've heard it," Sky remarked in equal relief, taking a deep breath. "That still leaves the question of where they are, though…"

"Yeah… Do you think they could've landed somewhere else here?"

"They had to. This island isn't that big from a bird's eye view and, if we're lucky, they didn't wind up landing in the ocean. Considering where that plane hit, they have to…" she trailed off, noticing that her half-genie companion was warily scouring the vicinity, sniffing the air around her. "Are… you noticing something that we should be aware of?"

"Yeah…" Shantae confirmed, still sniffing around as she paced around the scattered wreckage on the mountainside. "It smells like… something's burning."

"You mean like the crashed airplane we just put the fire out on?" she asked, her tone laced with a mix of confusion and sarcasm. "Or maybe all the charred grass and dirt around here? Because y'know, that smell tends to linger for a bit."

"No, I smell… fresh burning…" she further reasoned as she continued to sniff around like a police dog. "Like, someone's setting something on fire right now…" Sky, still out of the loop, began looking around and sniffing and came to the same conclusion.

"You're right… it smells super pungent all of a sudden… It's totally overpowering the smell of this airplane, too," she confirmed as a rapid series of distant *pop* noises rang out from the trenches far below. "There's noise coming from down inside the valley now, too. Over there," Sky pointed as she and Shantae looked in the general direction of the commotion.

"Sky, do you see that!?" Shantae asked, utterly appalled by what she was witnessing.

"Those… Those monsters are setting this whole island on fire!" she observed in a mix of anger and shock, noticing Tinkerbats recklessly spraying the landscape below with pillars of flames. "What do they think they're doing!?"

"And look!" Shantae pointed out further, noticing a team of prismatic falcons rushing past them into the canyon.

"My falcons? Wait, that means…!" she realized, quickly pulling out a pair of gray goggles with green-tinted lenses to study her war birds' flight path. As she suspected, the falcons made a beeline toward a man in the valley with a blonde woman in an orange leotard and a blue raccoon-themed hat strapped to his back. The woman in question was wielding a brown bolt-action rifle with a silver bayonet affixed to the muzzle, firing rounds at the belligerent airborne Tinkerbats. She also caught sight of another blonde woman in Ammonian attire running alongside the man while wearing a jetpack, wielding a shining silver pistol that seemed all too familiar. Nonetheless, it appeared the three adventurers were in grave danger and were fighting for their lives.

"It's Tayshan!" Shantae practically screeched in shock and horror.

"Twitch and Vinegar are there, too! It looks like those Tinkerbats are attacking them head-on with…" Sky trailed off to catch a further glimpse at Risky Boots's minions to notice that they were armed with tube-like weapons with gas tanks strapped to their backs in conjunction with their propeller packs. "Flamethrowers!?"

"We gotta get them out of there, now!" Shantae screamed in utter panic, dancing to transform into a harpy. "They're gonna burn them alive and scorch this place into a smoldering crater if we don't do something!"

"Right!" Sky wholeheartedly agreed, after which she whistled loudly to summon a flock of sparrows. "Wrench needs his rest, so I'll provide some alternative coverage from up here! Whatever you do, Shantae, PLEASE be careful!"

"You got it, Sky!" Shantae assured, taking flight and soaring toward the nature-hating Tinkerbats to save her friend and his kidnappers. Within a minute, Shantae found herself positioned behind the destructive minions of Sequin Land's self-proclaimed Pirate Queen. They hadn't yet noticed her in their vitriolic effort to raze the Prickle Stitch Valley into ashes and incinerate the soldier and his allies. "Here we go!" Shantae announced, starting off by shooting a small barrage of talons at the Tinkerbats. Some of them struck the pyromaniac minions, nearly causing them to lose their balance, though they were not vanquished. Three of the ten Tinkerbats turned and recognized Shantae's feathery form while the others continued giving chase to their other enemies. The three Tinkerbats exchanged glances with one another and nodded before aiming their incendiary devices at Shantae to engage her.

"Uh-oh…" Shantae murmured, turning and flapping her wings to create some distance between her and the enemies. The Tinkerbats were persistent, however. Although their propeller packs weren't exactly paragons of impressive aerial speed compared to Harpy-Shantae, their stolen weapons covered more than enough distance for the deficit to be accounted for. One of them aimed and released a horrifying blast of flames into the open air, nearly roasting the avian-formed maiden. "Whoa!" Harpy-Shantae hollered, diving to avoid the fire blast, though she felt its intense heat like she was flying near the sun. "Gotta create some distance…!" she murmured, diving low to pick up speed before curving upward to regain her altitude high above the valley. She turned to see that another of the Tinkerbats had tried firing another controlled blaze at her, though it was out of range to cause any damage. Wasting little time, Shantae fired another barrage of talons from her plumage, some of which hit their targets. The rest either missed or were incinerated by another wall of fire as the Tinkerbats continued their advance. "Darn! This form's attack isn't strong enough to take them out quickly! If this keeps up, I won't be able to save him!"

Just as she was about to think up another method of overcoming such an obstacle, a flock of Sky's sparrows came into view and began angrily pecking and scratching at one of the Tinkerbats, rendering it unable to focus as it tried swatting away at them. The other Tinkerbats, also alarmed by the sudden avian intrusion, tried helping their friend to scare the birds away; just the opportunity she needed.

"Get a load of these!" Shantae roared, quickly closing in and firing another volley of weaponized projectile claws at the Tinkerbat being attacked by the sparrows. Before long, however, the other two Tinkerbats readied their flamethrowers and fired another pair of blasts at her, causing her to dive and slice toward her right to avoid being burned. By the time she retreated and regained her position, she noticed that the sparrows had just finished dealing with the first Tinkerbat. It was suddenly flung over the horizon, exploding in midair as the sparrows retreated toward Sky on the mountainside. Shantae briefly glanced over to the glimmering mountain wall, seeing Sky shooting her a thumbs-up. The half-genie nodded, her determination bolstered as she prepared to take care of the other two Tinkerbats. "You guys are gonna pay for what you did to this place!" she challenged as she set off to engage her remaining enemies.

Risky's henchmen were not ready to admit defeat, however. With another nod to one another, they doubled down on their efforts. They began their next assault by separating to either side of Harpy-Shantae and simultaneously charging forward to flank her as they fired simultaneous blasts of flames at her.

"Whoa!" Shantae exclaimed in shock, narrowly avoiding the relentless flames by diving and falling back. However, the Tinkerbats were far from done. As soon as she was in the midst of recovering from her evasive maneuver, one of the opposing henchmen chased her down with another blast. Shantae avoided this by barrel-rolling to the side and diving further downward to pick up speed before swooping upward to create enough distance for her to counterattack. As she ascended, however, she noticed the other Tinkerbat waiting for her directly above. It aimed the nozzle of its flamethrower and made its attempt at showering Harpy-Shantae with a merciless incendiary fury. "Yikes!" Shantae yelped in panic, jerking her entire body to the side to avoid the cascading flames. Her move, while it saved her from certain doom, was rushed and inelegant "Shoot… Gotta regain control…!" she urged herself as she lost some of her stability and coordination and tried to resynchronize her wings. She nearly hit the needle grass-laden ground of the valley trying to reorient herself to her surroundings.

"Shantae, stay alert!" Sky warned, still watching from the sidelines as she signaled with her hands to summon another attack bird. "One of those Tinkerbats is still hot on your tail!" She further warned. She had been hard at work signaling sparrows, hawks, and eagles to pursue Shantae's assailants, as well as help out Tayshan in the distance. Unfortunately, the task was more daunting than she could've anticipated. As it turned out, managing multiple points of attack at once severely impacted her ability to concentrate on either scenario. In Tayshan's case, there were more Tinkerbats to deal with, and he, alongside Twitch and Vinegar, were miles away and steadily increasing their distance as the Tinkerbats there continued to ignite the landscape in a horrifying inferno. Her birds were coming back, reporting their demoralizing lack of success in even getting close to the alien soldier due to all the chaos erupting from afar. Additionally, when it came to Shantae, the Tinkerbats had developed a counter-strategy of cornering her at multiple points in the air while also using their flamethrowers to keep Sky's birds at bay. "What a mess…!" she complained, though she never stopped searching for an opportunity to counter. "One way or another, you little miscreants are going down!"

"Is it safe to counter yet?" Shantae questioned herself, glancing back to see one Tinkerbat positioned above her and a few feet behind. "No! Gotta move before-!" she hurriedly observed as she slowly picked up altitude. In another flash, the Tinkerbat fired another scorching wave of concentrated blazes toward her. Shantae narrowly avoided this by flapping her wings as hard as she could, though the Tinkerbat hat set fire to every square inch of the plant life below. What was once a wide-ranging series of emerald-green bushes, amber-hued moss, and needle-thin grass patches, was suddenly engulfed in a massive, all-consuming ball of nature-destroying red conflagrations. "Darn it, no!" Harpy-Shantae cursed, catching a glimpse of the damage the creature had done. However, that was the least of her worries. As she peered forward while trying to shake one Tinkerbat off of her, the other appeared right in front, seemingly from nowhere. "Oh, no!" Shantae panicked again, coming to a screeching halt as the his Tinkerbat, with nothing but malice in its eyes, prepared to turn Harpy-Shantae into a phoenix in the worst way imaginable.

"Now's my chance…! Icarus! Strike! Now!" Sky commanded from the sidelines, signaling for a surprise attack. In an instant, a lone golden eagle (evidently named Icarus) bulleted downward from an incredible height toward the Tinkerbat levitating in front of Shantae. Before either of Risky's minions, or even Shantae realized it, Icarus let out an ear-splitting avian war cry. The majestic eagle ripped through the air with nothing but electrifying heroic vigor in its very essence as it struck. In yet another instant, it bared its ebony-black knife blade-like talons and tore through the Tinkerbat's flamethrower with a voluminous, decisive, reverberating *SHWING* as the Tinkerbat attempted to aim at it and fire. Icarus, after swiping through the Tinkerbat's equipment like paper, beat a very swift retreat to safety as the Tinkerbat's fuel pack combusted as a result of its haphazard, panicked blasts of fire aimed every which way to try and fight back.

"Perfect!" Shantae cheered, soaring upward as the Tinkerbat that was previously behind her had noticed its partner's leaking fuel pack and attempted to put the flame out. "Take this!" Shantae proclaimed, turning around to fire a heavy barrage of her harpy talons at the Tinkerbats while they were distracted. As they found it difficult to move in the wake of their predicament, the Tinkerbats had little in terms of evasive options. Most of the talons struck both of them directly. However, the most critical moment came in the form of at least three of Shantae's talons striking the flaming Tinkerbat's fuel pack, exacerbating the combustion problem they had. Worse for them, some of the flames caught onto both of the Tinkerbats' propeller packs, causing the wood-based devices to burn into flaking ashes. Both Tinkerbats began taking massive fire damage that rendered them defeated. They hit the ground with a simultaneous *POOF* of pink smoke, signaling the end of the scuffle.

"We did it!" Sky cheered as Shantae breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly flew to the mountaintop from which Sky stood.

"That was a nightmare, but we really pulled through," Shantae cheered with a nod as she perched on the mountain. "Of course, now we need to go and save Tayshan. Climb on!" the half-genie urged, turning her back toward her fellow adventurer and crouching, prompting Sky to mount her. As soon as the bird trainer secured herself on Harpy-Shantae's back, the harpy-formed half-genie stood tall, though she found it somewhat difficult. "Oh, man… I'm not sure if I can handle all this extra weight in this form, but we'll only find out by giving it a shot! Hang on tight, Sky!" she cautioned, though Sky took the remark with a grain of salt.

"…Are you calling me fat?" Sky quizzed, unappreciative of the implications of her best friend's observation.

"To eternity and yonder!" Shantae announced in a most emphatic and energetic fashion, completely disregarding Sky's salty question and taking flight. It's… probably worth mention that the two young women nearly hit the ground, as Shantae underestimated the level of effort she needed to put in to accommodate for a whole other person on her back.

"Whoa!" Sky panicked, tightening her hold on Shantae while the half-genie got her act together and pumped her wings harder. "Maybe this wasn't such a great idea!"

"Don't worry, I've got this! We might get there a bit slower than if Wrench were to take us, but if anything comes up, you can signal your other birds to protect us while we go, right?" Shantae asked, actually managing to gradually pick up altitiude at the expense of a proportionate increase in effort.

"I guess, but let's hope that isn't the case by the time we catch up!" the moderately-frightened young falconer assured as the two were off at… a most deliberate pace as they could manage to catch up to their ally and his situational associates. "That is, IF we catch up…"

 ** _Back in the Valley…_**

On the ground, Tay, Twitch, and Vinegar were still bolting their way through the perilous rocky crevasse while defending themselves from the malevolent, literally-fiery onslaught of the Tinkerbats that were after them. Tay and Twitch focused on high-speed platforming, wherein the young man was leaping over humungous patches of thick, needly cactus bushes. Additionally, he focused on clearing walls, bottomless pits, and unstable golden floating platforms with the use of his Falcon Call. Twitch was following suit by using her jetpack in short, controlled bursts to clear gaps in her own method of parkouring through the valley as she did her best to balance platforming and returning fire with her ally/prospective boyfriend's handgun.

"We're gonna send you revolting mutants crying back to your wrinkly old witch of a mama!" Twitch valiantly taunted as she fired haphazard shots in the general direction of her adversaries. As with its original owner, Twitch found it incredibly difficult to aim the handgun, as its horrendous recoil prevented her from lining up any of her shots correctly. She had, by an incredible stroke of luck, eliminated one of the remaining seven Tinkerbats, though she found no reason to celebrate. "Darn, this thing is so unwieldly! I can barely even keep it in my hands!"

"Sorry 'bout that," Tay managed to apologize through labored breaths as he and Twitch hurdled over another patch of grass spikes that were soon roasted in a bath of Tinkerbat-perpetrated fire right behind them. "It takes… some gettin' used to! You're doin' real good for your first time, though! I'm impressed," he further praised, to her surprise and delight. "Vinegar, how's it lookin' back there!?"

"We're down to just three more of them, and I've got them in my sights," Vinegar replied, still maintaining a solid effort of shooting back at the relentless minions of a certain Pirate Queen while mounted on the serviceman's back. "So long as you keep it up with keeping us at a safe distance, I can take them out in no time!"

"Hoo-rah!" Tay remarked in relief.

"Some of them ran off for some reason and don't seem to be coming back, though!"

"That's weird, but… the less of 'em we have t' deal with, the better!" he nodded before he turned his full attention ahead to the seemingly-endless grassy plains. "Here comes another big jump!" he warned, ready to summon another team of falcons to clear yet another gap.

"Yeah, at this rate, it shouldn't be too much longer before-!" Twitch almost chimed in as they reached the cliff and made their jump. Tay used the Falcon Call to bridge the gap and leapt forward while Vinegar fired a burst of rounds from her rifle, managing to eliminate another Tinkerbat from the battle as she and Tay made it to the other side. However, as she reloaded her rifle, she noticed that Twitch was still airborne and focused solely on landing on the other side.

"Twitch, look out!" Vinegar shouted, detecting something awry as a Tinkerbat lined up directly behind the bespectacled Ammonian acolyte.

"Huh? WAAH!" Twitch shouted in utter shock as she flung her firearm forward, where it landed safely on the other side of the pit. A fire blast made brief contact with her jetpack just as she was about to reach the other side, causing the device to malfunction. Toasted by the flames, the jetpack sputtered and popped, shorting out due to the intense heat. Hearing her cry for help, Tay stopped in his tracks and turned to see the danger his ally was in.

"Shoot!" Tay cursed, seeing that Twitch was about to plummet helplessly into a bottomless pit without the use of her jetpack. In a moment's glance, Tay pulled a complete 180-degree turn and sprinted toward the cliffside.

"Tayshan, wait!" Vinegar ordered, realizing right away that he was about to run directly into harm's way. It was too little, too late, however, as the Tinkerbat that hadn't been chasing Twitch had been hot on Tay's tail. Finding a perfect chance to strike, it readied its flamethrower and prepared to fire. "Oh, no you don't!" Vinegar roared, unleashing another merciless barrage of bullets (marbles, whatever) at the Tinkerbat while the soldier rushed to Twitch's aid.

Some of the rounds struck the Tinkerbat, deterring it from shooting right away. Most peculiarly, however, was that at least three of her shots struck the gas tank affixed to the Tinkerbat's back alongside its propeller pack. A subtle *hiss* immediately began sounding from the fuel pack, though the minion did not realize it until it was too late. It pulled the trigger once more to try and take advantage of the situation. The gas tank's fumes were almost instantly set ablaze, causing the Tinkerbat to be engulfed in fire while in midair. Within seconds, the Tinkerbat was spontaneously sent spiraling off into the sky, where it was met with an explosive end.

"I gotcha!" Tay shouted, diving into the ground and taking on a cringe-inducing series of grass needle pin pricks in his chest, arm, and abdomen. "Gaaagh…!" The soldier grimaced in agony at the damage he took, though he didn't let it stop him.

"Get lost, freak!" Vinegar shouted again, finding just enough of a window in all the chaos to eliminate the final Tinkerbat before it could do any additional harm while it was distracted by the loss of its comrade. "That's the last of them!" she further announced in relief, though her tension was far from quelled. The fact still stood that her closest ally was dangling over a cliff, her life literally hanging in the balance as she clung tightly to Tayshan's hand.

"Awaaaaahh!" Twitch shrieked, her heart thumping in utter terror as she gazed below to see a pitch-black abyss filled only with puffs of skull smoke and distant, faintly-glimmering, sharp, pointy stalagmites. "P-p-p-pull me up! Pull me up, please!" she continued to panic, unable to contain her paralyzing fright.

"I will! Just stay calm an' stop-! Haagh! Stop wrigglin'!" Tay instructed, gripping her hand as tightly as he could. In his position, he could only lend a single hand to stop her from falling. His other hand was dug deeply into the nearby dirt. Most of his upper torso was suspended over the cliff as he tried to gain enough leverage to pull her up while the rest of his body was progressively becoming an impromptu pincushion. "Vinegar! Can you grab my ankles t' make sure I stay up!?" he hastily asked. "I need some more groundin' before I can get her up! This position won't do me much good!"

"Roger! Please just make sure you can save her, alright?" Vinegar asked in concern as she undid the straps tethering her to the soldier's back and rolled off him.

"I promise you, she's gonna get out o' this okay!" he assured, struggling to keep his grip as his arm grew tired and the stabs of pain from the grass needles shot through his chest.

"Tayshan, whatever you do, please, please, PLEASE don't let me fall!" Twitch frantically requested in a state of hysteria, frightened to tears as she squeezed her eyes shut.

"I won't let you go! It's gonna be okay, Twitch! Just-! Ahagh…! Just hang on!" he assured through labored breaths, each intake of air he took becoming a harrowing reminder of the immense physical torture he'd have to go through to save his ally's life.

"Agh…! Stupid Tinkerbats…!" Vinegar complained, gingerly picking herself up and limping to the soldier's feet. She squatted, wrapped her arms around his ankles, and dug her heels into the ground. "I've got you! Now get her out of that pit! Please!" she begged, squeezing and pulling as hard as she humanly could while fighting through insurmountable torment in the form of her aching, throbbing knee.

"You got it!" Tay assured, reaching his other hand down and grasping Twitch's with all his might. "Haaaaaaaaaagh!" he roared in a mix of determination and horrifying pain as he put all his effort into pulling the girl up. He fought through tidal waves of torture, the grass spikes digging into his chest and stomach like tiny drill bits as he continued to lift her. Twitch, desperate to survive, reached and wrapped her free hand around the back of the soldier's neck the very instant the opportunity presented itself. He hastily wrapped both arms around her waist to pull her close and gain a more advantageous position, which allowed Twitch to fully wrap both her arms around his neck. Vinegar, seeing the progress being made, redoubled her efforts to pull Tayshan up. With another burst of altruistic determination, Tay twisted his body around, rolling over as Twitch clung tightly to him. In a few minutes that lasted a dreadful eternity, Tay managed to pull Twitch up over the cliff, hugging her close as she found herself straddled on top of him. Her eyes still tightly shut, she continued to hug the man for dear life as though she were still on the precipice of her own demise.

"Oh, thank goodness…!" Vinegar praised with a heavy sigh, staggering back as she let go of the solder's feet before finding herself flat on her back in a light, running stream of freshwater. She didn't even care that she'd gotten soaking wet, however. She was overcome with situational adrenaline and a world of relief that Twitch was safe as she took a much-deserved breather.

"Hey…! We're… we're safe now…!" Tay choked out as Twitch continued to crush his windpipes with her bear hug. "I can't breathe…!"

"Huh?" the previously-endangered young woman reacted in slight confusion as she lifted her head up to see that she was safe from harm. Though breathing heavily, she briefly examined her surroundings to see that she and her allies were alive and well. After a moment, she looked down at her savior, who'd been looking back at her with fatigue. "Tay-Tay! You saved me! Again! Thank you so much! Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!" She cheered, leaning over and puckering her lips to kiss him for his efforts. Tay, totally unprepared for such a racy show of gratitude, turned his head to the side at the last second, where Twitch's lips pressed tightly to his cheek. Seeming not to care about where she managed to kiss him, Twitch repeated her action four additional times in rapid succession, peppering the soldier with needlessly-melodramatic smooches of appreciation.

"Hey! Ow…! Come on, stop it!" he ordered, halting her assault by grabbing onto her shoulders as he flinched in pain. Twitch, regaining her composure, propped herself up while remaining seated on the young man.

"Sorry… I-I might've lost myself there… But I seriously can't thank you enough for saving me!" Twitch vocalized her boundless gratitude once more.

"Not a problem," he acknowledged. "Still, I'm not the only one who saved you. Vinegar had a big part in it, too."

"Right, of course," Twitch acknowledged, turning to see Vinegar still sprawled out in the stream nearby, catching her breath. "Thank you, Vinni! Dinner's on me when we get back to base!" Vinegar, rather than reply with words, raised an arm and gave a thumbs-up to acknowledge and accept the gracious offer.

"Cool. If you could excuse me, though, I need t' get all these needles out o' my body," he further confessed, causing Twitch to look down and notice the smorgasbord of emerald-green spines sticking out of her ally's chest, as well as the few that found themselves embedded in her shirt.

"Oh! Wow, you look like you belly-flopped three hedgehogs! I hope these quills aren't poisonous…" she observed, climbing off the man and quickly helping him up to a sitting position. "Jeez, there are a ton more in your back, too! Here, I'll get 'em…" she offered, needing no reply as she committed herself to turning our resident alien from a living cactus back to human. However, rather than pick the thorns out of his back one-by-one, Twitch got the bright idea to try slapping them out of his back all at once with a definitive *SMACK*.

"OWW!" Tay screeched and flinched in unfathomable pain, many of the needles in his back sticking harder into him. "Why!?" he yelled, turning toward her in tearful agony.

"Oh, jeez! Sorry, Sorry! I was trying to brush them out, but I didn't realize they were actually sticking into your back! For real this time, I'll take care of it," she offered again as she committed to picking the quills out of the soldier's back while he removed the ones poking into his front and sides. After an excruciating couple of minutes, Tay and Twitch were prickle-free, the two of them immediately tending to Vinegar.

"Are you okay, Vinni?" Twitch asked in concern, observing her taller counterpart's rather haggard disposition as she and Tay approached her.

"As I'll ever be…" Vinegar assured, sitting up and stretching some of her fatigue away. "My knee is still killing me, but I could be worse. I'm more worried about you though, Vidi…"

"I'm totally fine! That was a close call, though… I'm still just a little shaken up, but thanks to you and Tay-Tay, everything turned out okay."

"Vidi?" Tay questioned, understandably thrown off by the name Vinegar had just used. "Who's Vidi?"

"That's my nickname," Twitch confessed, casting a blushing momentary glance elsewhere. "We have nicknames for each other."

"Huh… Vinni and Vidi, hm?" he curiously asked, seeming to observe something in the way their mutual nicknames sounded.

"Don't read into it," Vinegar nonchalantly dismissed. "It's a thing of ours."

"If you say so… I was about to say, where's Vici?" he asked with a smirk, unwittingly disobeying Vinegar's request that he not read into it. Clever pun. Not.

"…Huh?" Both Vinni and Vidi asked, missing the play on words. They briefly glanced at each other, sharing mutual looks of confusion before looking back at the would-be comedian before them. One could hear the crickets chirping, the silence was so awkward… well, if the crickets in this place weren't roasted like marshmallows by this point. A great (and increasing) deal of the Prickle Stitch Valley's vegetation was still on fire.

"Get it? Y-y'know, because veni vidi vici…?" he sheepishly explained, not realizing right away that he was on a different planet. Nonetheless, the two girls continued to stare at him, his oh-so-clever pun flying farther over their heads than the afternoon smog—er, clouds. As such, he gulped in awkward discomfort. "…No?"

"I… don't get it," Twitch confessed, scratching her head.

"Me, neither. Sorry, bud," Vinegar added with a shrug.

"Right, different world… Forget it. That was a bad joke…" Tay dismissed in embarrassment and disappointment that his genius quip was wasted. "Anyway, shall we keep movin'? I don't know if there are any other Tinkerbats out here, but we shouldn't be sittin' ducks, regardless."

"Yeah, but my leg is still pretty messed up… You wouldn't mind giving a girl another lift, would you?"

"Not an issue at all," Tay cordially obliged, scooping Vinegar up and securing her on his back while Twitch moved to recover the pistol she dropped after spotting it lying near a cactus bush.

"Here, I'll redo the straps…" Twitch offered, grabbing the belts from the ground and quickly fastening them to her partners. Before long, the three of them were off, continuing their expedition at a more casual pace.

"Looks like there's a cave entrance at the end down there. Also, it looks like we reached the other end o' this valley," Tay brilliantly observed as they approached a wide-open, hollowed-out opening in the mountainous wall straight ahead. It presented itself past one final field of brown, red, and green-colored cacti with a steadily-flowing stream of freshwater coursing through it, leading into the opening. The presumed cave entrance itself was enormous in size and bore a striking resemblance to a jackal's head with its wide-open mouth serving as the opening. There were even razor-sharp fangs and teeth carved into the upper portion of the stone jackal's maw that brought about a mystifying, yet intimidating vibe. It did appear, however, that the structure was withered with age. "You can't really miss a landmark like this," he observed, clearly intrigued by the menacing nature of the entrance and the surrounding area.

"No kidding," Twitch agreed. "Heck, this whole area looks like a series of ancient art projects," she added, scouring the environment. Indeed, she spotted what appeared to be an array of stone statues of men, women, and mythological creatures in a wide variety strange positions, as well as the faces of either animals or people carved into the mountains all across the expansive perimeter of this end of the Prickle Stitch Valley. "So, that definitely tells us this place wasn't always this… devoid of life."

"No doubt. I wonder if there might be someone or somethin' in that cave that might help us…" he murmured in wonder as he, Twitch, and Vinegar traversed quietly through the cactus patch and continued to study the architectural oddities around them. In that moment, however, Vinegar took the ambient, mostly-peaceful silence as an opportunity to get something off her chest.

"…Hey, Tayshan?" Vinegar beckoned as she rode on the soldier's back.

"Yeah?"

"I just want to say… uh, thanks… for… for carrying me," she followed up in a show of gratitude he didn't expect. "Also… thank you for… for helping us out against those Tinkerbats back there. And… especially for saving Vidi—er, Twitch."

"Mm-hmm," he nonchalantly replied as they kept it moving. "What are teammates for, right?"

"Right… I… I also want to say uh… I'm… sorry for how I treated you since we got here…" she shyly apologized.

"Oh?" he perked up in astonishment, focusing more of his attention on her. "That's… surprisin' t' hear."

"Look, I… We definitely got off on the wrong foot, I know," she uncertainly began to explain. "It's just… when we met, we were enemies, what with us thinking you and Shantae stole our generator and all. It didn't help that we were ordered to pry into you for more intel after you struck that deal with us, which led up to us kidnapping you."

"I… can understand that much," he begrudgingly admitted. "Granted, I don't necessarily agree with how y'all played things out. But… if I'm gonna be honest, I wasn't even expectin' y'all t' follow through on your end o' that first deal."

"As we're aware by now."

"Yeah, but I thought it was gonna go down more like y'all secretly tryin' t' steal some o' the guns an' windin' up gettin' called out for it by the time this was all wrapped up so there wouldn't be a chance o' me divulgin' classified information."

"Ohh… Well that's pretty sneaky," Vinegar replied with judgment in her tone. "Though… it IS a clever move in some respect because we probably would've tried to take something without you knowing. Still, that's messed up."

"I know… and I apologize," he guiltily conceded. "I was hopin' you'd at least be willin' t' team up against Risky Boots, but lookin' back, everything about our past arrangement was built on mutually-shared distrust of one another."

"You can say that again… We mulled over it, too, and we figured we could get more than just a date between you and Twitch out of something so big as a chance to join forces to knock that capricious hag off her pedestal."

"If we're all going to be honest, Tayshan, I was originally going to try and dig into you about your weapons during our date on Main Street, anyway," Twitch admitted. "I was planning on reporting what I got from you back to the big boss man himself while also maybe using my charm to keep you hooked on me."

"That figures…" he nodded with a heavy sigh. "Wow, we were still workin' against each other after that fight, huh?"

"Yup," Vinegar added with a tinge of regret. "Maybe the arrangement we have now can be something more… diplomatic, honest, and fair between us."

"No doubt. Even with that, though, you an' I have not really seen eye t' eye on any conceivable level, Vinegar. I won't front an' say the animosity is all on you, of course. I had my moments o' gettin' short with you, an', if you mean it, then I'm sorry, too. Still, is it okay t' ask why you don't like me?"

"It isn't that I dislike you. I was mostly neutral toward you, though seeing you hanging around Shantae made me suspicious. It might also be a little bit my personal fault, too. It isn't too often a guy like you comes along, and, as you've seen, Vidi gets herself worked up into a tizzy over any man she finds remotely attractive…"

"Hey!" Vidi/Twitch blushingly complained, listening to their conversation. "That's not… entirely true! Don't make me sound like I'm boy-crazy, Vinni! I'm not!"

"Yeah, I'll believe that when you stop drooling over every guy within a 100-mile radius with even a little bit of muscle or a cute face," she teased her partner in crime.

"Vinni!" she whined, her face growing pinker by the second. "You're embarrassing me in front of Tay-Tay! That's not true by the way, Tay. Don't listen to her. I promise you, when I've got my sights locked on you, I'm 100% committed to you. My eyes are also only drawn to the cream of the crop, so you know that, if I'm interested in you, there's something special about you," she hastily justified with a nervous chuckle.

"…Jeez…" he groaned at the mention of his pet name and her unnecessary justification of her boy-craziness while Vinegar chuckled at Twitch's chagrin. However, the piggybacking blonde noticed Tay's discomfiture at the mention of his moniker.

"You really don't like that nickname," Vinegar expertly deduced with another chuckle.

"No, I don't…"

"How come?"

"Uh… Honestly, it's more that the nickname hits too close t' home than anything else…" he admitted, much to Vinegar's surprise.

"Oh, yeah? Why is that?"

"Long story short, an old friend used t' call me that… Especially when she wanted t' embarrass me at social gatherings."

"Ohh, I get it…" she realized from the despondent tone of his reply. "It must carry some emotional weight or something, right? Something that you don't want to be reminded of?"

"You guessed it…" he affirmed.

"Aw, don't worry, Tay-Tay!" Twitch consoled, though her use of the offending nickname did nothing to ease his irritation. "If it really bothers you, I'll stop."

"Thanks, Twitch," Tay offered his gratitude, glad to finally do away with a name that made him uncomfortable.

"Of course!" she assured, though she quickly began to ponder on what else to call him. "Maybe I'll call you… Shanny! Or Tayvy-Baby! Or Shan-Tay! Wait, ew, no, not that one… That one's gross and way too familiar…" she realized as she dug around for embarrassing things to call Tayshan.

"Hold on… Shantae… Tayshan… Holy cow, your names are the same!" Vinegar finally realized with a gasp and snap of her fingers after Twitch unwittingly put it out there. "How crazy is that!?"

"Yep," Tay nodded with a lighthearted chuckle. "You're the only two besides Shantae herself t' point that out. And trust me, she reacted the same way. I'm still trippin' over how uncanny that is," he humorously informed her.

"Oh! I got it! Tay the Bae!" Twitch proudly proclaimed, causing Tay to nearly retch in complete vexation. "Yeah, that's it! It rhymes, it's cute, and it perfectly describes our budding relationship!" she cheerfully and ingeniously thought up. As one might expect to happen when they're called an even more humiliating nickname than a previous one, Tayshan's embarrassment nearly roasted him alive while Vinegar cracked up at the suggestion.

"No! Tay-Tay is fine," he hurriedly pleaded. "Please, don't make up any other names! Ever! I'm beggin' you!" Twitch cutely giggled, finding his discomfort endearing.

"Aw, I knew you'd come around, Tay-Tay. I'll call you by that name with pride and honor," she teased, still laughing with joy. "Maybe you'll forget all about whatever makes you upset about it if I use it enough."

"…Man…" he sighed, already at his wits' end on trying to get her to stop calling him by such a ridiculous nickname.

"Anyway, if it hasn't been made obvious by now, I'm… protective of my bratty little sis," Vinegar redirected the conversation, though that raised a pressing question in Tayshan's mind.

"Love ya too, Vinni," Twitch quipped, shaking her head and smirking. Vinegar merely returned the statement by making a heart symbol with her hands toward her friend before turning her attention back to Tay.

"She and I are so close, you couldn't glue yourself to another person and be as attached as we are. When she sees a guy and goes ga-ga over him, I… I'll admit, I tend to get a bit aggressive. It's just me looking out for her because I don't want her to get hurt. Some guys are super shady, too, which makes things more frustrating at times…"

"I totally get it in that case," the serviceman nodded in agreement. "Here I was, thinkin' you just hated me for no reason. If your bond is that tight, then I'd be blind not t' see things from your perspective. If anything, I think it's admirable you girls have such a great connection."

"Ah, so maybe you're not such a blockhead after all," Vinegar teased. Tay nearly took this as another biting personal attack until he heard the girls mirthfully chuckling to each other.

"Yeah well, last time I checked, my head was shaped more like a cylinder anyway," he joked back, causing both girls to burst into humored giggles. He found it in himself to laugh with them, basking in the fact that the tension between him and his Ammonian allies had diminished greatly.

"That was a good one, Tayshan… Second best laugh I've had all day," Vinegar complimented through chortles.

"Heh, I aim to please," he gracefully accepted her praise, though her statement caught him by surprise. "Wait, second best?"

"The first was watching you cringe as you read Vidi's diary entry about you," she admitted, bursting into another fit of laughter. She was alone on that one, however, as both Tay and Vidi hushed up in utter embarrassment. "That was priceless!"

"Vinni, you're the worst! It's not a laughing matter when your crush finds out about your feelings that way! That's like if I told everyone you still sleep with a safety blanket, a stuffed raccoon, and a night light because of your crippling nyctophobia!" she complained, though it stopped Vinegar's laughter dead. Twitch, realizing her egregious mistake, clasped her hands over her mouth, totally mortified at what she'd just blurted out. Vinegar, as one would expect, glared hot, vengeful death at her comrade while her face heated up and reddened with utter humiliation. Tay, having caught wind of this, repressed his urge to laugh out of respect… though just barely.

"Yikes… You're scared o' the dark? Oh man, the things you find out about people," he commented, still fighting the urge to laugh.

"Listen here, you! You'd better not-!" Vinegar prepared to warn.

"I'll take that secret t' the grave. I promise," Tay swore, clearing his throat. "If I'm lyin', I'll drop dead in the next ten seconds."

"Oh. In that case, don't worry. It's okay," she forgave as she suddenly calmed down.

"Really?"

"Yeah. I plan on killing you anyway, so you won't have to wait that long for a grave," Vinegar casually informed, scaring her piggyback ride volunteer.

"What? Why me!?" he queried, upset that she would choose to murder him for a mistake Twitch made.

"If you're worried you'll be alone, don't be. I'll kill Twitch after I'm done with you."

"What? Me, too?" Twitch protested.

"Especially you," Vinegar teasingly confirmed. "That way, no one will ever find out about my issues with darkness. A secret between three friends is best kept when two of them are dead, y'know. I've gotta cover all my bases."

"Friends, hm? Nice t' know I've earned that distinction with you, at least. I can die satisfied now," Tay acknowledged, looking at the bright side (not necessarily literally) of Vinegar's idle threat to kill him for learning one of her deepest, (ironically) darkest secrets. Oh goodness, the puns! I can't get away from them!

"Wear the badge proudly while you can, big guy," Vinegar smilingly approved of his approval of their newfound friendship.

"You can't kill me, Vinni!" Twitch frantically objected. "You'd be getting rid of one of the best parts about yourself if you got rid of me! C'mon, we can't live without each other!"

"I'll find a way," she coldly remarked with a perturbed smirk. "Meanwhile, they'll never find your bodies."

"Dark," Tay flatly commented, though he immediately realized the pun he'd just made. "Ah! Oh, shoot…!" Twitch, hearing his unwitting play on words, cracked up at the coincidental observation.

"Hahahaha! He said 'Dark!' Tay-Tay, that was too perfect!" Twitch congratulated the soldier on his joke through her raucous laughter. Vinegar, finding some humor in it, began to giggle herself.

"Nah, I'm just kidding… at least, as long as you both keep your yaps shut about what was just revealed about me. Especially you, Vidi," Vinegar warned.

"Scout's honor!" Twitch happily agreed, energetically saluting her friend; this time, without crossing her fingers behind her back.

"You got it. Not a word about it will be spoken by me t' anybody but you two," Tay assured.

"Good," Vinegar nodded, taking a deep breath to dispel her discomfort.

"Heh, you girls are actually pretty cool. I didn't think I'd get such a chance t' connect with the more neutral side o' things, but this… minus a couple o' huge hiccups, ain't been so bad," he declared, though his remark would probably warrant him getting examined for having Stockholm Syndrome. Look it up, reader. It's a real thing.

"Speaking of 'neutral,' that reminds me…" Twitch began, seeming to recall something. "Earlier, you asked us about our alignment."

"Yeah. What's up?" Tay asked, wondering what she was about to pose to him.

"It was an interesting question, but we never got an answer from you. After everything we've just been through, I'm curious… Where do you think you fall on that good-versus-evil dichotomy?" The young woman's question, while not entirely shocking to Tayshan, stunned him nonetheless. He'd only asked the question to them because of his conversation with Shantae hours earlier, but he hadn't given his own alignment much thought since then. As such, he felt a rush of pressure course through his body as he deliberated his reply.

"I'm… I'm not sure, t' be perfectly honest," he answered, surprising both girls as the trio momentarily stopped their trek.

"What? How could you not be sure?" Vinegar pressed, interested in hearing his explanation.

"Especially when you've been hanging around literally the most innocent, righteous, do-gooder, moral-obsessed person in this whole country," Twitch concurred. "I figured you'd be right there with her!"

"Well… I… I had a conversation with that moral-obsessed person, and… accordin' t' her, I'm not necessarily a good guy, considerin' my past. As far as I'm aware, I'm… I'm either evil or neutral."

"Really now?" Twitch asked, both hers and Vinegar's intrigue growing. "What kind of past did you have for her to deem you of all people evil?"

"One where, without mincin' words, there was a lot o' crime, hardship, subterfuge, betrayal, an' self-indulgent habits that made me a much different individual than the one you see in front o' y'all today. I'm only really like I am now because once I made the decision t' become a hero, or as close t' one as a degenerate with my background could get, I joined my country's military. I'm a lot different now from how I was back then. Who knows what would happen if y'all would've met me when I was as far back as two or three years younger…"

"Hold the megaphone… You… You used to be a criminal?" Twitch asked in a mix of surprise and anticipation.

"In the absence of better words… Yes."

"No way!" Twitch and Vinegar reacted with such astonishment that one would have thought they'd seen an alien… Oh, wait, Tayshan technically WAS an alien. Never mind, bad analogy.

"You certainly don't come across like a bad guy," Vinegar observed, though she gave her assertion some thought. "Well, considering most of what I've seen of you. The only 'evil' things I can say you've done to us is try to trick us with that first deal we made and almost blow us up with one of your grenades earlier."

"Fair, but for the record, I was bluffin' with the grenade," he informed them, causing both young women to reel back in even more shock. "I might've activated it, but I was holdin' it in a way that my grip had a real low chance o' slippin. If my grip ever did slip, I'd have thrown it away an' ducked for cover with y'all."

"Oooohh…" Twitch droned in wonder, astounded at just how sneaky Tayshan could be.

"Wow, Tayshan… You've got quite the dark side to you, huh?" Vinegar dared to question. "I'm actually kind of impressed, though it IS just a bit… unsettling that you would go to such extreme lengths to make a situation work in your favor. You were playing with everyone's lives back there."

"Yeah," he solemly agreed. "I apologize for that, too. That wasn't right o' me at all, but it's all I could think t' do when you had that gun pointed at me."

"Right, right… I did kind of force your hand, didn't I?"

"It is what it is," Tay acknowledged with a shrug. "Still, you didn't make me pull the grenade. I did that on my own and, as I learned, I need t' take responsibility for it."

"How mature of you," Vinegar lauded, though Tay couldn't tell if it was sincere or patronizing, considering how she'd addressed him in the past. "Still, we did come out of it with a better understanding of each other in the end, so don't beat yourself up too much over it. Just make sure you don't do that with us again, or I will shoot you next time."

"You got it, Vinegar," he agreed with a nod and a smirk.

"Still, Tay…" Twitch chimed in. "What… what sorts of things did you do to ever be considered a bad guy?"

"We'd be here all day if I told y'all the whole thing, but without sayin' too much… I used to steal from people an' stores, get int' tons of fights for no good reason, lie, hang out with other criminals an' help them commit crimes, threaten people with dangerous weapons, mislead authorities t' help people avoid gettin' locked up, run a bunch of… 'errands' for people in a… a certain 'club' I was in, an' a bunch of other things as a kid that I… that I ain't too proud of," he cautiously revealed, unsurprised by Twitch's flabbergasted facial expression. "I never got caught for what I did, in case you were wonderin'. It's why Shantae brands me a 'former villain,' regardless. I can't say I like that title much at all, but after talkin' to her, I feel like I kinda earned it…" he shamefully acknowledged, letting his gaze fall to the grass on which he stood.

"Well, I think it's awesome you're not a boring, one-note goody-two-shoes," the bespectacled young maiden proclaimed.

"Oh, really?" Tay asked in astonishment, raising his eyebrows as he turned his attention to her.

"Yeah. You're not perfect, and neither are we. It just goes to show that no matter what anyone says about us, we set our own examples and operate on our own wavelength. No wonder we get along so well!"

"Heh, r-right," Tay reluctantly agreed, conflicted by the fact that he'd (once again, apparently) allied himself with other 'criminals,' as far as his knowledge about them and their organization from Shantae was concerned.

"Plus, I likes me a naughty boy~!" she teased, predictably flustering the poor morally-ambiguous soldier. "You just went from a 9 to a 10 in my book."

"…Neat," he dryly remarked, trying not to sound too uncomfortable with Twitch's frequent and aggressive efforts to court him. He was additionally afraid that he'd made it worse by opening up to her and Vinegar.

"So overall, where would you say you are on the moral scale?" Vinegar asked, redirecting the conversation back to its main point.

"Good question," Tay began his reply, contemplating his own alignment. "I'd like t' say 'good,' but I guess I just ain't worthy t' be that yet. My history is too dark. So, I guess I'll say 'neutral-good' at best, solid 'neutral' at worst at this point. I want t' be considered good, but I've got a ton o' lost time t' make up for before I ever get t' that point."

"For the record, Tayshan, you don't have to be a paragon of a fundamentally-flawed moral high ground to be considered a good guy," Twitch advised him, alarming him in the process. "Nobody should get to tell you how to live your life or put you in a box because you don't exactly fit the mold for a textbook 'superhero,' which is as boring as it is unrealistic."

"Yeah, even the most decorated, dedicated 'heroes' have their dark sides," Vinegar agreed. "It's a matter of being honest with yourself that really helps with defining your character, not a matter of trying to pretend you're something you're not. That's the problem with most heroes; they try to paint this pretty little portrait of unwavering ethical integrity that mostly just comes across as sappy, hypocritical, moralistic garbage when the skeletons in their closets are dug out. Then they're surprised when they're dragged from 'idol' status back to being another flawed 'nobody' like they should've known would happen."

"…Wow…" Tay remarked, completely astounded by the words of his comrades. Their words struck a chord with him that he didn't think either of them would be able to even find. Nonetheless, he appreciated their feedback. "You ladies… Thanks… for that. I… I've got somethin' new t' think about now…"

"Anytime, big guy," Vinegar accepted his gratitude. "Just make sure you don't let genie girl's words get to you too much. She doesn't know as much about the real deal with being good, neutral, or evil as she thinks she does, if 'former villain' is what she chooses to call you. Besides, we're neutral, and we're loving it. Ain't that right, Vidi?"

"Heck yeah, sister! Livin' it up without fear of being tied down by the law!" Twitch proudly proclaimed. "T-To some degree, because we have our limits!" she further clarified, managing to make Tayshan chuckle.

"Heh, I like y'all," he admitted, causing both of them to smirk with approval… Well, Vinegar was smirking with approval. Twitch was blushingly giggling to herself, elated by the soldier's blunt 'confession.' "Random question, though… Are you two actually related, or are y'all just best friends?" Tay asked the million-gem question, changing the topic to one far more interesting.

"Believe it or not, Vinni and I are-!" Twitch was about to answer.

"Hey! Wait up!" another feminine voice called from above, thus dashing our hopes of ever truly finding out the relationship between Twitch and Vinegar. Dang it… Anyhow, the trio turned to face the direction of the voice coming from behind them. They peered upward to see a silhouette of a feathered creature descending toward them from the smoke cloud-laden afternoon sky. As the creature came into view, her periwinkle feathers gave the ethereal serviceman an immediate hint of who was approaching. The hint was made stronger by the presence of a familiar purple-hooded blonde woman riding on the avian creature's back.

"Shantae an' Sky!" Tay excitedly called, recognizing the two of them as they neared.

"Them? No way!" Vinegar remarked in shock, evidently not expecting more travelers to join them on this adventure; especially not those two travelers. Harpy-Shantae landed safely onto the mossy plains, allowing Sky to dismount her before the half-genie *POOFED* into her famous purple-haired, red-garbed, jewelry-decorated humanoid form.

"Finally, we caught up to you!" Shantae cheered as she and Sky approached their friend and his former kidnappers.

"And boy, do you guys look like you've had it rough out here," Sky added. "What happened to you? How did you three wind up crashing here of all places?"

"And for that matter, what even is this place?" Shantae threw in another question, scanning the environment to see all the creepy stone structures surrounding them before refocusing. "There were Tinkerbats all over, and man did they do some nasty damage with those flamethrowers of yours, Tay."

"Homegirl, you'll be surprised t' hear what I'm about t' tell ya, so brace yourself…" Tay warned. Shantae, curious, widened her eyes as she focused on her extraterrestrial comrade. At that point, Tayshan (with help from Twitch and Vinegar) filled Shantae and Sky in on their escapades in the Prickle Stitch Valley.

 ** _A few information-packed minutes later…_**

"THIS is the Prickle Stitch Valley!?" Shantae reacted in much-expected surprise.

"That makes sense, considering all the spiny plants and the fact that this whole island is shaped like a series of stitches," Sky observed, scratching her head as she scanned the mountainous, mossy… dare I say, PRICKLY region around her.

"We've been searching for this place for close to a week! How odd is it that we found it by a series of random, ridiculously-unlikely chances?" Shantae further quizzed in astonishment.

"Something we can all agree on, I'm sure," Vinegar attested. "If you plan on coming back here, you'd better mark it while you can. As for Risky's little creeps, we have no idea why they were here."

"Yeah, we spent almost the entire time fighting them off until they started going all 'Scorched-Earth' on us," Twitch added to elaborate. "Most of them were armed with weapons from that other dimension, too."

"As in, way more than the flamethrowers. We're talkin' rocket launcher, semi-automatic rifle, an' shotgun territory. Matter of fact, I managed t' grab a shotgun from 'em. It's slung over my shoulder in this scabbard here," Tay added, pointing toward the confiscated firearm. "I don't know that the weapons they dropped are still out there, considerin' how much o' this island is on fire right now…"

"You're kidding!" both Shantae and Sky collectively gasped, aghast at such foreboding news.

"Yeah, it looks like Risky Boots is on the move faster than we were hopin' for," Tay enunciated. "Granted, most of 'em didn't even know how t' use the weapons they had, so they might've just been here testin' them out before we came along."

"And you said they used some sort of high-tech missile launcher to shoot you guys down?" asked Sky.

"Yep," Tayshan confirmed. "I don't know if they were actually aimin' at us, but they blew us out o' the air real quick because the missile was fitted with heat-seekin' technology. They could've just gotten lucky there, regardless."

"Wow… The fact that they have access to something THAT powerful speaks volumes about why we shouldn't be lollygagging when it comes to finding that rotten Risky Boots."

"Ya think, sunshine?" Vinegar sarcastically asked, unamused that Sky was stating the obvious. "It's not like we're twiddling our thumbs over here. We just said that."

"Excuse you? Watch your tone!" Sky demanded.

"And if I don't?" Vinegar dared while she still remained on Tay's back.

"Aw, here we go…" Tay complained, unamused by the animosity between Vinegar and Sky.

"Then I'll-!" Sky prepared to challenge.

"Girls, come on…" Shantae intervened to quell the tension. "This is no time for us to fight each other. We've done more than enough of that already. Anyway, was there any sign of Risky herself? Or any of the psychic druids you mentioned that were supposed to be here, Tay?"

"No druids, as far as we could see," he answered. "We didn't dig up any signs of Risky Boots, either. Just her minions."

"Darn… I was hoping we could ask them about where we could find her if she wasn't here already. Chances are, they may have foreseen the Tinkerbats' attack and evacuated to escape from harm."

"Oh gosh, don't tell me you believed that 'druid' schlock, too," Twitch rudely commented, snickering at her adversary-turned-temporary-ally.

"And what's wrong with the idea of psychic druids?" Shantae asked, displeased with Twitch's mockery. "There's tons of other things that exist here that you wouldn't think do."

"True, but let's be serious. Anything involving 'psychic powers of future sight' is where I draw the line. It's a total joke!"

"How?"

"If they really existed, they would've probably predicted a bunch of other catastrophic events that happened within the last year and warned us before they happened! Duh! We already had to tell Tayshan not to believe everything he hears, but he isn't even from this world. He gets a pass. You have no excuse, rat tail!"

"Oh, but the fact that Shantae is half-genie does nothing to suspend your disbelief?" Sky stepped in, defending her best friend.

"Yeah!" the half-genie-turned-argument-point agreed. "I might not have future sight, but with me even existing, alongside all the other things we've all seen, how could you shoot down the possibility of druids that can see the future?"

"Maybe it's because the future is what we make of it and that it's never set in stone. Ever think of that?" Vinegar chimed in. "It would only make sense for psychic druids, or psychic ANYTHING to exist if we were on a one-track timeline, where everything that ever happened is predestined. Whoever told you that garbage about these imaginary druids—so far as I understand, it was some delusional whackjob archer on Naga Mountain—is full of hot air. Evidenced by the guy from an ALTERNATE DIMENSION giving me a piggyback ride right now, that druid tale isn't true. Who could predict anything as unlikely as that, much less be right about it?"

"Huh?" Tay asked, cocking an eyebrow in confusion as he, too, was turned into an argument point.

"That isn't a plausible point to make," Shantae countered, about to go full time-travel nerd. "We don't know where Tayshan is from, whether it be an alternate dimension, a formerly-parallel timeline, one of many divergent timelines, the future in this timeline, or a different planet. We talked about this before, but with all the incredibly-unlikely possibilities surrounding his arrival here, we could very well say it was predestined. The chances of him crossing interstellar lines in any capacity to get here—even with Risky Boots's scheming involved—are so slim that you could use them as dental floss. As a matter of fact, it should've been downright impossible! Yet, here he is, speaking and interacting with us at this very moment, and helping us save the day. If that doesn't sound like it could be predestined, then what else would it take to convince you to at least think about it?"

"Wow, Shantae, those comics really turned you into a total conspiracy theorist…" Sky worriedly griped. "I was afraid this might wind up happening…"

"I mean, hey, not to stray off-topic, but I've even had premonitions and dreams of my own regarding events to come. Like, I once dreamt about the Pirate Master's return, and without fail, he came back," Shantae continued to pose her statement to Twitch and Vinegar. "Not to mention some of the dreams I had before my last adventure after that!"

"Hey, we-!" Tay tried to cut in.

"Oh, alright. So, if that's the case, go to sleep right now and dream about the outcome of our effort to stop Risky Boots," Vinegar challenged. "Then, tell us without a doubt that you know what'll happen in the end."

"That isn't how that works!" Shantae protested, upset by such a callous assertion.

"Better yet, did you dream about her stealing our generator and using it to invade another timeline? Or planet, or what have you?" Twitch further challenged. "If you did, then what kept you from warning us in advance or stopping her before she could get her hands on it? Why would we ever be in this mess if you could predict it and stop it before it happened?"

"And while we're on that point, who's to say knowing something and trying to stop it would actually work if you knew it would happen a certain way?" Vinegar continued to drill. "Would you know if your interference would cause a predicted event to happen? Or do you seriously think trying to stop it just because you predicted it would be so simple?"

"Well… no, I didn't dream about any of this happening… and I don't know if trying to stop something after predicting it would work, but-!" Shantae answered, somewhat perplexed by the points Twitch and Vinegar made.

"Then you're not psychic, and your dreams about the Pirate Master and whatever else were giant flukes," Twitch triumphantly concluded. "Seriously, I once dreamt about brushing my teeth with Vinegar's toothbrush before, and that's only ever actually happened once after I had the dream! Does that make me psychic?" she added, though her analytical example only succeeded in grossing everyone out.

"Eww," Sky and Shantae groaned in unified repulsion.

"…That's triflin'," Tay also remarked in disgust as he shot Twitch a side-eyed, quizzical look.

"…Twitch, I am going to tie you to a rocket and ship you off to the moon one of these days…!" Vinegar muttered in mortified anger.

"Yeah, I know, it's gross. Sue me, alright?" she defended herself while maintaining her argument. "It isn't like I planned it! Which is my point, by the way! Dreams are not credible evidence of being psychic! Anyone can dream about anything and oh-so-magically have it come to pass!"

"How would you kn-!" Sky attempted to interject.

"I had the exact same dream multiple times before the Pirate Master came back!" Shantae defended herself, getting right back into the fight. "If it wasn't for me springing into action and getting my magic back because of that, he'd probably still be here, plunging the world into eternal darkness! You call that a fluke?"

"Alright, come o-!" Tay again tried to stop the arguing.

"Yes, unless you also predicted yourself taking him down with help from me, Twitch, and the Queen of Cantankerous herself! The fact that you can even entertain 'if' proclamations like that is already indication that there were a ton of possibilities and variables to account for, hence destroying your own argument about predestination in a single statement. Good one, Shantae," Vinegar sarcastically shot back with a demeaning, condescending smirk and thumbs-up.

"That doesn't even make any sense!" she yelled, growing frustrated with Twitch and Vinegar's ruthless condescension. "Just because I say 'if,' doesn't do anything to deny the idea that at least some things, like Tay's arrival here and the Pirate Master's return, were predetermined!"

"Well, unless there's some way for two totally paradoxical things to exist at the same time until one possibility inevitably negates all the others, all you're doing is entertaining a fraudulent Cat-In-The-Box theory of quantum physics," Twitch explained, throwing yet another brain-fryingly complicated time postulation in the mix. "You can't-!"

"Alright, alright, that's enough!" Tayshan finally cut in, getting just as confused as I am with the girls' bickering over predestination versus multiverse theory. "Look, we don't know if one thing or the other about time travel an' future predictions is true, an' we don't know if there really are psychic druids here or if we were misled. For now, we've got more important things t' worry about, like how we're gonna deal with Risky an' her sticky-fingered minions."

"Way to bring things back to the real point, Tay!" Sky praised, nodding in approval.

"Thanks," he nodded back in appreciation, though Twitch and Vinegar both shot Sky dirty, contemptuous sneers. "Anyway, how did you two find us here?" he asked Sky and Shantae.

"Yeah, how did you two manage to track us down?" Twitch added, just as curious. "We were sure we literally smoked you girls when we kidnapped Tay-Tay," she added, causing the adorably-nicknamed soldier to freeze in place as the half-genie and the bird tamer reeled back in surprise.

"…Tay-Tay?" Shantae and Sky both remarked in varying degrees of confusion, glancing at one another before simultaneously focusing their attention on Tayshan, who was scowling with tangible ire and humiliation with his eyes drilling holes into the ground.

"…Aw, my goodness…" he groaned in seething indignation through an exasperated sigh.

"Is there something you'd like to tell me, Tay?" Shantae asked, quickly giving him the eye of 'you did something weird, didn't you?' that, of course, caused the young man to deadpan as he looked at his mentor.

"…No, I did not necessarily agree t' be called that. I told her NOT to call me that at first, but she keeps doin' it, an' I can no longer stop her. And no, I didn't do anything weird. I behaved myself just like I told you I would," Tay came clean, much to the half-genie's relief.

"Good. So, what's your side of the story?" Shantae asked Twitch.

"That this handsome hunk is now my boyfriend, simply put," she blurted, shocking everyone around her except Vinegar, who simply shook her head in disbelief. "And you can't have him, genie girl. Same goes to you, featherbrain."

"WHAT!?" Shantae, Sky, and Tay all collectively shouted.

"I thought I told you he was my protégé and sidekick!" Shantae screamed at the bespectacled girl as her face grew hot with embarrassment. "We don't have anything romantic going on at all! Ever! Why do you keep accusing me of liking him like that!? Also, since when did you two start dating!?"

"Shantae!" Tay shouted, appalled by her question.

"Tayshan! Is that true!?" Sky quizzed him, alarmed, frightened, and puzzled by the very dishonest proclamation.

"No! Of course not!" he hurriedly replied, his body temperature shooting so high that Vinegar might have realistically gotten burned from the touch of his skin. "Nobody here has ever agreed with that statement!" Shantae, overhearing Tay's panicked denial of Twitch's declaration, breathed a sigh of relief, though she was still wound up by the remark.

"Then what's your deal, making up stories like that, Twitch!?" Shantae turned to Twitch to ask, unexpectedly offended by such a bold proclamation.

"Whether he agrees or not, he's mine! Stay away from him!" she barked, stepping up to Shantae.

"You can't be serious! We are just friends! That's it!" she argued, becoming steadily more flustered with the longer this frivolous conversation went on. "He's all yours, should he be ill-advised enough to go out with you!"

"Ouch," Tay commented, impressed with Shantae's stinging comeback… until he gave it some thought. "…Wait, what!?" he asked, giving Shantae another look of displeasure, though it went unnoticed.

"Oh, please, I've seen the way you look at him!" Twitch argued back, causing Shantae to stiffen with mild discomfort. "You think you have us fooled with that 'goody-goody-I'm-so-perfect-it-melts-a-puppy's-eyeballs' act, but I know you're just putting on a convincing façade to cover up the fact that you're trying to seduce poor Tay-Tay into a relationship with you! Also, role-playing as his teacher is super suspect, you weirdo. Talk about depraved… You could at least TRY to keep your dirty fantasies under wraps! Isn't that right, Vinni?"

"Oh, I am NOT getting in the middle of that one, Vidi. That's all you and her," Vinegar fervently refused to chime in.

"Are you kidding me!?" Shantae screamed at the top of her lungs, her face getting redder than ketchup at such a boisterous accusation. "How… What… Who even…!?" she stammered, rightfully flabbergasted. "That makes absolutely no sense!"

"You've got a lot of gall, accusing Shantae of something so gross!" Sky defended, turning her attention to Twitch. "The way I see it, you're the weirdo for even drumming up such a repulsive notion! Get your mind out of the gutter! Also, don't lay claim to a guy who hasn't returned your fanatic, obsessive affection! What's more, I saw him before you did! Back off!" she further roared, debatably even more unhappy with the context of this verbal brawl than her best friend.

"I feel like I should get a say in th-!" Tay attempted to cut in, only to be disregarded yet again.

"Okay, that's where you cross the line, birdie!" Vinegar hollered, undoing the straps binding her to Tay, prompting him to crouch to let her get down. "Keep your obnoxious opinions to yourself! Twitch can say whatever she wants to whoever she wants! It's none of your business, anyway! I also don't hear Tayshan saying anything about being interested in you, so maybe you should take your own advice!" Vinegar further challenged, limping toward Sky.

"Who do you think you're talking to, clown-face!?" Sky barked back, clearly frustrated with how Vinegar addressed her. She even went as far as to insult Vinegar's face paint—er, makeup. "Maybe if you kept your friend under control, we wouldn't have a problem! Why don't you do better to set an example and not be such a bully!?"

"Don't talk to Vinegar like that!" Twitch shouted at Sky.

"Don't talk to Sky like that!" Shantae screamed at Twitch.

"What are you gonna do about it, brat!?" Vinegar yelled at Shantae.

"Who are you calling a brat!?" Shantae yelled back at Vinegar.

"Threaten her, and you'll be dealing with me and my birds!" Sky yelled at Vinegar.

"Let's see how your rats with wings fare against our guns and bombs!" Twitch and Vinegar yelled at Shantae and Sky.

"You really want to start another pointless fight here and now!?" Shantae yelled at Twitch and Vinegar. "Haven't you learned your lessons yet!?"

"Clearly, they haven't, but I've got no problem making sure it sinks in deeper!" Sky proclaimed, her temper past its boiling point. She turned toward the adversarial Ammonian affiliates to continue. "Especially when you pulled that sneaky trick, kidnapping Tayshan and hoisting him off to a deserted island! You two are lucky we don't make you pay for pulling the wool over our eyes right here and now!" Sky added alongside Shantae. Uh… at this point, the four maidens began screaming at each other, hurling unintelligible insults at one another and arguing with such collective anger that I… kinda-sorta decided to stop listening. This was just too much, man…

"Hey, hey, come on now, ladies," Tay calmly attempted to intervene again. "We're all supposed t' be one big squad… sort of. Why don't we-?"

 **"STAY OUT OF IT, TAYSHAN!"** all four girls stopped arguing to simultaneously scream as they turned and glared at him, freezing him stiffer than the statues littered across the grasslands. "Hey! Don't talk to him like that! You're not the boss of me! Don't tell me what to do! You've got some nerve!" the four girls simultaneously shouted amongst each other. They proceeded to immediately continue verbally jousting with one another in a most vicious two-on-two skirmish. There's a **_Boss Battle-Themed_** joke here, but… they're all supposed to be on the same side… and this isn't exactly a sparring match like a couple chapters ago. But, I digress.

"…Cool, glad everybody's on the same page…" he muttered with a defeated sigh as he stood, helplessly watching his comrades vocally team-killing each other. "I don't think I like this whole 'being fought over' thing at all… Then again, I don't even think they're fightin' because o' me by this point."

"Greetings…" another feminine voice addressed him from behind in a soft whisper. Tay, managing to cut through his friends' squabbling noises to hear the call, turned around and spotted a faint golden light glowing from within the cave entrance he, Twitch, and Vinegar were previously headed toward.

"Huh…? Is… somebody there?" he warily queried.

"Yes… Come hither, young warrior…" the voice, apparently disembodied, beckoned in a more audible volume.

"Who's there? Are… you possibly a druid?" Tay asked, his curiosity piqued as he felt all-too compelled to approach the cavern. He took slow, cautious, calculated steps, uncertain of who or what was summoning him.

"The answers you seek will be revealed upon your entrance into the Grotto of Judgment."

"Grotto of Judgment…? That doesn't sound too promisin'…" he murmured in slight worry, his steps becoming more hesitant.

"You must enter this cavern to discover your destiny, young Tayshan… I implore you," the voice communicated again, shocking the soldier beyond words.

"How… How did you know my name…?" he dared to ask as he hastened his approach toward the entrance. However, as soon as he was within arm's length of the entrance, he was ensnared by the golden light shining from within. The enigmatic light pinned his arms to his sides as he began to levitate. "What…!? Seriously…!? Not again!" he shouted, wriggling to try and break the mysterious hold this mysterious cavedweller had on him.

"Come forth!" the voice bellowed loud enough to interrupt the arguing going on with Shantae, Sky, Twitch, and Vinegar. The four girls all turned to see Tay quickly being dragged into the cavern by a mostly-invisible force.

"Oh, no! Tay!" Shantae screamed as she and the other girls rushed to his aid.

"Agh! H-help me!" he pleaded, craning his neck back toward his allies as he tried his hardest to break the grip of whatever was pulling him into the cave. It was too late, however, with a sudden push like a gale force wind, Tay was flung into the cave, the entrance being blocked shut with a giant golden boulder from the inside almost immediately.

"No!" Sky yelled as she and the other girls began trying to push, kick, and bang on the mossy, stony barricade to no avail. "We just found him, and we lost him again!"

"What a hassle…" Vinegar sighed in frustration, scratching her head.

"You said it…" Twitch agreed, eyeing up the mountainous, ancient carving-riddled wall that marked the end of the Prickle Stitch Valley. "How do we get him out of there?"

"When there's a will, there's a way," Shantae confidently answered, running her hands across the boulder to see if there was some kind of button to push to move it. "We can't give up just yet, so let's work together to save him!"

"Right," the other three girls agreed at once. With that, the four girls began a collective effort of figuring out ways to gain entrance into the cave to rescue their comrade.

So… you're probably gonna hate me for this, buuuut… I need to take a potty break. This part of the story is getting way too long and it's pretty clear I was never gonna finish it in one go. As much as I'd hate to disappoint you, you wonderful, diligent reader… I've been holding it in for too long. Not that you needed to know that. But! If you've got the patience to endure this awfully-convenient cliffhanger cop-out, then I guarantee you won't regret the wait. Don't let your screen fade into sleep mode! I'll be back before you know it! Though, you should probably use this as an opportunity to relieve your own needs. Your bladder (and your underpants) will thank you. I guarantee it. See ya after the break!


	7. Promise & Premonition

Chapter 5, Pt. 2: Promise & Premonition

LOCATION: 'GROTTO OF JUDGMENT' (BLOCKED ENTRANCE), PRICKLE STITCH VALLEY, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 18TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1626 HOURS

Aaaaaand we're back! Pardon the uh… very important interruption there. Potty breaks are serious business… Oh! And speaking of serious… As we left off, Shantae, Sky, Twitch, and Vinegar had been trying to enter the foreboding cavern their comrade was dragged into. Speaking of which…

"HaaaaaaAAAAAAHH!" roared Shantae, in elephant form as she charged with the speed of a fighter jet toward the blocked-off cave entrance.

"Give it all you've got, Shantae! This time, you'll smash right through!" Sky cheered, watching her friend's latest attempt at ramming through the stone barricade. Apparently, they'd been at this for quite some time. "Smash it to bits!" she added, hoping to the high heavens above that she could get through. With a voluminous, meaty *SMACK* that caused the other three girls to cringe in a mix of collective shock and horror. Shantae met the boulder head-on with all her might… again. However, she only succeeded in nearly giving herself a concussion from the disturbing impact. She *poofed* back into her human form, stumbling about in a disoriented daze, nearly falling over before Sky ran over to catch her.

"Oogh, my head…" the poor young genie girl deliriously droned, rubbing her forehead as Sky gently set her down on the grass. "I'm gonna feel that one for weeks…"

"I think 27 times is where we should call it, girl," Sky consoled, kneeling beside the still-disoriented half-genie and rubbing her back. TWENTY-SEVEN attempts at violently banging your head against a giant rock in a series of futile efforts to break it, though. Let that sink in. "Any more, and I'm afraid you'll wind up turning your brain into pudding…"

"Yet, there's still barely a crack in this stupid rock!" Twitch complained, inspecting the damage… or lack thereof as she tried pushing the boulder to no avail. "Come on!"

"You're kidding!" Vinegar observed alongside Twitch, equally as flabbergasted. "We've tried our bombs, we've tried using birds, we've tried pushing, we've tried the classic 'Open Sesame', and now we've even tried brute force… 27 times! This thing just won't budge!"

"Seriously, I'll bet we'd have better luck with chisels and mallets at this point…" Twitch agreed, scratching her head as she noticed something on the gargantuan stony obstacle. "Looks like Shantae's elephant charge made the most progress, though. The crack is a little bit bigger, at least," she pointed out, turning toward Shantae and Sky. "Hey! Try ramming it one more time! You actually did a little bit more damage in the last hour or so!"

"No!" Sky objected as she helped Shantae to her feet. "She's been through enough as it is!"

"What do you mean, no!?" Twitch boisterously disagreed. "Out of everything we've tried, that elephant move of hers is the only thing that seems to be working! Come on, we've gotta keep the momentum going while it's starting to swing in our favor!"

"Absolutely not!" Sky protested. "We're not sacrificing someone's health to break down a giant rock!"

"The important thing is getting Tayshan out of that cave and safe from whoever, or whatever dragged him in there! Are you saying we should quit now and leave him in there!?" Twitch argued.

"Of course not. As much as we'd like to get him out of there, pounding my head into zombie food to do it wouldn't really make sense," Shantae countered, finally regaining enough of her senses to speak up. She carefully approached the boulder to see how much 'progress' was made in trying to remove the impassable obstacle. "Jeez, that's it?" she complained, noticing a basically-negligible sliver of a crack in the boulder. "Wow, we really didn't make any headway… No pun intended."

"Which is why you should probably consider trying your elephant bull charge thing at least a couple more times," Vinegar suggested. "Only, from a farther distance away and with a stronger effort. You gotta put some pep in your step!"

"Pep in her step?" Sky incredulously cut in. "Do you want her to break the boulder, or do you want her to end up with irreversible brain damage?"

"Hmm… good question," Vinegar sarcastically retorted, pretending to weigh the options. "One of those options would keep you out of our way for a little while, at least…"

"Wow, Vinni… That's pretty dark," Twitch commented, though she barely tried hiding her laughter.

"Darker than the inside of a cave," she quipped with a snicker.

"Ooh, a double!" Twitch cheered with a more audible giggle, seeing what Vinegar did there. "You're on fire today!" she quipped back before realizing she made another horribly-timed, morbid pun. "Ah! I just made one, too!"

"Nice," Vinegar congratulated as the two high-fived each other.

"You two are just the worst," Sky disapproved, shaking her head in disgust as she drew closer to the rest of the squad. "If you're just going to stand there and make crude, tasteless jokes about this situation, then why are you still here?"

"Yeah, I figured you two would've just packed up and left to do your own thing by now," Shantae added, her curiosity piqued about Twitch and Vinegar's continued presence and apparent nonchalance. "You don't really have any obligation or anything to gain from helping us save Tayshan at this point, do you?"

"Jeez, we might not get along with you, but we're not that cold," Vinegar shot back. "Give us some credit for sticking around and learn to laugh at a joke or two."

"When something you say is actually funny and not at the expense of others, I'll remember to try to chuckle," Sky remarked in contempt.

"So… Why ARE you two still here?" Shantae asked, more curious than anything.

"Simply put, a friend of ours is in trouble, and it'd only make sense to do what we can to get him out," she further explained, surprising both of the non-Ammonian young women.

"Yeah, Tay-Tay stuck his neck out for us, even after what happened. We owe him one," Twitch corroborated with tangible worry, surprising Shantae and Sky even more as she frowned and clutched her chest while taking a shaky breath. "It'd be messed up if we ditched him here."

"Wow… I… I didn't know you girls became friends with him like that," Shantae observed in a sense of approval that nearly overshadowed her complete shock. "Are you girls thinking about turning over a new le-?" she was about to follow up, mistaking their reasoning as unadulterated concern for the soldier.

"Besides, it's also a fact that we don't have a way out of here anyway, so it's not like we could just leave," Vinegar added, abruptly ending what little friendly context the conversation might have led into. "At least half this place is on fire, so we can't backtrack, either," she continued, glancing at the separated cliffs and towers of smoke and flames ripping through the mountainous, grassy landscape in the distance. "We also don't have any extra airplanes, radios, or flares to call for an escort."

"Oh. Of course," Shantae acknowledged, slightly disappointed in Vinegar's response.

"Well, one way or another, we've gotta work together to get this rock out of our way if we really are going to work together to save him," Sky proclaimed, studying the boulder up and down. "If you two are serious about sticking around, then we might as well continue to brainstorm ways to save Tay."

"Fair enough," Vinegar reluctantly agreed with a shrug.

"Yeah…" Twitch also agreed, her concern more evident than Vinegar's. "I at least hope Tay-Tay's okay," she added in fear for his safety.

"Me, too," Shantae attested as the four young women began to put their heads together to contemplate other suitable (as in, less self-destructive) methods for which to break into the cave and rescue the extraterrestrial soldier. "It won't be long now, Tay…" Shantae murmured to herself. "No matter what, we'll get you out of there in one piece… Even if it takes us all day."

 ** _Within the Grotto of Judgment…_**

"Woaaouaough!" Tay yelled in utter terror as he was helplessly whisked through a long, pitch-black, winding corridor with no control over his movement. The twists, turns, and loops disoriented him to a point of him almost becoming nauseous on such a sudden rollercoaster ride. Before too long, however, he was dragged into a large, circular, enclosed room lit with flames on metal sticks, where the force dragging him in instantaneously dissipated. With an unceremonious *THUD*, Tayshan collided with the smooth, stony ground, rolling across the floor. "Ugh… What… what just happened…?" he queried, still dizzy from his recent trip as he rubbed his head and blinked his eyes to reorient himself.

"Welcome," that same mysterious feminine voice addressed him, though its owner sounded like she was present in the room. Tay, instantly woken from his stupor by the voice, stood tall and faced the individual responsible for trapping him. What he saw dumbfounded him, however. He had laid eyes upon a woman that appeared nearly identical to his half-genie mentor in terms of body proportions; slender, curvy, skin of a rich, soft mocha brown… at least, as far as he saw of her arms, one of which was resting on her hip as the other hung in a neutral position. The only difference there was that she appeared to be at least a few inches taller than Shantae. She was dressed in a sleeveless, midriff-baring sari of a vibrant royal blue, accentuated with a gorgeous golden paisley pattern along the edges, that tightly hugged her shapely curves. A matching pallu was draped across her shoulder, mostly concealing her abdomen. Her wrists and upper arms were adorned with golden circle bracelets much smaller and rounder than Shantae's, but more plentiful in quantity.

"Who… are you?" Tay cautiously asked. "And… why are you wearin' that creepy jackal mask?" he added, befuddled by the sight of the woman before him. Oh, right, I forgot to mention… he couldn't see her face or even a single lock of hair on the woman because she was wearing a hideous, ominous-looking black jackal mask with piercing, angry-looking golden eyes to conceal her identity.

"My identity is of no importance, Tayshan," the woman rebuked through the mask, whose snout mouthed her words. Weird as that was, it seemed this woman was in no mood to humor her guest's inquiries. "Regardless, it's a pleasure to finally meet you in person. Or rather, it should be…"

"What…? What do you mean?" he asked, growing wary as he maintained his distance from her.

"You were brought to this chamber by destiny, not by a mere stroke of luck."

"…No, I'm pretty sure I was brought here by some magic force that dragged me into this cave," he remarked, looking around to study the area. As he surveyed the enclosed space, he took note of the multiple footlong metal torches stemming from the floor lining the perimeter, whose modest golden flames illuminated the vicinity in an almost… serene glow. He scanned the room for other notable aspects, taking in the sheer size of it that made him feel like he was inside of a globe or space dome theater.

The ceiling appeared black at a glance, though upon further inspection, he identified the color as a lively midnight blue. The ceiling, arched outward, was decorated with thousands, if not millions of tiny, glimmering white dots that made it seem like he was gazing into a starry night sky. The walls surrounding him were covered in a mural seeming to depict events from a time immemorial within this world. Though he didn't spend much time studying it, Tay glanced at the mural and saw what appeared to be a series of long-haired, curvy women in saris or belly dance outfits of a wide range of colors raising their hands high toward the ceiling. The women in the mural looked like genies, as far as Tayshan knew. At the very least, it gave him some food for thought.

"Where… are we?" he asked again, bringing his attention back to the enigmatic woman.

"It must be nice, blissfully playing the protagonist in your own lifelong quixotic tale…" she began, ignoring his questions again. "A journey for absolution, redemption, change for the good of those around you… and maybe even a shot at glory to enrich the experience."

"…I'm not followin'," he admitted, becoming even more uneasy as his gaze fixed on this enigmatic humanoid entity. "What are you gettin' at?"

"It has been said, however, that a 'hero' without true purpose is considered a mere zealot in the eyes of others; a zealot who is blinded by his own ambitions and ignorant of the impact of his choices past, present, and future. Without a sense of conviction in the multifaceted concepts of true heroism, a warrior's adventures can be summed up as little more than a farcical charade of meaningless, empty-hearted deeds and a fraudulent, fleeting sense of satisfaction and validation. It is such self-serving pursuits that perpetuate an endless cycle; such is the hero's journey," she eloquently proclaimed, continuing to ignore her guest's questions.

"Hm… Good points," he nodded, understanding her wordy monologue as he took a moment to ruminate on her statement. He surmised that she had been trying to explain something to him, though he wasn't completely certain. Nevertheless, he attempted to level with her. "I… agree with you on havin' a sense o' purpose an' conviction. Without those, there'd be no reason for anyone t' take a stand against injustice an' corruption or create a sense o' hope in change for the better. Still, you can't undermine the cycle as somethin' t' be looked at with contempt an' hopelessness."

"Enlighten me, then. What do you know of heroism?"

"I know that there are tons o' reasons for anyone t' become a hero; be it t' protect an' serve, t' fight back against evil, or even t' establish something that benefits the general public. In many cases, bein' a hero means placin' yourself on that endless cycle so that you can continue t' make the world a better place. No hero's journey ever truly ends after one victory, or one completed mission or goal. Most times, the path doesn't end until that hero either retires or dies… an' even then, as I was taught, another hero takes the mantle an' continues that endless journey for as long as they can until it's time for them t' pass the torch along t' the next worthy successor. It's almost like a tradition that gets turned into a rewardin' job, if you ask me."

"Ah, so you are aware," the woman remarked, impressed by his answer. "Then tell me… What's your purpose, Tayshan? Why do you strive to be a hero?"

"…I have a lot o' reasons myself, but… My biggest one is because I want t' make my parents proud," he warily answered, playing along.

"Your parents have long since passed from this world, though, have they not? There is no purpose in appeasing the deceased," she flatly answered, sending a soul-rending chill up the soldier's spine. How could she possibly know about his parents?

"How did you…!?"

"They both did their best to provide for you, giving their lives in exchange for yours. A noble sacrifice, if I do say so myself," she continued. "However, there is no sense in trying to earn their approval when they can no longer give it to you."

"How do you know that?" he asked, becoming steadily more concerned as she dug into him.

"That question is irrelevant. What other reasons might you have?" she asked, deflecting his inquiry completely.

"…So you won't bother to answer my questions, yet you continue t' bombard me with your own. Fine, if that's how we're playin' it," he observed with a pensive nod. "My… my other reasons are because I want t' make a positive impact on the world, and… and because I want t' steer my path toward brighter roads."

"Considering how dark your past is, I suppose it would be all but necessary for you to look for light to lead you out of the long, otherwise-endless tunnel of your own inconsolable self-loathing and remorse," she countered again, causing a pit to form in the soldier's stomach. This eccentric woman was hitting vulnerable spots with him with pinpoint precision. The experience both vexed and unnerved him.

"…You… What else do you know about me?" he asked once more, not denying the point she made.

"You will receive your answer soon enough, though I doubt you'll like what I have to say. However, I have one final question to ask before that point."

"…In that case, shoot," he permitted after a brief, tense pause.

"What does it mean to be a hero?" she plainly asked him. At that, Tay paused, considering his words carefully before offering his reply. It seemed to him that she was taking much of what he was saying and finding ways to throw it right back at him.

"It means… standin' an' fightin' for what's right, no matter the odds," he cautiously explained. "It's about musterin' the courage t' combat an' beat back oppression an' injustice. It's about protectin' the innocent an' layin' your life on the line for the greater good. My father did that… So did my mother… I want t' follow their example while settin' one o' my own. I've got a point t' prove t' my community, and to myself, that, no matter where you're at, there's always room for improvement if you can get up in the mornin' an' take the opportunities as they come."

"Hm, very noble indeed…" the jackal-masked woman nodded. "Or, I'd like to believe that."

"You think I'm lyin' about that?" he asked back, offended by the assertion. "That is one of my biggest reasons for livin'!"

"It just might be your downfall, too…" she ominously shot back, sending another chill up his spine.

"What are you imp-?"

"The fact is, you're not being totally honest with me, and you know it," she interrupted. "There's something in just they way you carry yourself that tells me you bear a much heavier burden than earning the approval of your friends, fellow community members, and family. No, that would be too simple. I've already hinted at what I see in your motives at the start of our conversation."

"And what do you see in me, huh?" he defensively asked. "Tell me that much, since you seem t' have all the answers."

"Simply put: Guilt. And a lot of it," she answered, petrifying Tayshan as he continued lock his gaze on her. "Guilt, anguish, grief, despair, heartache, incredible frustration turned inward, and a resounding fear of failure are what I see in you. Try as you might to keep it hidden, there is no doubting that many of your recent actions have been driven by self-serving desire to reach a goal you may not live long enough to attain, for reasons from which you will never derive true satisfaction with yourself. The path you walk is a path to inevitable self-destruction at best; not heroism."

"…Is this the part where you give me that answer, then?" he asked again, frozen with confusion and debilitating anxiety. "Is this where you show me where I went wrong? Because even if you know as much about me as you're implyin', if all you're gonna do is berate me, then you don't get t' tell me how I should-!"

"No. This is the part where you face those who have suffered the most severe consequences of your iniquities. This is the part where you come face-to-face with the suppressed feelings you try to shield yourself from," she answered raising her hands, which flared up with a shining energy that matched the gold shade of the flames. However, the flames turned sapphire blue and the woman disappeared in a white flash of light.

"What the…?" he stammered, looking around to see lighting of the cavernous room changing color from gold to a somber, chilling blue as the dots on the ceiling swirled around, rapidly rearranging themselves as they raced along the walls, floor, and ceiling. However, before Tay was too distracted…

"Wassup, 'homie?'" greeted an anger-laced masculine voice familiar only to Tayshan. As he turned his gaze forward, he spotted two men with skin tones similar to his own; one of whom was on the short side, bald, and heavyset. He was dressed in ragged red basketball sneakers, pale navy-blue jeans with a series of tears and dingy brown stains on them, and a tattered black t-shirt with holes littered across it.

"Been a long time, Bony-Boy," the other man, taller than the first and bulkier than even Tayshan himself by a long shot in terms of muscle mass, sported a pair of wheat-colored work boots in very poor shape, a baggy pair of black jeans with tears in them, and a white tank-top, littered with holes and matted with dark brown stains, tucked into his jeans. This man sported jet black cornrows with a blue bandana tied around his head, though the bandana bore a gaping hole in the area covering his forehead.

"Tariq? Hakeem?" Tayshan remarked in utter surprise, taken aback by the apparitions before him. As it appeared, he recognized them. "Wh-what are y'all doin' here? I thought y'all were-!"

"Dead?" the taller, bulkier man finished for him, quickly taking on a tone of intense anger at Tayshan. "Well good news, Bony: We ARE dead!"

"An' it's all your fault, Tay!" the shorter man added, equally as angry as the two began to walk toward him. "Why ain't you stick around an' help me!? Why you let me die for!?" he further roared, tears streaming endlessly down his face as he vocalized his disdain for his former acquaintance, who'd apparently wronged him in the past.

"Tariq, you know that ain't true," Tay addressed the shorter man, standing his ground. "I stayed there as long as I could, tryin' t' get you help!" he added, thus confirming Tariq's accusation that he was responsible for a tragic event that led to his death.

"Bro, I ain't buyin' that!" Tariq screamed back, his vindictive rage building as he halted Hakeem to continue his aggressive approach alone. "You said we was gonna be safe gankin' that deli shop t' feed them kids! You said we wouldn't get hurt! But look at me, homie! I got holes in me that you said should've never been there!"

"I know, an' the day still haunts me, 'Riq! I'll never forget what happened…" Tay reasoned as Tariq stepped up to him.

"Yeah, I'll bet!" the heavyset young man remarked in scorn, shoving Tay backward. "You worthless chump! You ran away as soon as we got caught, an' you watched me get shot after the fact! You stood there like a statue, actin' like it was a joke when that store clerk ended me! Then you 'stuck around' long enough for the cops t' show up, then ran off an' left me where I was! I'm already sick o' your pathetic excuses!"

"Tariq, I-!"

"You don't know the pain I went through, Tayshan! The suffocation, the loss of awareness, the desperation t' survive…" Tariq continued to shout, his voice wavering with heartbroken anger and despair. "Every inch o' my body burned like fire! My wounds ached like no pain I ever felt in my life before that point! Then the visions I saw when I took my last breaths on this Earth… My whole life up t' that very point… then I just… lost consciousness, weepin' about why I had t' die alone an' without even my so-called 'friend' there… You don't know!"  
"…Listen, I… I get it…" Tay tried to reason, heavily impacted by his deceased friend's harsh words.

"No, you don't! You got me roped up in some crazy scheme, watched me lose my life, an' you wasn't even there t' at least send me off like a true homie! You was always talkin' about justice for the poor an' unfortunate… Where's my justice then, Tayshan!? Huh!?" Tariq demanded to know, his face awash in his sorrowful tears as he sobbed, grabbing Tay by his tank-top. "Where!?" Tay, having been devastated by his old friend's words, found it hard to speak up as a rush of incredible sadness and guilt nearly paralyzed him right there. Just looking at his friend, who'd long been deceased, right in front of him… his face contorted into a vengeful sneer while drenched with tears of regret and pain… Tayshan was almost completely overwhelmed by the sight of the distraught Tariq alone. Nonetheless, he took a deep breath to gain some form of composure, and he tried to address the problem.

"'Riq…" Tay shakily began, standing perfectly still as he looked the ghost of his friend in the eye. "I… there's no amount of apologizin' I could ever do in a million years that would ever make up for what happened that day… I… the mere thought of it… You have no idea how badly I want t' take it all back… t' go an' convince you t' never come with me… You were never a bad seed like I was back then. Heck, I still remember every word you said when you tried t' talk me out of it. You didn't deserve t' go out the way you did… I'm so sorry, bro, I really am… I don't know what t' do or what else t' say…" he faltered, gently raising his hands to Tariq's and lifting them off. Tay then moved to embrace the portly phantom in a hug of consolation and immense guilt. "I can't even imagine what I put you through, takin' you along… Even after everything you said about what could happen if things went wrong… I know it should've been me, homie. It should NEVER have been you… I'm sorry, bro… I'm sorry…"

"I ain't wanna go like that, Tay… I ain't wanna go…" Tariq continued to sob, though he neither returned nor rejected the gesture.

"Bro… there will never be a minute I ever forget about the day you died… It's… one o' the drivin' forces behind my decision t' change for the better. I just wish we could've made that decision together… while you were still here with me."

"So now you wanna listen t' what I had t' say about cuttin' out the street shtick?" Tariq spat with unmistakable incredulity, offended by the statement rather than relieved as he tore himself away from Tayshan's embrace. "Man, how much wax was in your ears that they don't start ringin' until YEARS later!? I'm supposed t' feel better just because you regret not changin' before I bit the dust!? How about everything else you did, even while I was alive!? Especially in the last few hours we spent! You selfish punk!"

"…That's the least of what I deserve, but I deserve that, no less. Still, you were one o' my closest friends, an' I did you wrong on every level that day," Tay confessed, solemnly nodding as he realized his old friend's point. "An' here I am, makin' things worse by not even understandin' what you went through… but then please, Tariq, help me understand. All I've ever wanted since that day was t' get a chance t' apologize t' you for what happened… for what I did… T' even be able t' see you again after all this time is blowin' me away, so my thoughts ain't even close t' bein' in order! That aside, what can I do t' make it up t' you, man?" he pleaded, moving to rest his hands on Tariq's shoulders as he looked him directly in the eye, holding back a well of tears. Tariq, seeing Tayshan's anguish, momentarily closed his eyes and sighed before making his statement.

"I don't think you'll ever understand what I went through, no matter how much time I take t' explain it t' you. I died slow, painfully, an' alone, but even that PALED in comparison t' the betrayal I felt when I laid there on the cold concrete o' that sidewalk, watchin' you dash down that street without even lookin' back after the police showed… You were the last thing in my eyesight before I died, an' that hurt me so much more than those bullets did that, even if I didn't die from the gunshots, I probably could've died from that. I hope you know that. The sight of you runnin' away from a hard situation so you wouldn't get in trouble… It killed me in a way that those bullets never could, Tay…"

"…I didn't know that, but I will bear that knowledge for as long as I live," Tay hesitantly acknowledged, his heart sinking like an anchor in the ocean. "Again, I'm sorry… If you don't forgive me, I understand. I don't even deserve your forgiveness. I haven't even thought about forgivin' myself… I just… I don't know what I could ever do t' make it up to you, 'Riq…"

"I'm not sure there's anything you can do, unless it pertains t' givin' me my life back. If you can't do that, then don't insult me with offers t' make it up t' me."

"Man, I wish you were still alive. I REALLY do… If I had the power t' bring you back, I wouldn't even think about hesitatin'…" he admitted as he fought back tears of regret. "You know, I visited your grave at least once every month for the next few years until I joined the enforcement services. I was always accompanied by at least some o' the other kids we always hung around. Alongside me, they reminisced over you, keepin' your memory alive in your… absence… An' I never stopped thinkin' about how you deserved far better than what you got that day… I-if that makes you feel any better…"

"…Is that true?" Tariq asked, picking up the sincerity in his old friend's tone. More so, he was shocked by the revelation itself.

"Every word. You had a special impact on all of us, so there was no way we'd ever just let your memory fade away, 'Riq. It's… unbelievable that I get t' tell you this face t' face, but the point stands, regardless. I would never say somethin' like that an' not mean it. You know me. Even with the way I messed up, I was always tryin' t' keep my word. I only ever broke one promise t' you, an'… unfortunately, that resulted in your death…"

"Yes, it did, but… I get your point. It does kinda bring me some peace t' know them younger kids appreciated me. How are they, by the way?"

"Still mostly the same group o' knuckleheads as they've always been, but taller," Tay remarked with a somber grin. "And a little bit wiser t' the environment, last I heard. I was tryin' t' keep in touch with them t' show them through my experience that they can reach their goals, but… things got weird for me recently."

"Heh, that's good that they still looked up t' you…" Tariq acknowledged. "You did always try t' make somebody's wish come true in some way or another."

"You know it, bro… The only wish I can't make come true is my own, though…" he lamented.

"Homie, I know, but it… it is what it is," Tariq dismissed, understanding the depth of his friend's guilt. "Sayin' that won't make either of us feel any better."

"'Riq, I mean it. Even if it meant tradin' places with you so YOU could be the one tryin' t' save a whole different planet under the tutelage of a gorgeous belly dancin' magic genie girl, I would gladly take that chance t' resurrect you," Tay assured his friend as they both went silent After a moment of thought, Tariq moved to initiate another embrace, hugging his old friend tightly as the ghost let out a lighthearted chuckle to dispel the tension between them. They both separated after another moment.

"Yeah, I only got t' hear a little bit about that, but I still can't believe it… Sounds like the weirdest fairytale I ever heard. Still, Tay… Man, look… I thought you went about ya business, actin' like nothin' was wrong after I died…" he began, wiping the tears from his eyes. "But if you mean what you said, then… there ain't a reason t' keep holdin' it against you. It's been a good, long time since that day, but shoot… without sayin' too much, I should probably let it go… It's the only way we're gonna move on. That's weird t' say, considerin' what we're talkin' about, but there ain't no reason t' keep feelin' upset over somethin' you can't change," he further realized as his physical form began to fade. "Too much time has passed since then, an' this conversation is just what I needed t' get my closure. As far as I realized, we're born t' live a life an' die. Life was so darn short, an' I wonder why, but… hey."

"Tariq…"

"Don't mind me, I'm just ramblin'…" he quietly assured as his body began to grow more transparent; a sign that his time was running out. "It's time for me t' go now, but homie, just promise me two things."

"Anything, yo. What's up?"

"Make sure you keep doin' ya thing tryin' t' stand up for what's right, an' make sure nobody else ever ends up like me on your watch, alright?"

"You have my word, Tariq," Tay promised with utmost conviction, bringing a fist to his heart. "Till my dyin' day, I won't ever repeat that same mistake."

"Thank you, Tayshan… an' I saw that you're already puttin' that int' practice, so those promises shouldn't be too hard t' keep. Also, try t' make sure you do it for your sake, or for the sake o' those girls you're on your adventure with; not mine. It's too late for me, but not for them. Peace out…" Tariq nodded as he faded more. Just before he completely vanished, however, he and Tay shared a fist bump that only ended when Tariq retracted his hand to flash his friend a peace sign. After that, Tariq disappeared completely. Tay took a moment to think about his interaction with his old friend and the lesson he took from it… But then, the torches in the room flared and turned from blue to a dazzling orange before the other man furiously grabbed the soldier by the shirt and yanked him in. With a nasty *THUMP*, Hakeem punched Tay, knocking him to the ground.

"Ooh…!" Tay recoiled in pain, checking his jaw to see if it was still in place. Within seconds, however, he shook off the pain and brought himself to his feet while Hakeem stood over him. "Hmph. Even with all that muscle, you still hit like a baby," the soldier joked. Hakeem, none too amused, threw another punch, which Tay caught with an open hand before shoving an open palm into the burly man's chest. With another jarring *THUMP*, Tay shoved Hakeem, causing the ghostly man to stumble back.

"So Bony-Boy gets a little bit o' meat on him, an' now he's ready t' talk some smack?" Hakeem challenged, unimpressed by his former acquaintance's cockiness. "Where was that attitude in that shootout?"

"You mean the one I told you I wanted NO part of?" Tayshan shouted back, aware of what he was being accused of. "The one you got killed in?"

"Yeah, that one. The only one you an' me were ever involved in," Hakeem answered, tapping the hole in his bandana before charging at Tay again. Tayshan was prepared, however. Hakeem threw another wild swing, which Tay countered by ducking under it and hammering the not-so-friendly ghost in the abdomen and performing a hip throw on him, slamming his adversary to the flat, frigid surface.

"You can't bully me like you used to, Hakeem!" Tay shouted as he stepped back, allowing Hakeem to get up on his own. "I got a lot stronger since you died all those years ago!"

"As if I care! I'm still gon' put you down for not havin' my back!" the aggressive ghost roared, charging at Tay again with no sense of restraint.

"Your demise was your own doin', not mine! I ain't takin' an ounce o' responsibility for you!" he argued as the two locked horns once more, with Tay dodging and blocking wild swings from Hakeem aimed at his face.

"I would've never got plugged if you just used that glittery little gun o' yours like I told you! But no! You wanted t' be a punk an' run away from me at the first chance you got! Just like you're doin' now!"

"You would've never got plugged if you didn't go scrappin' with everybody else in the neighborhood!" Tay shot back, still stepping back and avoiding his enemy's uncoordinated punches as the two men carried on fighting. "Remember, you dragged me there because you threatened t' beat me senseless an' tell the cops about my gun if I didn't go! Then you dragged me t' that junkyard, knowin' you were bein' set up for an ambush! I got tired o' you always pushin' me around an' tryin' t' control me!" he shouted, stopping his retreat to block a swing from Hakeem. Tay then wrapped his arm around his opponent's, using the positional advantage to shove the man into a wall hard enough for the *BOOM* of an impact to reverberate within the room. Letting his anger take over, he pinned the other man to the wall and punched him in the chest with all his might. Another unsettling *THUMP* echoed around the makeshift arena as Hakeem exhaled all the air from his lungs, doubling over. Tayshan followed up by throwing the incapacitated man to the floor before backing up to catch his own breath. "If you came back here t' try an' punk me like you always did, then your luck ran out a long time ago!"

While not immediate in his response, Hakeem gingerly picked himself up, clutching his chest in frustration and agony as he shakily brought himself to his feet. "You really think I was hard on you because I wanted t' control you? Man, I only hung around your punk self because I thought I could make you a bigger man!" he confessed, taking a deep breath and stretching to accommodate for the residual ache in his chest. Tay, hearing his supposed-enemy loud and clear, froze in confusion.

"…What? You really expect me t' believe that, with all the times you beat me down, humiliated me, an' forced me t' do all your dirty work for you?" he asked, the indignation radiating from his tone.

"Sucka, I thought you was eventually gonna stop bein' such a softy about everything an' usin' your parents as an excuse t' try an' make people feel sorry for you!" Hakeem shouted back, approaching Tay slowly. Tay, remaining wary, grounded himself in case Hakeem attacked again, though his frustration at his old acquaintance was reaching a boiling point.

"You got some nerve, sayin' that about me of all people, 'Keem…!" Tay spoke up. "I NEVER tried t' get people t' feel sorry for me! I never even brought up moms an' pop in conversation unless somebody asked me! An' even then, I told people I ain't wanna talk about it!" he argued, incensed by his former associate's cold observation.

"Oh, right, but all the mopin' an' cryin' you did wasn't at all a call for attention, right? An' talkin' all that 'hero' junk, but then lashin' out at anybody who questioned your motives? That SCREAMS pity-fishin', fool! You never could accept any criticism for anything you did wrong. Hmph. Some things never change…"

"Hakeem, you're really pushin'-!"

"Your whole disposition in life back then was 'Feel bad for me because I'm just a tortured little tadpole in a swamp full o' piranhas.' But, you wanna get mad at me for callin' you out on your sympathy-seekin' exploits an' tell me it's MY fault I got killed. Get out o' here with that garbage, boy… If you was more of a man, you'd understand, an' you'd realize what a hypocrite you are. But no, you'd rather go on hidin' from the truth, actin' like a spoiled little baby an' pretendin' everything you do is for the sake o' mommy an' daddy or bein' a role model, or whatever your excuse is… Ol' soft li'l punk…" Hakeem spat in disgust. "How do you expect t' carry on with such a pathetic world view, huh? By tellin' that 'Wannabe Hero' tale o' yours over an' over again until you're-?"

"That's enough!" Tay roared, fed up with the man's incessant goading. "My parents are gone, Hakeem! Both of 'em! You wouldn't have a clue what that felt like, bro! Your entire world bein' ripped out from under you! Your life suddenly changin' in the worst way imaginable with no way o' goin' back! Bein' left all alone in a world you felt hated you for even existin'! Especially as young as I was! The only reasons I was even alive, gone in a flash with no hope of ever gettin' them back! As my older once-removed cousin, I thought you'd at least understand the grief I was goin' through, rather than tear me down harder for it!"

"That's why I tried t' make you into a bigger man, Tay!" Hakeem shouted back with equal fury. "I didn't want you t' be hung up on your folks forever! But I wasn't gonna coddle you like some snot-nosed, crumb-snatchin' toddler who ain't know his left from his right! You were better than that, an' you know it! Plus, you know what kind of environment we were in! You know what happens t' punks who can't stick up for themselves! Somebody needed t' give you a reality check before reality checked you itself! Besides, you wasn't the only one who was dealt a bad hand in our neighborhood! How was I gonna look, lettin' you act like you were some kind o' special exception t' that reality!? Matter fact, how do you think YOU would've looked if I stood by an' let you mope an' cry all day long!?"

"So what, your idea of toughenin' me up was bein' the very influence I tried t' avoid? Is that it? Forcin' me int' doin' half the awful things I did under your watch?"

"I ain't gonna pretend some of it wasn't messed up, but it worked t' some degree, didn't it? You're still alive," he indignantly shot back. "Even better, you're bigger an' stronger than before… but that still ain't no excuse for how you dogged me out that night."

"What was I supposed t' do, man? I told you, that gun was not meant for my hands! Plus, I had no idea how t' use it at the time," he admitted without hesitation. "I specifically said I would not be able t' help you an' that you would've been better off goin' with somebody else."

"There WAS nobody else! It ain't like you was my first choice, fool! Anybody else I could've picked was already either pushin' up daisies or countin' tally marks in a cell! You were my only hope! But then, right when you heard the first few gunshots, you bailed out with your tail between your legs… It's almost a slap in the face that you apparently joined the military after the fact," Hakeem explained, continually tearing into his cousin. "Your first warzone experience, an' you chose t' duck like the punk you are," he continued his tirade, forcefully shoving Tay back. Tay, listening to his cousin, did nothing but stumble backward as he began to ruminate. "Oh, so you remember now! Good! Let that sink in! Would you believe I caught that bullet in my skull in addition t' all the others, tryin' t' protect you while you sprinted out o' that junkyard, so scared I could've smelled the fear on you if I wasn't busy gettin' shot? You coward!" he finished, rubbing the hole in his bandana.

"…So what's your point, huh?" Tay hesitantly asked, still trying to process Hakeem's harsh words. "If that's the case that you thought I needed a reality check, or that I was just usin' my folks or my situation as an excuse t' avoid responsibility for my actions, then why'd you save a coward like me, even though it cost you your life?"

"Boy, if I had an answer t' that, I'd give it to you. You might be my cousin, but I wasn't thinkin' about no family ties. That's just… how it played out, yo…" he admitted with a sigh. "…but hey, it looks like it wasn't for nothin', I guess."

"Meanin' what?" Tay questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"You actually managed t' do somethin' with your sorry self since I got wet up…" Hakeem commended, though his commendation was laced with some contempt.

"I guess…" the soldier uncertainly agreed.

"You know I'm right, Bony-Boy. If it wasn't for me savin' your scary behind, you would've never got here. Countin' li'l 'Riq, that's two people who died in your place, so you could keep livin'," Hakeem pointed out, poking Tay in his chest to emphasize his point. "An' before you say it, I take responsibility for bringin' you out there with me, but you know you was wrong for dippin' on me. Wrap your head around that one…" Tayshan, shattered by a realization brought on by his cousin's tirade, froze as his gaze fell to the ground before Hakeem stopped him by placing a hand on the soldier's forehead, forcing him to look him in the eye. "Naw, you gon' look at me when you realize how much 'Riq an' I gave up for you. I been wantin' t' see that look on your face for a long time, an' you ain't gonna hide it from me now." Tayshan, receiving the message clear as diamonds, went silent as he stared at his ghostly cousin's anger-filled eyes, contemplating his words with the full intent of understanding where Hakeem was coming from. After a tense, pulse-pounding silence, he found it in himself to speak.

"…Y'know, just like with 'Riq, I… I feel guilty for what happened t' you, too…" Tay finally admitted with a heavy heart as he looked Hakeem in the eye at the phantom's request. "I know I said at first that I wasn't gonna take responsibility for your death that night, but… you… you made a real good point. A few of 'em, actually. Let's be real, I was the only person there who could've helped you, an' I didn't. It's just like what my friend Shantae said t' me today about knowin' what's right an' not doin' it, on top of all the other stuff she grilled me on…" he added, thinking back to his conversation with the half-genie hours earlier. "I'm sorry, Hakeem…"

"You should be," Hakeem replied with a condescending smirk as he pushed Tay back by his forehead. "I ain't gonna bawl my eyes out like Tariq did, but you know things could've been way different if you stuck around an' helped me."

"…I don't know if I agree with that, but… I… I still think I should've at least tried t' drag you out o' there alive. If we just stuck around an' fought, we'd both be ghosts," he calmly, hesitantly argued as hs guilt nearly overwhelmed him again.

"…Lookin' back, you might be right. But you know we wasn't no mark chumps with targets on our backs. Or at least, I wasn't. You still had a lot t' prove," Hakeem accused.

"Fair… Look, bro, I… I'm sorry for what happened. REALLY sorry. I know that won't do a thing t' change the events o' that night, an' I'm haunted by the memory every day, so it ain't like I got off scot-free. Shoot, every day I wake up knowin' I'm about t' get ahold of a gun, I… I think sometimes about what could've happened had I been brave enough t' at least cover you while we escaped t' safety… An' now that I see that event for what it really was, that kills me inside; especially because I know I can't go back an' change the past. I can't even imagine what you went through… Just hearin' 'Riq's description of how he died hurts me t' the core…"

"Which is why you're gonna make sure your future ain't ruled by cowardice, doubt, an' flimsy excuses like doin' it for the neighborhood or doin' it for your folks," Hakeem interjected, capitalizing on Tayshan's point. "There comes a time where you gotta just do somethin' simply because it's right, bro. Think outside o' what you're gettin' out of it instead o' worryin' about how many brownie points you can score with somebody. Shoot, you shouldn't even have t' think about it if you know somethin' you do is right or wrong. Not everybody's gonna care about what you do right, but that don't mean you can't just do it without needin' a crowd watchin' you. Trust your instincts sometimes. Matter fact, just like how you saved that li'l blonde girl from fallin' off that cliff, or how you took a bullet for the purple-haired dancer girl before that," he explained with a snap of his fingers, using VERY recent examples of trusting one's instincts. Of course, Tay was taken aback by the knowledge bomb.

"Wh-what? How could you know about that?" he understandably questioned in utter surprise.

"Don't worry about that. I'm not allowed t' say," Hakeem dismissed, much to Tayshan's disappointment. "The fact is, you jumped in, despite how much pain you went through, an' you saved somebody's life today, bro. You also protected somebody else because you knew you didn't want her t' get hurt, an' that's all that mattered. I can at least be proud o' you for that. Just make sure you keep that savior's instinct in you, an' follow it without question."

"…You're right…" Tay hesitantly agreed, letting his curiosity about Hakeem's knowledge about him saving Twitch fade in the wake of the lesson he was receiving on finding the right motivations to do the right thing. "Maybe if I had somethin' like that instinct before… then maybe I could've…"

"Don't dwell too much on what you could've done for me, man. There ain't nothin' you can do now t' change things, even though I wish you could. Believe me, I would've preferred t' live my life t' the fullest. But, what can I do now, right? Just like 'Riq said," he reasoned with a melancholy shrug, bringing his hand to the hole in his bandana once more. "Oh, an' I went lights out real quick, in case you're curious. Not that I would ever recommend tryin' it for yourself…"

"I'll take your word for it, man… but you're right, regardless. It's just like I was told before in boot camp about doin' things for the greater good or for myself instead o' bankin' on the approval factor…" Tay continued to ponder, relating life lessons he'd been taught in his past. "I… I suppose I really should learn how t' move on… an' be my own person… Twitch an' Vinegar might be ont' somethin' there, too…"

"Good, you're finally growin' up at a reasonable pace," Hakeem teased with a smirk. "Just know that movin' on doesn't necessarily mean forgettin' about the people who ain't in your life anymore. You can still remember us as you see fit. Movin' on is about learnin' how t' keep pushin' forward under your own power an' makin' sure the knowledge that we ain't here anymore doesn't impact you to a point where you can't function without thinkin' about us, or that thinkin' of us causes you t' shut down."

"Wow… That's… That's so true…!" Tay exhaled, evidently having an epiphany thanks to Hakeem's words of wisdom.

"Shoot, you know it. Now, you can't say I never gave you anything on how t' deal with loss, homie," Hakeem taunted. "All my bases are covered." At that, Tay let out a slight sadness-riddled chuckle.

"Cool… I'll take that," the soldier acknowledged with an approving nod.

"Like I'm givin' you a choice," he shot back with a friendly grin. "Remember that part about bein' your own person, though, Tayshan. You're gonna need that bit of enlightenment later," the ghostly cousin warned, though his premonition was unclear to Tay.

"For what?" Tay dared to ask to vocalize his confusion.

"Can't say, but… Trust me," Hakeem cryptically urged with a serious nod.

"Okay. But… Shoot, I gotta ask. Is… is that really true that you were only tryin' t' build me up all that time back then?" Tayshan inquired, genuinely curious about his cousin's motives.

"The same way the military does it. Only, more street-wise," the phantom confirmed. "I know I was always hard on you, but it's because I cared, bro. But before I get too deep int' that, it looks like my time is runnin' out," Hakeem alerted Tay as his corporeal form began to fade. "Thank goodness, because things would've gotten super sappy at this point…" he joked. However, Hakeem held out his hand toward Tay, which the soldier was quick to grab.

"…Ain't no easy way t' say this, 'Keem, but… I won't forget about you or what we went through in life. An'… thanks for… for teachin' me, even if your lessons were gruelin'… Even up t' this very moment. Granted, you could've gotten me killed or seriously injured numerous times, which makes this so much harder t' say than you'll ever know, but…" Tay explained, still feeling a bit resentful of his cousin for their turbulent history.

"Look, I'm not gonna say I was the perfect teacher, or that my lessons t' you couldn't have been taught in less… deadly ways," Hakeem somewhat regretfully acknowledged, shaking Tayshan's hand. "I can tell you're still upset with me, so I'll man up an' say I'm sorry for puttin' you through the wringer so many times," Hakeem apologized, catching Tayshan off-guard.

"…I never… thought I'd hear you apologize for anything…"

"An' it's the only time you will hear it. If you can apologize for what happened t' me, then it's only right that I own up, too. I mean it. You gotta understand, though, that my intention was never t' get you killed or hurt, homie."

"Hm… At the time, it didn't seem that way…"

"I know, but I said it already that I wanted you t' be stronger," Hakeem reiterated. "I'm just glad you DID become stronger, all the other stuff aside. Are we cool?"

"…Yeah," Tay nodded after a moment of deep, intensive thought and a heavy, pressure-relieving sigh. "It'd be petty an' unhealthy t' continue holdin' a grudge against you after this long… an' I only just learned that from Tariq…"

"That's fair, Tay," Hakeem understood. "I get it… Forgiveness is hard for both of us, but we gotta get past the beefs we had. We're still family in the end, an' this is the last chance we're ever gonna get."

"Couldn't have said it better myself. Still, I'll say it again. Thanks for lookin' out for me, cuz."

"Yeah, sure," the ghostly man nonchalantly acknowledged his living cousin's offer of gratitude. "I still prefer that it didn't cost me my life, but it's at least good t' see you took some o' my hard-knock teachings t' heart, Bony-Boy. I also guess it's kind of a bonus t' see you ain't Street Struck like I was, an' that you're actually listenin' t' me without me havin' t' scare the knowledge int' you for once… That's a good sign if I ever saw it. Now, I can rest easy," he added with a peaceful sigh.

"…H-Hakeem…" Tay called out in abarely-audible whisper, impacted deeply by his late cousin's statement about resting easy. The context of the remark shook Tayshan nearly to tears, though he fought his hardest. His throat welled up as he swallowed. He was rendered nearly speechless as he studied his family member's fading form.

"Just make sure that whatever you do from here, you don't ever turn tail an' run from another fight; especially not against that purple pirate chick who stomped your fragile little guts out the other day," the ghostly man joked with a snicker, getting under Tay's skin as he let out an annoyed sigh. "Her OR that genie girlfriend o' yours who broke your ribs after that," he teased with another hearty snicker at Tayshan's misfortune. "If I was you, I'd have never let myself live down gettin' beat up by two women on two separate occasions."

"Wow… Even in death, you really know how t' pour salt in my wounds. I can't even imagine how you would know about any o' that," Tay remarked with a displeased, embarrassed frown as some of the grief-stricken tension he felt was mostly shaken off. "Also, these girls are NOT t' be underestimated, in my defense," he humorously pointed out. "They both hit harder than you're givin' 'em credit for, yo. They have this crazy magic thing goin' on as well, that makes their natural talents that much more dangerous; even against all the trainin' I went through!"

"Trust me, I've seen an' heard enough t' be aware," Hakeem assured with another chuckle. "You're gonna have your work cut out for you, I can tell. But look, all you need t' know from me about that is that frustration is the best motivator, cuz. Never forget that, either," he further advised.

"For once, I agree without question…" Tayshan admitted with a confident nod.

"I had a feelin' you would. On that note, As-Salaam-Alaikum…" Hakeem bade with a smirk and a peace sign before he, like Tariq before him, vanished into ethereal vapors that dissipated around the room, leaving Tay alone.

"…Wa-Alaikum-Salaam, cousin…" he somberly murmured as he cast his gaze to the ground once more, his heart getting heavier as tears welled up in his eyes once more. He would not get a chance to mourn his lost friend and family just yet, however. A sudden *click* coming from behind him, accompanied by an instant change of the light in the room from orange-yellow to a blazing red, as well as rapid flickering from the tiny luminous spots on the ceiling, alerted him that there was yet another presence in the room. He slowly turned around and was utterly floored to see who was behind him.

On the other end of the cavern, Tayshan laid eyes upon another young man, nearly as tall as him and quite lean in stature, with apricot-hued skin, blonde hair, and jade-green eyes dressed in black boots and an orange short-sleeved jumpsuit matted with reddish-brown stains across it. He was aiming a familiar-looking silver pistol at Tay. Beside this orange-garbed young man was a young woman who stood somewhat shorter than the other individual. She was voluptuous, her bright blue form-fitting jeans and magenta-tinted spaghetti-string tank-top tightly hugging her astounding curves. She also wore a pair of lime-green sneakers that complemented her top. Her luscious, bushy, curly, acorn-hued shoulder-length hair nearly enveloped her face. Her eyes bore a brilliant hazel shade that Tayshan found unmistakable as he recognized the woman, as well as the young man, in less than a second.

"…Kassandra? Damian?" he called to them, nearly petrified as his mind continued to be sent through loop after loop as stood, mystified. The multitude of monumental blasts from his harrowing past were taking their toll on him quickly.

"I'm surprised you even still remember my name, Tay-Tay," the woman spoke, her tone forlorn and riddled with sadness as she stepped forward. The other ghost, while still glaring hotly at Tayshan, lowered the gun he had pointed at him and stayed behind.

"Of course I remember you, Kassie!" Tay excitedly affirmed as the two met in the center of the cavern before he realized something… Something that made his blood run cold as his heart immediately sank. "Wait… if… if you're here, then… then…!"

"Yup, I'm dead as a doornail," she happily finished for him with an ironically-cheerful grin. Tay's heartbreak and devastation were only tempered by his confusion at her disposition.

"…You don't seem upset about it," he cautiously observed.

"Of course, I didn't plan on dyin'. Still, I'm just happy t' get t' see you one last time, Tay-Tay!" she remarked, keeping up her weirdly-jovial demeanor as she grabbed his hands and held them as she stood before him. It's also worth note that he didn't seem to mind her calling him by an embarrassing name he previously advised against a certain someone else calling him.

"…Right…" he regretfully agreed, remembering how his friendship with her ended. "I uh…"

"I know, you was so irked at me that you stopped talkin' t' me until I moved out o' the city… It's been a PRETTY long time since we last saw each other, hasn't it?"

"Yeah…" he morosely acknowledged. "I don't exactly remember us leavin' off on good terms. I'm surprised you could be happy t' see me."

"We had our spat, but there really ain't no reason t' dwell too much on it. This is our chance t' smooth it out, when you think about it," she advised, still smiling with glee.

"True… but why are you here? What happened t' you?" he warily asked, afraid of what she might answer with. His curiosity prevailed, however. "As far as I understand from Tariq an' Hakeem, y'all are ghosts…?"

"Yuppers, we all are. Also… let's just say curiosity killed this cat… an' there was no 'satisfaction' t' bring me back," she answered as her smile faded into a blank expression, sending a chill up the soldier's spine.

"…Y'know, it's great t' see your morbid, warped sense o' humor somehow stayed intact," he commended (sort of).

"Who would I be if I didn't find the light in the dark all the time, hm?" she joked with another cheery smile.

"…You haven't changed at all. Still… I… I don't even know where t' begin… How… When…? What…?"

"Still stuck on how I wound up here?" Kassandra asked as her smile faded again. She let go of Tay's hands and took a step back.

"Yes. I… I'm utterly floored t' see you here instead of, say, a doctor's office or somethin' related t' your goals from what I remember."

"Well… you're gonna be mad at me…" she warned, frowning with regret as she lowered her head.

"…We won't know until you tell me, Kass. That is… if you want to."

"I… I think you deserve t' know," she confessed through a heavy sigh meant to dispel an immeasurable level of pressure. "So… Here goes. You already know my story, right? About how I said that, even with how bubbly an' carefree I was, it was mostly because I liked makin' other people smile?"

"Yeah. I could never forget. We shared everything about ourselves to each other."

"Not everything…" she revealed, shocking her friend to the core.

"What…?" he warily asked, picking up on her increasingly-gloomy tone.

"I never got to tell you that… that deep down inside, I was eternally miserable…" she admitted, flooring Tayshan again.

"What?" he remarked in astonishment. "But… the way you presented, you always seemed so happy-go-lucky, an' so relaxed."

"I know, but… Tay, that wasn't all I was. I told you how I got good grades an' was good in school sports because I was naturally gifted, for example. But really, it was because my parents constantly, CONSTANTLY put heavy pressure on me t' succeed in school because they thought I had potential t' be a doctor or somethin' that made a lot o' money for the family. I had multiple weekly specialized gym sessions t' improve my sports performance here, biweekly Saturday study sessions t' reinforce my knowledge there, monthly father-orchestrated skill reviews the third… All just so I could get a job that paid well enough, as far as they saw fit… Oh, an' I got harshly punished if I ever brought home a bad grade on anything, missed the 8:30 PM curfew, or even so much as skipped a workout day t' just relax or eat fast food," she explained, becoming somewhat frustrated by her recollection of her difficult past. "I could barely BREATHE without gettin' sent t' my room without dinner or smacked by my mom if I did even THAT wrong…! It was… just a horrible experience, bein' treated like little more than a future meal ticket by my own parents. I could never open up t' them about anything because of how scared-slash-tired I was o' them turnin' it into a lecture about how I should just focus on bein' a successful athlete or lawyer in the future…"

"Wow… I mean… I had some idea based on what I saw that you folks really liked t' drill you on bein' a model student an' all, but… I had no idea it was that bad…" Tay confessed, sympathizing with the spirit of his old friend.

"Trust me, Tayshan, it was. I lived it for 22 years. Anyway, if a bad grade or a missed curfew were one thing, then they'd really get on my case whenever I got caught with the wrong company," she further admitted.

"Wrong company? With my background?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow.

"You got lucky. They never did suspect you t' be the knucklehead you was back then, what with how tight my mom was with your foster parents," Kassandra countered.

"Noted. Thanks, I guess," he acknowledged with a frown.

"Harsh, but true. Anyway, my parents were also breakin' up an' they were in a heated battle about who would take me once I got accepted t' college; speakin' o' which, I didn't really even want t' go to school anymore after I graduated. I wanted t' become a singer, but neither my mom nor my dad believed in the idea. Go figure, when you're on the school choir an' your instructor tells you you've got vocal chords like gold, but your parents don't want to push for a music career. Also, my mom eventually won out, but it came at a cost. Without my dad in the picture, my mom an' I had t' move to another, worse set o' slums where she could afford t' feed the two of us while I struggled t' get to an' from the college I was enrolled at near that town…"

"Jeez…" Tay exhaled in wonder and dread, feeling increasingly bad for Kassandra.

"Yeah… an' even before that happened, my boyfriend an' I got into a huge argument right after you stopped talkin' t' me because he heard some rumor about me hangin' around you more than him an' that somehow, it meant I was gonna dump him for you. Crazy, no?"

"Hm…" was all Tay could muster up, the nature of the remark stinging him.

"We broke up because o' that, an' some other stuff we didn't agree on. I didn't even get t' at least try t' say goodbye t' you, either, Tay-Tay…"

"Kassie…" he called to her, his heart thumping in his chest with guilt and intense pressure.

"Y'know, you were the only true friend I had… I mean, I had my acquaintances in school, but none of them hung out with me like you did. You were the only person I truly enjoyed bein' around. I never got t' tell you because… I'll admit, the peer pressure made me keep things secret from our schoolmates, but… I wanted t' let you know that you were not just some charity case in my eyes. You were special t' me. I cherished the days we spent together because those were the only times I was ever truly happy. Once we had that fallin' out, it all seemed t' come crumblin' down, one domino at a time."

"I… I'm sorry, Kassie… but… How could things get so bad for you so suddenly?" Tay asked, unable to fathom Kassandra's turmoil in life. "I was under the impression you moved ont' bigger an' better things!"

"Good question, but no, things were not better when I moved. I didn't make a single friend in college. I struggled with my grades over the course o' the first couple semesters, and I had t' get a part-time job while I was tryin' t' study. Mom an' me were near rock bottom, an' I took the brunt o' the social aspect, with people makin' fun o' me an' takin' every opportunity t' make me feel worse about my situation than I ever could've on my own."

"Are you serious? College is supposed t' be all about acceptance an' equality, I heard!"

"Not the one I went to… It was high school all over again, but with ten times as much gossip, bullyin', an' trouble, as well as half as much action from the faculty. If it wasn't somebody callin' me names, it was somebody dumpin' food on me. If it wasn't that, it was somebody makin' fun o' me for bein' poor. If it wasn't that, then somebody had a problem with me for bein' the 'weird, quiet one.' If that wasn't it, then somebody was spreadin' rumors about me bein' a 'flirtatious boy magnet,' which earned me a lot more criticism for how I look… I also got picked on a ton because o' my low grades, which led t' people thinkin' I was dumb… an' don't even get me started on the boys who only ever tried gettin' comfy with me because they liked me, but then flipped the script when I turned them down…"

"Dang, Kassie… That's just horrible…!" he choked out, vicariously angered by what she went through.

"Work wasn't much better, what with the awful schedules, the busy nights, the oblivious managers, an' the rude, grabby customers with their spoiled kids… You'd think workin' at a family-friendly neighborhood arcade would sound like fun. Boy, did I learn my lesson the hard way… Day in an' day out, gettin' yelled at an' berated by everybody around me, just so I could chase a measly little check that wouldn't feed a starvin' dog…"

"I'm sorry you had t' go through that," he offered, uncertain of how to address her past struggles. "Sounds like you really toiled away since you moved away, but that not one bit of it was workin' out for you. You don't deserve havin' all that happen t' you. You deserve so much better than that."

"That's sweet, Tay-Tay, but it is what it is…" she lamented, dismissing his sympathy.

"Jeez…" he murmured in concern, scratching his head as he wracked his brain for how to proceed the conversation. "So… what happened, if you don't mind me askin'?"

"Oh, right, I was supposed t' tell you about that. Sorry, I was just venting… So, one day about a year or so after we moved, I… I got curious, like I said. I won't go int' too much detail, so fill in the blanks where you can, okay?" she advised, immediately cutting to the point of how she became a ghost.

"…Okay," Tay hesitantly agreed with a nod.

"I was home alone, an' I just… remember breakin' down an' cryin' my eyes from the minute I woke up, all the way t' late at night. For about a week or two leadin' up t' this point, I didn't wanna eat, I didn't wanna go anywhere, an' I didn't wanna do anything. Mom wasn't home all day because she was workin' both of her two jobs, an' I chose not t' go t' class or work that day or the three days before. I couldn't take it anymore. I was in such a daze that night once I cried my eyes dry, wonderin' why my life was such a perpetual trainwreck that no matter what I did t' make other people happy, it only ever backfired an' made me more miserable in the long run… Tryin' t' make friends only made me enemies, workin' t' support the house only got me yelled at for gettin' bad grades or not doin' a good enough job, an' just tryin' t' live only pushed me closer t' my breakin' point one day at a time."

"I… Wow, Kassie…"

"I never got t' tell you this, Tay-Tay, but deep inside, past my cheery attitude, was a girl who was lonely, broken, lost with no one t' save her, an' just… so torn up with years of pressure, guilt, sadness, an' pain that I… I let it overwhelm me. What hurt me the worst was that I betrayed my best friend when he was already dealin' with so much pain an' sufferin' of his own an' had it so much worse off than I ever could… Tay, I never forgave myself for what I did t' you. When you entered my mind that day, that… That was it. But, by the time I realized I was teeterin' toward the brink, it was too late…"

"…No… Y-you can't… You're not tellin' me you…!?" he almost dared to ask, but he froze mid-question as his blood went cold with dread.

"…It was an accident," she tearfully confessed. Hearing that ripped Tayshan to the innermost fiber of his being as as his eyes nearly overflowed with tears he still fought to hold back. He could only stare at the ghost of his former love interest, shaken nearly into a state of flabbergasted catatonia at what she'd just revealed to him.

"…You… I… I don't understand… Kassie, why? You said you would never…!"

"I… I hit a low point, Tayshan… a REAL low point I know I could've recovered from, if I gave it enough time," Kassie began as she started to cry. "But I was so mad at everything, an' so sick of smilin' for everybody when I knew it was only hidin' all the pain I had inside that I had t' wait until I got home t' let out. I was still gonna carry on, though. I was gonna give it another shot, like I always told myself every night, but… once I started, I… I couldn't stop… Even now, I don't think I should tell you what happened…"

"…I don't need t' hear it," Tay confessed, still choking back tears of grief. "I'm sorry, Kass! I'm sorry! For everything I ever did t' you! For everything I said! I… I can't even…"

"Tay-Tay, it's… it's okay now," she consoled, though she let her tears streak freely down her face. "I'm… I'm not in pain anymore."

"But it shouldn't have cost you your life, Kassie!" Tay countered, unable to conceptualize the event that led to Kassandra becoming a ghost. "If I wasn't so ignorant an' selfish, worryin' about if you liked me or not, or thinkin' about myself when we were hangin' out… Why didn't you let me know you were goin' through so much?"

"I wanted to, I really did! But I didn't want t' be selfish an' use you t' vent about my problems when you had so much o' your own thing goin' on! Plus, I was tryin' t' handle it on my own, like you were doin'…"

"Like I was doin'?" he echoed in shock.

"Yeah. Makin' all kinds o' moves t' make your situation more bearable, doin' everything you could t' provide in the only way you knew how… e-even if your ways always got me worried that you would get yourself killed or locked up, Tay-Tay, I always admired your can-do attitude."

"…Thanks, but… this… this ain't about me. I just… I don't have words to express how conflicted I feel right now…"

"What do you mean?"

"Like… I'm devastated t' find out you died… I always thought you'd become the success you deserved t' be… but I'm upset t' find out that, one way or another, you gave up your shot at a better life in a sorrowful rut that you just admitted you could've clawed your way out of… What about your mom? Your dad? Your… your plans for the future? Plus, we talked about this sort o' thing in the past…"

"I know, Tay… Quitters are people who've already lost before they try," she recited a phrase he'd evidently told her, rolling her eyes. "It wasn't about me quittin', though. It was about me findin' a way t' numb the pain. Please don't stand there an' judge me. I got enough o' that from everybody else. I don't need that from you, too."

"I'm not judgin' you at all, I swear… What I meant was that… that you deserved better than what you got… A better environment… a better livin' situation… a better friend that should've been more alert t' your struggles… Again, I'm sorry, Kass… I stuck my foot in my mouth just now an' proved that I have not been a good friend t' you."

"It's fine… I get what you mean," she understandingly replied, wiping her tears away as she calmed down. "T' be honest, I was mad at myself, too… I still kinda am, matter fact. I wasn't really thinkin' about what would happen or where it would lead me. I was only thinkin' about how t' make the pain stop… an' I know mom an' pop-pop must've been completely devastated when they found out… I never got t' see them or say good-bye…" she trailed off, offering a sad smirk to her old friend. "You could say that I found a pretty good method of makin' the pain stop forever, at least." Kassandra's morbid, ill-timed joke flabbergasted the soldier as he cocked an eyebrow at her.

"…Is… Was that a-?"

"Yep!" she answered, somberly chuckling whereas Tay remained quiet, observing her. "Come on, laugh with me! You know how much I hate depressin' conversations or sad moments like this. Plus, I had no choice but t' think about it for the last few years since that day. I won't ever completely get over the incredible amount of emotional pain I caused my family or myself, but I've had t' learn t' live with… er, I-I mean, be dead with the knowledge that we all have t' find a way t' keep movin' on," she informed him with a slight chortle at her own slip of the tongue.

"Y-yeah, but-!"

"Tayshan, no matter how much I wish I could stop myself, the fact is that I can't turn back time. On top o' that, time marches on whether you like it or not. That said, I didn't take the opportunity t' come all this way t' watch you cry about me. Don't you think you've done enough o' that already? Your eyes should be drier than cemetery dirt!"

"…Kassie, you… you are makin' this REAL hard for me…" he replied, cringing at yet another dark joke with intentional poor timing.

"Wanna know what else is hard?" she asked, still smiling as she continued.

"…Dare I ask, what?" he hesitantly queried, expecting another lurid answer.

"Your head," she answered, forming a fist and knocking on his forehead like a door. "Seriously, I don't think you know how much of a burden it always was t' get you t' listen."

"Ow! Stop that," he protested, swatting away at thin air. "This ain't funny…"

"No, but you know what is?"

"…Don't-!"

"The fact that it took this much time AND my death just t' get you t' talk t' me again. Not a lot o' people have that kind o' patience or commitment, Tay-Tay, so thank your lucky stars I stuck it out for you. You wouldn't believe how borin' it is t' sit in limbo for almost the amount o' time t takes t' graduate from college 40 times!"

"…What? Come on, that doesn't even-!" he was about to object to such an absurdly-high number.

"Tay, I coulda BEEN had my degree in Biochem, an' you'd still be all 'Blah blah, I'm so macho, I don't wear my heart on my sleeve even though I'm super sensitive' like you always was," she playfully mocked, gesticulating exaggerated versions of the soldier's mannerisms to drive the point home.

"Okay, okay, I get it," Tay remarked, his previous grief mostly replaced with sourness at the ghost girl teasing him. "An' for the record, I was never sensitive."

"Mm-hmm," she further incredulously teased.

"Goodness, you don't let up, do you?" he complained, taking issue with her relentless teasing.

"Hey, you try losin' an important friend, then dyin' before you ever reconcile. Just like your cousin Hakeem said, I wouldn't recommend the experience. Take my word for it."

"Exactly what I planned on doin'. Though… of all the things I need t' apologize t' you for, Kassandra, I'm the most sorry for ever throwin' our friendship away over somethin' so dumb as a crush… It's just… I… I had such a huge attachment t' you, an' I was too self-centered t' ever consider the possibility that you didn't return my feelings. Hearin' you tell your friends you didn't, was the fuel source behind my outburst… I also reacted to the part where you said you felt bad for me, but man… Rejection is an ugly feelin'."

"You got that right," she agreed, shocking the soldier, though he wasn't expecting sympathy. "I ain't pattin' you on the shoulder for screamin' at me like you did, though. That was just harsh an' unnecessary."

"Heh, that's fair. I deserve that…"

"No, you deserve this," she corrected, reaching a hand as far back as she could. Before Tayshan could consider what she was doing, she let 'er rip. With a frightening *SMACK*, Kassandra slapped Tayshan across the face with her full strength, the impact sending echoes throughout the room.

"Gagh! Owwww!" Tay shouted in excruciating pain, stumbling back and bringing both hands to his cheek. "Why'd you do that!?"

"That's years o' pent-up anger an' grief wrapped up int' one slap! It was just a matter of if I was ever gonna get the chance t' let you have it an' let you know just how much pain you put me through! How's that feel, you jerk!?" she roared, letting loose the result of a long-standing grudge.

"Like a thousand wet towels! Jeez, even as a ghost, you hit like nobody's business! Hakeem ain't got nothin' on you!" he complained, still rubbing his smarting cheek in shock and agony.

"Good! Now imagine how I felt when you cut me off, then told everybody we were never friends because o' the way you felt about me… That was a million times worse than any slap I could ever give you!"

"Point taken… Ow," Tay agreed, blinking to reorient himself as he recovered. "Look, I wasn't bein' rational at all. I admit that wholeheartedly. I was goin' full blast in a fit o' rage facilitated by a broken heart, an' I never did take very much time t' consider where I was wrong until recently. I can't apologize enough for havin' done that t' you. I know I deserve a ton more than just that slap for how I treated you."

"And I'd give you more, but I can see that purple-haired chick you been hangin' around actually managed to talk some sense int' you."

"Purple-haired…? Y-you mean Shantae?" he asked, dumbfounded that Kassandra would know who Shantae was.

"If that's her name, then yeah, her. The one in that stylish red dancer costume," she elaborated, confirming her knowledge of Sequin Land's finest belly dancing heroine. "Anyway, look… Tay-Tay, I never got t' tell you this, but… I actually knew about your feelings way before our fallin' out, in case you were wonderin'," she admitted, alarming her old friend almost beyond words.

"…Of course you did," he sarcastically murmured to himself, mentally kicking himself as he let out a sigh of disappointment.

"Yeah, I bet you're real surprised, huh? Then again, it wasn't like you didn't make it painfully obvious you were sweet on me."

"…Honestly, Kassandra, if my heavily-conflictin' emotions were fuel for an explosive, this whole place would be a giant, watery crater from the blast alone. That said, yes. Yes, I am surprised." At that, Kassandra giggled.

"Ah, there's that dry sense o' humor I missed so much… But, yeah, I had a soft spot for you too, Tay. Just… not in that way. You were my best friend. Sure, you were a cute kid, but I never thought we clicked that way. Plus, even if that was a possibility, why ruin a good thing by complicatin' it with relationship drama? I enjoyed hangin' out with you as my friend. We could talk about whatever an' just chill without a care in the world. My boyfriend was really good t' me, too, but his biggest drawback was that he was the jealous type. Once we started datin', I couldn't say near as much around him, because I knew certain things would set him off. Contrary t' what he believed when we broke up, I was fully committed t' him an' would've given him the world, regardless of any obstacles we faced. I even thought about marryin' him at some point if we saw eye-to-eye by the time our relationship ended, but you see what I mean, right? He got so mad at me for somethin' so simple as havin' you as a friend that he figured I wasn't worth datin' if he wasn't the only guy I was ever allowed t' pay attention to. If it wasn't for that, he an' I would probably have been engaged by now. Simply put, my relationship with him was closer than with you, but it was way more fragile," she blatantly spilled, hitting Tay in such a sour spot that it'd make a fresh lemon tense up in agony.

"…Uh… O-okay," Tay acknowledged with a nod, though he was uncertain of wanting to hear more.

"I know that tone. You don't care t' hear about my plans or my relationship with Jonah, do you?" she asked, for some reason suspecting Tay wasn't interested in her story about her lack of romantic affection for him and how he may have indirectly ruined her last relationship.

"Not really, no," he plainly blurted out, a blank expression on his face. "But-!"

"Ugh, you are such a pain!" Kassandra nearly snapped, frustrated with Tay's indifference. "You never was one t' listen t' things you didn't like t' hear. I knew you wouldn't get it."

"Let me finish," he interjected, catching Kassie by surprise. "Much as it pains me t' admit, I… I understand," he carefully added. "You an' he were together, an' from what you're tellin' me, y'all were almost inseparable. I get it. If I'd known about him sooner, I'd have very likely backed off an' let you live your life with him. But then, I completely messed that up for you with the way things panned out, if I'm drawin' the right conclusions…" he admitted, feeling his heart sink further. "S-sorry about that…" he apologized, trying not to show his regret (and failing).

"Don't you ever say that," she sternly rebuked, her heart feeling a pang facilitated by her best friend's regretful apology. "You didn't mess that up at all; he did. He knew better, but then he chose t' blow up on me because of what he believed about you without even meetin' you. Also, how mature of you t' own up to your feelings about my relationship with him. You really have changed," she observed with an endearing smile.

"Only as much as you're noticin', I guess," he dismissed with a despondent shrug, momentarily casting his gaze to the side.

"Aw… Tay, I didn't mean t' make you feel bad," she consoled, taking on an expression of concern for his emotional wellbeing.

"It's fine. No harm done," he forgave. "I'm basically an adult now, so I can handle this sort o' thing."

"Oh. Right… Well, if you're curious about why I didn't think it'd ever work out with you…" she hesitantly began.

"Go for it," he permitted without thought.

"Are… you gonna be mad if I say this? I don't wanna make you feel worse."

"It's cool, homie. Get it off your chest."

"If you say so, homeboy. Well… even if I wasn't datin' him… you were too young for me at the time. You were fifteen an' I was eighteen. Your maturity level just wasn't there, either. I wasn't gonna get in trouble for you, no matter how cute you were. Plus, you were livin' a real dangerous lifestyle that I wasn't sure I would've wanted t' take the risk t' ignore, age difference aside. Hence, why I always tried t' encourage you t' do somethin' different. That way, you'd find a girl your age who'd see you for the good-natured guy you truly were. Sorry… I… I just didn't feel that with you back then. Really, I'm sorry… If you're hurt by that, then I'll do what I can t' make it up t' you, Tay-Tay…"

"I think I understand enough that you don't have t' keep apologizin' for your lack of interest in me. If you don't like me that way, then that's how you feel. I have no control over it, an' I have no right t' try an' change that. I take it as a sign o' closure at this point, if nothin' else. It's actually better t' hear you say it directly to me than overhearin' it like I did however many years ago," he admitted, though the impact of her words still tugged at his heart. "Anyway, I get it. I wasn't exactly a renaissance man or even a half-decent bargain sale back then. I know that much. That makes sense, when I think about how I was. Shoot, I'm not even sure I'm really worth much right now. Still, I can finally let go o' the feelings of resentment, loneliness, an' self-pity. Thank you for bein' honest with me, Kassie. Weird as it is t' say, I needed that," he confessed with a half-hearted smirk, though he was aware that he did indeed need the closure.

"Tayshan…" Kassandra called to him, her heart pounding with regret and empathetic dejection as she picked up a familiar disenchantment in his tone. "Are… are you serious? You know, I'm here if-!"

"No, no, I'm over it now. That silly crush is long gone anyway, so you don't have t' spend time convincin' me why I shouldn't hold on anymore," he nonchalantly confessed with a casual shrug, scratching his cheek with his index finger.

"Oh…" she remarked, her head and her heart sinking. "O-okay…"

"…That's not the reaction I was expectin'. There somethin' on your mind?" he asked, picking up on some form of dissonance in her reply.

"…Uh, no, I-I'm okay. It's just… you came such a long way since we left off, Tay," she observed, though she appeared disappointed.

"If you say so… but as for your reasons for even bein' friends with me, since we're in that ballpark… Are you sayin' my idea that you saw me as somebody t' be pitied was all wrong?"

"…Well, no, you were right t' some degree about that," she admitted, causing Tay to sigh in vexation, stung by the revelation that his years-old hunch was correct. "I wasn't entirely honest with you about why I became friends with you, an' that much, you had every right t' be mad at me for. I was rotten for that, but I just didn't want you t' get hurt. I wound up hurtin' you worse because o' me bein' dishonest, though…"

"No, no, I get it, Kass. You were lookin' out for my safety in a way I didn't really appreciate until now. T' say you thought of me as nothin' but a charity case was pretty mean-spirited, not t' mention insensitive an' plain disrespectful. At the time, I was still way beyond angry at the world, an' I felt like anybody who took pity on me was just mockin' me or thinkin' they could fix me. I might've been sore about how that was revealed, but I… I understand that now, too."

"Thank you," she humbly accepted his words. "Anyway… If you want any consolation, then I will say that, in hindsight, we had a pretty strong bond that maybe could've turned int' somethin', had we both played our cards right, an' we waited a couple years," she admitted with a dismissive shrug. "Also, if I was single an' if you didn't get in so much trouble. But then, like I said, I wouldn't want t' ruin the friendship we had, which is why I never continued t' entertain that possibility."

"Huh? And… what's that mean? That you DID return my crush at one point?"

"Well… no, not exactly, but… Without sayin' too much, I did at least think about it at one point, like I mentioned…" she admitted as her face became hot, though Tay's entire body became an inferno of anxiety and anticipation. "Mind you, this WAS after I moved an' had at least a little bit more time t' reflect on my life… so don't read too much int' this."

"That's one o' your cruel, sick jokes, right? You're just sayin' that t' get a rise out o' me?" he questioned, disbelieving of the statement she was making as he nervously chuckled. "Because now couldn't be a worse time for that."

"Mmm… nope, I'm dead serious; with an emphasis on 'dead,'" she countered with a giggle at her own morbid pun.

"Ahh… Walked right int' that one," he murmured, resisting the urge to cringe as he sighed. "Okay… So, now that THAT'S on the table… What do you mean?"

"In a few words, I was pretty fond of you, an', at one point, I did ponder what would happen if were the same age, or if maybe you had a different hobby than hangin' with the street dwellers. Y'know, that whole 'different circumstances' type o' thing. Oh well, I guess we'll never know now. Plus, why bother wastin' any thought on it if you got over me anyway?" she dismissed with another innocuous shrug.

"…Ouch… That… actually makes me feel worse," he sheepishly shared, not expecting to be as affected by such a forward statement as he had. His heart sank at her revelation.

"Such a shame, too," she continued, not hearing his complaint. "You became such a hottie after all these years!" she announced, crossing her arms and pouting, though her childish confession again rocked the addled man to the core. "No fair…"

"Wh-what!?" he basically shrieked, the sheer volume of his surprise capable of sending him rocketing through the roof. "Stop playin' with me, Kass!"

"I ain't playin'! Look at you! That dashing goatee, those chiseled muscles, your more mature, yet still-chill personality, AND you're in the military instead o' runnin' the streets like some two-bit outlaw? Tay, if I got the chance t' see you like this when I was alive an' if I was single at that time, you could guarantee I would make you ALL mine without any ifs, ands, or buts!" she giddily gushed, hugging herself tight to contain her enthusiasm, though it didn't really seem to be working. "Platonic friendship be darned, I would've snatched you right up!"

"Are you-?"

"Like, you are 'Man o' My Dreams' material right now. Can you imagine all the things we could've been doin' together if we stayed in touch an' met again at this point if I was alive? I'm talkin' full-blown, committed lifelong marriage with, like, six kids AND a house! You would be my whole world! An' not a single other girl would ever get through me t' get t' you. Mm-mm-mm…" she brazenly commented, scanning the soldier up and down with just her eyes, biting her lip to accentuate her ostensible interest in his current appearance. "I can't BELIEVE how handsome you became, Tay-Tay! I totally missed the boat on you! Why didn't you clean up your act sooner!?" she comically complained, blaming Tay for being too slow to change for the better.

"You… You…!" the poor guy choked on his words, screaming on the inside as his supposedly-former crush brazenly admitted to wanting to marry him if she weren't a ghost and they stayed in touch until this moment in a different set of circumstances. His entire body became a neutron star of elation, anguish, nervousness, and confusion all wrapped up with a nice, (un)healthy touch of mental self-punishment and regret. It's safe to say at this point that maybe Tayshan wasn't ENTIRELY over his infatuation with this ethereal young woman.

"Alas, the cruel hands o' fate saw to it that you an' I would have a tragic love story much like those historical drama plays we had t' read in class," she continued. "So, we shall never know. I guess I'll see ya next lifetiiiime…~" she teasingly sang. "If there is one, of course." Yeah, I'm also convinced she was trolling him to some degree, based on her boisterous, provocative statements to him.

"You still have that obnoxious tendency t' tease me t' no end, I see," Tay griped, annoyed as he was flustered while also confirming my theory. "You know I couldn't stand when you did that."

"Aw, don't sweat it, homeboy!" she cheerfully encouraged, though his reaction clued her in that he wasn't being entirely honest about his present feelings toward her. "As far as I hear, you're a real ladies' man around these parts, anyway! You shouldn't have a worry in the world now!"

"I have no idea what you're talkin' about…" he dismissed, pouting and momentarily shooting his gaze elsewhere.

"I'm so sure," she shot back, giggling at him. "I also see you didn't completely overhaul yourself if you're still doin' that adorable poutin' thing. You're still so cute!"

"D'oh…! I'm not poutin'!" he protested, fixing his face into a manly frown. "I am a grown man! Men are not supposed t' be cute, darn it!" he continued to whine while Kassandra laughed at his eternal disdain for being called 'cute.'

"Whatever you say, Mr. Macho-Muscles…" she laughingly dismissed, patting him on the shoulder. However, she noticed her physical form beginning to fade as her hand became more transparent. "Uh-oh… I'm runnin' low on time, so I'll say this before I go: Don't let that purple-haired girl slip away from you, Tayshan. I can tell you have a real special connection t' her, much like you an' I did. Maybe it's in the fact that your names sound the same, but I ain't too sure…"

"So you noticed too, hm? Neat… Also, what do you mean my connection t' her is special?" he inquired, cocking an eyebrow.

"You might not see it now, but… I… I just have this feelin' from what I heard about this crazy, straight-out-of-a-video-game adventure thing you're on, that you two will become real close through it all. Maybe even closer than you an' I ever were," the ghostly young woman sagaciously observed.

"I don't know about that, Kassie… Shantae's a great girl, no doubt, but I'm certain she an' I are strictly platonic friends. She said herself in no better words that she's not interested in me, if that's what you're implyin'. Plus, I'm nineteen, and she's about two or three years younger than me. That, an' she seems more interested in bein' my tutor an' tour guide than… anything like you an' I were or apparently could've been. I'm all for bein' her friend, no doubt, though," the soldier naively objected.

"Oh, Tay, Tay, Tay… How simple-minded you always was with this sort o' thing…" she remarked, shaking her head. "When a girl shows interest, even if she doesn't think she is, you'd better be wise t' pick up on it. Also, if I'm doin' the math right, then that means she's… what, sixteen?"

"Sixteen-and-three-quarters, as she specified," he clarified, still uncertain of why Shantae made such a distinction.

"Well, she's basically an adult, too! Especially if she had t' clarify t' you that she's above the age o' consent!" Kassandra pointed out to him, though he remained firm in his disbelief. "After sixteen, age differences shouldn't matter that much!" she proudly proclaimed.

"Wait… didn't you JUST say I was too young for you back when I was her age an' you were my age?" he questioned, perplexed by the phantom woman's logic.

"You were FIFTEEN, Tayshan, an' I was legally an adult at eighteen. At fifteen, you're still technically a minor. If she's close t' seventeen now, you all good!" she clarified matter-of-factly.

"But-!"

"T' be fair, Jonah was twenty-two when he an' I got together."

"Oh…" he remarked, pausing as he lost the point he was about to make. He was certifiably thrown off by the revelation of the age difference between Kassandra and her ex-boyfriend.

"Yup," she nodded as they momentarily went silent to ponder.

"…Wait, why are we even havin' this conversation!?" he asked after realizing the outrageous context. "I don't plan on datin' her!"

"You say that now, but just you watch…" she teased with a wink. "Love has some real funny ways o' sproutin' up between two people."

"I guess that means you're seein' somethin' that I'm not," he countered with a grin of moderate amusement. "Anyway, however close Shantae an' I get, Kassandra… There… There won't be another you in this or any lifetime… unless there really IS another lifetime where we meet again, of course. T' be honest, an'… since the opportunity is presentin' itself, I might as well come out an' say it…"

"Say what?" Kassie asked, tilting her head in wonder.

"Well…" Tay began his confession with a nervous sigh. "You… you touched my heart in a way no other girl could, an' you were one o' my biggest inspirations for becomin' like I am now… If… if it wasn't for you, I… probably would've still been tryin' t' find a different way t' make my situation better. I know it's late, but you helped me change much more than I could express t' you."

"Aww, Tayshan~! You are just so cute, you're about t' make me cry all over again," Kassandra gushed, hugging Tay around his waist tightly, her face nuzzling into his chest. Tay, nothing but willing to engage, hugged Kassandra back with equal strength. In that moment, however, Kassandra made another move as her body continued to fade like the other apparitions before her. She placed her hands on the young man's chest, causing him to loosen his grip as he allowed her some room. He looked down at her, his eyes locking onto her hazel-hued irises as she gazed up at him. Seizing the moment, Kassandra crept a hand from Tay's chest up to his face, where she cupped his cheek.

"Kassie…?"

"Shh… There's… one last thing I gotta do…" she warned, sliding her hand from his cheek to the back of his neck, her stare becoming half-lidded with pressure as her smile faded. Her eyes began to waver as though to summon up a fresh new wave of tears before closing them. She nudged the soldier by gently pulling on his neck as she lifted up onto her toes to close the distance. Before Tay could understand what she was about to do, Kassie brought her lips to his cheek as tears streaked down her face once again. The young man, caught off guard, committed to holding the ghostly young woman where she was, though he couldn't fathom what was happening. The gravity of Kassie's embrace nearly convinced him she was still alive. The surprising damp warmth of her lips against his face, the chill of her breath tickling his cheek… the sensation of her pulling him closer as she crossed her arms behind his neck… he almost couldn't believe it. The amorous gesture nearly sent him into a warm, ecstasy-riddled stupor, though it was tempered only by the fact that he saw her body losing its physical form in his grasp. Before the moment lasted too long, Kassandra broke her kiss, though she and Tay continued to hold each other.

"Wow… I…"

"There. So now, even if you do wind up fallin' head-over-heels for that genie chick, or one o' the other girls who seem t' have their eyes on you, you'll always remember me as your first love…" she proclaimed, though her tears were running free like waterfalls of grief.

"Wow… You're terrible," he remarked with a sad smirk, finding some discomfort with her reasoning.

"The worst," she teased, smilingly sticking her tongue out at him through her tears. "With all those girls after you now, I gotta make my impression as the original; the one who was in your life before any o' them ever were; especially since this is the last time I'll ever get t' see you, Tay-Tay…" she confessed, unable to hold back her sorrow. "I know, that was selfish of me, but… Please, don't forget about me…"

"…Kassandra, I will never forget you, the experiences we had, or the lessons you taught me. This moment just solidified that…" he assured her, trying not to lose his composure, though his voice was wavy with fresh heartache.

"It'd better. Otherwise, I'd hate you."

"That's the last thing I'd ever want. That was one heck of a goodbye kiss for just the sake of leavin' an everlastin' impression, so thanks for makin' it special… even though you just completely stole it from me," he remarked with a slight chuckle.

"Oops…" she acknowledged, taking on a facial expression of worry. "You're… not mad at me, are you?"

"Not as much as I should be," he calmly assured. "Still pretty messed up, though, that you only did it t' cement your spot as my first unrequited crush… even for it just bein' on the cheek."

"Oh, you ARE mad… I'm so sorry, Tayshan… I-I was just tryin' t' do somethin' memorable, is all."

"I'm jokin'. I'm not mad at all," he assured with a warm, disarming grin as he brough his hand to the cheek she kissed. "I'm just… surprised. But then, if this really is the last time we'll ever see each other, then I wouldn't have it any other way. It's much more meaningful doin' it like this…"

"See, that's what I was goin' for," she admitted with a lighthearted giggle as she wiped her tears away. "An' hey, you can still have a first kiss of your own, since that wasn't lips-to-lips. Just chalk this one up as a special commemoration of our friendship."

"Hm. So does that mean I should ignore all the sappy 'first love' shtick, or…?"

"Don't ruin this moment, sand-for-brains," she teased, lightly tapping his chest as they laughed together one last time. "This is the only one we're gonna get."

"Fine, fine… This was a totally commemorative sign of affection, like you said. Thank you, an' I'll never forget it. Before you go, though, I'm curious: What's it like in the afterlife? Where do you go?"

"Ah-ah-ah~! You'll find that out when you diiieeeee~!" Kassandra jovially sang, sending another chill up the man's spine.

"That's creepy…" Tay remarked in nigh-tangible discomfort. "Even creepier because you're a ghost. I appreciate the way you hit those tones, though. Your singin' voice always was captivatin'."

"Doesn't make it any less true, Tay-Tay. Also, thanks!"

"Good point," Tay rebutted with a nod as he and Kassie separated. "Thank you for comin' t' see me one last time. May you forever rest in peace, Kassandra," he bade, clasping his hands together in front of his chest and bowing slightly. "You will live on in my memories an' my heart, always." His heartfelt farewell bid rocked the young woman to the core as her eyes widened in surprise, welling up again.

"What a poetic send-off that is. Wow, you really HAVE become a man," she approvingly nodded, though his farewell bid brought about more tears from her. "Just promise me one thing."

"Anything."

"Make sure that no matter what, you cherish your friendship with that Shantae girl like you cherish ours. Don't you ever let her slip away from you like we slipped away from each other. It would suck if your relationship with her hit a mountain y'all couldn't climb over before it was too late, like ours did. Besides, if anybody can keep your stubborn behind in line like I used to, it's her. And… make sure she knows how much you value her, Tay-Tay," Kassandra instructed, wiping her eyes dry and sniffling to recompose herself.

"Yeah… Word is bond, Kassandra. I won't let you down again. Ever."

"That's all I ask, but also make sure you're doin' it for yourself an' for Shantae, not me," she advised. "I won't be there t' see how your relationship with her develops, unfortunately, but I know you'll get along great. Bye-bye, Tay-Tay! I love you!" she bade farewell with a cheerful wave as her physical form vanished completely.

"I… I love you, too…" he murmured, letting grief-sticken tears run down his face as he let his gaze fall to the ground beneath him. He remained silent for a moment, paying respects to his fallen friend. "Goodbye, Kassandra…" he shakily bade as he internalized the knowledge that his friend was no longer with him.

With a heavy sigh, he wiped his face dry and focused his attention to the final ghost standing before him as the room's torches shifted in color to an eccentric bright violet; the ghost of his friend Damian, who appeared to be armed with the very same pistol Tay had possession of. "So why are you here t' haunt me?"

"Now that's just rude. We finally meet again after you got me sent t' prison all those years ago, an' that's how you greet me?" Damian was quick to accuse, pointing the gun at Tay. Instinctively, Tay went to reach for his own pistol, only to find it missing.

"…Shoot, Twitch still has it…!" he mumbled in frustration at himself. He then attempted to unsheathe his shotgun, though his attempt would be met with hostility. With a jarring *BANG*, Damian's weapon discharged a round into the ceiling of the room, freezing Tay in his tracks.

"Touch that shotgun, Tayshan, an' I'll end you right here an' now," he warned. "Hands t' your sides!" Tay, realizing he had no other way out of such a tense situation, obeyed and lowered his hands.

"Y'know, I didn't get you sent t' prison," he calmly began. "You did that on your own when you robbed innocent people."

"Don't gimme that garbage. You robbed people, too!" Damian accused right back as he took a few steps forward. Tay, unwilling to agitate him further, remained still.

"Never with the threat of a weapon, Damian! Don't try t' draw parallels!" he shouted. "You stuck random people up, gankin' them for whatever you could get for yourself. I only ever stole t' try an' provide t' kids who didn't have anything or the means t' get what they needed."

"Theft is theft, bro. Just because we had different reasons for doin' it, don't make either one better than the other."

"I… I can accept that at this point, but that does nothin' t' justify your crimes. An' while we're on the topic, I never got t' ask; what was the deal, sendin' the cops t' my house after what you did?"

"I wasn't tryin' t' go t' the pen, yo! What can I say?" the hostile ghost rhetorically asked with a shrug of his shoulders. "I thought you'd be a homie an' take the rap for me. Your sheet was more-or-less clean, unlike mine. Had you been a real bro, you'd have gone in my place an' been out way sooner."

"I don't buy that for a second. You tried t' use me t' get out o' trouble for somethin' you did! You SHOT somebody, Damian! A police officer, at that! I was not goin' anywhere for you, much less for a charge that serious!"

"So your alternative was t' stash the Desert Eagle, then rat me out?" he questioned, somehow already knowing the story behind how Tayshan obtained the Desert Eagle. "Because it worked all so well in your favor, didn't it? You get off scot-free with a new gun, an' I get t' spend the last year or so of my life in prison. It was torture, in case you were curious! A torture I got out of in the worst way possible."

"I won't even pretend that wasn't messed up of me, an' for that, I'm incredibly sorry," Tay offered his condolences.

"No, don't apologize now, punk! You knew what you was doin' when you hid the gun. You knew what you was doin' when the police came t' your house, askin' questions. An' you definitely knew what you was doin' when you kept it an' decided t' become a sharpshooter with a gun I gave you," the vengeful orange-garbed apparition accused, deflecting the soldier's apology.

"Look, we can go back an' forth over who was in the wrong for what, but it won't get us any closer t' squashin' the beef. Of all the ghosts I've seen thus far, you're the one I thought I'd have the easiest time t' reason with, believe it or not."

"Oh, yeah? Why's that?" Damian queried in curiosity as his slow, menacing approach halted.

"Because you an' I were a lot alike, despite the fact you always tried t' force me t' play second fiddle t' your escapades or t' keep quiet. Only difference was our reasons for doin' what we did. I wanted t' provide t' those less fortunate an' dig my way out o' the hole fate put me in, even though I risked my life for little t' no reward at all… even when I was too blind t' see that I was only redistributin' limited resources an' stealin' from other poor people… Meanwhile, you thought you could make a livin' bein' a stick-up kid like in the movies t' get rich off other people's property."

"As if those are really all that different… Homie, it was all about survival o' the fittest. You of all people should know that, with everything you lost. Everybody everywhere was scratchin' for what they could get, even if it meant stompin' on their own friends an' family. You wanna throw on a phony cloak of altruism an' tell yourself that stealin', fightin', an' runnin' with the roughest crowds in our city is anything close to bein' 'for the greater good', then you keep trickin' yourself int' doin' that."

"I never pretended that my actions were good! I considered them justifiable back then because o' my reasons for doin' them! Would you seriously think I'd have ever made the decisions I did if I had better options that yielded as much of a benefit?" Tay reasoned with utmost vehemence.

"Sounds like a heapin' sack of flimsy excuses, like always," Damian coldly dismissed. "I can smell the bologna from here. At least I was honest about why I robbed an' stole."

"Oh, let's not even talk honesty in that case, since neither of us can be pardoned. You were 'honest' in the sense of keepin' your hobby a secret an' threatenin' your friends with violence should they ever even try t' convince you t' stop. I know that much from experience. It only gets more hypocritical on your end when we consider the point your bad karma caught up t' you. Let's not forget how you tried t' get away with almost killin' somebody. That very decision changed both of our lives."

"Yeah, you stabbed me in the back an' sent the cops t' my place!" Damian roared, aiming his gun at Tayshan with the intent to fire.

"No, YOU stabbed ME in the back!" he shouted back, deflecting the accusation back at his former friend. "I never said a word about what you did until I almost got caught up in your drama! You were always tellin' me this an' that about gainin' rep, livin' a lifestyle o' the poor an' dangerous, an' bein' ready t' die if that's what fate had in store for you. Then, when the time came t' put your money where your mouth is, you went back on your word, ran t' my house, shoved that very gun in my hands, an' took off without turnin' back! Worst of all, you KNEW that I would get in trouble, with you even goin' as far as tellin' the cops that I did it! Are you serious!?"

"…Alright, maybe that was a li'l bit grimy," the apparition admitted, lowering his weapon and nodding in contemplative guilt. "Bro, I thought you would've held it down an' covered for me, though! We was boys!"

"Boys don't set each other up for failure, Damian!" Tay indignantly spat in frustration. "You told the cops that I shot that woman after she reported you! They came t' my house ready t' haul me t' prison! What idea did you have about what I was supposed t' do, exactly?"

"I don't know, alright!? Shoot, I panicked when they showed up, an' I said the first thing that came t' mind! I was thinkin' they'd go t' you, handle their business, an' then be on their way! That still don't absolve you of any guilt, though, now does it!?" Damian yelled, his frustration compounded by his former friend's.

"This ain't about me absolvin' any guilt! I'm very aware by now that I've got a long list o' sins to atone for, an' I've been doin' everything I can t' do that! This is about the very reason we should never have been friends! But…" Tay paused, taking a deep breath as he collected his thoughts. "…Look, bro, I got so sick an' tired o' bein' pushed around, used, an' manipulated that, I'll admit, I wasn't thinkin' too clearly, either. I had a hunch you got yourself in some serious trouble when you gave me that thing, so I acted on impulse because at that moment, I lost what little trust in you I had left, but I figured that I now had access t' somethin' I wanted but knew I shouldn't have had. So, I hid the gun somewhere the police wouldn't think t' look."

"Uh-huh…" Damian nodded, listening intently.

"When those police officers came t' my door an' said I was named a suspect in a recent case of aggravated assault, it put the nail in the coffin for us as friends. So yeah, I told 'em what I knew was true; that you shot the woman, planted the gun on me, then ran off without explainin' why you suddenly didn't want it no more. After that, I told them I threw it away in a panic because I didn't wanna get in trouble. I won't pretend for a second that such a decision wasn't messed up beyond all points o' redemption between you an' me. I was wrong for it, an' I suffered for it in my own way. I still am, believe it or not."

"Oh, yeah, joinin' the enforcement services an' livin' out your childhood dream o' bein' a hero is really sufferin'. Gimme a break, Tayshan," he scoffed. "Try bein' convicted of a crime, goin' t' prison, an' then windin' up dead before you can even begin wonderin' how you wound up there. Considerin' all the stuff you did without my help, you should've already been there," he spat, approaching the soldier.

"That… that is fair, I won't lie. Still, I don't walk around, proud that I lost who was supposed t' be one o' my closest friends that day. I don't consider myself a beacon of moral superiority, or even a halfway decent friend because of how toxic our friendship was. You were one o' the biggest reasons I stopped even makin' friends up till I met Kassandra. I withdrew, became more distrustful of others, an' used that gun t' threaten anybody who dared t' mess with me because it made me feel tough like you always painted yourself out to be. Unlike Tariq an' Hakeem, you didn't even have t' die for me t' lose you. An' for what it's worth, I did grieve for you when I heard what happened t' you. Mind you, I grieved in secret because I was ashamed of how we stopped bein' friends. I never told anyone up until I met this girl recently. While we're on the topic, I'll also admit that our mutual betrayal of each other fills me with regret."

"Oh…"

"As for everything else I got away with… well, you're right about that, too. I don't have a word in my mind right now that could justify the things I did… Not like I tried t' do back when I committed those crimes…" Tay hesitantly admitted.

"See, now you get it. You're no better than me," Damian berated. "Wanna know why? Because when all is said an' done, you're nothin' but a coward. A selfish, spineless, back-stabbin' sellout rat coward who did nothin' but use his situation as an excuse t' play pretend an' act like a 'hero,' an' run away from his problems or cover up his guilt with flimsy, half-hearted 'tortured, ambivalent good guy' garbage rhetoric."

"…" Tay went silent as his old acquaintance tore into him, ruminating on every venom-laced word as he looked Damian in the eye. Just like the other ghosts before him, Damian accused him of the exact same thing he'd been hearing since he entered the Grotto of Judgment; that deep down, he had only deceived himself into thinking he was a 'hero,' when none of his past actions or decisions lined up with his ideology. Hearing this for seemingly the 800th time cut Tay deeper than any knife or sword ever could as he went blank, rendered speechless by such an observation made about him by so many others.

"Or at least, that's what you used t' be," Damian clarified, surprising Tay as he snapped out of his contemplative trance.

"Huh?"

"Look, yo," Damian began, his tone much calmer in contrast to moments earlier. "It's been a long time an', since I died, I had a lot o' time t' mull over my life… My decisions… an' even my friendship with you up t' that point."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, and, believe me, I used t' think I would love nothin' more than t' hold you accountable for what happened t' me after that botched robbery. I used t' think every day about what I would do t' you if I ever saw your scrawny behind again… what it would take t' satisfy my cravin' for revenge… how I would exact my revenge on you… but then, I realized that I indeed did this t' myself, like you said."

"So, if you're not here for revenge, then what ARE you here for? T' remind me of one of the most inexcusable mistakes I've ever made, like Tariq? T' show me why I needed t' change my attitude, like Hakeem? To… t' make peace an' say goodbye, like Kassandra?"

"T' make sure you weren't the same whiny punk from before," Damian corrected. "An' also, to apologize for… for everything…"

"What…? You, apologizin'?" he disbelievingly asked.

"You heard me, homeboy. This is a once-in-your-lifetime chance, so here it is; I'm sorry for the way I treated you back then. I'm sorry for gettin' you caught up in my issues, an' I'm sorry for almost gettin' you locked up. At the very least, my experiences can be turned into somethin' like a cautionary children's story."

"…Wow…" Tay stammered, shocked beyond reason. "I… I don't know what t' say."

"The correct thing t' say would be, 'It's all good, yo. No hard feelings.' Or do I have t' force that out o' you, too?"

"No, you ain't gotta force it. Thanks… And uh… it ain't like we're gonna get a better chance t' do this, so… It's all good, yo. No hard feelings. I'm sorry for not bein' so good t' you, either. We were a pretty poor match for each other in hindsight."

"Don't rub salt in the wound now," the jumpsuit-adorned ghost dismissively retorted.

"But it ain't like we never had good times together, man. I still fondly remember the laughs we shared, an' the time we spent together. Remember that one time we pranked our whole science class with that rubber snake an' all those plastic frogs we put all over the classroom?"

"Man, I could never forget that. That tape recorder we brought in with the frog noises sold it, too. Good times, good times…" Damian agreed with a hearty chuckle, though his body began to fade, cutting their reminiscing short. "Looks like I'm runnin' out o' time, so I guess we won't get the chance t' catch up all the way. Bummer…"

"Shoot… I only wish it didn't take one of us dyin' for us t' finally clear things up, but… despite what I said, I don't regret us bein' friends, Damian. I want you t' know that. I only regret that our choices flushed what we had down the drain."

"Yeah, me too. But hey, it looks like you're on your way t' makin' new friends, anyway. Granted, you had t' go to a place far, far away t' do that, with your lonely self," he joked. "Seriously, Sequin Land? Just hearin' the name, I almost mistook this place for an old folks' home or an abandoned recordin' studio."

"How… did you know that? You, Kassandra, Hakeem, and Tariq all seem t' know somethin' about my time here in this world or… or universe or wherever I am. Or, even what happened with me since the last time I saw y'all. How could y'all possibly know what I've been up to despite not seein' me in years? I've only been here a week or so, too."

"Some things, we're sworn t' secrecy over," Damian dismissed with a shrug and a tilt of his head. "I'll at least tell you that it ain't a deal of us watchin' over you like guardian angels, though."

"…I'd ask if it had t' do with that woman in the jackal mask, but… I get a feel I'll find that out myself."

"Trust an' believe that, homeboy. Anyway, I'm glad t' see you manned up an' started actually practicin' what you been preachin' all these years. Plus, you're all bulked up to a point where I MIGHT'VE been intimidated by you had we met back then while you had all that muscle. You pulled a complete 180 on me in the time I been gone. Weird as it is t' say, I'm proud o' you."

"I appreciate that. Deeply," Tay accepted his acquaintance's surprising compliment.

"Good. Now, if I gotta follow the trend o' makin' you promise me somethin' so you won't forget where you came from…"

"Go for it. May as well make it an even four for four, right?"

"You know it. So… Hmm… How about this? Promise me that my D. Eagle is never used for the wrong reasons. I spent a good long time abusin' that thing for my own purposes, so I guess it'd do me good t'know it's in better hands."

"You mean the one you're holdin' right now?"

"What, this? This is just a dupe. A convincin' fake," he revealed, disengaging the magazine of his weapon to reveal it only had blanks in it. He then cast the gun aside, where it vanished in midair.

"Oh… Well, you certainly fooled me. Could you imagine what I would've did if I pulled out this shotgun?"

"Believe me, I know. I made a real risky move, but I figured it'd be the strongest, most… effective start to our conversation."

"I'm… pretty sure there are MUCH better ways t' squash a beef, yo."

"Yeah, well you know I wasn't tryin' t' fight you in your current state like Hakeem. You'd floor me. I ain't that crazy. I also ain't all hugs an' kisses like Tariq or Kassie. That sappy shtick is for the birds. Or, y'know, that bombshell of a bird tamer who likes you so much."

"Sky?" Tay asked, cocking an eyebrow in surprise that he would know her.

"Yeah, if that's her name. Super convenient, by the way," Damian commented, noticing some totally obscure pun in the name of Sequin Land's favorite war bird trainer. "Anyway, she seems like the kind o' girl who would eat that stuff right up. Considerin' your gushy l'il display with Kassie, that seems right up your alley, too. Laaaame…" he droned, lazily flicking his hand and rolling his eyes to emphasize his distaste for sentimental moments.

"You have no chill, bro," Tay shot back, chuckling at his acquaintance's joke. "Still, stickin' me up with a fake gun when I'm armed with a real one was a better choice for you?" Tay questioned.

"Better? No. The only decent option I had? Yes. Granted, I… didn't actually know the gun was fake until I shot it when you tried t' pull your shotgun."

"So, you would've greeted me by shootin' me, is what you're sayin'?" Tay deduced.

"Basically," he unabashedly admitted with a shrug, though he snickered at the incredibly dark thought of shooting his friend as a means to say 'Hello.' Jeez, what a jerk…

"Wow. You are just the worst. How would that ever seem like a good idea t' you? Even if you were mad at me? 'Oh hi, Tay. BANG! Oops, my finger slipped. Who shot ya? Couldn't have been me!'" Tay mocked in disbelief that Damian would've put a bullet in him as a greeting tactic.

"I dunno. I mean, it DOES sound pretty bad puttin' it the way you did, but like… come on, bro, at first glance, it looks like a good idea. You can't blame me for wantin' t' make my presence known." At that sociopathic remark, Tayshan stared blankly at Damian. "…What?"

"…Man, your thought process always was odd t' me. I'm almost thankful that you're a ghost in this situation, because you could've gotten yourself hurt bad."

"Point taken. But hey, I was always thinkin' outside the box," Damian acknowledged with a shrug and a wink.

"Outside the box, you say…" Tay repeated, shaking his head in disbelief. "Unbelieveable. Anyway, I guess that means…"

"…that the real version o' my gun is still in the possession o' that gorgeous, but completely crazy blonde friend o' yours with the weird blue raccoon hat."

"Hey, hey. Twitch ain't crazy. At least, not as crazy as you apparently still are," he defended. "She's just… a bit assertive."

"Whatever you say, but I haven't seen thirst like that since the time we got stuck in that desert on our middle school field trip. An' man, must you be a tall drink o' water for her," he joked with a guffaw of amusement, though Tay merely growled and cringed in discomfort.

"Goin' back to the point, you want me t' promise that your gun is only used for good?" Tay redirected with a roll of his eyes.

"Yep."

"Well, here's a question: What could be considered 'good' versus what's considered 'not good?' Your wish has a lot o' moral subjectivity in it, an' I could do just about anything with that promise."

"I knew I'd get nothin' but back-sass from you," he remarked with a smirk, lightly shoving his friend. "You always was a smart-alecky son of a gun… No pun intended," he added, ensuring that I should probably start keeping a tally of all the situational puns made throughout this story.

"Only when the time calls for it," he quipped, returning the disarming grin with one of his own.

"I'm sure. Anyway, don't use that gun in a way you know might be wrong based on your sense o' rational judgment or your idea of right an' wrong. There, specific enough for you?"

"Much better, friend. Now I don't feel so uncertain."

"Good," he accepted as his corporeal form became steadily more transparent, signifying the encroaching time limit of his and Tayshan's conversation. "Shoot, I was hopin' t' stick around longer… Oh, well, I'm at least glad we don't have t' hate each other anymore. I was never gonna cross int' the next world with such a heavy weight on my shoulders."

"So there IS an afterlife?" Tay asked, getting a huge clue from Damian's careless statement.

"Uh, n-no. Unless this counts as it, since I'm dead. Yet, I'm still here havin' this conversation with you while you're still alive," Damian hastily corrected himself.

"So, what do you mean by crossin' int' the next world?" Tay quizzed, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't dwell on that, Tayshan. You'll have t' wait till you're dead. It was a figure o' speech," the ghostly young man dismissed.

"Sounds more like an inside joke for ghosts, when you put it that way."

"Well here's a surprise for you: Apparently, not all dead people turn int' ghosts," Damian blurted out.

"Wait, what? What other kinds o' dead people are there? Revenants? Angels? Zombies?" Tay asked, his curiosity far beyond piqued by Damian's assertion.

"I've said enough… That jackal lady is gonna tear me a new one for spillin' that stuff…" Damian regretfully muttered before clearing his throat. "Uh, i-it was good seein' you one last time, bro. Keep fightin' the good fight, an' make sure that, however you an' that foxy genie girl do it, you save this place from utter destruction… or whatever," he encouraged in mild confusion as he offered a hand to Tayshan.

"I get the feel you didn't get all the details, but yeah, I'll help save Sequin Land even if it kills me," he assured, returning the gesture. He and Damian shook hands and followed up with a brief one-armed hug before separating. "Wherever you're goin', I wish you a safe trip an' a peaceful rest, old friend," Tay further bade, saluting his fallen companion.

"It's been an honor, sir," Damian joked for the final time, returning his friend's salute. "An' you can count on me raisin' some hairs where I'm goin'. Damian, out." With that, Damian vanished before Tay's eyes, leaving him completely alone in the Grotto of Judgment. The flames in the room turned from purple back to their original golden hue.

"Man… That was heavy…" he murmured to himself, clutching his heart as it beat heavy in his chest. "Seein' them all again… an' none of them looked like they aged a day after I last saw them… but why were they here? Were they real? Or just figments o' my imagination? For all I know, this cave or that woman could've just been playin' tricks on me…"

"The spirits of your friends were all too real," the ethereal voice of the jackal-masked woman spoke as she materialized right in front of him with a golden flash of light. Tay, still wary of this woman, stepped back. "They each had their reasons for visiting you, and I saw to it that they were granted the opportunity. I must say, your history is indeed filled to the brim with pain, regret, and suffering. It's honestly only a surprise that your tumultuous life impacted theirs in such ghastly ways."

"How… how did you even get them over here?" he asked, more discombobulated than ever. "How do you know so much about me that you gave them specific details about what happened t' me since I saw them last? How did you even find their spirits? Who are you?" he asked, justifiably hungry for clarity, as his encounters raised many, many questions.

"You have many inquiries as to what circumstances led you to this point," the yet-nameless woman acknowledged. "However, you are asking the wrong questions. The answers you seek at this moment are irrelevant to the reasons your destiny has led you here."

"What is it with this cryptic, existential gibberish!?" he shouted, his patience running thin. "I don't understand what's goin' on! All I ask for is some clarification! Can you give me some idea of why you dragged me in here? An' if not, then can you at least let me out?"

"Hmph. You so desperately cry out for answers, yet you take no time to consider how to attain them," she rebuked with contempt. "It is that lack of insight into the gravity of your decisions in life that keeps you locked in a cave with no conceivable way of escape… in more ways than one," she wittily added.

"So you want me t' understand somethin', is that it? I mean, what… are you tryin' t' get me t' figure out?"

"I will not simply give you the answers you seek, if I must be candid."

"Of course not," he growled, his frustration growing like invasive weeds. "So in that case… No point askin' any questions. But, if I had t' think about the context o' this whole situation, then… all things considered, I've been brought here by destiny t' face judgment for my past, which evidently still haunts me t' this very moment."

"Now we're getting somewhere," she encouraged, though it came across as patronizing.

"An'… somehow, you raised the restless spirits o' some o' the people I lost because they each had a grudge or some unresolved problem with me?"

"Indeed, though I did not expect you to make peace with them. You have made an incredible bound in the right direction on your own, for which I highly commend you, Tayshan."

"Thanks, I suppose, but… if you don't mind me askin'…" he hesitantly began, his heart pounding hard enough that one could hear the echoes of its thumps against his chest inside this eccentric flame-lit cavern. "…How come you didn't bring my parents back? I… I don't expect you t' answer that, but-!"

"Not every spirit is granted an opportunity like the one your friends were given; there only exists the power to temporarily connect restless spirits back to the world of the living, where they are allowed one chance to make peace with living individuals with whom they bear some form of conflict. You may be relieved to know your mother and father held no resentment toward you, though you may be disheartened to know that they were not granted a chance to visit you as a result."

"Oh…" Tay could barely muster the emotional will to utter, nearly being brought to tears at the revelation. He took a deep breath to steel his nerves, however, taking some comfort in knowing his parents were resting peacefully and had no qualms that would bring them to him in the Grotto of Judgment. "Well, I hope the same now applies t' my friends. But, at this point, I know you're gonna say that this wasn't even about them…"

"Correct. This is about you. You still must atone for your own misdeeds, and I'm afraid I won't let you out of this cavern until your judgment has been passed," the jackal-masked woman warned, channeling magic into her hands. With a *WHOOSH* of a dazzling golden light that matched the hue of the torches illuminating the cavern, she began to… dance. As in, belly dance. She began swiveling her hips as she extended her arms outward. As she hypnotically shook, shashayed, and wiggled her hips, she rhythmically waved her arms around as they continued to be imbued with her energy. Swirling winds from directions indescribable in such an enclosed space kicked up without warning as the woman prepared herself. She kicked her dance up a notch by performing sporadic spins as she continued rocking her hips as though she were expertly balancing a hula hoop. As Tay stared at the woman, bracing himself for her next move, a disorienting afterimage effect took form as she continued to dance. The atmosphere became dense, humid, and thick as a rhythmic disembodied drum beat sounded from seemingly nowhere.

"…What are you doin'?" he dared to ask, taking a guarded stance as he prepared for the worst. The sudden density of the atmosphere unnerved him greatly.

"Through pain and dispair, you committed heinous sins, for which the price was paid with the lives of your kin. Yet, the one true victim stands right before me, as I show you the wrath of your judgment to be. With this, you will learn to carry the weight, that binds your soul to the hand of fate. The time has come, and you shall see, that you are your own worst enemy!" she chanted as her belly dancing intensified. The inexplicable wind gusts grew stronger. Crackling noises sounded off all over the cavern as jolts of lightning flashed without warning. Tay attempted to draw his shotgun to prepare for the fight of his life… but, he couldn't move. He was stuck in place, unable to move anything but his mouth and eyes, which were fixed on his current captor. He looked down to see that he was once again ensnared in this woman's grasp.

"What…!? What is this…!?" he choked out, the surrounding windy pressure restricting his ability to speak as the woman's magic completely immobilized him.

"I draw upon the darkness harbored in your being! Haaah!" she roared, thrusting a hand toward him as she finished her belly dance. Within a literal second, Tayshan began to feel a series of debilitating burning stings rapidly shooting across his body. "Come unto me!"

"Gaaaagh!" the soldier choked out, unable to break the woman's grasp as a thick, murky, ominous cloud of black and midnight-purple smoke began rapidly draining from his body. He continued to cry out in horrible pain as his enemy sucked the energy out of him… or, actually, I don't know what she was taking from him. Whatever it was, it gave off a mostrous, destructive vibe the likes of which were known by very few inhabitants of Sequin Land. Nonetheless, the cloud of smoke was drawn directly to the hand she'd been holding out without any deviation whatsoever. Within a few more agonizing seconds, she seemed to have drawn enough of the discolored ink cloud into herself that she could take no more of it from him. In that moment, she released him from his magic binds, where he was left on one knee, breathing heavily as he watched the smoke surrounding the woman as she began to levitate.

"Release!" The woman commanded with a surprisingly familiar tone and striking an eerily familiar pose. Before Tay could even think to question what he saw, a *POOF* of royal purple smoke shrouded the woman's form. However, the soldier's wait was a short one as he rose back to his feet while the magic-induced smog dissipated. Although, what he bore witness to utterly floored him.

"What the…!? Is… that… me!?" he asked, taking another defensive pose as he was introduced to his opponent: himself. The figure standing before him was identical to him in every respect… only, this second Tayshan bore snow white hair, fierce, menacing silver pupil-less eyes, skin of an eccentric pale blue matching that of Risky Boots, and a clothing color scheme very complementary to his own. This doppelganger wore a white tank top, navy-blue camouflage-styled pants, and matching navy-blue boots, though it was worth note that this Tayshan lacked any firearms or weapons. The clone was smirking at him in a way that communicated a nonverbal dare to fight.

"Oh, how good it feels t' be given form," the doppelganger spoke, his voice and dialect nearly identical to his antithesis, only doubled and much deeper in tone as he observed his new body. "It was gettin' t' be a real downer bein' stuck inside a pathetic little punk like you," it insulted with the callousness of your average cold-hearted villain.

"Who are you?" Tay asked, readying himself for a fight he would likely never forget.

"Your long lost twin brother," he derisively remarked, already annoyed by such an insipid question. "I'm you, obviously. I know you ain't blind," the evidently-evil clone answered for real this time, maintaining that same spiteful tone.

"That's impossible! You might look like me at a glance, but everything about you down t' your colors is nothin' like me," he protested, seeing the key physical differences between the two right away. "You can't actually be another me!"

"Hm, you're right," the clone agreed. "I guess I should be clearer. It's more that I'm all the 'best' parts of you, rolled up with some Dark Magic, an' BOOM! Showtime!" the fake Tayshan added, grinning with evil intent as he gestured his hands to emphasize his point.

"Best parts? Dark Magic?" the real Tayshan questioned, understandably befuddled by the doppelganger's explanation. Rather than simply explain himself, the evil clone raised his hand high into the air while his counterpart watched.

"Haaaaa!" clone Tayshan grunted with considerable effort, almost instantaneously summoning a ball of a bright, crackling purple light in his extended arm that seemingly burst into an ominous flame once it formed. Without warning, the clone launched what seemed to be a blast of pure evil energy directly at Tayshan at full speed. Tay, quick on his feet, leapt out of the way, narrowly dodging the attack. The energy blast smacked into a nearby wall with a deafening electric *CRASH*, destroying some of the mural and sending chunks of gravel flying in every direction. One of the torches was caught in the blast, its holster snapping in two from the sheer force of the impact while the flame went out. The dismantled candle holder fell to the ground with an echoed *clang*.

"No way…!" Tay brought it in himself to comment, astonished as he observed the damage. "Can this get any weirder…?"

"In case you were stilll wonderin', I'm basically the manifestation of all your past sins, amplified by the Dark Magic trapped in your body from when you went through that portal with that deliciously bodacious, domineerin' pirate woman, all nice an' incubated inside you for the entire time you spent in this miserable world. And man, what a healthy supply of doubt, grief, an' anger you had for me t' feed on t' get this strong… Years' worth of it, too. I should thank you for grantin' me such a delightful reservoir of nourishment."

"Is that right…?" Tay murmured, still trying to figure out how this evil version of himself could ever come to be. Even though he watched the process happen right before his eyes, he couldn't bring himself to believe it.

"You should know I possess your fightin' skills AND your strength augmenting my own as a result… only, without all the soft, infantile human tendencies you let yourself develop."

"You do, huh…? Shoot…" he cursed, already wondering how he'd defeat what was basically himself… only, with the apparent ability to use Dark Magic. "That leaves a lot t' be curious about, but I know I can't let my guard down…"

"Any real answers you're lookin' for in that case, you'll have t' force out o' me. That is, if you can," the Tayshan clone dared.

"I didn't think you'd make it easy. I've been told I'm generally not that kind o' guy anyway, so I suppose you're on the right track there when it comes t' impersonatin' me," the real soldier observed, sizing up his opponent as his anticipation for the incoming battle steadily increased. "So, it's obvious you're evil, if you're completely made up o' Dark Magic. Since you're here now, what's your purpose? What do you plan on doin', masqueradin' as me?"

"Basically, I'm a killin' machine ready t' watch this worthless world burn in an unrelentin' global inferno… Unlike you, I like hurtin' other people an' destroyin' things, an' I will do it indiscriminately. Simple as that."

"Hmph," the real Tay grunted, unintimidated by his impostor's threatening words as he stood tall and faced his mirror image. "Well ain't you a textbook definition of a cliché evil alter-ego. You say you're a better version o' me, but I was actually hopin' you had more t' you than such cookie-cutter motivations like that. You might've got me wary of what you can do, but you're not showin' much promise elsewhere."

"Comin' from the wannabe who spent his entire time in Sequin Land playin' 'superhero' t' boost his fragile ego. Let's not forget I'm the opposite o' you, fool. We're two sides o' the same coin," the clone spat back. "Anything you say about me reflects directly on you, too."

"Oh, yeah? So by that logic, if I said I consider myself pretty smart, then what would that make you if you're my opposite?" he asked, poking a hole in his doppelganger's point. "An' for that matter, how opposite are we talkin'? Actually, shouldn't you also be female, if your assertion was true?" he continued, letting his curiosity get the better of him.

"What? Er, no, you're takin' my statement too literally," the doppelganger answered, quickly becoming annoyed by the derailment of the conversation into the semantics of opposition.

"Or am I not takin' it literally enough? Who's t' say you didn't just lie t' me right now, for example?"

"What are you-?"

"Lies are the opposite o' truth. So, if you're my opposite, then would that mean everything you just said was a lie?" Tay continued to press and antagonize… or, would this be him _Pro-_ tagonizing his doppelganger, all things considered? Is that even a word? Hm… Oh, wait, I'm getting sidetracked, too!

"What reason would I have t' lie about what I just told you!?" the clone indignantly shouted.

"What reason would you have NOT t' lie?" At that, the evil clone sighed in vexation, pinching the bridge of his nose before uttering his reply to such inane, irrelevant questions.

"…I see what you're doin' here, and I find it completely childish. Stop it. It's not funny."

"Yet, I'm bein' dead serious, which is the opposite o' funny," Tayshan shot back, pointing toward his unsmiling, critical face. "How are you gonna claim t' be the opposite o' me when you didn't even consider the real definition of 'opposite,' or what that would mean in this scenario?"

"Uh…!" the clone Tayshan grunted, caught off-guard by such an unnecessarily in-depth evaluation. "Enough o' this, you insolent whelp! I will destroy you an' everyone you care about!"

"Good answer," he dryly remarked again with a single nod. "I guess we're about t' find out just how alike or how opposite we really are, but I expected more from an evil me in terms o' personality than somebody who just acts like me… except with a reversed moral compass an' ultimate goal," Tay remarked again, breathing deeply as he refocused. "Also, I've realized I'm not a hundred percent good, which would mean you're not a hundred percent evil, if we're goin' about this the right way. Just sayin'."

"Aw, for goodness sake, we're not opposite that way, you idiot! That ain't how this works!" the evil Tayshan rebutted. "I meant we were opposite in color scheme an' motivations for fightin'! That's it! I couldn't care less about your personality, your meaningless alignment, or your long-term aspirations! We're mostly the same, otherwise! If I have t' spell it out again, I'm basically the embodiment of your anger, your hidden guilt, an' your past misdeeds, amplified by Dark Magic, and given your form an' and fightin' skills, along with enhanced strength! I think…" he further clarified, though he wasn't sure he was a hundred percent correct, either. Too many variables and subjective definitions were being tossed around for him to find a concrete explanation for his existence, which at this point had only been a thing for barely a few minutes.

"So you're not sure about exactly what you are, either?" the good Tayshan dared to ask, though the question infuriated his evil 'twin.' "That's not very 'opposite' o' you, if we're on the same page there…" At that, the evil twin sighed in exasperation.

"You know what? Forget it! Your false bravado an' subversive jokes won't save you from my unforgivin' wrath!" the copy Tayshan threatened, readying himself in a manner perfectly mirroring his opponent. "But if you really want t' get t' know me, then why don't we start by talkin' about what a letdown you are t' your dearly departed friends an' family?" at that remark, Tay scoffed.

"That it? You gonna try gettin' int' my head with empty insults aimed at people I care about who can't defend themselves?" Tay deflected once more. "How predictable. If it wasn't for me just havin' made amends with most of 'em a few minutes ago, you might've gotten me there. Plus, I fully acknowledge that I let them all down, if you wasn't aware. That's why I'm here, after all; I'm redeemin' myself. Try again, homie," Tay calmly, brazenly shot back.

"Grgh!" the bizarro-Tayshan grunted again, his frustration building much faster than the original's as he failed to differentiate himself from any other evil clone of any protagonist. "Oh, yeah? Well… I'm… going to… to beat you down, assume your role, and-!"

"Oh boy, the 'evil twin commits identity theft t' turn my friends against me' routine. Come on, I thought an evil me would've wanted more than that!" Tay mocked once more. "I mean, if you really are me, then you no doubt have my memories too, right? As in, you're aware o' some o' the things I've done in the past?"

"Uh… Well, a-about that…" the fake Tay uncertainly began, scratching his head, thus indicating that he may not have been everything like his counterpart.

"Okay, so you don't have my memories?"

"Of course I do!" the clone shouted in disproportionate anger. "I'm well aware of the evil things you've done!" he assured, instinctively scratching his cheek with his index finger.

"You're not a good liar," Tay flatly remarked, shocking his doppelganger again. "That much is evident."

"What? How-?" he was about to ask, taken aback by the observation as he flinched.

"I know that, because lyin' ain't a skill o' mine, either. I've been told I have real obvious nonverbal tells that, much as it pains me t' say it, you're showin' right now. In that way, at least, we're the same. So, unless you're aware o' somethin' I wouldn't expect you t' know, like… well, just about anything I haven't already told my friends or confessed here, you won't get far with that."

"Oh, really? Then how about this?" the evil Tay confidently remarked, having a card up his proverbial sleeve. "After I beat you down, I'm gonna drag your broken body out o' this cave, an' enslave your precious girlfriend once she realizes how much better I am than you!"

"…and who's my girlfriend? Last I checked, I was single," he denied, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't play dumb with me, Tayshan," the clone shot back, grinning with malicious intent. "We may not be completely alike or completely different. I'll give you that much. I'll even come out an' admit I DON'T have that many memories of your time before comin' t' Sequin Land aside from what you've already said. However, of all the things we DO share, all of your experiences and your memories here in Sequin Land are a couple of 'em. So, I already know about your little crush on-!"

"That's crossin' the line! You'll pay for that!" he hastily and blatantly interrupted, flustered by what juicy bit of information his doppelganger was about to spill.

"But I… I didn't even say who-!"

"The fact that you'd even consider such a… a nefarious idea is proof enough that you have t' be stopped right here an' now!" he heroically challenged, evidently not wanting you or me to find out who he might've had some sort of newfound infatuation for. Hmm, now I wonder…

"…No matter," the evil Tayshan mumbled after a brief period of staring blankly at his original counterpart, shaking his head. "One way or another, I will destroy you. You know, this place makes for a perfect tomb for you. Judged for your iniquities before bein' made t' perish under the weight o' your own misdeeds… How fittin'. I promise you won't be alone, though. Once I'm through with you, I'll be certain Shantae and Sky follow you into the afterlife. I'll kill those two blonde idiots for good measure, too, before I join forces with Risky Boots t' help her annihilate this primitive dirtball," he threatened with a sickening laugh.

"Not sayin' it's likely, but even if I fall here, I'm certain Shantae could handle you without issue," Tay challenged.

"Not in her present state, where that pestilent genie brat is basically at her most vulnerable," the counterfeit Tay countered. "With my current power in comparison to hers, I could easily snuff her out before she gets the chance to use that repugnant Light Magic of hers against me," he threatened, sending the real Tay a daunting message that he got right away.

"How would you know that? If you really have any memory o' my experiences in Sequin Land while you were in my body, then you know how that sparrin' match went!" he argued, refusing to believe such a possibility.

"Ah, but you had no intention of harmin' her, remember? Your hideous compassion an' human sentimentality made it so that you'd never even think of hurtin' her. Additionally, you're far too weak in your current state t' realistically take her on. She toyed with you the entire time, an' even admitted it. Or, did you 'forget' that piece out of unadulterated shame an' embarrassment? Imagine that: Bein' so pitiful an' helpless that your own teacher couldn't even take you seriously. What a joke!" the doppelganger remarked, cackling as he did so.

"…Darn it…!" he cursed at his clone for mocking him, as well as at himself once he was reminded of his half-genie mentor's previous admission to holding back on him during their mock-battle and its effect on his confidence in himself. "I've gotta go all out here, then…" he further muttered, letting his anger show as he glared at his clone.

"See, it's that sort o' doubt an' self-loathing that gives me all the power I need," the fake Tayshan taunted with a smirk. "Also, I, on the other hand, won't even think about stoppin' once she's at my mercy. Plus, one thing I know, with or without your help, is how that brat fights when she's serious."

"An' how would you know that?" Tay asked, alarmed and confused by the revelation.

"Even without a carbon copy of your physical form in my possession, I have done battle with her more times than you can fathom, bein' an entity made of Dark Magic manipulated by none other than Risky Boots. Takin' your abilities provides me with just enough of a repertoire that she'd fall by my hand without her precious power enhancements," he informed with a stoic, malevolent glare that sent his message loud and clear.

"Well, that changes things…" Tay murmured in great concern, suddenly filled with a pressing desire to vanquish his foe before he made good on his threats. "If you seriously think I'm lettin' you anywhere out o' this cave t' harm my friends, much less tarnish my good name t' suck up to that self-absorbed, thievin' pirate witch, you are SADLY mistaken. You'd better enjoy your time impersonatin' me while it lasts, because you're about t' find out just who you're messin' with!"

"Finally, we cut the banterin' an' get down t' business," evil Tay agreed. "I'll make your death slow an' excruciating before I move onto your friends. Well, the new ones, anyway. You already killed your old ones," he remarked with a snicker. Tayshan, hit heavily by that remark, sneered as his heart began to pound with guilt. He bared his teeth and tightened his fists as he got ready to make his counterpart suffer for making such a callous remark.

"You miserable…!"

"Triggered, are we? Good, I can work with that," the evil Tayshan laughingly acknowledged. "That way, your inevitable failure will sink in deeper. After that, when I get my hands on some o' those weapons, I'll test some of 'em out on Sequin Land's hapless citizens… The mere thought of all the chaos an' carnage I'll cause brings me so much joy, I can barely contain it…!" he ruminated with a sickening chuckle. "Oh, all the desperate screams o' despair, the explosions, the hopelessness in the eyes of every man, woman, an' child as I descend on them with the most dangerous weapons known t' this world yet… I can't wait…"

"I've heard enough," he declared in disgust at the cruelty of his enemy, a fire lighting in his eyes as he focused on himself… literally. "You won't even touch Shantae or any o' the girls, much less have your way with anything else. Not so long as I'm alive t' stop you," he threatened back, taking his doppelganger's threats with utmost severity.

"Even after what we just went over? You CAN'T stop me! You're too weak, Tayshan! You couldn't even beat a self-limited Shantae at her lowest level o' strength! Accept your punishment an' make it easier for both of us!" he mockingly retorted.

"If that's all you're gonna go by, then I've got a hard lesson t' teach you!" he shouted back, his body suddenly tingling from head to toe with intense vigor and determination as he grew angrier at his twisted mirror image of an adversary. "Say what you want about what you think you're gonna do, but the fact is that there ain't enough room in this universe for two of us. More so, there's no room in this or any universe for somebody like you at all. It's time t' correct this horrible cosmic mistake."

"Yet, you call ME cliché…" the evil Tayshan mocked in bemusement. "I'll let you know that you should worry far more about yourself than anyone else right now. If you think you can stop me, go ahead an' try."

"No… I'll succeed if it's the last good thing I do," he assured himself as he adjusted his shotgun sheath to where the weapon was at his back while remaining slung around his shoulder. Afterward, he reached into his tank-top to pull out the Smoked Salmon he'd stashed earlier, eating the tasty seafood dish in one bite to replenish some of his health. Glaring at determination at his corrupted body double, the two prepared to throw down.

 ** _NEGA-TAYSHAN (That's the name Shantae would very likely give him, so roll with it): MALICIOUS MIRROR IMAGE!_**

"Hrrraaaaah!" Both Tayshans roared as they charged at each other, ready to fight. I'll take a moment right here to say this: If you were thinking this fight began with the two of them doing the exact same thing at the exact same time, leading to a more-or-less equal stand-off… well, you'd be wrong. Instead, Nega-Tayshan summoned up a surge of Dark Magic into his first punch as the real one was about to charge in at him. Once he was in range, Nega-Tayshan began with a nasty right hook coursing with murderous intent.

"Whoa!" Tay shouted in surprise, narrowly ducking under the hook as it flew past his head with a crackling *WHOOSH*. Using his position to his advantage, he hurriedly posed himself to counter, launching an uppercut aimed at the doppelganger's abdomen. However, the evil clone blocked the punch by catching it in one magic-charged hand to lock Tay in place. As the original soldier attempted to yank himself free, his malevolent counterpart threw a full-force straight. Tay, still fully aware of the situation, used his free hand to catch the clone's punch, causing the two to engage in a brief power struggle where the two had been trying to use their raw strength to overwhelm each other.

Before too long, however, the two near-identical versions of Tay separated, stepping back before immediately charging in. Tay, intent on figuring out if his opponent truly moved like him, took the defensive. Nega-Tayshan began wildly throwing Dark Magic-infused haymakers left and right as he chased Tay down. Tay began moving backward around the cavern, dodging and blocking punches as they came his way, though he was quick to notice the frightening malevolence and incredible power behind each of his clone's attacks. Every punch that Tay blocked left him with a noticeable burning sensation in his arms that seemed to become increasingly more nagging as they carried on.

"His punches are makin' my arms numb for short spurts, an' his form is exactly like mine… but this ain't exactly how I'd approach a situation like this…" he observed, noticing a difference right away as he backed into a wall without paying attention. "Agh! Shoot!"

"Can't run from me now, Tayshan!" Nega-Tayshan shouted, aiming a particularly wrathful punch at Tay's face. Tay hastily dodged to the side, allowing Nega-Tayshan's fist to ram into the wall behind him. With a jarring *CRACK*, Nega-Tay punched a deep, basketball-sized, smoking hole into the wall, ruining more of the prophetical mural painted on it as a series of pebbles and rock chunks flew in every direction. Refusing to let such a minor setback slow him down, Nega-Tay launched another Dark Magic-laced punch at Tay, causing the soldier to dodge again. The same result came about, with Nega-Tay punching into and damaging the wall. Tay, not wanting to stay on the defensive for the entirety of this battle for fear of eating one of those stone-breaking haymakers, made his move.

"Take this!" he shouted, throwing a lightning-quick uppercut to the doppelganger's chin to knock him back. The blow connected with a solid *CRACK*, disorienting Nega-Tayshan just enough for the real Tay to drive his knee into the clone's stomach, the alarming *THUMP* causing Nega-Tay to double over in breathless agony. Tay attempted to finish his counterattack by going for a hip throw to ground his opponent, but Nega-Tay was prepared. The instant Tay's hand grasped Nega-Tay's jaw, Nega-Tay seized Tay's hand and pulled it across his chest as he cocked his opposing elbow across just below his chin. "Wha!?" Tay yelled in utter shock.

"He-yah!" Nega-Tay shouted as he yanked Tay over and elbowed him in the face with a startling *THUMP*.

"Gowagh!" Tay grunted, finding himself with a sudden, temporary splitting headache. Nega-Tay capitalized on the opportunity, following up by grabbing the back of Tay's head and driving it into his rising knee. With another *CRACK*, Tay was sent staggering back. However, Nega-Tayshan's onslaught wasn't over just yet. Nega-Tay finished his counter combo with Tayshan's own hip throw, used against him.

"Have a taste o' your own medicine!" Nega-Tay snidely commented, spinning behind Tay and extending a hip behind the soldier's back. Nega-Tay hooked his arm around Tay's throat to drag him backward soon afterward. In one fluid motion, Nega-Tay flung Tay backward off his feet, where Tay flipped over Nega-Tay's back and hit the ground with a heavy *THUD* on his stomach. Nega-Tay, proud of his counterattack, cackled in amusement, crossing his arms in triumph.

"Grrgh…! Why you…!" Tay growled, immediately rising to a knee and glaring up at his opponent as he stood triumphantly over him.

"You're so predictable! Did you really think that technique would work on yourself!?" Nega-Tay teased. "A stronger version of yourself, much less!?"

"I'll show you predictable!" Tay roared, his aggression fueled by his determination as he got up and charged Nega-Tayshan. The two instantaneously engaged in a high-speed, high-stakes bout of throwing rapid, relentless jabs and hooks at each other. The two Tayshans were hot with determination to end the battle as quickly as they could, but they soon found themselves at a furious stalemate. The two bounced and dashed through the Grotto of Judgment, blocking and dodging each other's attacks while keeping their guard up. The arena was so engulfed by their intense collective rage and conviction to destroy each other that each attack either one landed or blocked caused the cavern to quake as each blow reverberated off the damaged cavern walls.

The torches illuminating the grotto flickered and burned erratically, as though they could be blown out simply by being in the vicinity of the ferocious one-on-one battle. However, whereas Tay was finding himself becoming frustrated with not being able to land a decisive blow on his opponent, Nega-Tayshan remained calm, as though he expected such a turn of events in their battle. The evil clone occasionally struck back with heavy punches when the opportunities arose, nearly stopping Tay's assault cold.

"Hah! If this angry flailin' is what you call an attack plan, then I'm almost embarrassed for you!" Nega-Tay teased as he continued to defend himself from his good incarnation's fruitless aggression. "Takin' you down will be more laughably simple than I thought!" Feeling the literally-shocking impact of some of his opponent's counterattacks as his frustration nearly boiled over, Tay took the moment to assess the predicament at hand.

"He's really readin' me like he knows my every move…" he murmured, still pressing on to keep some form of momentum. "I was afraid o' that… Darn… I've gotta catch him off-guard with somethin' I normally wouldn't do, then. Simple enough…! Maybe I'll get him with somethin' from Shantae. But what…?" he hypothesized, halting to take a step back.

"What? Retreatin' while you're on the offensive?" Nega-Tayshan observed, confused by his opponent's sudden change of pace. "In that case, allow me t' pick up where you left off!" he added with a dash toward Tay, who'd waited for him. As soon as Nega-Tay was in range, he threw a fiery jab to begin his assault. The real Tay leaned backward to dodge and, with blistering force, lunged his head forward, landing a rather-unorthodox, yet crushing headbutt that hit with a frightening *CRACK*.

"Agh! Oww!" Nega-Tay screamed, having taken the brunt of the actual Tay's cranium in his face. He staggered back, clutching his face for dear life.

"Gotcha now!" Tay remarked, evidently proud of his crude interpretation of Shantae's classic Hair Whip attack as he moved to capitalize on the momentum shift. He started with a low kick aimed at the doppelganger's ankle that caused him to jerk downward to grab his shin. Tay continued with a swift one-two, uppercut-hook combo aimed at Nega-Tay's face that sent him reeling backward into the nearby wall. Tay dashed forward and got ready to tear into his adversary with a series of coordinated punches aimed high. "Haaaaaaaah!" Tay shouted, throwing a bone-shattering full-power hook directly into Nega-Tay's sternum to wind him. He landed the attack with deadly power and precision, the emphatic *THUMP* resounding throughout the torch-lit cavern. However, Nega-Tay didn't flinch. Instead, he grabbed the soldier by the arm, locking him in place. "What the…? Let go!" Tay demanded, launching his other fist at the clone in the form of a hook aimed at his ribs. Nega-Tay blocked the punch with a tucked-in elbow, immediately following up by wrapping his arm around to ensnare Tay' other hand, grinning with devilish glee. Tay, alarmed by his clone's resilience, attempted to pull himself free.

"Weak an' pathetic…" he spat, drawing Tay's first fist away while keeping the other tucked under his elbow. "You can dish it out, but can you take it!?" he bellowed, craning his head back before launching a headbutt of his own. He landed the brain-scattering attack with a disturbing *THACK* as his forehead collided with the real Tay's.

"Gaagh!" Tay cried out as Nega-Tay let him go and allowed him wince in agony. Nega-Tay then lunged forward and planted a powerful thrust kick to Tay's abdomen to push him back. Though forced back and winded by the kick, Tay remained on his feet.

"Feel the power of your own fist!" Nega-Tay announced, punching Tay in the face to open him up for his next move. As he'd expected, Tay staggered back as he cupped his cheek with one hand. Nega-Tay took a giant step forward, ducked, planted a foot into the ground, and, with a burst of power derived from his planted foot upward, he fired a monumental uppercut square into the disoriented serviceman's stomach with merciless prejudice that landed with a horrifying *THRASH* of an impact.

"Gwoooahaaagh…!" Tay choked out, forced to cough up nearly all the air in his lungs as Nega-Tay's fist found itself embedded in his solar plexus. Worse for Tay, however, was that he found that his feet were dangling in the air while his opponent thrust his fist into him. As it turned out, Nega-Tay raised Tay off the ground with just his fist, cackling as he did so. In what should've been a physically impossible feat of terrifying brute strength, Nega-Tay raised Tayshan off the ground with nothing but his fist jammed into the soldier's stomach. He followed up by turning around and performing a brutal overhead slam that saw Tay hit the ground flat on his back with a startling *THUD* as though he'd fallen from a 10-story building. To give you some more brutal context, the ground where Tay made his cringe-inducing impact cracked in multiple different directions. Yeah, he hit the ground THAT hard. Sudden, sharp pain coursed through the young man's back like someone had whacked him with a spike-laden pizza paddle at mach speed. Despite this, Tay somehow remained conscious as he somehow avoided hitting his head on the cold, stony surface of the arena hard enough to knock him out.

"Hrragh!" Nega-Tay yelled, moving in to perform his next move. Tay, thinking quickly once more through the insufferable agony he'd experienced, flung a foot upward as he saw Nega-Tay moving in to grab him. The front of his boot crashed into Nega-Tay's dome with a violent *POOMPH*.

"Owgh!" Nega-Tay grunted as he flinched, allowing Tay to climb back to his feet as quickly as he could to shake off the residual agony of the nasty body slam he took. He moved to try attacking Nega-Tay again, but the evil version of the soldier was far from unprepared. He blocked Tay's punch with one of his own. Tay then tried to perform a side kick, which Nega-Tay parried by jutting his knee upward and using his lower leg to shove Tay's away in a manner that would leave him vulnerable by making him nearly do a split. Nega-Tay launched a cross of his own, which Tay parried before trying to land another hook aimed at Nega-Tay's abdomen. Nega-Tay blocked the punch, thus starting off another bout of the two Tayshans throwing rapid punches and kicks at each other in a fury-laced effort to bring the battle to a violent end.

As they carried on, however, it became immediately evident that, as the two of them fought nearly identical to one another, neither one of the Tays could decisively figure out how to best the other. Each of them scored sporadic, nonconsecutive hits on the other, though no hit that either one of them landed was sufficient to halt the other's onslaught. I swear, the two Tays did at least three laps around the circular Grotto of Judgment, it made me so dizzy just watching them go all around as quickly as they did. Anyway, the two carried on full-speed ahead, putting all of their effort into trying to rip each other to pieces, though they fought to their second bitter stalemate. Eventually, the two came to a standstill in the form of a clash in the center of the arena, where the two locked hands in another contest of physical prowess in the center of the makeshift ring.

"What did I say?" Nega-Tayshan gloated with a sinister grin. "I know everything you do about fightin'. You can't beat me!"

"Which won't help you, because that means I know everything that YOU do about fightin'!" Tay agrily shouted back. "We're even in just about every way, in case you ain't been payin' attention!"

"Not exactly…!" the clone ominously and confidently remarked. In a moment's glance, he charged a burst of dark energy into his hands. "Take this!" he shouted, sending an intense controlled shock through his hands into Tay's.

"Gwaagh!" Tay grunted in horrible pain as a sudden electric flash accompanied by a resounding *POP* separated the two. Tay stumbled back, his hands smoking, tingling, and trembling as a result of his impostor's sneaky tactic.

"I'll bury you alive!" the clone roared while Tay was distracted. With a disturbing *THUMP*, Nega-Tayshan connected a vicious, dastardly sucker punch to Tay's face. He followed up by hammering the momentarily-defenseless soldier in the abdomen with another wrathful uppercut. He finished his combo attack with a leaping side kick aimed directly at Tayhan's head.

"Hah!" Tay reacted the instant he saw the doppelganger's boot headed for his face. He ducked and sidestepped his double's kick, wrapping his arm around Nega-Tayshan's ankle. He followed up by lifting a foot forward and then ripping backward full force, using the same foot to clip his evil self's remaining foot from under him.

"Hwagh!" Nega-Tay shouted in pain as he fell to the flat, stony ground with an echoed *THUD*. Tay, wanting to capitalize on his advantage, rained an angry falling haymaker down on Nega-Tay's face. He connected with extreme prejudice, the impactful *CRACK* resonating throughout the arena. Tay followed up with two additional quick, full-power punches, though his last attack found itself countered. Nega-Tayshan caught Tay's hand before his last punch could land, quickly using the opportunity to wrap his legs around Tay's abdomen to lock him in place. "Let's see how you like this one!" Nega-Tay taunted as he attempted to wrap his arm around Tay's neck. Tay, aware of his position, raised an arm to block Nega-Tay's attempt to wrap him into a guillotine choke before hammering him in the side with two heavy hooks. Nega-Tay flinched as his side was pounded, loosening his leg grip just enough for Tay to break free and position himself atop the clone.

"Like I'd let you get a submission hold on me! You must be crazy!" Tay taunted back, ensnaring his clone's arm and maneuvering to where he was at Nega-Tay's side with his arm tightly gripped. Tay positioned his legs across Nega-Tay's chest and pulled on the doppelganger's arm, initiating a determination-fueled armbar.

"Gaaaagh!" the clone roared in agony, his rage already boiling over as he attempted to yank his arm free. "Release me this instant!"

"Keep strugglin' like that, an' your arm will snap!" Tayshan warned, holding his position with no intent to let go. "You should know that! That is, if you really know everything I do!" Despite the warning delivered to him, Nega-Tay continued to try and wring his arm free, without avail as Tay only tightened his grip to restrict his movement while also increasing the threat of breaking his clone's arm.

"Hrrrraaaaagh!" Nega-Tay roared again, feeling sharp, stabbing, twisting pains in his elbow that perturbed him to no conceivable end. Within seconds, however, he tensed his arm up, sending a massive current of Dark Magic coursing through it. With no way to avoid it in his position, Tay was zapped again with a malevolent current of the corrupt energy.

"Ghaaaaaaagh!" Tay cried out in unfathomable surging despair as he was almost completely paralyzed by the shock. As the soldier temporarily lost feeling in his arms and chest in his dazed stupor, Nega-Tay snatched his arm out of his grasp. The doppelganger picked himself up quickly, moving to stand over the incapacitated soldier.

"Pathetic!" Nega-Tay goaded, raising a foot high into the air and stomping on the soldier's upper chest with a cringe-inducing *THUD*. "The mere idea of you ever gettin' the best o' me like that is grounds for an immediate death sentence!" he ravenously roared as he stomped on Tay again.

"Haaagh!" Tay cried out, feeling the full brunt of the evil soldier's boot on him. This did not stop Nega-Tayshan, however. He continued to stomp on the good Tay's chest three other times before snatching the soldier up by his shirt collar to throw another heinous hook to his face.

"Feel that!? This is the culmination of your failure t' understand the consequences of your foolish actions!" he taunted before throwing another punch that landed with a horrible *THWACK*. "This is the result of followin' ignorant, idealistic, fundamentally-flawed misinterpretations of 'heroism'!" Tay, though in a disadvantaged position, slowly regained the feeling in his arms as the burning and numbness subsided, replaced with more vigorous tingling. As he tried his hardest to remain fully aware of his surroundings after eating two dirty haymakers, he noticed something in his peripheral vision within his reach; something long, thin, metallic, and iron gray in color. Without needing many more clues, he surmised it was a piece of the candle holder that had been broken previously. "And this…" Nega-Tay continued his monological tirade, raising his fist once more and channeling an immense level of Dark Magic into it. "This is the judgment you face for trying to alter your unchangeable destiny!" he roared, launching what he considered to be the finishing blow. However, Tay was as far from ready to surrender as he could ever be. He raised a hand, catching the surging fist of his evil clone and stopping his attack dead. "What!? How-!"

"Hrrrah!" Tay shouted with bolstered determination as he got Metal Stick. In almost an instant, he swung the blunt object and clocked Nega-Tayshan in the head with it. The ear-splitting, alarming *CLANG* of an impact caused Nega-Tay to stumble back into a nearby wall, holding his head in unbelievable pain.

"Graaaaaaaaagh!" he roared loudly enough that someone (namely, Shantae and the girls) outside of the cavern might have been able to hear him. "Daaaaaaargh!" he enunciated in a most sophisticated and eloquent manner. Tay gingerly picked himself back up, holding the slender metal stick as he caught his breath. He winced as he rose to his feet, clutching his chest where the clone had stomped on him previously. His shirt was in tatters, loosely hanging off his torso. His pants were littered with dirt stains and tiny rips scattered along the lengths of each leg. He'd been drenched in sweat to a point where one might've assumed he'd recently gone swimming, and he was wracked with fatigue and residual pain. However, Tayshan refused to give up, as his body continued to be pumped full of a mysterious, indomitable, adrenaline-infused drive to see this battle to the bitter end.

"How'd… How'd that feel?" he dared to ask through labored breaths.

"You despicable, cheatin', underhanded fiend!" Nega-Tay cursed his enemy. "Weapons!? In a man-to-man battle!? Where's your honor, you coward!?"

"Don't you lecture me about honor! I'm the coward when you spent this whole time chargin' your fists up with magic, electrocutin' me with it to escape pressure, an' then tryin' t' stomp my guts out while I was down? I would never do any o' those things in a fight! Mainly because I can't use magic, but my point still stands! You ain't been fightin' fair, either!"

"Hmph. I still think it's real pitiful that you needed a weapon—a broken candle holder of all things—to delay your inevitable destruction."

"Not as bad as desperately needin' t' rely on magic t' try an' overpower an opponent. You deliver some mean hits when your fists are pumped full o' that awful energy, I'll admit. But without it, I'd bet you could hit me a hundred times, only for it to barely tickle. That says somethin' about your previous claim t' have integrated my strength int' yourself! If you want a fair fight, then we might as well cut right to the point," he advised, taking a readied stance with the stick in his possession. "What I don't have in magic, I'll make up for in strategy."

"Fool… You really must have a death wish," Nega-Tay jeered, channeling another current of dark energy into his hands. "That's alright, because I'm gonna enjoy grantin' it… with EXTREME prejudice."

"Well ding-ding, the bell has rung…" Tay remarked, gesturing for his evil twin to get ready for round two. "Try me." That was all the provocation Nega-Tay needed as he belligerently charged in to begin the second phase of their battle. His fists swirling with Dark Magic, Nega-Tay attempted immediately to punch his good twin's lights out. Tay, anticipating his enemy's assault, dodged the punch thrown at him and countered with a mighty swing of the metal stick. With another disturbing *CLANG* over his opponent's head, Tay scored a direct hit as he leapt backward.

"Daaagh! I will rip your beatin' heart from your chest!" Nega-Tay boisterously threatened, holding his head with one hand as he dashed forward, refusing to let Tay get even a breath of air that could go unpunished. He ran in, fists blazing with an appetite for demolition as he threw another rapid, haphazard flurry of punches while his enemy went on the defensive to keep his distance. Despite the slight advantage the real Tayshan had, he found it incredibly difficult to keep Nega-Tay at bay, as he'd eaten sporadic punches while trying to implement his strategy. He soon found himself pressed against another wall, as he backed into it with another *THUD*.

"Ooh! Darn it, this room is so compact, I can barely-! Whoa!" he barely had time to remark before hurriedly side-stepping a monstrous haymaker from Nega-Tay. The doppelganger's fist rammed into the wall, causing another voluminous, rocky *CRUNCH* to echo throughout the room. He'd put another dent in the wall, almost twice as big as the first couple. Tay, thinking quickly, hopped away to escape the corner and took another swing at his clone with the stick. However, Nega-Tay caught the weapon in one hand, stopping it dead before it could harm him.

"Nice try, coward, but your luck just ran out!" he taunted as he moved to counter by gripping the Metal Stick and pulling it forward to reel Tay in. The original soldier, refusing to let go, allowed himself to be reeled in along with the stick. Nega-Tay followed up with a fully-charged wild, deadly Dark Magic uppercut, though Tay adapted. As his opponent's fist shot upward from down below, Tay took the initiative to weave to the side, causing the uppercut to miss completely. "What!?"

"Hrrraaah!" Tay shouted with determination as he threw his upper body back and yanked on the stick with all his might, pulling Nega-Tay just close enough for him to throw a full-power hook at his dark incarnation's face. He connected with a *THUNK* at full force, causing the doppelganger to jerk his head away, letting go of the stick. Tay followed up by cocking his arm back and releasing a full swing to clobber the clone across the face with a dense *CLINK* that knocked Nega-Tay to the ground. However, Nega-Tay was far from finished as he backrolled to his feet, his silver eyes burning with rage.

"Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" he roared with the intensity of ten Bengal tigers as he summoned more of his evil energy, actually causing the room to quake like a nearby volcano had erupted before he dashed forward to continue pressuring Tay with another berserk knuckle barrage. Immediately within the first few seconds of the next assault, Tay dodged another magic fist, stepping further back to keep a safe distance while being mindful to avoid cornering himself again. Nega-Tay pressed on without mercy, however, increasing the speed and power of his attacks and even throwing in occasional side and roundhouse kicks as he mounted his incredibly-aggressive assault.

Tay, finding a rhythm, continued to dodge around the arena as valiantly as he could, making sure to stay away from the uncomfortably-close walls. He occasionally blocked attacks from his adversary when dodging wasn't the safest option, though he was (literally) painfully aware that blocking Nega-Tay's attacks caused him all sorts of chip damage. However, his current strategy allowed him many opportunities to use the Metal Stick. At seemingly-unpredictable points, Nega-Tay would tire out and his assault would relent, allowing Tay to land a few coordinated strikes with the stick and his fists before Nega-Tay redoubled his efforts.

After maybe two and a half cycles of this repetitive attack/defense pattern…

"Grrrrraaaaagh!" Nega-Tay roared loud enough to break the sound barrier as he backed up, breathless and frustrated. At this point, his entire body began to exude a maleficent dark purple aura that intensified the pressure in the cavern's atmosphere. Tay braced himself for any surprises. "I've had enough! Forget slow an' painful, I'm killin' you right now!" he shouted, cupping his hands around each other to summon up a bright, floating purple flame bigger than a basketball in size and hot like the sun in temperature. "Time t' get you fired up!" Nega-Tay quipped, launching the fireball squarely at Tayshan with intent to burn him alive.

Tay, having little to no time to dodge because of the blistering speed of the projectile, attempted to block it with the Metal Stick. Unfortunately for him, however, the stick couldn't withstand the raw energy of the blast as it was melted through. The fireball struck Tay in the chest with a fiery *PWOOSH*, causing him to stagger back as he clutched his chest in searing pain. In that moment, however, he noticed the ends of the now-useless candle holder glowing a hot orange as though they were welded.

"Agh…! Shoot, that one caught me completely off-guard…!" he complained through the pain, dropping the remains of the candle holder to the ground.

"Prepare yourself!"

"Now we're ont' actually usin' your real powers, huh?" Tay remarked, bracing himself for more as he caught his breath. Rather than respond with words, Nega-Tay threw another fireball, causing Tay to duck under it. In the time it took him to crouch, however, Nega-Tay nigh-instantaneously dashed in front of Tayshan and thrust his foot forward. With a powerful *THUMP*, Nega-Tay kicked Tay in the chest, causing him to stumble back to keep his footing. "Khagh!"

"Feel the full wrath o' your sins personified!" Nega-Tay roared again, launching yet another vicious, merciless assault. He started by throwing a powerful hook at the incapacitated soldier that landed on his cheek with another harrowing *THWACK*. Tay, rocked by the sheer impact, stumbled back further, but remained stable on his feet. Nega-Tay dashed at him again, lunging forward with a thrust kick that Tay sidestepped to dodge, though the evil clone found himself at an early advantage. He planted the foot he tried to kick Tay with behind the unknowing serviceman's legs while cocking his arm back. He fired a lightning-quick uppercut that collided with a devastating *WHACK*.

"Hwaaagh!" Tay shouted in near-crippling pain as he stumbled back, inevitably tripping over his evil twin's leg and falling backward into a seated position. Nega-Tay, quickly picking up momentum, followed up by blasting Tay in the chest with another explosive purple fireball, knocking the wind out of Tay with the force of a full-powered body hook, searing off a portion of his tank-top as he was sent sprawling to the ground. Nega-Tayshan quickly leapt over to where he was standing on top of his enemy and attempted to stomp on his chest. Tayshan, needing desperately to move, dug up enough strength to roll himself over while Nega-Tay's foot pounded the ground hard enough for it to crack the surface. Tay, thankful that he was quick enough to avoid having his guts literally stomped out, gingerly brought himself to his hands and knees, though he began to cough as he tried catching his breath. However, Nega-Tay was keen on keeping his advantage.

"Wwaaaaarrgh!" He rapturously shouted, cocking a foot back before he delivered a despicable soccer kick to Tayshan's stomach while he was down, the resulting echoed *THUMP* being resounded all over the cavern.

"Haaaaagh!" Tay cried out in terrific pain, feeling the full, brick-shattering impact of his doppelganger's foot in his gut as he was sent rolling and sliding across the arena floor, clutching his stomach. "Ah-hagh…!" he coughed, his unbearable agony being mixed with a sudden case of nausea as he struggled to regain his composure. "N-no…! How could I be losin'…? How could I get this far just t' fail…!? Darn it…! I can't… I can't believe this…!" he desperately rasped to himself, infuriated that he'd been on the verge of losing everything after all he'd done. His body ached all over. He was out of breath and out of energy. Any attempt he made to move was met with debilitating muscle fatigue and residual pain from the grueling battle. He was beaten down, weary, and gasping for air. It appeared… that Tayshan had reached the end of his rope.

"Aww, you sound frustrated," Nega-Tay coldly mocked, grinning with inhuman enthusiasm. He casually walked over to the injured Tay, cackling with glee. Tay, through an enormous effort, rolled onto his back, taking in sharp, labored breaths as he cluched his abdomen. Nega-Tay, caring not even the slightest for his opponent's condition, firmly and triumphantly planted a foot on Tay's upper chest.

"Gagh! Aaaaagh…!" Tay croaked out in a mix of fatigue and unspeakable pain as he grabbed his evil twin's foot and tried desperately to lift it off him.

"Doesn't feel so good now, does it?" Nega-Tay sarcastically asked, applying pressure to his foot and causing Tay to grunt in pain. "Does it!?" he shouted, savagely slapping the defenseless soldier across the face with a magic-infused hand. He immediately reversed his motion, back-handing him with just as much force as his first slap. "How easily that heroic bravado flies out the window when you're bein' pummeled int' the dirt. Do you understand now why you're goin' through this never-endin' torture?"

"Hagh…!" Tay choked out, trying to get some air into his lungs while his opponent restricted his breathing. For his failure to answer the question, Nega-Tay lifted his foot high and stomped on Tay's chest yet again. "Daaaaaagh!" the unfortunate serviceman cried out in unspeakable despair, though he was cut short by another punch aimed at his face.

"Shut up! It's rude t' scream in agony while I'm talkin' to you! Now then… Deep down inside, you know you deserve every second o' this long-overdue punishment!" he answered for his enemy, twisting and digging his foot into his chest, causing Tay to writhe in awful torment. "Every person you stole from!" he shouted, punching the downed serviceman again. "Every time you've ever lied!" he added, stomping on him again. "Every time you've ever harmed someone! Deliberately or otherwise!" he further added, emphasizing his wrath with two more forceful, brutal stomps on his chest. "Every! Friend! You! Ever! Let! Down! And! Let! Die!" he kept adding, emphasizing every word with merciless full-range punches to the soldier's face, nearly knocking him out cold. Nega-Tay followed up with a brutal, heart-wrenching barrage of extra punches and stomps, their impacts echoing throughout the enclosed cave with stomach-churning volume.

Tay barely hung on, refusing to let his evil self get the better of him, though his confidence (as well as his consciousness) was slipping… and fast. It had become clear to him, sadly, that he was on the verge of losing his battle with no conceivable way of turning things around. Everything he'd been fighting for… Everything he'd ever sworn to protect… All the promises he said he'd keep to his friends, living or dead… it all seemed to be fading away as Tay resigned himself to the relentless physical and psychological torment brought on by his time in this forsaken cave, where he would soon meet his end. This was the hardest battle he'd ever fought in his life… and he couldn't last long enough to win it. That prospect sickened him… Alas, his malevolent clone was right. He let down a lot of people in his time. He was letting them down at this very moment, even. That mere thought, in conjunction with the reminders of all his other past transgressions, nearly made Tay give up on himself. NEARLY.

"I needn't even remind you of your biggest sin of waitin' until it was too late t' listen to your precious parents…" Nega-Tay continued to goad. Hearing this, Tay's eyes flew open as he managed to turn his head to glare up at his attacker. At that moment, his cold, defeated dejection turned into an ember of anguished rage. "Or the second biggest one of ever comin' here, thinkin' you could shack up with that sugary little purple-haired minx when you can't even win a single battle without her help. How repulsively pathetic! It almost makes me ashamed t' take your form," Nega-Tay added in sneering disgust before snickering at his downed foe. "I'll do you some justice by makin' sure you ain't looked upon as such a spineless coward when I go out there an' destroy everything, though…"

"Grrrgh…!" he growled, still breathing heavily, though it was more from his rapidly-building, monumental anger at none other than himself than it was from fatigue. He couldn't give up here. If he did, it would seal not only his fate, but the fates of potentially all of Sequin Land's citizens.

"Now you wanna get mad? Mad at who? Me? Or yourself?" Nega-Tay taunted again, though he did not follow up with another attack. Tay, as though he ignored his question, continued only to glare with ferocious, burgeoning rage at the malevolent doppelganger. "Yes, that's it! That's the look I wanted t' see all along! That look of hopeless frustration at your inevitable failure! Oh, how it brings me pleasure to watch a wannabe 'hero' fall before my feet!"

"D-darn you…!" Tay cursed, trying to find the strength to keep going, though Nega-Tay stomped on him again. This time, however, Tay did not make a sound.

"Before you get too confused with that pitiful little peanut brain o' yours, by the way, it should go without sayin' that that was a rhetorical question; lest you forget that, as I established, I'm a part o' you," he informed with a triumphant smirk. "A part o' you that you can't hide from anymore! A part o' you that you will never bury in the back o' your mind with a mountain o' hopelessly-naïve, ignorant acts of altruism!" he brazenly enlightened him, leaning down to grab Tay by the band of his ripped-up shirt to pull him up, though Tay's glare did not waver. Nega-Tay leaned in close, grinning with malicious glee at his enemy's frustration. "A part o' you… that will rip you asunder from the inside out…! Face it, Tayshan… I'm a monument to your sins, an' I ain't goin' nowhere for a looooong time…" he finished with another diabolical laugh, though Tay heard his words loud and clear. Nega-Tay straightened his position, still holding Tayshan by his ragged tank-top, cocking his fist back once more. "Don't worry, though. Once I'm done with you, I'll continue your habit of destroyin' everything you care about. Just for you, 'friend.' You can get as angry as you want, but you will perish knowin' that you have only yourself t' blame for your sufferin' here, the sufferin' of all your old friends, and the world o' sufferin' your new friends are in for! It is precisely why you could never have hoped t' defeat me! So much for all those gushy little promises you made t' all your friends… Your life will end here with their memory tarnished by your ineptitude an' soul-crushin' incompetence. Now die!" he roared once more, launching his Dark Magic-charged fist at Tay's face to finish him.

Tay, however, began to burn hot from the inside with anger, determination, and a desperate need to succeed as his body began to tingle once again. He, for the briefest of moments, flashed back through all of his conversations… his promises… to Tariq about not letting anyone else get hurt on his watch… to Hakeem about never backing down from another battle… to Kassandra about cherishing and being empowered by those he cared about… to Damian about standing up for good… and even to Shantae about sticking by her side through thick and thin until they saved Sequin Land together. He internalized and made those promises his own… to himself. Dying here would not only mean letting them down again… but also letting himself down. In that moment, Tayshan recovered enough of his energy to catch the punch in one hand, stopping it dead despite it burning his hand immensely.

"What!? But how-?" Nega-Tay was about to ask before Tay yanked him downward, countering with a monstrous hook that sent the clone stumbling back in surprise and agony. Tay remained on the ground, however, still trying to build up enough energy to catch a second wind. He attempted to bring himself up to a seated position, though he was quickly sent back to a lying position by the blazing *CRASH* of a fireball that collided with his chest.

"Agh! That one hurt…!" he further commented, wincing as he lay face-up on the cavern floor. "But… not as much as I thought it would…" he added, though he heard the footsteps of his opponent rapidly approaching him. "Gotta… move fast…! I… I can't fail here, darn it…! Not like this…! Not ever! No one is gonna tell me that I can't make a difference! Not… not even me!" the soldier continued to motivate himself as he fumbled around with the scabbard slung across his chest, pulling the sheath to his front. He then opened it and hurriedly pulled out the Shotgun he hadn't yet gotten to use.

"This is the end!" Nega-Tay roared, leaping high into the air, a magic-charged fist cocked with an unmistakable desire to maim. "Prepare t' join your friends in the next world!" he threatened as he rocketed downward like a meteor. Just as he was about to end Tay for good (or, evil in this case), Tay used the shotgun as though it were a second Metal Stick, swinging it by the barrel and clocking Nega-Tay across the face with it. A horrifying echoed *CLACK* emphasized the unmitigated impact of thick, dense metal on a humanoid skull. "Aaaaawwrgh!" Nega-Tay screamed in unfathomable torture, having taken the full metallic force of the blow in the nose. He stumbled back, holding his nose as he tried recovering from the brutal counterattack.

"There is no excuse… There is no choice… but t' turn this fight around…!" Tay told himself, fighting through tidal waves of physical agony to pick himself up. He managed to bring himself to a knee, panting heavily as his chest and legs ached like he'd run a hundred miles while being pelted with bowling balls. "No matter what you say, evil me… You… You will never break me down int' believin' I can't change for the better! You will never dictate who I am!"

"You just don't know when t' quit, do you!?" Nega-Tay complained as he recovered, glaring at the fatigue-riddled Tay and charging up another fireball with which to knock him back down. Rather than launch it from afar, however, he ran toward Tay to give it to him up close and personal. "I'll burn you alive!"

"Oh, no you don't…!" Tay countered, aiming the Shotgun and pumping it to load its first of eight rounds into the chamber. "Choke on this, faker!" he bellowed, bracing himself accordingly and pulling the trigger. With an incredibly-startling, earsplitting *KABOOM*, Tay fired a barrage of glowing marbles that scattered in many different directions all at once, though most of them made their mark, striking Nega-Tayshan all across his face and chest.

"Graaaaagh!" he shouted in horror and pain. The doppelganger, caught by complete surprise, was sent hurtling back, landing flat on his back across the arena, appearing to have been knocked unconscious.

"Whew… How much trouble does one need t' go through t' end a boss fight here…?" he commented, painstakingly bringing himself to his feet, though he never took his eyes off his clone, whose body was still radiating with dark aura. "An' it doesn't even look like he's done yet…" he observed in marked disappointment. "I'm not even surprised he took that blast up close like that an' still survived…" As predicted, Nega-Tay kipped up to his feet, his shirt now torn up and riddled with bullet holes from the shotgun blast he took at POINT-BLANK RANGE and survived. He was far from uninjured, however, as he'd been holding one of his arms with the other, panting in notable fatigue.

"You… you are just full o' surprises, aren't you?" Nega-Tay asked, frustrated with his good counterpart's inability to just go down.

"You should know. You are a part o' me, like you said, no?" Tay asked back, pumping the shotgun again to load in the second round as he fought through his pain to prepare himself for the long haul.

"Fair enough… but, if you weren't aware by now, you know you're not leavin' this place alive," Nega-Tay proclaimed with a point toward his opponent.

"An' I told you that there's only room in this universe for one of us. I could never forgive myself if I ever let you go free. If… if you really are some twisted amalgamation of all my inner demons rolled up into an evil version o' me… then I have no doubt in my mind that I really messed up bad over the course o' my life…"

"It took you this long t' realize that?" the clone scornfully asked with a contemptuous sneer.

"No, but… it did take me this long t' realize that, much as I hate to admit… you're right about somethin'."

"Oh?" Nega-Tay asked in surprise, his eyes widening with a strange sense of intrigue.

"Yeah, I said it… You're right… I did so many horrible things in my time that still grip at me with such strength that it's like I'm constantly bein' weighed down with anchors. My parents, my friends… I did let them down, like I said. No sense tryin' t' run from that truth anymore…" he admitted. "Goin' further, though, it's no use tryin' t' stick my past in a closet an' hope t' discard it by simply turnin' over a new leaf."

"Hmph. You think ownin' up to it now is gonna curb my wrath?"

"No. Of course not. Your anger at me, now that you helped me see it, is my anger at myself," he further acknowledged, shocking his evil twin again.

"That's interestin' t' hear from you, however obvious."

"I'm… not necessarily what others might call a 'good person.' At least, not if they knew me for who I was. I understand that. I've spent so much time over the last few years tryin' t' make somethin' of myself that I completely neglected t' take a real good look at why I really wanted t' make those changes in the first place. I told Shantae I wanted t' make my parents proud an' t' redeem myself for my past actions… yet, when she asked me what exactly it was I was redeemin' myself for, I couldn't even be bothered t' be a hundred percent honest with her. Pretty obvious example, right?"

"You think? I was there for that conversation, in case you forgot," he snidely remarked, impatiently crossing his arms as he straightened his stance.

"Of course… Well, thanks t' you, Shantae, that jackal woman, and the ghosts o' my old friends, I got just the wake-up call I needed t' understand that it really is short-sighted t' use a cloak of heroism t' shield myself from my past."

"Oh boy, what a brilliant an' profound observation," Nega-Tay uncaringly and sardonically remarked with a visible yawn. "Seriously, you're borin' me t' sleep over here. I knew all that already, so why are you spoutin' this sentimental garbage t' me?"

"Because I need t' be brutally honest with myself before I'm completely honest with anybody else," he answered with utmost confidence. "An' I need t' reassure myself that my decisions from this point on are of my own volition above all else; not ruled by guilt an' self-loathing. It's like Hakeem pointed out t' me, because it applies so well here… I need t' be my own person."

"And your first self-made 'decision' as your 'own person' is t' foolishly try t' stop me?" Nega-Tay quizzed, the condescension in his tone unfaltering.

"There ain't no try. I told you, I will win. I made promises t' my old friends, to Shantae, and t' myself t' keep fightin' an' t' never give in until my dyin' breath. That aside, I realize more than ever now, that you really are too big a threat t' take lightly."

"How kind of you t' finally notice."

"Whatever that Dark Magic is, you could legit kill somebody with it. Every single one o' your magic attacks hurt worse than anything I've ever felt…" he confessed, his body shuddering at the mention of the feeling of being attacked with Dark Magic. "My body still burns like an oil-based wildfire an' stings like a thousand wasps from every blow you landed on me… an', if I learned anything at all from my trip down here, then it's that I will NEVER let anybody else suffer the way I did. Never again. So, one way or another, I'm takin' you down! Here an' now!" he declared, readying his weapon for the final round of his kinda-sorta introspective battle.

"You sound like you're finally gettin' serious. It's about time," Nega-Tay observed, summoning more dark energy and charging fireballs in his hands. "Too bad for you that your little epiphany came too late, however. Time t' meet your maker!" he challenged, dashing forward to attack by launching a fireball at Tay. The weary, yet-determined serviceman sidestepped and waited for Nega-Tay to get close enough. Once the evil clone was within range, Tay aimed the firearm and triggered another explosive *BOOM* that sent Nega-Tay flying back in terrible pain again. He'd eaten the full force of the second shot, but he remained on his feet as he quickly retreated.

"I should've thought about usin' this thing from the start…" Tay oh-so ingeniously realized, pumping the third of eight rounds. "Granted, I've only got but so much ammo an' I'm not sure I'd have been able t' pull it out in time t' use it before this point. Plus, who knows what would happen if I did an' he snatched it off me. Oh well… Now, I have the advantage, so I have t' make every shot count."

"That gun won't save you! You will die!" Nega-Tay threatened, retreating to the wall behind him and launching another fireball. Tay, with more than enough time given the distance between him and his opponent, ducked under the fireball while keeping his eyes on the prize. Tay rushed forward and fired another burst of flashing shotgun marbles. Startled as he was, Nega-Tay leapt out of the way, throwing another fireball that Tay was forced to block. Remembering that his adversary's fireballs could melt metal, he turned around and let the projectile hit his back with a flaming *THWOSH*. "Agh…!" he coughed, stumbling forward before shaking off the pain to redirect his focus on his opponent. "I can't let him melt this thing or avoid too many o' my shots. Elsewise, it'll be a lot harder t' take him down…" With that observation, Tay cocked the barrel of the shotgun to load his fourth round.

"Hah!" Nega-Tay hollered, throwing another fireball that Tay jumped to avoid. "It's almost amusin' how you need t' rely on weapons t' beat me," he taunted, running along the perimeter of the arena while haphazardly launching flaming projectiles at his foe. "You really are a coward after all!"

"Says the one who refuses t' fight me up front without usin' cheap tricks an' magic!" Tay shot back as he… well, shot back (clever, right?) with another shotgun blast while dodging as many of the wildly-flung fireballs as he could. Most of the marbles missed their mark, decorating the wall with a spray of holes. Although, some of the marbles caught Nega-Tay in the leg, causing him to nearly fall over as he stopped and winced. "Besides, a 'coward' would never be able t' come down here an' face his inner demons alone! A coward would've given up long before now! A coward would never have charged headfirst into a foreign world with the intent t' keep a deranged, psychopathic pirate woman from destroyin' it in the first place! I am no coward!" Tayshan boisterously declared as he began to approach his enemy.

"Graaaagh! Darn it, how is this happenin'…!?" he cursed, catching himself on the wall before he fell over. "Even with that gun, he shouldn't be able t' put a dent in me…!" He refused to let the burgeoning impact of his injuries stop him, as he threw another Dark Magic-charged blast at Tay, who'd narrowly avoided it by leaping to the side. "Just do yourself a favor an' perish already!"

"Now's my chance…!" he told himself, running in while loading his fifth round.

"No, wait!" Nega-Tay shouted, holding a hand out to try to stop Tay from firing.

"You wanna talk about how much harm you'll cause this world if I let you free!?" he roared, firing another *BLAST* of marbles that made a violent direct hit. "You wanna threaten t' harm my friends!?"

"Waaaagh!" Nega-Tay shouted in excruciating agony, hurriedly picking himself up to start moving again, though his injuries were made quite evident in the fact that he was hobbling rather than sprinting. He refused to go down so easily, however. He threw another fireball to the best of his ability, though the flaming projectile was considerably weaker than the rest. Tay, not immediately realizing this, took the blast in his chest. It impacted him with the force of someone slapping his chest, which he shrugged off as he pumped the sixth round into the barrel. It was at that point that he realized that his clone was quickly losing power, though his approach went on unhindered.

"You never accounted for the amount o' sufferin' I'd have t' put you through before you could ever get the chance!" he continued, marching toward the ailing doppelganger. "You never considered the lengths I'd be willin' t' go t' protect those I care about!"

"Spout all the 'friendship' an' 'commitment' trash you want!" Nega-Tay shouted, conjuring up another fireball, this time powered by both hands. "You will never escape the judgment you deserve! You cannot change your destiny!" he boldly and callously added, throwing the fireball with all the strength he could muster. Tay didn't even flinch at this one, as its fiery vapors dissipated upon impact with his chest. "No…! How…? How did I get so weak all of a sudden!?"

"Most of all… you never bothered t' even ask me if I was willin' t' accept whatever judgment life handed me once I realized how much responsibility I needed t' take for my actions," Tay calmly concluded, aiming the shotgun at the injured Nega-Tay. Rather than cower in fear or beg for his life, however, Nega-Tay gave his counterpart a good, long, silent look, as though he were contemplating his options. After a moment, he smirked, bowing his head and using the wall to stand himself back up.

"Hmph. I see… Looks like I've lost my sway over you… Darn…" he cursed, hinting at the source of his powers. "Sickenin' as it is to admit, I know when I'm cornered. I hope you know that killin' me here won't bring you any closer to absolution, though. You will only have shielded yourself from yet another ugly truth about your character. However, I'm not here t' convince you t' do one thing or the other. Looks like your mind's made up anyway. Don't keep me waitin'. Do your worst, 'hero,'" he mockingly goaded, expecting Tay to end the battle while he had the upper hand.

"…Gladly," Tay agreed, firing the sixth voluminous blast from his shotgun. An additional deafening *BOOM* rang out, after which was total silence.

"…Huh?" Nega-Tay grunted in wonder after a moment of standing completely still, having been completely unscathed by the shotgun marbles. He looked down at his tattered clothing in confusion, wondering just how he'd survived what should've been the final blow that triggered the boss battle explosions. He cast his gaze over to the real Tay, who'd been aiming the shotgun above the evil twin's head. In that moment, he felt trickles of pebbles raining onto his head. He glanced upward to see that Tay had fired his blast at the wall above him, intentionally missing. He then turned his attention back to Tay. "What gives?"

"I… I realized somethin' else, interestingly enough," Tay shared, further befuddling the duplicate.

"And that is…?"

"That if I destroyed you here, then… then I'd be losin' the very part o' myself that brought me this far," he confessed, much to the surprise of his adversary/other self. "Twisted as it sounds, I… I don't think I should kill you."

"You… don't think you should kill me? After all you said about not lettin' me escape? Of all the negative traits of your character, I didn't take you as one t' go back on your word, Tayshan. Don't tell me you're-!"

"I'm not goin' back on my word," he interrupted, dislodging the final round from his shotgun and sheathing the weapon in its scabbard. He placed the round in his pocket. "But… I… I can't let you just disappear; especially not by my own hand," he asserted, holding out a hand. "There may not be room in this world for two of us, but technically speakin', there wouldn't even be a full one o' me if I got rid o' you."

"What exactly are you gettin' at?"

"My point is that, tf you're a monument t' my sins as you said, then I'd rather treat you as such; a commemoration of all the reasons I needed t' change. I refuse t' cast my past behind me while ignorin' the impact it has on my present self any longer. It's thanks t' you an' all my old friends that I realize that now."

"Hmm… I see," Nega-Tay remarked in a surprisingly-calm manner that I didn't even expect him to respond in. "In that case, what do you expect me to do from here?"

"Well… in no better words, I'd like for you t' rejoin me," he offered, further shocking the doppelganger.

"Rejoin you? Are you insane!?" he asked, offended by such a ludicrous prospect. "Why would I ever go back to being imprisoned in your subconscious like a caged animal? It was torture being stuck inside you! Even with all the strength I garnered from your insecurities, I hated every moment I wasn't free from you, you pathetic creature!"

"You don't have a choice, an' neither do I. You know that by now, don't you? Besides, if you've been listenin' t' me, then you should understand that I won't try t' keep my misdeeds hidden anymore. If I really wanna fulfill the promises I made or become the hero I said I was gonna be, then I gotta start by acknowledgin' my faults an' all the wrongs I've committed. I've… well, I've gotta embrace my past an' my shortcomings as a part o' what makes me… me."

"Hmph. That was so saccharine that I think I'm developin' cavities over here," Nega-Tay quipped with a disapproving shake of his head.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Will you come back or not?" Tay asked, losing his patience with himself. "If you don't wanna die, then this is the only other option you got, evil me."

"Alright, fine, but you'd better not go back to your old ways," he acquiesced, ultimately realizing Tayshan's point. "Otherwise, we WILL meet again… WITHOUT this woman's help," he warned, taking Tay's hand. Tay pulled Nega-Tay up to his feet as the two locked their gazes on each other. In a literal flash of a mysterious golden light, however, Nega-Tay suddenly transformed into a more identical clone of Tay; as in, everything from head to toe suddenly changed to match his twin, although he appeared younger and lacked a goatee. He was also slightly shorter and much less muscular than his present counterpart. "Thank you for finally acceptin' me, yo," the now-purified Past Tay offered his gratitude with a warm, almost-tearful smile. His voice was nothing like Nega-Tay's, in case you were wondering. He sounded like… well, like a (more) teenaged version of the current Tay. "You have no idea how long I been waitin' t' go back t' bein' me again…"

"Uh… S-sure thing, uh… past me…?" Tay played along despite being utterly floored by the sight of his evil twin morphing into his younger self in an exact copy of his present clothes. "I'll be sure not t' let… whatever that was happen t' you… er, me, again. From here on, we're in this together. Or, I-I'm in this… as a whole?" he stammered in utter discombobulation, though his past self chuckled with lighthearted mirth.

"I get what you mean. No doubt, homie. I'd say I'll see ya around, but… y'know, you're me. So… catch ya on the inside," he joked as his form faded, dispersing into a bright white light that meshed itself into Tay's body, completing the Boss Battle once and for all.

"Whoa…" Tay remarked in wonder, his entire body momentarily glowing with a luminescent white aura as his formerly-evil self merged with him once more, making him whole again. Before he could question this phemonenon, he realized he was still holding someone's hand. He looked ahead to see the blue-garbed, jackal-masked woman, panting heavily as she kneeled on one knee. Her mask was cracked, revealing tufts of dark purple hair and an eye whose iris appeared to be a bluish green in color. "Wait… Shantae… is that you?" Tayshan was all but compelled to ask in utter shock as he helped the woman up. "I thought you were outside with Sky an' the other girls! How'd you get in here?"

"Hm? What do you speak of? I am not Shantae," the woman denied in confusion, still trying to recuperate from the battle. The ethereal tone in her voice was gone, leaving only the sound of a regular woman. "What would have you draw such a conclusion?"

"Well… the purple hair an' turquoise eye I'm seein' through the crack in that scary mask are kind of a giveaway, if I have t' say it," he answered, causing the woman to bring her hand to her mask. She gasped in utter shock as she felt the crack in her disguise, hastily covering the portion of her face revealed through it. "What's the deal? Did you have somethin' t' do with what just happened in this cave?"

"You damaged my mask… I didn't account for that while I let your darkness use my body as a vessel," she murmured, apparently as confused as he was as she stood up straight. Her hand remained on the portion of the mask that was broken off as she concealed her identity. "However, I assure you that I am not who you think I am."

"Then… who are you?" Tay asked with a tilt of his head, totally curious as to who this woman was and why she bore such a strong resemblance to his half-genie team leader… as far as he could tell. She took two steps back while still covering the broken portion of her mask with her hand. "You don't sound much like Shantae, now that I'm hearin' your voice. Or, you kinda do, but you sound… a lot old-! Er, more mature, I guess I'll say," he observed, correcting himself before he stuck his foot in his mouth. "Not t' mention, you danced just like her before you turned int' that evil clone of me."

"My identity is of no importance, Tayshan," she calmly replied, ignoring his observations.

"Of course not," he sighed, disappointed that even now, this woman refused to let him know who she was. "Why won't you let me know who you really are?"

"My apologies…" she offered. "…but my true identity must remain confidential. However, I must commend you on overcoming the obstacles presented to you during your time in the Grotto of Judgment. Very few adventurers that found themselves here before you have been able to face their inner turmoil and succeed."

"Thanks, I guess, but… I'm still really confused," he admitted, scratching his head. "Why did you turn yourself into an evil me? HOW did you turn yourself into an evil me? For what reason was I brought down here alone? How do you know me?"

"Your inquiries, while understandable, are hardly worth asking me," she curtly responded. "Most of them, anyway."

"Hmph. You're not doin' me a lot o' favors here, deflectin' my questions like that…"

"The knowledge you seek with your questions won't serve you much substantial benefit. If I must provide you with some clarity, however, I will start by letting you know that you were fated to come down here, believe it or not. Our encounter was foretold. You also answered many of your own questions during your time down here, if you were conscious during our previous conversation."

"I… guess that's fair," he nodded, recalling their exchang from when he first entered the Grotto of Judgment. "Well, that sort of answers two o' the four questions I had at this point, but it raises at least fifty more. I guess Shantae was right about predestination after all, though, interestingly enough," he further murmured.

"I will at least clarify one thing by granting you this bit of knowledge, for it will be important for you to know. As for how I managed to assume an alternate version of your identity, it was not that I simply transformed into you. I drew much of the Dark Magic tainting your soul from your being and allowed it to take control of my corporeal form. Being familiar with you, it assumed your appearance of its own volition," the woman revealed, though her answer threw Tay for more loops than a circus performance.

"And that answers the third question but raises at least ninety more. You took Dark Magic out o' me an' let it take over you?"

"In no better words. Before you ask, I will also tell you that, with your help, I purified most of the Dark Magic that I was able to draw from you. With your acceptance of your past self as a part of your overall state of being, you have cleansed your body of a great deal of the iniquitous influences that might've threatened you as a human being."

"Huh… Well, that's pretty cool. Thank you," he uncertainly showed his gratitude. "I don't know if I feel much different, but… what an interestin' reveal…" he further pondered, though he shook his head once he realized something he needed clarification on. "It does make me morbidly curious, though… What would've happened if I'd lost?"

"I figured you'd ask that," she plainly replied. "What do you think would've happened?"

"Well… The hopeful side o' me thinks you would've called the clone off an' just revealed this as a test that I failed…?" he answered, having a hunch that his perilous encounter was a simple test of willpower and introspection.

"…That would have made sense, but…" she uneasily trailed off, seeming to realize something of a discrepancy.

"What?" Tay remarked, understandably panicked by the woman's answer. "Then what would've happened if that clone killed me!?"

"He very likely would've carried out the heinous acts he was threatening to perpetrate. That would be putting it lightly."

"But you said he was usin' your body as a vessel. Wouldn't you have been able t' simply call him off or… I dunno, find some way t' beat him or trap him in here if he got out o' control?"

"Implying I had any control over your dark doppelganger," she shot back, further confusing and frightening the serviceman.

"So… how-?"

"I understand that you are confused," she interrupted. "See it like this, then: Magic in all varieties is formless, shapeless, ever-present, and naturally without consciousness… sort of like air. However, the difference between air and magic is what happens when either of them enters a living creature," the jackal-masked woman explained. "Air comes and goes with each breath you take, hardly making any changes during that process. Naturally, as air is an essential resource that preserves all life. Of course, one does not simply breathe in magic. One would normally have to come into direct contact with a powerful magic-infused item or device to introduce it into their body."

"…Mr. Mimic's gonna flip when he hears this…" Tay muttered, completely blown away as he put two and two together. As far as he was concerned, the case of how magic in any capacity entered his body was cracked wide open by the woman's revelation. The question still remained, however, of HOW the magic got there, though he had a clue in that respect already.

"Once magic has entered a carrier's body, however, it takes hold. It metamorphizes almost immediately, bending, mixing, and assimilating into that being's very core. Once that happens, there is no clear-cut way to remove magic from any living thing, be it Light or Dark. The only known relic capable of doing so, a powerful magic-absorbing lamp, was eliminated from this land not so long ago."

"No way…!" Tay commented, mesmerized by the knowledge bomb dropped on him. "So, magic kinda works like a parasite that infects you if you come int' contact with a source?"

"Close, but not quite. A parasite would feed on its host and drain it of all resources until the host ceases to function. Magic merely transposes itself into a living being and, in some cases, mildly influences the being's decisions and/or grants them enhanced abilities. You may have experienced this already. Many creatures are not even aware of the presence of magic in their bodies. The 'parasite' theory you mentioned only applies to Dark Magic, however. Light Magic does not work in that regard."

"Got it… sort of," Tay replied, still trying to wrap his head around such an unfathomable concept. "So, if what the other me was sayin' is true, and if I'm followin' this right, then that would mean the evil me got stronger by feedin' off all the emotions I was hidin' away in the back o' my mind, as well as my personal doubts an' insecurities?"

"Correct. It is also true that, if the Dark Magic were to continue to grow inside you, it would yield ghastly consequences for you in the long term."

"…I think I get it enough that I know what you might be drivin' at," he concluded with a nod of understanding. "But then, with you drawin' all that Dark Magic out o' me, what would've happened t' you if I didn't make peace with myself? I mean, I noticed that the evil me got a lot weaker once I stopped lettin' my negative feelings overwhelm me, an' he even stopped fightin' after I finally got the upper hand."

"That was the only point at which I was able to easily regain some form of control over your evil side, though it was only enough to stop him from continuing to attack," she clarified. "If you had not realized that he drew every ounce of his power from your emotions, he would have very well destroyed you. At that point, I would not have been able to keep hold of him. Your body would have been his for the taking as a much easier vessel to control…"

"Get out…!" he remarked in utter shock. "Would you have been able t' stop him, at least?"

"Very likely not, as my strength was sapped by allowing him to use my body to take your form for such an extended period of time," she replied without a hint of hesitation, further alarming him. "However, this portion of our discussion has gone on long enough. To conclude, Tayshan, you did well in conquering your inhibitions and defeating your dark self to cleanse your body."

"Yeah, but… if I didn't, then that would've meant the end for both of us…"

"I am aware of the danger posed by that situation but be grateful you understood the circumstances and acted when you did."

"You're right, but that's a pretty big gamble t' take, ain't it?" he questioned, still somewhat unsettled in the aftermath of the battle. "I mean, I came real close t' losin' that fight, an' you're tellin' me you didn't have a back-up plan for if I couldn't win?"

"Much as I'd like to tell you otherwise, that is indeed the case," she understandingly admitted. "I am not perfect, in case you were thinking that. I will certainly need to reevaluate how I arrange for future travelers to battle and potentially purify Dark Magic hidden within them. It is not often that I have to do so. However, you may want to take this as an example of just how dangerous Dark Magic can be."

"You ain't gotta tell me twice," he agreed, though he found himself mildly upset with the woman for almost having killed him with an evil clone of himself. "And, while I admit I'm… a little bit unsettled by your admission there, I'm still at least glad the situation turned out like this. Might as well spin it in some kind o' positive light, all things considered. And uh… thanks for bein' honest, I suppose."

"Right," she acknowledged with a nod. "I don't suppose that would be all the information you seek on this encounter, though. Am I wrong?"

"Nope, you hit the nail on the head there," he confirmed. "You've been awfully accurate in ways I couldn't have expected; especially from someone I'd never met before this point. Which reminds me… You said this meetin' here was predestined."

"Indeed I did."

"Well, what did you mean? Could you give me a bit of insight int' that?" Tay asked with utmost intrigue.

"In simple words, the universe has an infinite number of possibilities, save for certain events whose courses cannot be altered. For any particular situation, be it as inconsequential as what an individual chooses to eat or drink, or as influential as a person's decision to either act or not in the event of an emergency, has a set number of contingent possibilities regarding what happens next. The number of possibilities available depends on the situation, the individuals involved, the time of day, et cetera. However, certain events, once they happen, will have one course to follow, no matter what decision is made. As such, your arrival in this era through the self-proclaimed Pirate Queen's portal was no accident, but a destiny-bound event."

"Really now?" Tay reacted with such shock that one may have thought his eyes would pop out of his head. "You're jokin'!"

"This is no joke, Tayshan," the mysterious woman assured. "You were brought here by the hand of destiny, though it seems paradoxical, given what I told you about infinite possibilities."

"An' here I was, thinkin' things couldn't get more confusin'… So, wait… if you knew I'd be dragged here from my world, do you know where I'm from? Like, if I'm from an alternate dimension, the future, or a different timeline?"

"Unfortunately, I don't," she plainly answered.

"Darn… One of my biggest questions about how I got here, an' it still goes unanswered…" he complained to himself. "Even after learnin' that bit of info about infinite timelines…"

"Not timelines; possibilities, though you may not be wrong to think about time travel as a possible factor for your entrance into Sequin Land," she corrected. "Quite frankly, I only know that you were destined to arrive in Sequin Land and that our encounter was predetermined in that regard," the enigmatic cobalt-garbed woman explained, acknowledging his pensive soliloquy.

"Wow… So… if you knew those things would happen, then… can you see the future?" he deduced based on the woman's revelation about this apparently-predestined encounter.

"Yes, but not nearly as well as you might imagine."

"What do you mean?"

"I am only able to see possible futures based on present events," she clarified. "Additionally, I can only peer but so far into a possible future, and even then, what I see is a vague, foggy sequence of significant pieces at best. In essence, any event I choose to investigate would be considered a core point. Any possible event following it would be considered a branching sequence. Think acorns and trees, simply put," the woman educated him.

"Uh-huh… So, if I got it right, then a core event would be like an acorn in the ground, an' anything that happens after that event would be like the trunk an' branches of the tree that sprouts from it after the acorn gets its essential resources?" Tay asked, hoping his guess would provide some clarification.

"Correct," she confirmed with a confident nod. "Contrary to popular belief, however, my ability does not make me omniscient. Using your example, it is akin to being unable to predict the exact way a tree will grow once its seed is planted, but while also knowing exactly how it will look when it is finished growing… in addition to seeing glimpses of things that could potentially happen to the tree as it grows. As I said, there are many possibilities within any given circumstance, except in the cases of very special, very rare predestined events."

"Mm-hmm…?" he nodded, listening intently.

"In a sense, that is like knowing the tree will grow and knowing that at least one of its branches will be sturdier than the rest, while still being uncertain of how the tree will grow or where its acorns will fall once it is able to produce them. Regarding your presence in Sequin Land, I only knew that a chance encounter with Risky Boots would indirectly bring you here to this cavern with me. Conversely, I was not aware of HOW you would get here."

"That makes enough sense t' where I get what you mean," he nodded in understanding. "The fact that you can see the future at all raises a different question, though. I heard there were druids in this place that had the gift o' foresight. Are… are you one o' them?" he posed, calling back to the rumor he'd heard during his previous adventure.

"I am not a druid. The druids, as well as most of the inhabitants of the Prickle Stitch Valley have long since emigrated across the globe from this land, for its impending destruction was foretold months to a year in advance. I couldn't tell you where any of them went or what they did, either."

"…Shoot, that's why I should've asked Priyanka how long ago she heard that prediction or how long ago she left this place for Naga Mountain…" he cursed himself. It… definitely would've made sense to ask that archer woman to be more specific with her claims. Oh well. Too late to cry over spilt milk, as they say.

"This is no time for speculation," the nameless woman dismissed, her tone becoming serious. "Based on what I have foreseen of you, I have grave news for you."

"Aw…" Tay groaned in disappointment, though he quickly shook it off in the wake of her seriousness. "What's the news?"

"Your quest, as you may know, is one that has been, and will continue to be filled to the brim with peril at every turn."

"You're tellin' me this now?" he incredulously asked, surprised that her 'news' would turn out to be something so obvious that it was already established. "After everything I've been through, I… think I know that."

"Yes, but the hazardous nature of your adventures will serve to grow progressively more evident with the more often you and your friends risk your lives to save this world."

"I know that, too," he assured. "Believe me, there's nothin' you could tell me that I haven't considered since I arrived here in Sequin Land. No matter what, I'm gonna do my part in keepin' this world safe."

"Oh? Then, what if I told you that the price of heroism is often much higher than most adventurers are willing to pay?" she asked, seeming to be hinting at something.

"Oh… Well, then you'd have t' be more specific," he hesitantly answered, picking up on the sudden tone shift into the realm of the ominous. "Anybody can just say somethin' like that t' try scarin' me out o' doin' somethin', but… as you might've witnessed, I'm not one t' back down from a tough situation. Not anymore, at least."

"Do not take my warning lightly, Tayshan. I would not pose such a question without reasonable cause," she advised, solidifying the pressure brought on by the conversation as it went on.

"But I don't know what you're warnin' me about," Tay countered, still in the dark about the jackal woman's words. "T' answer your question, though, I… I suppose most people never know the 'price of heroism' until it comes time t' pay it. It ain't quite like goin' to a store t' buy a piece of equipment, where you know what you're gonna get."

"That's quite naïve of you," she criticized, evidently unimpressed by his rebuttal.

"Yeah, well unlike you, I don't have the gift o' clairvoyance t' give you a better answer."

"Hm. In that case, does the phrase 'pay the ultimate price' ring a bell to you?" she asked, dropping another clue.

"Yeah. That's part o' the promise I made when I swore myself t' duty. I joined the military in my world with that phrase. Is… that a sayin' here, too?" he asked, raising an eyebrow in curiosity as he attempted to read into this mysterious woman and her words.

"And… have you considered just how solemnly you'd have to abide by that vow at this point?" she asked, ignoring his question. However, he was tipped off regarding what she meant. At that point, his heart sank into the pit of his stomach as his blood ran cold.

"Oh… I… I-I think I get what you mean now…" he hesitantly acknowledged, his eyes widening as his breath became heavy and restricted. "Are… are you sayin' that I… that I'm gonna…?"

"It's a possibility," she curtly replied, sending a chill up his spine that shook him to the core. "An undeniably strong one, at that."

"Oh… Well, how… How strong?"

"Strong enough that we're having this conversation now," she clarified in as basic a manner as she had been, though her portentous point was made stronger by her simplicity. "Otherwise, you and I would have little reason to meet here."

"Even with all the introspective stuff you made me go through with my old friends an' my… my younger self? With purifyin' the Dark Magic in me, as you said earlier?" he asked, deeply unsettled by the implications of the conversation.

"You eventually would've come to terms with your past without my assistance, though at a much later point and with much more of a struggle. I have foreseen this," she answered with utmost confidence, though her tone revealed no emotion. "However, the Dark Magic in your body also gave rise to the possibility that you would've been irreversibly corrupted had I not chosen to intervene."

"Oh. Fair enough, I guess. Thanks?" he offered, still contemplating her warning about his fate.

"Hold your gratitude. I did not act for your sake," she corrected matter-of-factly.

"Okay…? So, what did you do it for?" he was all but compelled to ask.

"To prevent the potential emergence of another malevolent enemy of the peace in this land. Your intrinsic struggles would've incubated the very uncertainty, fear, frustration, and self-loathing that Dark Magic feeds on." At that, Tay got a clue.

"That's exactly what the younger me said when he was evil…" he realized as he pondered on the warning. After a moment of silence, he spoke again. "Are you gonna tell me somethin' about fear leadin' t' anger, anger leadin' t' hate, an' hate leadin' t' sufferin'?"

"You are… on the right track," she acknowledged, seeming to be impressed with his guess. "Although, you would be wiser to know that suffering is a primary source of growth for Dark Magic. Take what you have learned here with utmost seriousness."

"Clear an' concise, you are… at least, when you want t' be. Well, thanks for that, at least. Still, as for that other prediction you made… I can't believe I'm askin' this, but… How? When? Does… Is someone responsible for it that I should avoid?" he asked, though his last question immediately made him think of Risky Boots. That very thought filled him with both anger and dread that he could scarcely disperse with a deep, heavy breath as he focused all of his attention on the woman standing before him.

"I'm… sorry to say that I don't know many details surrounding the event, but I am here to tell you that you have a chance to avoid such a terrible fate and prolong your life," she offered.

"Oh yeah? Well, I'd be interested t' know," he admitted. "What can I do t' make sure things play out right? That I don't…"

"I cannot answer that for you," she bluntly replied, not giving him a chance to finish his question. "I can only tell you that it all comes down to one decision… A decision that you must make here and now. However, your decision may serve to either seal or change your fate. The troubling part is… well, is the circumstances of your choice, if I must say it."

"Well, can you at least tell me that much?" he implored, itching to get a clear answer out of this clairvoyant woman that might at least calm his nerves. "What effects do my present choices have on my future? Or… this prediction o' yours? What circumstances?"

"Your chances of suriving this ordeal could be slim, depending on the decision you make here, but… your involvement in the effort to defeat the Pirate Master's former apprentice and reclaim your weapons directly impacts the futures of your friends; very strongly, I might add."

"Really, now? How so?" he asked, hungry for information as his heart pounded in anticipation.

"Their chances of surviving are heavily contingent upon your decision," she revealed, causing Tayshan to exhale in wonder.

"Now THAT brings me some clarity, though I don't like how I feel about it. Hmm…" he pondered. "So… from the sound of it, my decision is basically whether I'll continue fightin', or choose t' back out? An' that… based on what I choose t' do from here, it might play a factor in what happens t' Shantae an' the others?"

"In no better words, yes."

"Well then… This just might be one thing I didn't consider… At least, not since I joined up with Shantae…" he murmured, his heartbeat getting heavier. "Alright… in that case, I have just two major questions t' ask you. I don't know if you'll answer them, or if I'll wind up havin' more t' ask, but I'm gonna ask the two anyway."

"For the sake of this discussion, and helping you make your choice, I will answer any relevant questions without hesitation."

"Oh, good, good…" he acknowledged, breathing a sigh of relief. "In that case, my first question is this: If I was t' step aside an' let Shantae handle Risky Boots on her own… then, what are the odds of her survivin' the battle?"

"The odds are… questionable at best. Bear in mind that Scuttle Town's guardian genie has three other friends whose fates also hang in the balance."

"Sky, Bolo, an'… her uncle Mimic?" Tay guessed.

"The ones called Sky and Bolo, yes. Her surrogate father? No."

"Not him? Interesting… Yet, she has three friends aside from me… Sky, Bolo, and…" he trailed off, pondering just who else the woman referred to. "Do you mean Twitch an' Vinegar?"

"No. Their fates are not tied to your decision as strongly as your other friends' are. Your decision will have little impact on their futures."

"That's interesting… But, who else could you mean…?" he wondered. After thinking back to past conversations with the half-genie, he remembered. "Oh, that's right. She has someone else named 'Rotty,' so far as I'm aware, no? I haven't met that one, but that's the only one I can think of."

"Correct."

"Alright. I guess I should be on the lookout for this 'Rotty' then. So, if the four o' them handled this situation without my help, then what would happen?" he asked, anticipating the severity of the scenario presented to him.

"Your decision not to lend your assistance would make things more difficult for them, but… their chances of survival are skewed, whether they succeed or fail."

"How so?" he asked, his brain already conjuring up various what-if scenarios of the battle with Risky Boots if he was not involved.

"Well… There is no easy way to say this, but… Out of seven possible branching futures without your assistance, each one of them yields, with utmost certainty, the demise of either Shantae or at least one of her friends at different points in different courses of events. Of course, there is also the possibility that she and her friends fail to thwart the self-proclaimed Pirate Queen, in which case they all perish. You would be exempt from such a fate in all scenarios, however, in your choice not to intervene."

"No way…!" Tay gasped in complete shock, utterly astounded and frightened by the revelation. "So if I don't go along, then no matter what, either she and/or at least one o' her friends dies tryin' t' stop that crazed pirate woman from destroyin' this world with my weapons?"

"There is one possibility where they all survive and defeat her, but… yes. The chances are quite grim…" she confirmed.

"That's… that's not good at all…" he murmured, his concern turning into near-crippling anxiety as he ruminated on the possibility of his comrades' failure to stop Risky Boots if he were not to intervene. "That… is pretty chillin' to imagine, an' I usually don't scare easily…"

"It is… unfortunate, but those are the circumstances I have foreseen," the woman asserted, though she appeared to pick up a tone of concern in her voice.

"Right," he acknowledged, taking another deep breath to compose himself enough to ask his next big question. "So… What… are our chances of survivin' if I stuck by Shantae's side?"

"Out of at least ten different possible branching futures I have seen, you die in nine of them; at least three of which are at different points in time, though I do not know how or what happens."

"Oh…" was all he could manage to reply with, his heart sinking like a boulder in quicksand. "That… that shakes me t' the very core…" he muttered and gulped, nearly losing his awareness of his surroundings as he tried to process what he was just told.

"You may take some twisted form of consolation in knowing that Shantae and her other friends would stand much greater chances of surviving, whether you succeed or fail to stop Risky Boots, at least."

"How much greater?" he asked, perking up slightly.

"They would almost be guaranteed to survive in all ten of those possible futures. There are other futures where at least one of them does not survive, but those possibilities appear to be quite negligible. However, their guaranteed survival will basically come at the cost of your life in exchange for theirs. There is, of course, the one-in-ten chance that you and your friends not only survive, but also accomplish your goal, but… I'm sorry to say, your demise would almost certainly be an event that will come to pass," she warned him, the somberness in her voice evident.

"…Jeez…" he quietly and pensively murmured, floored by the circumstances surrounding such a critical decision. However, as the cavern went silent, he began to drum up possibilities of his own. As he was just told, his decision on whether to help Shantae or not would almost invariably cause the end for either himself, Shantae, or any one of her closest friends. As if that wasn't bad enough, it appeared that there was minimal chance in either scenario that they would survive… which didn't even cover whether or not they'd be successful in stopping Risky. At that, he thought long and hard about what other options might've been available in the wake of such troubling news. After a moment, he voiced his thought. "I wonder… What would happen if I chose to stop Risky Boots on my own, or with other allies in tow?"

"You will not like what I have to say in that regard," the jackal woman warned.

"What, that I'd stand no chance without Sequin Land's greatest heroes on my side an' that I and whoever else I brought with me would get wiped out?" he guessed, hoping that he was wrong.

"Not quite. Your chances of succeeding in that case would be one in roughly one hundred million; even smaller if your goal is to defeat her without anyone losing their lives. So, no, it wouldn't be impossible. However, those are not odds I would consider as being worth gambling on."

"Great… Shoot…!" he cursed, still trying to figure out ways to maximize his and his allies' chances of surviving. "Well… What if Shantae an' I worked separately? Or, if I chose t' intervene only when my help was absolutely necessary? Not that that's a decision I'd make at this point, but…"

"Your odds of surviving the ordeal, much less accomplishing your goal, would decrease. Dramatically, at that."

"Figures… Darn it…!" he cursed again, his brain thoroughly wracked for alternative measures to his two most prominent choices.

"I understand that such a decision bears heavily on your shoulders, Tayshan, and for that, you have my sympathy."

"Thanks, I guess… but… from the sound of it, if your predictions are right, then… it's basically a decision of either backin' out an ensurin' my own survival while severely endangerin' the lives of Shantae an' her friends… or stickin' t' my guns an' bein' killed in the line o' duty myself while they all most likely survive, whether we win or lose…" he stated, his gaze momentarily falling to the cavern floor as the very possibility of him meeting his end hung on a single decision that would indirectly affect not only his future, but also the futures of his Sequinean allies. What was he supposed to do? He certainly didn't want to charge blindly into a scenario where he wouldn't live to see the end of the fight, but… it was equally as bad if he chose not to fight and potentially allowed someone else to take his place… Actually, that would be worse, considering he would KNOW that that person perished instead of him…

"Unfortunately, this is what I foresaw. Try as I might to discover an easier alternative for you, there are none available. Your choices are laid out on the table, so to speak, with no way to alter them to your liking. With this information, one could not blame you for ensuring your survival by refraining from fighting further. At the very least, you could pursue a newer, more peaceful life in-!"

"Don't patronize me," he interrupted, evidently having made up his mind. "It might surprise you… or maybe it won't since you've got the power o' future sight, but I have no intention o' backin' out."

"What?" the woman remarked in astonishment that she failed to mask… even while wearing a mask, ironically. "You… you didn't take much time to come to your conclusion. Are you certain?" she asked in worry. As evidently as Tay's certainty with his choice, she hadn't expected him to make his choice so soon.

"Ah, so you DIDN'T see that comin'. Interestin'…" he observed with a nod, confirming that the woman's future sight wasn't perfect. This observation brought him some level of comfort, however fleeting. "Oddly enough, that kinda gives me a sense of hope. Anyway, Sequin Land is in danger, an' it seems there's no way t' keep it safe but t' fight. Whether I'm involved or not, somebody's steppin' up to the plate, from the looks of it."

"Yes, but I implore you to consider the consequences of your choice, Tayshan," she advised, showing that she was not entirely convinced that he was making his choice with a clear line of thought.

"I did consider them, and… I would never be able t' live with myself if I withdrew, knowin' that my decision sealed someone else's fate," he concluded with confidence. "That goes against my code with the enforcement services. It goes against the promises I made t' Tariq, Hakeem, Kassandra, an' Damian… it goes against my partnership with Shantae… an' worst of all, it goes against my personal preference t' be responsible for cleanin' up my own messes."

"Tayshan, take a second to think about this," the woman urged, a strong tinge of concern in her tone. "You have an opportunity to ensure your survival in this age. You may not like the conditions of it, but you do not have to die. If it helps you to think further about your choice, Shantae has faced similar odds in her past and has come out victorious."

"So what? That means I should live here as a coward instead?" he dared to ask. "No thanks. I've been a coward for long enough, an' I won't go back t' that. Besides, the past doesn't always dictate the future. I'm tryin' t' be a livin' example o' that. There are a lot o' very dangerous threats comin' her way that only I know about. It wouldn't make sense for me t' allow her t' handle fightin' Risky while she has my guns; especially if Shantae doesn't know what she's up against. Plus, one o' my other goals was t' get back home, an' as it stands, Risky Boots is the only one who can help me with that. I can't ensure that will happen if I don't get involved. I… I never intended on stickin' around here permanently."

"No… No, of course you didn't," the woman acknowledged. "I must warn you, however, that your chances of making it back to your era are even slimmer than your chances of surviving the coming battles against Risky Boots and her army. As in, within the one-in-ten chance that you'd survive, there is an even smaller chance you'd be able to return home as you intend."

"Hm… You really are makin' it sound like I shouldn't even bother fightin' her. Why are you tellin' me all this, anyway? What's the purpose o' this?" he asked, becoming a tad apprehensive as he continued trying to read the woman's reactions. By this point, he picked up that she'd become somewhat… fearful of his involvement in the effort to stop Risky Boots, but he couldn't understand why. At the very least, he could surmise that she didn't want him to get involved.

"I… I cannot say. I am sworn to secrecy," she admitted, her worry for him apparent in her wavering tone.

"What? Then… how do you expect me t' sit back an' obey your command not t' get involved if you won't explain t' me why you're deliverin' such a warnin'?" he pressed, perplexed by her refusal to answer him.

"My intention was not necessarily to convince you one way or the other, my boy. I intended to give you a point of consideration, so that you might know the peril your life will be in if you choose to continue along your path. Ultimately, I cannot force you to make your decision," she admitted, though her tone continued to be laced with sadness and concern.

"Alright, then… That's fair… and I appreciate that you warned me, but I… There's no turnin' back for me at this point. It's not a choice I make lightly or without intense contemplation, but I'd rather sacrifice my own life t' guarantee someone else's will carry on than the other way around; especially if I'm given the option myself. Besides, my entire reason for becomin' part o' the military in my world was t' serve an' protect; even with my life on the line. This is my purpose. I didn't sign up for such a position without expectin' t' be faced with a circumstance like this. Otherwise, I'd have no business joinin'."

"I understand…" the jackal woman solemnly acknowledged with a pensive sigh. "Are… you certain you will commit to that decision? You are aware of the stakes it carries, no?"

"Without another thought, ma'am," he asserted with a confident nod, though he felt a pang in his heart the moment he confirmed his choice to keep fighting. "The chances might be slim, but that never stopped my father from doin' his thing as a firefighter. It didn't stop my mom from workin' her hardest t' provide for me… an' it won't stop me from doin' what I can t' protect Sequin Land, either."

"…Very well, then. I wish you luck on your endeavors, Tayshan. May we never meet again," she bade with a bow.

"Never again?" he asked, perplexed by her statement. "You're… not mad at me for makin' that choice, are you?"

"No. I say this not out of hostility toward you. Take it as your final warning from me. If we cross paths again by the end of your journey… just know that it would mean one thing," she informed him, sending another chill up Tay's spine.

"…Oh. I-I understand now, ma'am," he observed with a pensive nod, though he certainly was affected by her statement. He sighed away some of his overwhelming tension before continuing. "Well… it was nice meetin' you. Whether my gratitude is misplaced or not… Thank you for lettin' me see my old friends again. An' thank you for grantin' me the wake-up call of a lifetime. Trust me, I will not forget what happened here today."

"I trust that you won't, Tay," she affirmed, addressing him by his nickname in a manner that caused him to raise an eyebrow. "Just promise me this," she requested, surprising him once more.

"Hm? I'm already loaded up with promises, but I'm sure I can take one or two more. Go ahead," he permitted.

"Commit to this decision and do not look back. No matter what happens, if you choose to take this path, then do not alter your course from here. I'm… certain Shantae would appreciate it greatly."

"Oh! O-okay, no problem. You have my word."

"I trust that I do. Also, if it comes down to it in the end… then I beg of you, please destroy the portal Risky Boots constructed to bring you here," she requested, again catching Tay off-guard.

"That's… that's a pretty heavy promise there…" he uncertainly replied, already knowing perfectly well the consequences of eliminating the very device that brought him to Sequin Land.

"I am aware that doing so would forever trap you here, but…" the jackal woman hesitantly began. "…that portal poses too big a threat to be allowed to exist. You may not be aware of this, but Risky Boots previously used that portal to invade another realm of existence called-!"

"The Genie Realm?" Tay finished for her, surprising the woman again. Again, he took her inability to predict his knowledge as a form of comfort.

"You know?"

"Both Shantae AND Risky Boots enlightened me on separate occasions," Tayshan informed. "I'm aware Risky Boots invaded this Genie Realm an' also tried t' destroy the place usin' that thing, or somethin' t' that effect…?"

"That is correct," the woman confirmed. "So, you know why I make such a request."

"Right. I didn't consider it before, but…" he began with dread, instinctively swallowing as the pit in his stomach grew bigger. "…but if she did open that portal again an' somehow had it transport her back t' my world, she'd have free rein t' steal more weapons from it. If she managed t' get t' that Genie world again, she'd very likely try t' destroy it all over again. In that case…" Tay trailed off, wishing that the possibility wasn't brought into his mind. It was bad enough that his chances of surviving his adventures in Sequin Land were spectacularly low. But, to risk forever stranding himself here with no access to his home turf in order to protect his world, Sequin Land, AND this Genie Realm from potential annihilation by Risky Boots? The pressure was on like ugly on a sloth. Sorry if you don't think sloths are ugly, but like… they kinda are. Like, REALLY ugly. Anyway, if it weren't for Tay understanding the circumstances of the request, he would very likely have lost all sense of awareness just contemplating the consequences of such an action.

"…Would you agree to that, Tay?" the woman asked, again addressing him by his nickname.

"…Yes," he nodded in confidence, though the mere prospect frightened him to the core.

"Thank you," she offered her gratitude. "I swear to you, I would not ask you to potentially sacrifice your chances of returning home if the threat posed by that device were not so great."

"Say no more, ma'am," he acknowledged, not wanting to think about possibly destroying his one and only means of returning home in the wake of all the other life-changing factors he was forced to consider. "If it has t' be done, then no matter how I feel about it… consider it done."

"Again, thank you. One more thing, however…"

"What's that?"

"Shantae must not know what we spoke of here."

"What?" he asked, understandably thrown off by the suggestion. "Why not?"

"The contents of this conversation are strictly to be kept between you and me," she sternly asserted. "Her knowledge of what you and I talked about would greatly jeopardize her future."

"In what regard, if you don't mind me askin'?" Tay challenged. "I don't see why she shouldn't be informed about this… if our lives hang in the balance-!"

"I will not tell you again, Tayshan. DO NOT speak of this conversation with her," she warned, her tone practically radiating with anger as she pointed a finger at him. "Whatever you tell her once you leave this place, she mustn't know about the true nature of our meeting right now. She will come to know on her own in due time, but that will not come at your discretion. Do you understand?"

"…I suppose," he acknowledged, though he disagreed with the idea of keeping his friend in the dark. "But what do you expect me t' tell her when she asks what happened t' me in here? Am I not allowed t' tell her about my old friends comin' back t' see me, or how you made me fight an evil doppelganger that turned out t' be a corrupted version o' my past self?"

"You may freely share those experiences with her," the woman clarified. "You may even share with her that you and I met. However, she is not to know about our conversation regarding the futures you and she may face or my request to you to destroy that portal, nor is she to know about my appearance… except for this mask. If you should reveal any pertinent information to her, I will know, and I will make you pay," she forbade with utmost vehemence, her hand glowing with a threatening golden aura.

"Alright, alright, I won't tell her about the futures or what you look like…" he acquiesced, raising his hands to protect himself. "Jeez, why is it that so many women threaten me with violence t' keep me quiet around here…?" he further complained. "Can I at least talk about the part with there bein' infinite possibilities an' predestined events? She seems t' already know that much, as far as I learned from her, so there's nothin' I could say that she would be surprised about."

"Does she?" the woman remarked in what sounded like pleasant surprise. "Interesting… In that case, I will conditionally allow it. Just be certain not to get too specific with it."

"Gee, thanks for your permission. You're so generous," he sarcastically spat, though he was curious about what this woman's connection to Shantae was. He was additionally curious as to why she didn't want Shantae to know much about her presence. However, upon further thought, he acknowledged that questioning the jackal-masked woman would probably get him nowhere, as she would refuse to answer his questions in that area. As such, he shrugged and made it a point to keep it in his mind for later. "Now, how do I get out o' here?"

"I will grant you an exit, but before you go, I must deliver one more warning to you," she informed him.

"Oh? What warnin' is that?"

"However dire the circumstances get for you, do not let your passions burn you."

"Hm? What do you mean?" he asked, uncertain of what she was implying.

"Hopefully, this does not come to fruition, but… while the Dark Magic in your body was purified, there are other ways that more of it can enter your being… Intense emotions are chief among them. This is to say that overwhelming feelings of anger, grief, misery, or the like are a primary gateway, as I stated before. Let it consume you, and you may very well become the version of yourself you were forced to fight here in the Grotto of Judgment. I may have purified your body, but only a combined effort of your willpower and someone with command of Light Magic can help you purify your mind in the case that you are overwhelmed by Dark Magic."

"Wow. There's an awful lot t' look out for, huh? I… I'll take that int' consideration," he replied in understanding, his head spinning like a disco ball at all the information relayed to him in his time in the Grotto of Judgment.

"I trust that you will. However, it is now time for you to leave this place. Brace yourself," she warned, raising a hand that glowed with a brilliant golden hue. Immediately after, Tay's body was highlighted in the same glow as he began to levitate against his will.

"Hey, what-!?"

"Farewell, my child!" commanded the woman as she, with a magic-charged thrust of her hand, cast the soldier out of the Grotto of Judgment the same way he came in.

"WAAAAaaaaaaaa…!" Tay screamed in horror, though it quickly became increasingly distant as he made his graceful exit.

 ** _Back on the outside (Finally)…_**

"Man… We've tried everything," Shantae complained, breathing heavily as she, Sky, Twitch, and Vinegar wracked their brains on what else to do to rescue their teammate. The four young women had been trying relentlessly to gain access to the cavern Tay was hoisted into… evidently with not even an inkling of luck. "None of my spells work…"

"None of my birds are strong enough to break through the boulder," Sky added, equally as frustrated as she scratched her head.

"And none of the bombs we stocked up on put even a crack in this thing," Twitch further complained, still feeling the stony barricade up and down for a possible secret entrance switch. "The only progress we made is with that tiny little sliver from earlier!"

"We've been out here for the last two hours trying, too," Vinegar concluded, thus completing the list of complaints the girls had, crossing her arms as she leaned up against the nearby wall. "How is it that this thing hasn't even begun to crumble?"

"You can say that again," Shantae agreed, rubbing her chin as she stood directly behind Twitch, observing the blocked cave entrance from a distance. "Something's gotta give, though," she added, her determination unwavering as she perked up. She was certain that, one way or another, Tayshan would be rescued from that cave… it was just a matter of figuring out how. "Things might look rocky right now, but we can't take this situation for granite—er, granted! If we can't get him out of there, then hoodoo we expect to solve this problem for us? We can't allow ourselves to be graveled now! Tay needs us, and, so long as we work together, we can climb this mountain as a team!" she prattled on in a pun-laden attempt at motivating her comrades to keep trying.

Of course, she was met with a collective "Ugh…" and eye rolls from all three of the other girls. From the sound of it, none of them were to appreciative of the gritty speech she gave… Wait a… Oh, no, I made a rock pun, too! Darn it!

"If you could find it in you to come up with such a cheesy, pun-infested motivational speech at a time like this, then how is it you haven't figured out how to move this boulder?" Vinegar asked with contempt, apparently disliking such juvenile, campy humor… at least, when Shantae did it.

"Seriously, Shantae, the rock puns… Just like these two, your timing couldn't be worse," Sky further complained, shaking her head in disapproval.

"Aw, come on!" Shantae complained back in disappointment and worry. "That took me this whole time to come up with… Twitch, you at least appreciate the creativity of my speech, right?" she tried to fish for approval from the only one of the other three girls not to voice her displeasure. However, Twitch was still investigating the boulder when she noticed it beginning to shift.

"Girls, look!" the bespectacled blonde cheered as the boulder quaked and shook, moving downward into the ground. "It's finally moving! I did it!"

"Alright, Twitch!" Vinegar congratulated her. "Now, we just need to go in and-!"

"Do… you hear something?" Sky asked, evidently picking up a noise coming from inside. "It sounds like… panicked screaming," she further observed, carefully approaching the cavern entrance as it opened all the way. Upon further inspection, she identified the screaming, which was getting progressively louder, as their lost teammate. "That's Tay screaming!"

"Oh, no… He must be in trouble!" Shantae hastily concluded, running toward the cave, ready to jump in at a moment's glance to save him. "We gotta-!"

"Duck!" Twitch interrupted, seeing something bulleting toward them as she and Sky hit the dirt and covered.

"Huh? What are you two do-!"

"WAWAWAWAWAAAAGH!" a human projectile screamed, flying out of the cave entrance and colliding with Shantae at basically mach speed. With a jarring series of cartoony *CRASH* noises, Shantae and the unidentified flying object were sent bowling across the open, grassy landscape into the nearby freshwater stream. She landed on her back with a rocky *SPLASH*, the object finding itself… or rather, HIMSELF, pinning her down.

"Shantae!" Sky called out as she and Twitch rose to their feet and turned to inspect the damage. The intensely-worried bird tamer rushed to her friend's aid as she noticed an entanglement of scarlet red and… some kind of mud stain-styled camouflage. Within a couple of seconds, she realized what the mud camouflage might've been. "Tayshan!" she also called out. Once she reached them, however, she froze, uncertain of what to make of the situation. "Ooh… Uhh…"

"Owww…" Shantae groaned, coming to her senses as she blinked her eyes to regain her senses and took a gander at what crashed into her. Still flat on her back in the shallow stream, she looked downward and saw someone's head pressed into her chest. Understandably frightened and confused by such a predicament, she pushed the individual's head up with both hands, revealing the human missile to be none other than Tay, though he appeared worse for wear. Nevertheless, Shantae's apprehension changed to excitement and relief that her extraterrestrial comrade was out of the cave he was sucked into. "Tay! You're safe!" she cheered, still holding his head.

"Ooogh… Huh…?" Tay grunted, still very disoriented as he stirred from his momentary slumber. He blinked his eyes a few times before focusing his gaze downward to see a mass of purple below him with blue eyes. Once his vision came back, he barely recognized just who that mass of lavender was. "Shantae…? Fancy meetin' you here…"

"Oh, thank goodness, you're okay! I thought you were a goner!" she cheered, ensnaring the still-groggy soldier's head in her arms and pulling him in for a hug. Now, as one might expect, this hug was totally innocent in nature and was a result of a friend being rescued after at least two hours of being stuck in a cave with seemingly no way out. Nothing wrong there. However, the execution of the hug could very well be called into question. Suffice to say, Tay stood about as much chance suffocating in his friend's chest as he did drowning, due to the fact that she was bear-hugging his head they were still in the stream. Shantae had been blissfully unaware of the fact that she was in the middle of killing him while ironically celebrating the fact that he was still alive. Soooo… yeah. Do with that information, what you will.

"Grgrgrglglrlgrlglglg!" Tay futilely tried to shout, his words only coming up as gurgling bubbles that rose to the water surface as he struggled to break free.

"Shantae, stop!" Sky called out, rushing to the poor soldier's aid by trying to pull him off of the half-genie by his arm. "You're gonna drown him!"

"Huh?" she responded, still unaware of what she was doing as she held him firmly in her grasp.

"That means get off him, ya thieving cow!" Twitch angrily screamed, rushing over to assist Sky in yanking the half-dead soldier off of his half-genie would-be killer. With a collaborative pull, Sky and Twitch dragged Tay off of Shantae, pulling him to safety on the grass below. As the two young women did so, Tay went into an uncontrollable fit of hacking, coughing, and gasping for air. His latest near-death experience had, thus far, come the closest to doing him in.

"Oh! Jeez, Tay, I'm so sorry!" Shantae profusely apologized, climbing back to her feet to check on her friend while Sky tended to him by patting him on the back. However, Twitch stood in the way, holding her arms out to block her path.

"Oh, no you don't! I knew you were up to no good!" the shorter Ammonian acolyte accused.

"What are you talking about?" Shantae asked, vexed by Twitch's overprotective outburst.

"Like I have to explain it! You think you're so slick, making such… such dirty moves on my man!" she accused once again.

"What!? Again with this!?" Shantae reacted with insurmountable chagrin. "Look, this is getting old, so just drop it! I need to see if he's okay!"

"Girls, stop!" Sky commanded, still patting Tay on the back as he recovered from nearly meeting a watery end. "There are more important things to worry about right now," she advised, turning her full attention to Tay.

"Ugh! Oh, man…" the lone male team member of the group managed to comment through heavy breaths. After a moment, he came to his senses, though he remained seated in the grass. "If I never went back in that cave again, it'd be too soon…"

"Tay-Tay!" Twitch called to him in alarm, swiftly approaching him and kneeling at his side. Shantae followed suit, though not quite as… enthusiastically, as she approached the disheveled young man's other side. "Are you okay? Your clothes are in ribbons! What happened to you in there?" she asked in rapid succession, placing a hand in his chest.

"Yeah, you look like you went through a cheese grater," Shantae commented, worried for her friend's safety. "Was there a lot of danger in that cave? Did you figure out who or what dragged you in there?"

"It's a… a VERY long story…" he replied, motioning to bring himself to his feet. Sky and Twitch both helped him by grasping each of his hands and pulling him up. He winced as he went through radiating waves of pain throughout his body just to stand. "Thanks, ladies. I owe y'all one each."

"Of course, Tay!" Sky happily accepted his gratitude. "No return favors necessary."

"No problem," Twitch added. "I mean, I'm certainly not complaining about the view you're giving me, so your debt is most certainly paid," she salaciously added, eyeing him up and down to take in a full mental picture of his mostly-shirtless, battle-damaged form.

"Jeez, Twitch, you could at least try t' be subtle…" he self-consciously complained, his face getting hot with embarrassment. Shantae, displeased with such a gushy display of romantic intrigue, stuck out her tongue and made a silent 'Bleagh' facial expression. Sky rolled her eyes and sighed in just as much discomfort.

"Yeah, but you should know me by now. As in, REALLY know me by now. Still, you look like you had a really rough time in there. Who did this to you?" Twitch asked, concerned about his wellbeing.

"And, for that matter, was there anything worth note in that cave?" Vinegar added as she remained leaned up against the wall. "The entrance closed up again, so it doesn't seem like we'll be going back in there any time soon," she added, pointing toward the cave entrance, which was once again blocked off by the giant boulder.

"Hm…" Tay pondered, trying to figure out where to start as he scanned the sun-bathed canyon and observed the curious stares each of his four comrades shot him. "Gather 'round. I'll… try t' tell y'all as much as I can," he offered, limping toward Vinegar. The other three followed suit, eager to hear what he had to share.

 ** _One Long, Confusing Explanation Later…_**

"The Grotto of Judgment?" Sky asked, alarmed by the name of the cavern.

"Ghosts of your old friends?" Vinegar followed up, equally as shocked.

"An evil clone of you that almost killed you?" Twitch asked after her partner, startled by the gruesome tale.

"A… woman in a jackal mask?" Shantae asked, mystified by Tayshan's description of the ominous woman he came face-to-mask with. "And you said… she knew about time travel?"

"Good t' know y'all were all listenin'," Tay surmised, still scratching his head. "As for your question, homegirl, it wasn't time travel she knew about. It was the whole thing y'all were arguin' about before, with predestination versus infinite possibilities and such. Turns out that y'all were all right… in some strange sense that I can't elaborate on."

"So what, predestination and multiple possibilities are both true?" Vinegar deduced.

"Kinda… All I know is that it's apparently based on probability, but that some things, like me showin' up here, could never have been avoided… even if somebody could try t' go back in time t' try t' stop it. So yes, in a nutshell, predestination an' multiple possibilities exist, but there ain't no tellin' what events will be… predetermined…" he uncertainly stated, still ruminating on the warning given to him by the woman in the jackal mask.

"Alright, I guess that makes SOME sense…" Twitch begrudgingly accepted. "I mean, I still don't buy the predestination part, but whatever…"

"Glad that little debate could be solved, but I'm not sure what we'll do with that info," Sky interjected in perplexity. "I'm curious, though… Why is it that you were the only one dragged in there? We tried for a solid two hours to move the boulder blocking the entrance, but none of us could get through."

"Yeah, we were at it nonstop," Shantae corroborated.

"I… I really wouldn't know, but…" Tay began, trying to find the right words to convey his explanation. "Maybe… it has somethin' t' do with how much somebody needs t' be in there."

"Oh?" the four young women all perked up in wonder.

"What's that mean?" Vinegar questioned.

"Well… like I said, I spoke with that woman about my reasons for bein' here, as well as my motivations for doin' what I do," Tay explained. "She dug int' me about my past, my goals, an' my personal faults… An' then… An' then she somehow made it so that I could talk to some old friends I had unresolved conflicts with…" he continued to elaborate, though his eyes were primarily fixed on Shantae as he came clean.

"Whoa…" Shantae remarked, astounded by such a chilling revelation.

"Shantae… There's… somethin' more I want t' talk t' you about later on, if you've got time… R-regardin' our conversation from this mornin'," he hesitantly requested.

"Oh? Sure, Tay. We should have some time tonight," she agreed with a nod, though one merely needed to glance at her to pick up the abundant concern she felt as she remembered the sour note they left off on.

"Okay, so what happened with the evil clone?" Twitch pressed, wanting to hear more.

"That woman drew out some Dark Magic she said was locked int' me, an' then used it to… to create an evil version o' me that knew basically everything I knew from the minute I arrived in Sequin Land, but that had the sole purpose of destroyin' this world if he got the chance. That's… why my clothes look like this," he explained, grabbing at the shredded remains of his tank top. The four young women could barely contain their shock, though Shantae was especially unsettled by the news. "That clone knew all my moves, but he could also throw fireballs an' charge his fists with magic that he used t' fry me up good."

"It's… just like what we talked about earlier… I thought I was the only one that struggled with that…" the mystified half-genie murmured low enough to where no one else could hear her.

"I only managed t' win once I realized that I was basically fightin' myself," he further spilled the beans. "Once that happened, I whipped out this shotgun the first chance I got, an' brought the fight to a quick, merciful end. There's also some details about the clone transformin' back into a younger me that wound up rejoinin' me, but I'd be here all day tryin t' explain that… After that, the jackal lady an' I chatted a bit more before she let me out, an' well… the rest is history."

"No way…!" Twitch exhaled in awe.

"You really went through a mid-life crisis of sorts in there, huh?" Sky further observed, dumbfounded by the tumultuous tale. "What a scary experience…"

"Yeah, I guess it really could be put that way," Tay agreed with a small chuckle. "In any case, sorry t' make y'all worry. I didn't exactly expect t' fight a Boss Battle all on my own, or… do anything that wound up happenin' down there. Were y'all okay out here?"

"We're fine, but we never stopped trying to get you out of there," Sky assured.

"Oh. Thanks for carin'," he sincerely offered his gratitude. "Still, there were no other Tinkerbats or suspicious-lookin' monsters out here? I mean… It looks an' smells like this place is still on fire in the distance, but it doesn't look like the flames got here."

"Nope, not a single one of Risky's little circus freaks popped up here since we made it to this end of the valley," Vinegar affirmed. "No signs of other life, either. Not even the birds, rabbits, or goats we saw and heard when we first got here."

"We don't have a clue on how to put out the fires, either," Twitch added. "They don't make fire extinguishers big enough to contain the damage done in this place. We probably shouldn't be sticking around here much longer, either, unless we want to burn like the grass around these parts."

"Good point," Tay agreed, observing the landscape to see that many of the blazes set by Risky Boots's minions were still ravaging the Prickle Stitch Valley. Thick, murky clouds of smoke polluted the otherwise-clear, sunny evening sky above. "Should we really leave this place like this, though? There are still at least a few weapons over there that we didn't get a chance t' reclaim… Plus, it doesn't feel right, leavin' this place t' burn like it is."

"You leave those weapons to us, Tayshan," Vinegar assured him. "We'll find a way to scavenge them out. Besides, it's part of our deal that you let us take whatever we found here, remember?" Hearing this loud and clear, Shantae and Sky both perked up in alarm.

"What!?" The two maidens simultaneously shouted, understandably appalled.

"What do you mean you get to take whatever weapons were left here!?" Shantae asked, objecting to what she heard of the new deal.

"I… I promised them that, in return for us workin' together, they could take whatever they could find while we were fightin' our way through here," Tay confessed, much to his comrade's shock.

"But why?" she asked, unable to fathom whatever uncharacteristic reason Tay would agree to such an unfavorable arrangement. "I thought the deal was that you'd let Twitch take you on a date if they helped us!"

"What!?" Sky reacted with sudden fury, as she had not been informed of the previous arrangement. As such, she glared at Tayshan with unmitigated rage.

"Shantae, no!" Tay yelled at her, incredibly displeased at her wording and very, VERY poor timing. I can't imagine why, so don't ask me.

"Oops…" was all the mortified half-genie had to say for herself, covering her mouth as she contemplated the monstrous can of worms she'd just opened.

"You agreed to go on a date!? With her!? When? Why!?" Sky drilled, every syllable laced with intense frustration. As they say in Sequin Land… The underworld hath no fury like a woman scorned.

"Ohh, you're in trouble now," Vinegar teased, giggling from the sidelines.

"It was NOT a date!" Tay yelled back, equally as flustered as he was frightened at what Sky would do to him upon finding out about this most… inopportune arrangement as he backed away. "We were gonna spend some time just gettin' t' know each other at some restaurant in Scuttle Town! This… uh, deal was decided maybe a few hours after you an' I first met."

"So you were planning on wooing both me AND this little girl, Tay!? What kind of gross, depraved womanizer are you!?" Sky continued to yell, marching up to him. "For goodness sakes, she's not even old enough to walk across the street without a chaperone!" she indirectly insulted Twitch while still yelling at Tay. Twitch, already having heard enough, intervened by stepping between them.

"First of all, I'm eighteen years old! Don't you dare condescend to me like that!" she shouted. "Second, he's clearly more interested in women who actually have a sense of beauty and style," she further added, taking another shot at Sky, though her revelation of her age surprised both Sky and Shantae. "Which is far more than I can say for you, little Miss Unseasonable, with those rags wrapped around your head in the burning sun! Maybe you should give that bird brain of yours some air! Why would he ever plan on 'wooing' a harpy like you!?"

"Wait, you're older than me!?" the still-inscensed bird trainer asked in surprise, though she shook her head to refocus. "Forget that. Anyway, you've got some nerve telling me how I look when you look like an oversized third-grader!" Sky angrily shot back. "What's more, you talk about who he's interested in like you really know him! I'll have you know he appreciates how I look!"

"What!? And what's that supposed to mean!?" Twitch demanded to know, taken aback by the implication of Sky's statement.

"I'll tell you… or rather, maybe I'll let him tell you," she suggested, gesturing toward the soldier they were fighting over. Twitch, absorbing some of Sky's anger, turned toward Tay with a fiery glare in her eyes.

"Okay… Tay-Tay, what does she mean?" she asked in a scarily-calm manner, though one could tell just by being within ten miles of this conversation that one wrong word would set her off like an atomic bomb.

"…Wow… All of this is really comin' back t' bite me right now," he sighed, fearing that his impending death would happen any minute now. "Hard enough that I can FEEL the marks on my butt already. But you know what? I'm an adult, so I'll come super clean, rather than panic an' trip over my own words. This is my fault t' some… no, to a VERY high degree, so I hope you're both merciful when… when you decide t' collaboratively murder the ever-lovin' stuffin' out o' me."

"Hm?" the two combatants, as well as Shantae collectively hummed in intrigue at his decision not to panic in the wake of this heated discussion.

"Now THIS should be fun to hear," Vinegar remarked, just as eager to hear Tay's next magic trick of convincing the other girls not to kill him dead. "I wish I had a nice, big bag of popcorn right about now…"

"You and me both," Shantae agreed, though she took no pleasure in watching Tayshan be put on the hot seat. It's also possible that she didn't enjoy it because it was, in part, her fault he was even in this situation.

"Alright, so… first an' foremost, I am NOT… I repeat, NOT a womanizer. Like, at all," he eloquently, albeit nervously began. "At. All."

"I beg to differ, Casanova," Vinegar teased, still snickering at the pressing ordeal at hand. Of course, her snide remark set Tay's temper off like she'd become something of an expert at doing.

"You're not helping, Vinegar!" Tay screamed, shaking a fist at his heckler before clearing his throat to regain his composure. Afterward, he turned toward the bird tamer. "So, Sky…"

"Mm-hmm?" she remarked, arms crossed with a vexed facial expression.

"When I made the agreement with Twitch, I had the sole purpose of enlistin' some help against Risky Boots in mind. Nothing else. I figured that if she wanted t' get t' know me, at least as a friend, then she an' I could hang out. Not date. Hang out. Like, what friends do. Platonically. Plus, I thought that, if she couldn't keep her end o' the bargain by way of tryin' t' steal weapons instead o' returnin' 'em to me, then the deal would be off. That deal eventually fell through when Twitch an' Vinegar kidnapped me. Honestly, I was bankin' on the deal fallin' through in a different way than this, but… It was messed up, no matter what way we look at it. I was… also not thinking about how you would feel about that, and I apologize PROFUSELY for makin' such a move… especially without your knowledge."

"Oh. Well, that… That actually makes sense, though I don't really get why someone would accept a da—er, friendly hang-out as a bargaining chip related to saving Sequin Land from foreign weapons in Risky Boots's possession," she observed with a nod.

"As far as I understand, her part of it was to try t' trick me int' spillin' secrets that she an' her crew could use for their own purposes. Am I wrong, Twitch?"

"No, that's mostly accurate," she begrudgingly admitted. "I mean, I thought of it as a date, but yeah. That, and we kinda need help getting that H.P.G. back. Teaming up with Tay-Tay and Shantae was our best option. There's no way that old hag is gonna give up our machine so easily after a grand discovery like the one she made…"

"Oh, right, I only heard Risky took something from you…" Sky acknowledged. "I suppose that all adds up, though I don't know how I feel about it," she mercifully accepted with a stroke of her chin as she breathed and relaxed her stance.

"I understand," Tay replied, acknowledging Sky's uncertainty. "This was a pretty… unusual arrangement by all accounts."

"You can say that again. I just hope this is the last time a discussion like this has to happen."

"You bet it will be. I swear. Now, Twitch," Tay addressed, turning his attention to the aforementioned Ammonian affiliate.

"Yes?"

"I… I can't believe I have t' explain this again…" he lamented with a heavy gulp as he hesitated to speak his mind.

"Well? Spit it out!" Twitch impatiently commanded.

"You got it. So, as for what Sky was referrin' to… I… I did wind up… lookin' at her in a… less-than-pure light the other day…" he confessed, his shame nearly roasting him like the wildfires in the distance that were scorching the valley into dust. "I… I got distracted when we were done talkin' that morning, an' I let my eyes wander a bit too much…" At that revelation, Twitch scowled while Sky smirked.

"Wow. I can't believe you! you dirty pi-!" Twitch nearly spat in disgust, ready to insult him.

"But! I will tell you that, with some sage advice from Shantae, I apologized t' her for my shameful, humiliatin', totally-creepy move, an' I promised never t' do anything like that to any girl ever again… and now I'm apologizin' t' you for even doin' that when we had that arrangement in the past. I'm… really sorry, an'… I have no idea what I could do t' save face at this point. I get it if you don't like me anymore because o' that."

"Oh. Well, so long as you owned up to your mistakes, I GUESS I can forgive you. You boys do tend to get a little… curious sometimes, which apparently is no different across separate dimensions. So, I guess I can see where you're coming from," she calmly replied, though her reply came across as male-shaming.

"Really?" he asked, perking up in response to her seemingly-magnanimous attitude.

"Yeah. And don't you worry, you're still the apple of my eye. Although…" she trailed off, walking toward him and clenching a fist. Before anyone figured out what she planned on doing, she cocked said fist back and, with a frightening *THUMP*, she punched Tay in the chest as hard as she could.

"Gagh! Nnnnnnnrgh…!" he winced in unbearable, searing, torturous agony, as Twitch punched him in an incredibly tender area; namely, where Nega-Tayshan had repeatedly stomped on him during the battle in the Grotto of Judgment. As such, he hunched over, clutching his chest with both arms. "That was legit the worst spot you could've punched me…!" he choked out, still groaning in horrible pain.

"Hey!" Shantae complained from the sidelines. "He said he was sorry! That was completely unnecessary!"

"That's what it feels like when you play with a girl's heart, Tay-Tay! Now you know how much love hurts! But, so long as you've come to your senses, I think that's punishment enough. I'll let it go… THIS time…" Twitch warned with nothing but dead seriousness in her tone as she paid no attention to Shantae's complaint.

"…Fair, I guess…" the young man acknowledged, bringing himself back to a standing position as he continued to rub the wounded area of his chest. "Thanks for understandin'…"

"Of course. Also… for the record, you can stare at me as much as you want, just as long as I know it and I'm the only girl you do it to," she advised him with a smiling wink that startled the soldier stiff… again. Shantae, Sky, Tayshan, and Vinegar each shot her a series of blank stares that let her know just how uncomfortable her statement made them. "…What?"

"…Uh…" Tay droned, unable to drum up a retort as the pain in his chest seemed to disappear the instant his romantically-aggressive friend made her comment.

"Twitch, you know you don't always have to be so awkward and pushy to win a boy over," Vinegar admonished in shared embarrassment, much to Twitch's blushing chagrin. "Those awful dating magazines have totally warped your approach, so you can guess what's going right into a fire pit when we get home. Sometimes, a little bit of tact will do the trick, by the way."

"I'm not being pushy, Vinni! I'm being honest!" the flustered young woman complained to her closest ally. "Why bother beating around the bush when you can just claim what's rightfully yours from the start? Those mags are just a supplement to my ingenious method! Just take a look at Tay-Tay yourself and bask in my fruitful results!" she further defended herself, pointing toward a terribly-flustered Tay, who silently gawked at her in complete astonishment.

"Anyway, I guess I can appreciate a man who can be as honest about his mistakes as you've been, Tay," Sky added, thankfully changing the topic as she addressed the mortified soldier. "Especially as big as the ones you admitted to. Sorry for calling you all those names and accusing you of being a womanizer."

"Y-yeah, thanks… thanks for your forgiveness, y'all," he understandingly replied, taking a few deep breaths to regroup. He was, however, still rubbing his aching chest with one hand. "I… I won't make those mistakes again. I swear. If I do, you both—no, you all have legal right t' bury me alive," he permitted, wanting to be all-inclusive.

"Alright, but don't think we won't take you up on it if you get caught slipping again, 'Tay-Tay,'" Vinegar warned with a smiling, laughter-laden wink. Tay, amused as always at Vinegar's goading, shot her a deadpan expression.

"I'm sure it won't come to that," Shantae consoled, feeling for her humiliated sidekick. "You seem like you've learned your lesson, Tay-Ta—uh, Tay," she corrected, nearly slipping by calling him by his other nickname. Immediately following the slip of the tongue, she sheepishly grinned at him as he also shot her a disapproving stare.

"Hmm… You certainly got that right," Tay agreed, choosing to ignore Shantae's mistake while stretching to try and ease the post-battle aches. "Alright, are… are we all cool now? Can we all be friends?"

"With you, yes," Sky clarified.

"With hairball and the walking chicken coop over here?" Twitch added, referring to Shantae and Sky, respectively. "Don't count on it. We might be on the same side, but it doesn't mean we have to get along with them."

"Your choice in that regard. I can't force y'all t' do somethin' y'all don't wanna do. I'm just glad we cleared that up," Tay dismissed with a sigh of relief.

"Sure, except for one thing…" Sky pointed out.

"For once, I agree with bird-brain," Twitch attested.

"An'… W-what's that?" Tay hesitantly asked, fearing he knew what either one of the two girls was going to ask.

"Which one of us do you actually like?" Sky and Twitch both asked with utmost curiosity, apparently retaining their shared interest in him; even in the wake of his longwinded confession of debauchery. As you can see, he was not out of the woods yet. Of course, Tay froze in sheer, unbridled terror. He was once again placed on the hot seat, and this time, there was no sweet-talking his way out of it. As far as he rationalized, if he picked Sky, Twitch would kill him. If he picked Twitch, Sky would kill him. If he chose neither, they would both kill him. And of course, if he chose both, then they'd either kill him… or kill each other. Or kill each other AND him. Yeah, there was destined to be a 'Crime of Passion' in every scenario he could think of. He didn't need partial clairvoyance powers to know that much. Tay knew his preferences, but he was so far beyond unwilling to share them at this point that one would have a better time convincing a snail to eat a tablespoon of salt. Reading his tangible discomfort, Shantae stepped in to save him.

"That's not important, nor is it fair to ask him right now," the half-genie chimed in, bailing him out of the second-hardest decision he had to make today.

"Shantae…" he breathed with a sigh of relief as his heart leapt for joy. "My hero…"

"What do you mean 'not important or fair'?" Sky incredulously asked. "This is a critical decision he has to make right here and now! It could legit change the fates of everyone here!" she enunciated, not even close to knowing how true those words were, on a greater scale.

"Yeah, we need to get to the bottom of it once and for all, so we know he likes me, and not her!" Twitch rather… assertively added.

"Whatever is true and what isn't, shouldn't really be up for discussion right now," Shantae argued. "The poor guy just got done spilling his guts out to you both and apologizing for what he did. If we can move past this, that'd be great. Besides, I'm more curious about this new arrangement of yours regarding the weapons," she redirected, finally moving this awkward conversation along.

"If you must know, then our arrangement was that if we all teamed up to bring down Queen Crabby and refrained from double-crossing you again, Tayshan would allow us to take whatever weapons we found," Vinegar clarified. "So, since we proved that we'll do our part by teaming up to wipe out all of Risky's Tinkerbats, we expect him to hold up his part by letting us take whatever we can collect from here… provided that we have much to collect after those Tinkerbats scorched like 78% of this island."

"Actually, Tay-Tay…" Twitch interjected, having been reminded of something. "I still have your awesome, but horribly-unwieldly handgun. No offense, but this is… not gonna serve much use for me," she further explained, pulling out the firearm and holding it toward Tay. He went to grab it, but Twitch wasn't so keen on just handing it over. As such, she nudged the gun away from his hand as he tried to take it.

"What gives?" Tay asked with a tilt of his head.

"I'll trade you for that shotgun and that Stinger thing you used to blow up those Tinkerbats."

"Shoot… Right," he sulked in disappointment, realizing right away that he would be back to square one regarding equipment.

"Oh, and don't forget about those grenade things you have," Vinegar further suggested, causing Tay to cringe in displeasure. "However many you've got on you, we'll take. They seem pretty useful."

"Right…" he acquiesced, pulling the empty Stinger launcher of from seemingly nowhere and handing it to Twitch in a totally fair exchange for his Desert Eagle. "Remember what I told you about that thing, though," Tay warned Twitch. Shantae and Sky looked on in wordless awe, apparently surprised by the intimidating appearance of the device.

"Yeah, that this weapon needs a battery cooler thing and an actual missile to launch for it to be useful," Twitch recalled, shoving the Stinger into her rucksack despite the weapon being at least five times the length of the bag. "Chances are, we'll only be keeping this thing around for study if we can't find any of the other missing pieces, but… who knows?"

"Hmph. All I know is that you'd better not use it for the wrong reasons if the case winds up bein' that you did find replacement parts or somehow repurposed it."

"Of course, Tay-Tay! I told you I'd be a good girl for you, remember~?" she reassured as she flirtatiously grinned and winked at him. Sky, and even Shantae, both unamused by Twitch's disposition toward Tay, frowned in collective contempt.

"Eh… r-right," he acknowledged as he pulled out his last two grenades and surrendered them to Vinegar. "That's the only two I got, so you'd better be careful with 'em."

"Thank you kindly, sir," Vinegar graciously accepted his generous donation.

"Tayshan…" Shantae cut in, growing understandably concerned. "Are… Are you really sure about this? I thought your original goal was to collect as many of your guns and weapons as you could, so that no one with the wrong idea would ever get to use them…?"

"To be honest, Shantae… no, I'm not," he answered. "But, a promise is a promise. I've gotta keep my word, no matter what I do. Also, it's increasingly evident that I won't be able t' get everything back…" he added in disappointment and mild frustration. "At this point, all we can really do is either take 'em back or destroy 'em if there's no chance t' reclaim 'em…"

"That makes sense, but I'd hope we can collect as much of this bounty as we could," Vinegar answered as she observed the grenades, awed by their design. "We could benefit by a huge margin…"

"Hmm… I dunno, Tay," Sky also replied, rubbing her chin in worry. "It definitely seemed unrealistic for us to collect everything once you and Shantae found out Risky was already deploying troops armed with your equipment, but simply giving some of it out to people who've attacked you twice by this point? How do we know they'll keep their word on not using anything they get their hands on for the wrong reasons? Especially with a track record like theirs?"

"You got me there, Sky," Tay shamefully admitted, cursing himself for letting things get out of hand like this. "I… I was told previously that they could be trusted, but…" he admitted as he continued to brood, contemplating the consequences of deviating from his original mission to a point where he might not have been able to recognize it by the time it was completed. An anxiety-induced pit formed in his stomach as a result.

"After everything we've been through, don't tell me you still don't trust us, Tay-Tay," Twitch objected, disheartened by the alien soldier's uncertainty.

"Yeah, cut us some slack," Vinegar added in equal displeasure. "We never break an honest vow of cooperation; especially when we've got a common goal. You were right when you said we shouldn't be squabbling with each other at a time like this."

"Yeah, because you definitely never broke a 'vow of cooperation' in the very recent past…" Sky sardonically countered.

"We said we were sorry, alright!?" Twitch yelled, her temper quickly reaching a boil. "Seriously, what else do you want us to do to prove we won't fight with you again until we're done taking down Risky Boots? Kiss your feet and beg for forgiveness?"

"No," Shantae denied. "But you girls do realize that kidnapping someone and then trying to coerce them into working with you on your terms is pretty bad for morale and collaboration in the future, right?"

"Ugh, we know," Twitch acknowledged in annoyance, crossing her arms and rolling her eyes.

"Spare us the moral story," Vinegar agreed, also crossing her arms in annoyance. "The fact is, you have our genuine word this time. Besides, after what we just went through, there's no way we'd stab Tayshan in the back."

"…Why just me?" Tay asked, his curiosity piqued at the odd specificity of Vinegar's rebuttal.

"Tay-Tay, sweetheart, come on!" Twitch interjected, strolling up to him and grabbing his hand with both of hers. Immediately, Sky became wary, as she shot a scrutinizing stare in Twitch's direction. Shantae merely watched, an inexplicable pang in her heart triggering a strange sense of… moderate to severe displeasure directed at Twitch. "Don't be like that. We did a bad thing before, but you literally saved my life, remember? Not to mention how you protected me from those Tinkerbats with the shotguns before that! And who could forget how you piggybacked Vinni through this place when she got hurt? We'd be nothing but heartless and inconsiderate to ever forget how much you've done for us on just this trip. We owe you so much more than our cooperation just because of that, and the least we could do is begrudgingly agree to work with your annoying friends without the threat of treachery."

"Excuse me!?" Sky yelled in outrage, though Twitch ignored her completely.

"…That's a generally good point, I guess…" he acknowledged, though he didn't really like how Twitch conveyed her point. "Your wordin' needs work, but that's… that's true. So, you're really tellin' me you're okay workin' with Shantae an' Sky an' that there won't be more trouble?"

"Exactly, hon! If that doesn't convince you, then think about what'll happen between the two of us once we finish dealing with this little pirate mess?" she teased, a rather… sultry grin creeping onto her face as she tugged on his arm to bring him closer to her height level. Shantae, noticing this, took an immediate issue with such a display. She felt a sudden heat of anger stir in her abdomen as she and the other girls looked on. Sky was about ready to pounce like an enraged bobcat, though Shantae laid a hand on her shoulder to keep her from lashing out. It was clear, however, that these girls were not happy with what they were seeing, but that they were restraining themselves to keep from possibly violating their cooperation agreement. Vinegar, unfazed by her (sworn) sister's lascivious performance, watched on with no strong feelings one way or the other. Tay, while still uncomfortable with Twitch's forwardness, bent down in accordance with the young woman's wordless request despite his reservations. At that point, Twitch latched onto the soldier's arm with one hand while drawing circles on his mostly-bare chest with the other. She leaned in and planted a sneaky kiss on his cheek, making her intentions known. Tay, caught completely off-guard, froze in place as he tried to process what was happening.

"I knew it!" Sky protested in intense irritation. "Alright, sister, it's time you cut this nonsense out! This is for the birds!" she continued to yell, though it fell on deaf ears again. She was set to march over and separate them herself. However, her best friend grasped her hand. At that, Sky turned and looked at who grabbed her. "Hey, wha…? Shantae, are… you okay?" the bird tamer asked in concern as she dropped her previous aggression toward Twitch to examine her best friend. Shantae was trying her hardest to hold her tongue, though she was also visibly disquieted by her frenemy's advances on her sidekick. However, she hadn't been speaking… only taking deep, stress-laden breaths as she glared in the direction of the soldier and the Ammonian Army affiliate kissing his cheek. "You… look… furious," Sky continued to speak to her irritated friend, shocked beyond belief by her display of barely-contained anger. However, the half-genie did not offer a reply; she remained silent as she watched Tayshan and Twitch intently.

"Hey!" Tay reacted in shock once Twitch finished her public display of affection, nearly jumping out of his skin as he tried to release himself form her grasp. By the time she finished, he'd realized what she did and tried to create some distance between them. However, Twitch tightened her grip.

"Hold on, hold on," she beckoned as she gently tugged on his arm, managing to get him to stop pulling away. "Sorry I startled you. That was kind of sneaky, and I acknowledge that. But for real, I do have something I want to ask you. Come here," she requested, that mischievous smile never leaving her face.

"Okay, but you're comin' on a bit too strong with whatever it is you wanna say," he protested, bringing his free hand to his cheek. "Why not just say it out loud at this point?"

"It's… personal, but I swear, I'm not yanking your chain," she promised with a nod of confidence.

"…I hope this is important…" Tay acquiesced with a heavy sigh, trying to get a read on this strange young woman as his heart pounded hard enough to break out of his ribcage. Nonetheless, he leaned in once more. "What is it?"

"That little love peck was your reward for protecting me before, but you and I both know you deserve more," she whispered into his ear. "You wouldn't wanna pass something like that up, now would you? I know I wouldn't…~" she added with a naughty blushing giggle as she continued to draw circles on his chest, sending an intense wave of unnerving heat through Tay's entire body.

"Alright, come on, you're playin' too much," Tay objected, lightly grasping the hand she was using to draw on his chest while raising back up. His face grew hotter than the fires roasting the foliage in the distance at her remark. "It was funny at first, but you're gettin' carried awa-!" he was about to object as he motioned to separate himself from Twitch.

"That's enough," Shantae furiously objected, markedly aggravated by Twitch's unwarranted flirting with her sidekick as she glared bullets at the boundary-encroaching Ammonian affiliate. "You've made your point already, and now you're making all of us uncomfortable. Let go of Tayshan and BACK. OFF OF HIM. NOW," she irritably commanded with bass in her tone, shocking everyone around her; including herself as she realized how authoritarian she sounded. She scanned the surprised faces of her allies, seeing that they shared her astonishment with her.

"Whoa, genie girl, she was just messing with him… Relax, will ya?" Vinegar warily commented, though the shock on her face was irrevocable.

"…Okay, then," Twitch hesitantly acknowledged the demand as she created some much-needed distance between herself and Tayshan, though she found herself quite surprised by the half-genie's sudden anger. Tay, though equally surprised at how scarily-angry Shantae sounded, shook his head and regained his senses.

"Wow, you go girl… I didn't know you had that in you," Sky commended Shantae, patting her on the back.

"…Neither did I…" she murmured, casting her gaze elsewhere in uncertainty, questioning why she was so insufferably angry in that moment.

"Right…" Tayshan began, still feeling some of the ambient pressure of the moment as he glanced at Shantae. The instant he locked eyes with her, however, her face grew red with awkward discomfort as she quickly shot her gaze down to the grass she was standing on. "Hm… Er, anyway, I'm glad y'all plan on keepin' your word," he remarked, turning his attention back to Twitch.

"Absolutely," Twitch confirmed with a single nod, turning her attention back to him, though she appeared to drop all signs of her flirtatious behavior.

"Good. Although, Vinegar…" he called to the other Ammonian affiliate as he approached her.

"Yo."

"Whatever you do, don't play with these grenades. Like I said, the instant you pull the pin on one, you have four seconds to dispose of it an' duck for cover. They can potentially kill anyone within 50 feet if they ain't protected," he warned her.

"…Excuse me?" she pressed him to reiterate, slightly intimidated by the revelation of the grenade's specifications. "I… don't think I heard you right. You said this tiny green pinecone-shaped thing can…?"

"Kill anybody within 50 feet of the blast," Tay enunciated. "The fragments can disperse as far as about 750 feet, or… roughly 250 yards max at very high speeds. If you're not killed by the fragments, you'd most certainly take some serious damage if you weren't careful."

"Oh. And… All that would need to happen is this key thing here being pulled out?" she apprehensively asked, pointing toward the pin of one of the grenades.

"Unless you squeeze the spoon A.K.A. the handle o' the grenade before you pull it… yes. That thing is that powerful."

"Oh," she plainly remarked, hiding the intense level of pressure he unknowingly placed on her about the explosives he gave her. She pondered for a literal second on what to do with them before she spoke again. "On second thought, you can keep those," she offered, changing her mind. "That's a lot more risk than I'm willing to gamble on." With that frightful statement, she handed Tayshan back the grenades.

"Yeah, I wouldn't want those, either. You're the only one who knows how to use them, so it makes sense that you keep those," Twitch agreed. "We'll stick to whatever we and our army might be familiar with."

"Hm. Y'all have a point," he also agreed, placing the grenades back in their pouches before taking off the shotgun sheath (with the shotgun inside) and handing it to Vinegar. "I guess you'll be takin' this instead."

"Your shotgun? Awesome!" the taller Ammonian affiliate cheered, gleefully taking Tay's shotgun off his hands.

"Only thing, though, is that this is the only round I had left by the time I was done with the fight down in that cave," Tay added, pulling the shotgun shell out of his pocket and handing it to Vinegar.

"Fair enough," she shrugged, seeming not to mind as she took the shotgun shell off Tay's hands. "I'm sure that if we're lucky, Twitch and I can fish for other shotguns like this once we come back and clean this place out for the rest of the weapons those Tinkerbats dropped here."

"Come to think of it, I'm almost positive there was another shotgun just like that one behind that boulder Tay-Tay and I were hiding behind," Twitch recalled. "There might've even been another one of these Stinger launcher things, too! Once we get back to base, we'll see about making a return trip to salvage what was left here."

"I think it's worth the effort, so why not?" Vinegar agreed.

"At this point, I've gotta ask one more time, Tay," Sky cut in. "Are you really serious about giving these two those weapons? Even after they dragged you off to this place and tried to enslave you?"

"Like I said, Sky, we had an agreement," he explained. "Plus, it seems like we came to an understandin' durin' our time here… right?" he asked, addressing Twitch and Vinegar.

"Yep!" Twitch cheerfully agreed. "You and I are A-Okay now, Tay-Tay." At the 2913th mention of the nickname originally given to him by his old friend, he sighed in embarrassment.

"Man, I'm never gonna outgrow that childish name now… Thanks a bunch, Kassandra…" he mumbled, though he couldn't help but grin slightly at the thought of the bright, cheerful smile of his old friend as he momentarily looked to the clearer part of the sky… as in, the part that wasn't blotted out by smoke billowing from burning valley foliage.

"Yeah, we're cool," Vinegar also agreed with a casual thumbs-up. "Honestly, you earned my respect after you saved Twitch from falling over that cliff while you were running and giving me a piggyback ride in my injured state, so you can count on us to keep our word. Unless of course, you wanted it drawn out in fine print and notarized at this point. I feel like we've repeated ourselves seven different times." At that, Tay chuckled.

"Nah, I'll take your word for it. Thank you," he acknowledged, returning her thumbs-up with one of his own. "So, that just about settles it, then. All we need t' do now is get off this island an' figure out where t' go next…"

"We might not need to worry about how to get off the Prickle Stitch Valley, girls and guy," Shantae happily remarked, pointing toward a Stage-Clear platform that suddenly sprouted out of the ground near the group.

"What the heck is that thing?" asked Twitch.

"Oh, right, you and Vinegar have never been good girls before… This is a Stage-Clear platform," Shantae explained. "This allows us a safe, basically instant trip back to Scuttle Town, while also giving us an opportunity to save our progress. Otherwise, everything we've accomplished here would be totally undone."

"…So many questions, so little time," Vinegar murmured with a shake of her head. "Sure, let's play along with this."

"All we have to do is stand on it together, and we'll all strike a pose and get sent back. Climb aboard!" she suggested, prompting the rest of the squad to find their places alongside her… Of course, this glorified sparkling boulder barely had enough room for two people. Five? Kinda pushing it, as the five young warriors found it a bit cramped. However, they managed as best as they could.

"Okay, so now what?" Twitch asked, understandably perplexed.

"I'll show you…" the half-genie assured with a sly wink before striking her signature celebration pose.

"All Clear!" the entire squad harmoniously declared in unison as the disembodied Stage Clear music blared out once again, causing all the team members to strike their own victory poses… without necessarily being conscious of doing so, except in Shantae's case.

"…What a weird day this has been," Vinegar commented as she and Twitch held their pose, which consisted of the two holding a hand each high, with their fingers interlocked with each other's while their other hands were balled into fists laid across their chests. Sky stood tall on her own, a close-eyed, contented smile on her face as she crossed her arms in triumph. Tay was proudly, though stoically saluting toward no one in particular, as had become a staple for him. Finally, Shantae did her signature victory pose, in which she raised one foot off the ground, raised one hand up in the air with her palm facing upward, and shot a winking smile toward no one in particular. Within a second, however, Team Shantae had vanished with a flash, thus concluding possibly the most… bizarre, existential adventure they'd ever had. However, we're not done just yet…

 ** _Hours Later…_**

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN LIGHTHOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 18TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 2159 HOURS

We rejoin our two spoonerifically-named heroes in the midst of a much-needed conversation following their perilous adventure, as the duo made themselves comfortable inside the upper deck of the lighthouse that served as Shantae's bedroom. After the duo made their bedtime preparations, they got dressed in their pajamas… Well, Shantae was in hers; a midriff-baring (as usual), loose-fitting white spaghetti-string tank top with pink ties at the shoulders and a matching pair of white capri pajama pants with a pink string at her waistline neatly tied into a bow. She was wearing none of her jewelry and wore her extensively-long, silky lavender hair down, which made it look like she had an extra blanket to keep her warm… in case you were wondering. Tay was wearing his favorite/only outfit, minus his tank top and boots. Basically, he was bare up top and wearing his normal pants and a pair of black socks to keep his feet warm.

Anyway, Shantae invited Tayshan up into her room, igniting a candle to provide some light and lending him a spare pillow and blanket to get himself settled on the floor as she set herself up in her rope hammock. Once they were settled in for the bedtime story of a lifetime, Tayshan divulged the details of his time in the Grotto of Judgment to Shantae in full… well, as much as he was apparently allowed to divulge. Without further ado, here's how the following conversation went.

"…Well, that's… just about everything, homegirl," Tayshan nervously concluded with a shaky breath, rubbing his chin with a hand as he laid back onto the not-so-prickly, yet still-uncomfortable wooden floor of the bedroom. "In a nutshell, all my old friends whose… departures I was responsible for in one way or another, wound up comin' back t' me for one last visit before I was made t' fight a corrupted version o' my past self comprised of pent-up guilt an' frustration, mixed with Dark Magic I can only guess I probably absorbed from Risky Boots's portal… that is, if your uncle's theory was right."

"Wow… Tay, I… W-wow…" Shantae stammered in utter disbelief as she sat up in her hammock, adjusting her insanely-long, unbound, cascading curtain of hair to where it wasn't in her face. She was completely floored by the harrowing tale. Her friend was visited by ghosts from his past, and then was made to battle what she presumed was his very own Nega form without warning… and it was all perpetrated by some mysterious woman in a jackal mask. She could understand some of it, considering her past experience fighting an evil alter ego of her own. However, she couldn't even begin to fathom what it must've been like to be visited by friends from beyond the grave… or maybe she could, in some twisted sense. "There was so much that happened to you in just that two-to-three-hour span… I have so many questions, but I don't even know where to begin asking."

"Pretty breathtakin' just t' hear, ain't it?" Tay asked, quicky picking up on her loss for words.

"Yeah… I-I mean, that's… that's one of the most alarming things I've ever heard… and I've actually BEEN to places inhabited by restless spirits of deceased people… if you remember what I told you about having to go to the Village of Lost Souls to collect Barracuda Joe's soul after he died…"

"See, that, I couldn't fathom myself," Tay admitted. "Shoot, I didn't even believe in ghosts before I came here, but… clearly, this experience changed my mind in so many more ways than one."

"I'd be nothing but surprised if it didn't. Still, Tay…" Shantae hesitantly began, uncertain of how to word her next question. "I guess I'll start with this. Who was that woman? How did she know so much about you despite not having met you until that point? What does she know about predestination and multiple timelines that she would explain to you how the flow of time works?"

"You're… not gonna like my answer t' those questions…" he warned, scratching his head as he immediately recalled the woman's stern verbal warning to him.

"What's there not to like? Unless it has something to do with something bad happening in the future," Shantae accurately, yet unknowingly estimated. Tayshan flinched in momentary shock, though remained calm once he realized she was only guessing.

"Well… It's more that she forbade me from sharin' anything about her. I never learned her name, an' she strictly advised me t' not say anything about what she looked or sounded like, or most of what I talked about with her down there…" he admitted, of course to Shantae's disappointment as she sunk in her net bed.

"Aw, really?" she complained, not even attempting to hide her disapproval of her friend's answer. "You can't even tell me a little bit about her or what you talked about? Like, how she knows me, or why she was wearing a mask that magically mouthed the words she spoke while she was wearing it? Or even the part where you said she belly danced like me to summon Nega-Tayshan?" she asked. Also, totally called it on her naming Tay's evil clone Nega-Tayshan.

"No, unfortunately. I can't say anythi-!" he was about to assure her, though he paused after processing a certain detail of her interrogative questions. "Wait… What? Nega-Tayshan?"

"Yeah. Y'know, the evil version of you, who you said had a color scheme and set of motives opposite of your own, yet still was basically you in every other way," she clarified. "Just like how the evil version of me was named Nega-Shantae."

"Huh… I never thought about it that way, but that certainly makes it easier t' describe…" he nodded in approval of the moniker for his evil alter ego, though he did find himself curious about this evil version of his team leader. He shook it off, however, as he didn't want to stray too far from the point of the discussion. "E-er, anyway, I'm basically sworn t' involuntary secrecy on that woman."

"Aww man… You can't give me at least ONE more itty-bitty, little detail?"

"Believe me, I'm ITCHIN' t' tell you everything, because there's so much about that woman that didn't make sense t' me… but, for fear of her huntin' me down an' killin' me… I-I gotta keep my mouth shut on her…" he warily informed Shantae, though a sudden chill ran up his spine. He couldn't help but get a strange feeling that someone, somewhere, was watching him… or at least, keeping tabs on him whenever he brought this woman up. For this reason alone, he didn't want to keep talking about her.

"I guess so," Shantae let go with a disappointed sigh. "Fine."

"Sorry, homegirl…" Tay apologized, though he was secretly relieved that Shantae had stopped pressing him for more details.

"No need for apologies. If she wants you to keep quiet under the threat of death, then it's best not to say anything now. I'm more interested in your safety than I am in whoever that lady was."

"How considerate," Tay acknowledged. "Thanks."

"Of course, Tay. Although… I DO want to know something else…" the pajama-adormed half-genie led on.

"What's up?" Tay asked perking up in curiosity.

"How… How did you feel, seeing your friends and having those conversations with them?" Shantae hesitantly asked, uncertain of how Tay would react.

"Oh! Good question… Collectively, or individually?" he asked back, surprised that she would pose such an inquiry to him.

"Hmm… Individually," the curious half-genie chose. "I can at least understand how the experience as a whole could be scary, but… if I heard everything right, then each of your friends had a different impact on you."

"You got that right," he agreed with a sigh as he looked his travel partner in the eye.

"What kinds of impacts did they have?"

"Well… I'll start with Tariq, since he was the first one I talked to. Tariq was the one that hit me the hardest right off the bat, because he was the one whose death could've been completely prevented by me. Granted, they all could've avoided the ways they met their ends, but Tariq was the one I regretted losin' the most; especially since he only met his end as a direct result of my terrible decision-makin' back then…" he morosely admitted to Shantae, gulping to try and ease his nerves. He knew, however, that if he was going to commit himself to changing, then it'd have to start by revealing the darkest details of his past to his closest friend in this other world.

"Whoa. Tay…"

"He… he was like a brother t' me, an' he was one who always tried t' see the good in everything, even when things didn't look like they had a good side," the soldier explained. "Even after he tried talkin' me out o' stealin' from that store that fateful day, he eventually went along because he believed I was doin' the right thing in the long run. Y'know, stealin' from the poor t' give to the poorer, as you put it." Hearing her words reiterated back to her sent a wave of reflective guilt through Shantae's abdomen.

"Well… I… I admit, Tayshan, I really crossed the line with you there. I'm really sorry I said that to you," Shantae apologized, feeling an additional pang of remorse in her heart.

"No need, homegirl. You were definitely not wrong t' say that, because I never even considered it until you mentioned it t' me. Of course, as I also realize when it's much too late, the REAL right thing would've been t' never have gone out there in the first place, much less bring him along. He had every right t' be angry at me when he saw me again, an' I told him I'd gladly trade places with him if I could, so HE'D be the one helpin' you save Sequin Land… Yet, he still forgave me anyway, tellin' me that all I had t' do t' make it up to him is make sure I never let what happened t' him happen t' anybody else," Tay revealed as he took a deep breath, remembering every bit of his heart-rending conversation with his old friend.

"Wow, Tay… that's… that's pretty sad…" she offered her condolences in the best way she knew how. "Tariq sounded like he was a good guy who looked out for your best interests. I… I wish things were better for you and him, too."

"Thanks, but… wishin' I could change the past won't help me make the future better," he somberly rebutted. "Only learnin' from the past will do that."

"Oh… W-well, I'm sure that you can make the future better," she uncertainly encouraged, though she found it difficult to even come up with such a statement in the wake of such a heavy discussion. "You're right. Learning from the past helps to avoid repeating it."

"Truer words could not have been spoken," the saddened young man concurred with a sigh. "Ironically, aside from you, I only learned that because of Hakeem…"

"Hakeem? The one you said forced you into doing all those bad things when you were younger?" the young woman perked up in curiosity.

"Yep, that one. He was… an interestin' guy, t' say the least."

"How so?"

"Say what you might about him bein' quote-unquote 'evil,' but he really wasn't. He just had… some pretty awful ways o' dealin' with some o' the problems we faced back then. Still, the way he lost his life fills me with dread…" Tay began to explain.

"Again, I apologize for putting that label on you," Shantae offered again to clear the air between them regarding their earlier conversation. "I… I have to do better to understand just how blurry the line between good and evil really can be."

"Hm? Where's that comin' from?" Tay asked in slight perplexity, not expecting the half-genie to be so regretful.

"Well, I had a talk with Sky while you were outside waiting for us earlier today," she revealed to him. "I… I didn't know how I could make you feel better after our talk this morning, so I explained to her how it went… and she… she helped me open my eyes a bit."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah… If I can admit this to you, Tayshan, I grew up with a very black-and-white understanding of good and evil. I always thought it was as plain as Light Magic versus Dark Magic, and that there was no wiggle room between them. I get it, now, that there is always so much more at play than I realized before our adventure today…"

"You don't say…?" Tay remarked in alarm, intrigued by his mentor's confession.

"I told you I wasn't judging you when I pegged you as a 'former villain,' but I didn't realize that just calling you that was already making me look like a total hypocrite. After thinking about how our adventure went today, especially with Twitch and Vinegar actively helping you, it really woke me up. I'd never thought I'd see the day where they, or any bad guy, would kidnap someone, only to have them work together like they were a solid team…"

"Ain't that what you did with Risky Boots a little while ago?" Tay questioned, recalling another conversation they had. "You said she kidnapped you by placin' a fake bathtub in here, only t' wind up recruitin' you t' help her beat this Pirate Master guy, right?"

"Oh yeah," she remembered with an amused giggle. "That is kinda true, isn't it? Although, it wasn't quite the same as with you and those two. Whereas Twitch and Vinegar actually took a liking to you and cooperated with you, Risky Boots only forced me to do most of her dirty work; to the point where I was actually using her boots, sword, gun, parachute hat, and portable cannon to dash, slice, shoot, glide, and blast-boost my way throughout Sequin Land rather than use my magic, which she drained out of me and forced me to destroy during an adventure right before that… Hence, the origin of Nega-Shantae, in case you were wondering…"

"Oh… Wow, I… I kinda want t' hear those stories," Tay nodded in intrigue at the odd relationship and history between Shantae and Risky Boots. "I can't even think of a situation where you two would ever be made t' collaborate, much less where she would have you fight most of her battles for her. You must be pretty versatile t' be able t' use all of somebody else's equipment an' special moves in place of your own magic well enough t' save the day on your own," he commended. "Or, mostly, as far as you, Sky, Twitch, an' Vinegar all let me know. Of course, I should know about your battle dexterity first-hand by now, since you already adopted some o' my moves since we started sparrin' with each other. You must be some kind o' fightin' genius in the makin'."

"Aw, Tay," she giggled again, flattered by Tay's observation. "I'm not THAT good…"

"Says the one who mastered my parry AND is makin' tons o' headway on how t' punch like her fists were made o' diamond after less than a week," he shot back with a smirk. "It took me a good six months to even begin throwin' haymakers with weight behind 'em, an' you're already outpacin' me by a hundred miles an' runnin'…" he humorously added. Shantae let out another bashful giggle, momentarily pressing her index fingers together to dispel some of her nervousness.

"Tay, stop, you're making me blush," she acknowledged, taking a deep breath as she internalized his remark.

"No need t' be so modest," Tay asserted. "It's the truth."

"You're too kind. Thanks…" she accepted his praise before regaining her composure.

"Mm-hmm," he acknowledged with a nod. "Anyway, as you were sayin' about teamin' with Risky?"

"Oh, right. We only teamed up because we were both weakened in one way or another. The Pirate Master took back a chunk of his power from her, rendering her mostly unable to fight on her own. Also, most of her Tinkerbats were corrupted and turned into vicious, senseless, unruly Cacklebats that I had to defeat and absorb their Dark Magic into the very same Magic Lamp that Risky used to suck the magic out of me."

"Magic Lamp?" Tay asked, his curiosity shooting into the stratosphere. "I thought you said genies DIDN'T come from Magic Lamps," he posed, remembering a detail about his conversation with Shantae when they first met. "O-or was it that you said Magic Lamps weren't a thing here?"

"I only said genies don't come from magic lamps, like you believed when we met," she assured. "There is only one Magic Lamp in existence here, as far as I know, and its power was incredibly dangerous to genies, full-fledged or half. That lamp was not a place that genies wanted to end up inside, simply put. Trust me on that, Tay. There's a MUCH deeper story behind that, but that's a whole different animal to tackle that would take us another night to catch you up on."

"Hmm…" Tay acknowledged, his mind wide open. However, he took note of Shantae's discomfort talking about this Magic Lamp, so he refrained from asking further questions… at this point, anyway. "I… I'll take your word for it, but I WOULD like t' be enlightened on that for clarification," he requested. "That woman from the Grotto of Judgment also mentioned a magic-absorbin' lamp o' some kind, but she said it was destroyed not too long ago."

"So she knew about that, too? Intereresting… I'll give you as deep a crash course as I can manage when the time comes. Don't worry. Anyway, back to the story. So, any Tinkerbats that weren't turned into Cacklebats by the Pirate Master either left me clues on how to progress on my adventure or were trying their best to protect Risky Boots in her weakened state; even if they had to risk becoming corrupted in the process. On my end, I was devoid of any magic after Risky drained it from me, turned it dark, and forced me to destroy it. I had no choice but to rely on her moveset, though I will admit it was a lot of fun being a pirate. I'd totally do it again if I had the chance. Y'know, minus losing my magic a second time."

"Wow… I'm just… LOADED with questions about your experience with all o' that."

"You'll get those details another day, Tay. I promise," she dismissed, wanting to bring the conversation back to its original point. "Still, I'm floored that Twtich and Vinegar worked so well with you while you were there… I'm also surprised they didn't try to just ditch you and fight for themselves."

"So am I. It wasn't all sunshine an' camaraderie, if you're thinkin' it was that smooth with them, though," he countered.

"I figured it wouldn't be. Mind giving me some idea?"

"In a nutshell, they initially tried t' force me t' work with them," Tay began. "They stuck me up with a gun, I bluffed them int' cooperatin' by threatenin' t' blow us all up with a grenade if they kept tryin' t' control me, we argued a bunch, an' we really only came together when the Tinkerbats attacked. Or rather, Vinegar an' I did most o' the arguin' until I saved Twitch from fallin' off a cliff. Twitch… well, you saw for yourself how most o' my conversations with her went…"

"Yeah, she's awfully territorial about you," Shantae remarked with a chuckle, though Tay groaned in discomfort. "It was like a wolf protecting a cub!"

"You're tellin' me…" Tay concurred with a cringe of intense discomfort. "Anyway, they're not so bad once you get t' know 'em. They're pretty much regular ladies once you get past all the sneaky tactics they employ t' get their advantages over others. An', if it's worth anything, I asked them about what they would consider their alignment t' be, an' in no better words, they told me they were neutral."

"Neutral?" Shantae remarked, though she seemed to understand. "That… that actually makes sense, all things considered. They DID help me out once, and when I first met them on Saliva Island, they were really nice to me. It's only after I found out who they worked for that things have been sour between me and them."

"Huh. In that case, maybe there's a chance y'all could become friends if y'all had a talk?"

"Ehh, let's not get carried away, Tay," Shantae denied. "There IS still the fact that they loyally work for Ammo Baron, whom I've had issues with in the past; way before I met them. Plus, you heard it yourself; they don't really seem to like me very much. Especially Twitch, who's convinced I'm trying to use my feminine charm to steal you away from her."

"…" Tay refused to entertain her observation with a comment, as the mere thought of Twitch at this point made him very uneasy. "…You really know how t' get under my skin now…" he muttered low enough that Shantae wouldn't hear him.

"Totally weird line of thought, I know," she continued, coyly smirking. "Your silence speaks louder than anything on how you feel about that. Anyway, they seem to dislike Risky Boots more, so there's hope there, I think."

"Yeah, they did say they'd sooner help you out than ever entertain the idea of workin' for Risky if it ever came down to it, so there's that," Tay attested, snapping back to his senses.

"Oh. Neat. That's good to know," she acknowledged, sighing with relief. "Going back, though, that's sort of how I realized that things are a lot more complicated with good, evil, and neutrality than I thought. At this point, I'm not sure what's what, after thinking back to when I teamed up with Risky, up to hearing your story, and then teaming up with Twitch and Vinegar for the first time since the Pirate's Curse saga…" she confessed.

"I hear ya, homegirl. I don't hold you at fault for labelin' me, if it makes you feel better. I get what you were tryin' t' say. I just wasn't in a state o' mind t' hear it."

"Yeah, but that doesn't make it right," she rebutted, still feeling ashamed for making him uncomfortable. "You opened up to me, and I totally shut you down with a flawed idea without even really trying to understand what you were telling me. I need to do better… I'm sorry, Tay."

"Fair enough… in that case, I accept your apology. On a small side note, though, there DOES exist a form of Good/Evil/Neutral, Lawful/Neutral/Chaotic chart that I could give you a crash course on, if you were interested in hearin' about that."

"Really?" Shantae perked up, unable to hide her tangible intrigue. "Once we're done talking about your time in that Grotto of Judgment place, could you show me?"

"Sure thing," he agreed with a nod. "So, Grotto of Judgment first, then Alignment chart?"

"If there's enough time in the night before we conk out, then totally!" the young lady excitedly agreed.

"Sounds like a plan. So… uh, where was I with explainin' what I saw down there?"

"Hmm…" Shantae hummed, pausing to think about their monstrously-derailed conversation. After a moment, however, she remembered. "Ah! You were wrapping up talking about your friend Tariq, and were about to talk about the next one, who you said wasn't necessarily evil."

"Oh!" Tay exclaimed in realization. "Right, I was about t' tell you about Hakeem…"

"Right."

"Yeah. Um…" he droned, taking a minute to consider where to begin sharing details of his encounter with his late older cousin. "So, I left off saying he had some pretty messed up ways o' tryin' t' make situations better for himself an' the people around him. Shoot, it's… it's because o' that reason that he lost his life as early as he did…"

"You said he was… He lost his life in the middle of a gunfight that he took you to, right?"

"Correct."

"My goodness…" the astounded half-genie murmured, shaking her head in disbelief as she felt a pang in the pit of her stomach. "I… I can't imagine how you feel about that…"

"I wouldn't want you to, homegirl," Tay offered, hearing the discomfort in her tone that made him somewhat hesitant to divulge more information to her. However, he was keen on being as honest with her as he could be. To do otherwise would only serve to harm their trust in one another. Tay, already beginning to feel fresh waves of remorse surging through him, took another deep breath before continuing. "Without sayin' too much, I used t' put it in the back o' my mind every day because o' how hard it was t' deal with the stress that his demise brought on… but, thanks t' the fact that we were able t' make peace an' the way he clarified his real purposes for bein' so tough on me, I… It's a little bit easier t' deal with now. He acknowledged his responsibility in what happened that day, believe it or not."

"Did… he apologize for bringing you along?"

"He did, actually. Well, it's more that he apologized for givin' me such a hard time over the years in general. Of course, in his special fashion, he made it sound like the ultimate street life lesson more than it bein' because he understood just how awful my situations with him were," Tay rebutted with a relaxed chuckle, though Shantae did not share it for fear of making her friend upset. "He mostly only regretted that his life ended that day, but he did say he acknowledged where he might've been wrong. I mean, that still goes t' say that if he'd lived past that day, he probably would've still been doin' the same thing."

"Huh… I figured that anyone who was given another chance like that would've taken it and done something else."

"That would make sense, but he always was stubborn. I was just like him, up till a certain point, in his defense. Still… even for what he put me through, I understand… well, somewhat understand, that he was tryin' t' get me t' cope with the loss o' my parents in the only way he felt comfortable doin' so. I won't pretend like I ain't still upset about some o' the things he did t' me or made me do, but… I don't have a choice now but t' take his lessons an' apply 'em in the most productive way I can."

"…If it makes you feel any better, Tayshan, then I think you're really strong for acknowledging that," Shantae offered, hearing every word of his confession with full intent to understand her newest friend.

"Thank you, Shantae… I really appreciate that," he graciously accepted her commendation, though the conversation began to weigh steadily heavier on him as he continued to think about his dearly departed friends. He took yet another deep breath to compose himself, however, and kept going. "Speakin' of acknowledgement, Damian was another one that surprised me…"

"That's… that's the one you said you got your gun from, right?" she asked, her breath catching in her throat at the mention of the friend from the story Tay told her about the other day.

"Yep. The same one who went around robbin' people until it landed him in such hot water that you'd swear he'd come out as a hard-boiled egg as opposed to a hardened criminal," Tay humorously remarked, shaking his head.

"What was THAT conversation like?" Shantae asked, already having heard the sour relationship between Tay and his presumed-former friend. "I bet it was tense, with a lot of finger-pointing and arguing…"

"Surprisingly, there wasn't that much arguin' between us," Tay revealed to his comrade's shock. "I actually made peace with him much faster than any o' the others. Whereas Tariq screamed at me an' took a minute for me t' get him t' calm down, an' Hakeem tried t' fight me as soon as he got the chance, Damian didn't take near as long t' get t' hear me out."

"No way…! Even after what happened between you two?"

"Yep. He said he came back specifically to apologize for that whole situation, and he even acknowledged that he set himself up for what happened to him. Of course, I also finally admitted t' him that I played my part in his trouble-brewin' lifestyle, an' that neither one of us was very good t' the other…"

"Wow… I can't say I was expecting that turn of events. I can't even think of a situation where I and, say, Sky or Bolo wound up falling out because they got in trouble and tried to pin it on me," Shantae admitted. "I haven't even made peace with the kids who used to get me in trouble when I was younger, either. It must've taken a lot for both of you to admit your faults to each other."

"Believe me, it did," Tay confirmed with another heavy sigh. "Especially when you consider we started that conversation with him pointin' a fake gun at me," he added with a chuckle, though Shantae gasped in horror. "Mind you, he didn't even know it was fake until he fired it into the air once."

"Whoa, whoa… He would've tried to shoot you if you didn't make up!?" she asked with such surprise that one might've expected her eyes to shoot out of her face.

"Short answer: Yes. He never was a very clear thinker. Even when I told him how messed up that was, he just laughed it off, thinkin' his entrance was the most… influential an' creative o' the bunch."

"Jeez…" the worried half-genie murmured with a shake of her head. "What would've happened if you pulled that shotgun out and he fired at you, only to realize it was a fake?"

"Exactly what I asked him," Tay affirmed. "Like I said, he was never a clear thinker. Very impulsive, though he did at least know what he wanted out o' life. In hindsight, it was just like him t' do somethin' like that. Still, once we squashed our beef, it was like we were friends all over again. We chatted for a little bit longer before he…" Tay paused with another sigh of contemplative regret, making evident that it was getting progressively harder for him to keep talking about his friends right after meeting them for the final time that he would ever see them. "…before he disappeared… Now, I'll never get t' see him, or Tariq, or Hakeem again… but… a-at least we got this chance t' clear the air…" he began to murmur more to himself than to Shantae.

"Are… are you okay, Tay?" Shantae asked, her concern for him showing as she began to feel the dejection in his tone.

"As I'll ever be," he replied, acknowledging her concern as he was hit with another wave of grief. He gulped again, staring blankly at the opaque plank ceiling of the bedroom as he lay back, replaying his conversations with his friends. "Or, maybe I'm not… I dunno, homegirl… It's just… it really hurt t' see them as ghosts with grudges against me… but… I… I have t' be happy with the fact that I got that chance at all. How many other people get t' resolve old grudges with dead friends like that?"

"Tayshan…"

"Yeah?"

"We… we don't have to keep talking about this, if you don't want to," Shantae offered, picking up on the nigh-tangible vibes of sadness and regret emanating off of her sidekick. "I… I'm starting to feel like this is too soon to have you talk about them when you just… when you just watched them vanish before your eyes…" she shakily added, though she was unaware of how heavy of an impact those words had on Tay, who froze as a knot began to form in his throat. He felt his eyes begin to waver as he briefly remembered the manners in which his three friends disappeared… Tariq's smiling peace sign… Hakeem's peace-wishing bid… Damian's mock-military salute… It was like he'd just watched them disappear all over again. He flashed back to them, remembering his exchanges with them, their observations of him since he'd last seen them alive, and… especially the promises he made to himself with their sage advice before they vanished. "Tayshan?" Shantae called to him again, snapping him out of his near-catatonic trance. He cleared his throat, rubbing his forehead with a hand as he continued to lie down.

"Sorry, sorry…" he apologized, barely managing to compose himself as he focused his attention back on his half-genie companion. "No, I-I'm good. I… I need t' be upfront with you about this. It's the only way I'm gonna be able t' cope. I've… I've held it in too long now…"

"Are you sure, Tay? You don't have to force yourself to keep going…"

"I'll be okay," he assured, though he wasn't too certain he could hold it together. He acknowledged that if it was getting this hard to talk about Tariq, Damian, and Hakeem, then how would he handle talking about the fourth and final of his deceased friends? He gave it little thought, however, and soldiered on. "Now, as for Kassandra…" he redirected, causing Shantae to perk up in a mix of intrigue and anticipation.

"Oh! She's the one you said knew about me, right?" she asked, trying not to sound too excited.

"Yes, indeed. Well, all four o' them knew about you," he corrected, thus shocking her even further. "I thought I mentioned that."

"What?" Shantae shouted loud enough and with enough surprise that she could've woken the neighbors… if she had any, that is. The perks of living in the middle of a more-or-less secluded archipelago. "You didn't tell me that at all! How did they know about me, anyway? Or, about how you wound up here with me?"

"I unfortunately was never given an answer for that. Believe me, I'm still just as curious as you are. I was only told it had somethin' t' do with that jackal-masked woman, but nobody I asked down there wanted t' say anything."

"Man… What a head-spinner," Shantae commented as she scratched her head in confusion and prolonged astonishment. "There's so much to wonder about…"

"You're preachin' t' the choir there, Shantae," Tay agreed wholeheartedly. "For all I know, you're some kind o' celebrity or household name in another plane of existence. But get this… Remember that girl I told you about the other day? The one I had that fallin' out with way back when?"

"Hmm…" the young woman pondered for a moment to recall details of one of their earliest conversations. After a brief pause, she spoke up. "Oh, yeah! The one you said you had the unreturned crush on. What about her?"

"Well… take a wild guess as t' who Kassandra was…"

"You're kidding! Kassandra was the girl you had the crush on?" Shantae asked in another tsunami of shock, nearly falling out of her hammock as she barely contained herself hearing all these juicy details.

"Mm-hmm."

"Wow, what a way to meet up with an old flame," she excitedly replied, though something rung a bell in her head. "But… Wait… if… if you saw her there, then…" Shantae began to realize, putting two and two together to reach a disheartening conclusion. At that, she gasped in horrified shock, covering her mouth with both hands as she sat up in her hammock. Her eyes began to waver in sympathetic devastation as her gaze remained fixed on Tay. "Oh, no… Tay, I'm… I'm so sorry you had to find out that way… Oh, my gosh…!"

"Believe me, it stung me t' the very core t' find out she was gone…" he admitted, another, bigger knot quickly developing in his throat as his eyes welled up with overwhelming sadness. Just seeing the half-genie's horrified reaction triggered something in him. However, he tried his hardest to keep his composure. He managed to do so… for a moment. He sat up and took another deep breath, though he paused once he realized just what he was telling Shantae. He could still hardly believe it himself, as he'd only found out about Kassandra's passing as recently as mere hours ago. "I… um… I…" he stammered, casting his crestfallen gaze down to the floor as he froze, unable to speak his mind as his thoughts became fixated on trying to internalize the fact that one of his dearest friends was no longer in the world of the living. The grief-stricken man's breaths became heavy with emotional anguish as he tried processing it enough that he could tell Shantae about what happened in his conversation with her. However, the more he tried thinking about it, the harder it became for him to hold back his sorrow.

He flashed back to his conversation with Kassandra… Her unfitting jovial tone throughout the course of their talk… Her revelation to him that she never stopped caring about him, even after he'd cut her off so long ago… Her confession to him that he was the only person she considered a real friend to her… Her cheerful smile… Her woeful tears… Her hesitant mention of how she met her end… and even the goodbye kiss she gave him before she, too, vanished from his sight for the final time. He even remembered her telling him not to cry over her, but the emotional weight was far too heavy for him to bear; the toll it took on the fatigue-addled man was like an Olympic shot-put crashing through a glass coffee table. All of this, topped off by the soul-crushing fact that he would never see her again. Eventually, he could fight it no more, as tears began to roll down his face. He squeezed his eyes shut to try and stop himself from shedding his tears of grief, but it proved futile. Tayshan began to cry in grief over the loss of Kasandra.

Shantae, witnessing her friend's distress first-hand, was hit with a sudden wave of second-hand trauma as she welled up with tears herself. She couldn't relate to him at all on losing a friend the way he did. She had no idea at what point to begin relating to him, and she was fully aware of it. Regardless, the young woman felt every bit of the pain the grief-stricken soldier was suffering as she saw the tears streaming down his face that he tried to hide. She saw him cover his eyes with one hand as he tried to regain his composure for her sake. She heard every agonized breath he took as he tried to suppress his urge to cry in front of her that made his sorrow much more poignant for her. It was at that moment, however, that Shantae lost her composure right there with him. As though her body went on autopilot, she climbed down from her hammock and knelt down to embrace her grieving comrade as she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed as tightly as she could, tears freely cascading down her face as abundantly as his. Tayshan, never expecting Shantae of all people to hug him in such a manner, froze in utter bewilderment.

"Tay… I… I'm sorry about your loss… Whatever I can do to help you, I'm here," she poured out, weeping alongside him. "I don't have the first clue of what that feels like, but I know it must be harder than anything… No matter what, though, I'll do whatever I can to help you feel better," she continued to confess through her tears. Hearing such a heartfelt statement both compounded the man's grief and brought him a sense of consolation and trust in his Sequinean tour guide. Gingerly, he brought his arms up and rested them across Shantae's lower back as he returned her gesture of kindness and understanding.

"…I… I'm not… I'm supposed t' be stronger than this, darn it…!" he cursed himself as he drew Shantae closer, his tears still streaming down his cheeks. "I'm not supposed t' be-!"

"It's okay to let it out, Tay…" she advised, squeezing him tighter as she took a seat next to him. She could hardly contain herself as both she and Tay let their combined sadness flow free. "You're no less of the person you are for letting your feelings be known. Don't be ashamed of feeling sad for her."

"Hm…" Tay barely managed to reply, adjusting himself to where he had a more comfortable angle at which to hug Shantae. He wiped his eyes before resting his head on hers as she laid her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms tighter around her as she sat next to him, his forearms becoming coated in her sleek, silky lavender locks that hung so beautifully from her head in such abundance that her hair felt like fur. "I… Thank you, Shantae…" he shakily offered his gratitude for her gesture. "I… I couldn't thank you enough for…"

"Tay, you don't have to thank me," she caringly rebuffed, lifting her head up to look him in the eye, though the two continued to hold one another. Her arms were slung around his shoulders as she pressed her body against his bare chest. "Just… I just want to make sure you're okay. I get that losing her and then finding out like that could never, ever be easy. Honestly, it sounds like the worst possible way to find out."

"Hit the nail on the head there, homegirl," he agreed, recomposing himself as his tears came to a gradual halt. "It's like havin' a prized possession stolen from you after you set it down somewhere without payin' attention, an' then not findin' out for years on end what happened to it until you see it just long enough t' watch it fade an' scatter int' the wind, never t' be seen again…"

"That… that sounds as profound as it sounds accurate," the consoling young woman agreed as the two separated, though she remained seated next to him.

"Yeah… but shoot, Shantae… This… this is… it just… hurts in a way I can't describe…"

"I… I think I understand what you mean," she acknowledged with a nod, resting a hand on his arm. "But, if there's anything I can do at all to help you to cope, just say the word, and I'm on it." At that, Tay managed to smile at her, though the grief and fatigue were still evident on his face.

"Just bein' here an' helpin' me is already much more than I could ever ask for, homegirl. Besides, she told me not t' keep cryin' about her passin'. She… she told me… t' cherish my friendship with you just like I did mine with her," he confessed, causing the young girl's heart to skip a beat as she reeled back in astonishment.

"Oh…! Really…?" she barely found it in herself to ask, clutching at her heart through her pajama top with both hands. Her face grew hot with an unprecedented, unidentifiable heat.

"Yeah. Granted, that doesn't at all mean I'm supposed t' replace her with you, or anything crazy like that. You're your own person, and I would never try t' use one individual t' fill in a hole left by another."

"Of course!" Shantae nervously acknowledged. "I wasn't getting that impression at all. I get what you mean."

"I'd only hope I wasn't givin' you the wrong impression… Still, if I remember right, she said that she wanted me t' move on, make new friends, an' t' keep those new friendships strong," he clarified. "An' believe me, Shantae… I'll make sure I stay as committed t' you as humanly possible, even on my darkest days."

"Tayshan…" she called to him in a shocked whisper, her heart skipping another beat as she listened to him, her gaze never breaking from his.

"I mean it. This is comin' straight from me. On her end, she… she didn't want me t' be so hung up on losin' her that I'd never be able t' live my life," he continued to confess.

"Wow… she sounds like she was really intelligent… even after dying…" Shantae hesitantly observed.

"Trust me, I think she was wise beyond her years, an' she was three years older than me," he concurred. "Still… she had a point. She, an' the rest of 'em. They all told me different spins o' the same thing; t' live my life preparin' for the future an' absorbin' the present, not dwellin' on the past, but learnin' from it. How right they were…"

"Really?"

"Yeah. In relation t' this situation, Tariq told me never t' leave another friend hangin' like I did him. Hakeem told me never t' back down from another fight. Damian told me t' use that handgun o' his for nothin' but the right reasons. And, like I said before, Kassandra said t' keep my new friends close… especially you."

"Wow, they taught you a lot… but, if you don't mind my asking, why did Kassandra say to hold me in such high regard?" At that, Tay let out a mirthful chuckle that brought some ease to both him and his half-genie companion, though she merely smirked without knowing why he was laughing.

"Believe it or not, she said I need somebody t' keep me from completely losin' it, an' that nobody has been doin' it quite like you have," he confessed. "Of course, I don't think I need a babysitter t' set me straight at this point," he further joked with a small chortle, which Shantae shared with him.

"I don't have experience taking care of kids anyway, Tay. Trust me," she matched his joke with another. "All jokes aside, maybe she meant more-so in the way of making sure you're okay as we continue trying to stop Risky Boots."

"That would make a lot more sense than the way she put it," he readily agreed. "That's a two-way street anyway, so… Goin' off that, as long as you've got my back, homegirl, I've got yours," he assured, patting her on the shoulder.

"Thank you, Tay…" she confidently acknowledged with a smiling nod. "Let's keep working together."

"Without a doubt. And y'know, I told you before that my whole reason for bein' a hero was t' make up for lost time, t' make my parents an' my peers proud, an' t' redeem myself for past mistakes. I realize now, thanks to you, my old friends an' that jackal woman, that those were selfish motivations, an' that wouldn't have gotten me anywhere."

"Well, those aren't necessarily bad reasons," she objected in concern. "I'd like to think you can still have their memory as motivation to keep improving yourself. I mean… This might sound bad, but what would you have become if you didn't have the experiences you did?"

"Also a good point," Tay acknowledged. "I'm not sure who I would've been if my parents were still around, or if any one of, or all o' my friends stayed alive or walked different paths than the ones they did… I only know how I was with those experiences, an' where it's brought me up t' this point. I also know that I've gotta make the best of it, because with as much as we talk about changin' the future, there is no such thing as changin' the past… that we know of, anyway."

"So true…" Shantae agreed with a nod. "If there was, I'm sure we'd all be the absolute perfect versions of ourselves. That, or we'd cease to exist because we got so overwhelmed with changing past events that we wind up second-guessing everything to the point where people start undoing their own births… Talk about a catastrophe," she theorized, causing Tay to chuckle.

"You sure do have a colorful imagination," he humorously pointed out, sighing away some of his sadness. In response, she giggled a bit, running her fingers through her hair. "You are right, no less. It's for that very reason that I… I think I'm callin' it quits on regrettin' my past. My regrets played a much bigger role in my reasonin' for wantin' t' be a hero than I ever bothered t' consider."

"Wow… I understand completely. Feeling bad for things you've done and letting that be the driving force behind wanting to please other people to a distressing fault… I know that feeling myself. But, you already knew that."

"It's still good t' know we relate on that."

"Most definitely. Sometimes, I wonder if I'm still guilty of letting regret rule some of my decisions, though…" she pondered as her smile faded.

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"Well… In no better words, I still struggle with saying 'No' to people," Shantae admitted, her head lowering slightly. "Like, if someone asks me to do something for them, I have a pretty bad tendency to just go along with it without asking enough questions. They don't even have to persuade or beg me, either. I always think about what would happen if I told them I couldn't help them… and then I start thinking about how angry or how upset people have gotten when I rejected their requests or demands in the past… It's… probably one of the biggest reasons why I never have much of anything at the beginning of an adventure, and… maybe even why the Palace Guards think I'm a bad protector," she additionally realized.

"Hm? I'm… not entirely seein' the connection there," Tay commented in confusion. "I mean, I get what you mean in terms of givin' away so much that you don't have enough for yourself, but what does that have t' do with the guards?"

"Sorry, I should be clearer. During the final stretch of my last adventure, for example, each of the four Barons of Sequin Land asked me to find things for them in return for a piece of Risky's equipment that I needed to deliver to Uncle so he could make a Magic Polarizer to stop Risky's Tinkerbrain with…"

"…I'm… gonna pretend I understand that."

"Fair," Shantae conceded with a light chuckle. "Anyway, I had recently stopped each and every one of them from terrorizing Sequin Land in one way or another, but for some reason, they all wound up bumming around Scuttle Town afterward. They each mysteriously had one piece of Risky's equipment and would only give each piece to me if I collected things like Sunken Souls, Machine Parts, a Poster, or a Data Chip for them. Instead of turning them in to the authorities or putting my foot down after what they did, I… just gave them what they wanted because it was easier for me, and I… I figured they'd be less likely to attack Scuttle Town or another region again."

"Oh," Tay recoiled in surprise that Shantae would make such a… definitive and… dare I say, erroneous decision. "That's… That's somethin' if I've ever heard it…"

"Yeah, and I'm kicking myself just thinking about it," she remorsefully admitted. "Each of them wound up doing something bad right off the bat pretty much right after I was done fighting Risky Boots, and I was made to clean up the messes I helped them make… Mind you, they're still roaming the place, free as birds. I'll give you details another time, but that's my point. I knew what I should've done to get what I needed, but I did something else that backfired in the long run because I didn't want them to give me a hard time when they asked me for things I shouldn't have given them… except maybe Squid Baron's poster. That was harmless. Still… y'know, the 'knowing what's right and not doing it' thing I told you about earlier, in addition to not saying 'No'…"

"Goodness, homegirl… That's quite a way t' learn those lessons…"

"Yeah… That's something I wish I could've changed if I had the power."

"Well… Shoot, we both have our kinks t' iron out then, huh?" he observed, surprised by the revelation that Shantae, contrary to his initial beliefs, was not a perfect heroine.

"Yeah…" she somberly agreed, frowning with guilt.

"Hm… That's why learnin' from the past is important, though," he spoke up after a moment of silence. "That way, you're a lot less likely t' repeat the same mistakes. I mean, it ain't foolproof, an' more mistakes will inevitably be made, but the more you learn, the better an' more solid a person you become. That's why I plan on changin' how I define my purpose," Tay shared with a sense of motivation, laying a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"I couldn't agree more," Shantae agreed, laying her hand on top of his. "I'm right there with you, with changing for the better by learning from my past mistakes. So, what would you say your reasons for being a hero are now?"

"Now, I want t' do it t' protect those who are still here. I want t' do the right thing, no matter what. Even if…" he paused, contemplating what he was about to say. "…even if it kills me…" he murmured, that very statement reminding him of his conversation with the jackal-maksed woman who swore him to secrecy about her premonition. He sighed away the sudden influx of anxiety as he began to understand just what his decision back then meant. Nonetheless, Shantae smirked with vigor.

"That's awesome, Tay!" she proclaimed, not reading into his statement at all. She was proud of him for having rearranged his motivations for being a hero. "And, like I said back when we first started, I'll show you the ropes on being a hero, if you're still interested in being my student! Of course, I also said we'd succeed or die trying, and luck's been on my side since I began my career as a hero! Don't you worry!"

"…Heh, I certainly like your enthusiasm. You're right. We're in this together, an' together, we'll win," he agreed with a confident nod, still holding onto hope that the mysterious jackal-masked woman's bleak predictions about his future wouldn't come true.

"Most definitely," she confirmed, though she began to yawn as she gazed out her bedroom window to notice the glowing crescent moon had shifted significantly in its position. "Man, we should probably hit the hay… We've been up all night."

"Shoot, you ain't lyin'," the serviceman agreed, stretching and yawning himself. "I hope we can get enough rest t' tackle whatever tomorrow brings us."

"You can say that again," she agreed, getting up and climbing back into her hammock. "I do have one last question before we go to sleep, though, Tay…"

"Go for it," he permitted, stretching himself out and lying back down on the floor.

"Are… Are you sure you're okay, after we talked about your old friends? Do… you feel like you might need a couple days to come to terms with what happened today?"

"Honestly… Seein' them all again for that last time WAS the time I needed t' come t' terms with their passings," the soldier revealed, much to Shantae's bewilderment.

"What? How?"

"I was holdin' ont' feelings of regret, shame, an' self-hatred before today, an' I had a lot of unresolved conflicts with them. Those perpetual feelings turned into… 'Nega-Tayshan,' as you called him. That was, by far, the most gruelin' fight of my life next t' Risky Boots, an' I only won once I realized my own emotions an' refusal t' really accept my faults were givin' him power. You saw for yourself how badly I was beaten up when I came out o' that cave."

"I think I have an idea of what you went through…" she attested, again calling back to her own experiences fighting her evil self. "Still, I'm so glad you won. On your own, no less! That deserves acknowledgement of its own! Your first solo Boss Battle, and you dominated it!"

"Heh, I guess I could take that," he smilingly nodded in appreciation. "I will say thank goodness for that bathhouse, though. It did the trick like it always seems to; even fixin' up my tattered-up clothes!"

"You, I, Sky, Twitch, AND Vinegar can all say that," she remarked with a chuckle. "We all needed time in there. I'm just glad they don't charge us to use it."

"You're tellin' me…" he understood. "Anyway, like I was sayin'… The bright side t' my experience in the Grotto of Judgment is that I was finally able t' get closure with all o' them…" he explained. "This doesn't go t' say that their memory no longer affects me… It's just the opposite, actually."

"Opposite? You mean it still hurts you to remember them?"

"No. I mean that now, rememberin' them motivates me in a more positive light," he clarified. "Even if it was the case that I didn't know one of 'em died until I saw her as a ghost… Sorry… for breakin' down like that, homegirl… That isn't like me at all…"

"Tayshan, don't be silly!" she deflected his apology. "You had to let that out. You were grieving over a loved one you lost. How could anyone ever hold you at fault for that?"

"Hmm… Y-you're right," he pensively agreed with a nod.

"You're not weak for crying, if that's what you're getting at," she let him know. "I still don't know much about boys, but I do know how you all get with showing emotions that aren't anger or pride," she teased, at which they both shared a much-needed laugh to lighten the mood.

"Touché," he conceded in utter gender-biased defeat. "I'll take that one layin' down… literally."

"Ahh, clever!" she praised with another giggle, picking her candle up from the wooden nightstand near her hammock and blowing it out. Immediately, the room darkened to a near pitch-black, save for the rays of the moon shining through the window. As she relaxed herself on her hammock, however, she realized she had at least a couple more questions to ask her otherworldly sidekick. "Hey, Tay?"

"Yes, ma'am?"

"What was it like, fighting that evil doppelganger? I mean, you gave me a little bit of detail, but I'm curious as to how the fight itself went."

"That… That's a LONG story…" he informed with a yawn. "I'll tell you about that tomorrow, but man was it an experience."

"I hope to hear all about it, in that case. I'm interested, because you're the only other person I know of who's actually fought an evil clone of themselves. I thought I was alone there…"

"Say it ain't so," he remarked in surprise. "Well then… Sounds like we owe each other some evil clone stories."

"Oh, tomorrow should be fun!" she cheered, barely able to contain her excitement to hear how Tay's experience fighting his evil self was. "One more question before I stop badgering you, though…" she led on, wanting to know one final thing for the night.

"What's up?"

"You… You don't have to answer this if you don't want, and you have every right to be mad at me for asking… but… um… Did… did…?" she hesitated, uncertain of how to utter her inquiry for fear of upsetting her friend.

"It must be a real hard question t' ask. If it makes you feel any less uncomfortable, I won't get mad, no matter what," he encouraged.

"O-okay. Well…" the apprehensive young woman froze again before taking a deep, heavy breath to dispel her nervousness. "I'm just going to ask it. Did your parents visit you in that cave?" she blurted out, cringing and nibbling on her blanket as soon as she uttered it. She expected Tay to explode with grief and sorrow or get so angry he'd jump out the window and scream in inconsolable rage until he exploded into a thousand confetti ribbons or do something totally irrational that would've been completely her fault. "Oh, no! I-I'm sorry, Tay! That's none of my-!"

"Nah, I didn't see 'em," he plainly answered, petrifying Shantae as she tried processing the overwhelming… calmness of Tay's answer.

"Oh," she eloquently responded, pulling her blanket down from her lips. "…How come?"

"As far as I know, you're only visited by ghosts o' those who have unresolved conflicts with you in the Grotto of Judgment. I was told by that strange woman that my parents had no grudges t' hold against me. Therefore, they weren't required t' visit me like my friends did."

"Oh… Wow… I… I don't know what to say there…" she admitted, rendered speechless by his revelation.

"I just take it as them bein' unconditionally lovin' an' proud o' me," Tay confidently interpreted, making himself comfy as he began to doze off. "Even through all the things I was made t' admit an' apologize for, I… I only hope they're happy with what they might've heard about me up till now, regardin' my efforts t' change for the better… wherever they are… an' even if they aren't, I'll use that as motivation t' keep improvin'."

"…I'm positive they are proud of you. Without a doubt," Shantae affirmed to the best of her ability as she assumed a resting position. Hearing Tay's positive outlook about the opinions his dearly-departed parents may have held about him reminded Shantae of her own parents… While she may not have had any idea where they were or what they were doing, she held out hope that they would be as proud of her as Tay felt his parents were of him. "I… I kind of hope the same thing with my own parents…" she murmured to herself as she brought her hands to her heart.

"Homegirl, there's no doubt your parents are proud o' you," Tayshan affirmed, though he alarmed his team leader. She didn't expect him to hear her in the dead silence of the lighthouse that was only interrupted by the crashing ocean waves outside. "That goes without sayin', an' I'm just an outsider lookin' in. If I was one o' your parents, I'd be nothin' but proud," he further sleepily affirmed without even looking at her, though he probably should've. If he did, he'd have witnessed the impact his nonchalant words had on her. The heroine's eyes began to water as her heart became heavy with wonder and hope.

"…Thanks for that," she shakily professed her immeasurable gratitude, wiping her eyes as she gazed down at him. He was lying down, his back turned toward her as though he were already asleep. She smiled brightly, taking his kind words to heart as she laid her sleepy self back down into her hammock. "G'night, Tay…"

"Sweet dreams, Shantae," Tayshan replied as the two finally settled down and rested their weary bodies for the next big challenge awaiting them.

Whew… THIS… was a LOT to process. I don't blame you if your brain is basically pudding at this point. But fret not, dedicated reader! We've still got much more ground to cover, more action-packed thrills to indulge in, and more of that existential, multifaceted teenage angst to explore than the fires sweeping through the Prickle Stitch Valley! That's my last wildfire joke, I swear! I'm not a pyromaniac! Anyway, stick around for the next exciting entry in this strange, strange saga in the history of Sequin Land! Peace!


	8. Mind Over Madness

Chapter 6: Mind Over Madness

LOCATION: HYPNO BARON'S [RUINED] CASTLE, SEQUIN LAND (Yeah, take a wild guess who we're visiting to start this chapter. You'd better thank me later!)

DATE: SEPTEMBER 18TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1800 HOURS

"YOU FIENDISH VIXEN! HOW DARE YOU AND YOUR WRETCHED LACKEYS DEMOLISH MY PRECIOUS CASTLE-TURNED-AFTERLIFE HABITAT!" screamed an incredibly-distressed, portly skull-faced wizard donning a midnight purple robe as he dashed through the smoke-blotted evening skies, firing acid-green magic blasts in all directions. He was trying his best to take on a defensive approach against an unyielding, belligerent hailstorm of gun and rocket fire. This wizard had been in the middle of what appeared to be a grueling, extremely one-sided scuffle with some horrifyingly-relentless opponents. His home, an enormous Halloween-themed castle resting on its own heavily-vegetated, isolated peninsula a few dozen miles away from a certain active volcano that you might remember, was in utter shambles.

Various portions of the gargantuan, extravagant fortress were up in merciless towering flames. Scattered masses and piles of charred, broken cobblestone littered the vicinity as abundantly as late autumn leaves on the front yard of a family house with no groundskeeper. Bushes and trees all around were either smoking heavily or were serving as catalysts for ravenous infernos that uncontrollably razed the landscape. Explosions were ringing out with startling frequency and intensity, every illuminating fiery *KABOOM* causing monumental aftershocks that could be felt miles upon miles away. It was dusk, but one might've been fooled with all the carnage and pyrotechnic chaos that set the evening sky ablaze like the morning sun would. Seriously, it was like watching holiday fireworks, mixed in with a heaping ton of senseless, deliberate demolition the likes of which no living (or undead) creature should be on the business end.

As though that couldn't be bad enough, there were all sorts of resident creatures pouring out of the windows and doors of the crumbling castle in droves. DROVES, I tell ya. Visually-appealing spiky-legged spider-girls, a charming ghost girl with a bob cut and a sweater carrying a haunted fake red treasure chest, pink goo monsters with attractive young girls for tongues/bait, scantily clad, adorable succubus girls (yeah, there were a LOT of pretty girls in this castle, which makes one question the company this wizard keeps)… in addition to bats, blue scorpion-lobster monsters, haunted scarecrows, and at least two zombies who were running for their (after)lives.

"Jeez, I knew this place was too good ta be true! I didn't even get ta save my poster," one of the zombies, tall with a chest-baring navy-blue jacket, angrily complained as he sprinted to safety alongside his shorter, yellow-and-purple-clad, Frankenstein-like brother. "Trouble seems ta follow us wherever we go, don't it, Poe?" he asked for confirmation.

"You got that right, Abner," the other zombie, apparently named Poe, worriedly agreed as he kept most of his attention focused on the shambling undead hamster he was cradling to protect it from harm. "We didn't even stir up any ruckus this time, either…"

"You're tellin' me! Wait'll Rottytops hears about this mess! She's lucky she didn't stick around for this freak firework show!" Abner continued to gripe as he and Poe continued to dash into the distance as far away from the carnage as they could. "I just wish she didn't take the new-and-Abner-approved Zombie Caravan with her! What a way ta become homeless all over again!" Wow. Those poor guys…

Uh, a-anyway, I know what you're thinking. Right now, you're probably wondering, 'Who might be responsible for this debauched show of merciless brutality against a sickly-looking, lonely old skull-faced sorcerer and his zombie roommates?' Well I'll drop a real subtle clue:

There were gigantic swarms of Tinkerbats armed with propeller packs, rocket launchers, semi-automatic rifles, frag grenades, Thermite grenades, and flamethrowers. And MAN, were they putting those things to use! They were indiscriminately rapid-firing rockets and carelessly tossing grenades here, recklessly emptying magazines of rifle ammo and showering the foliage in flames there, and basically using all of their disproportionately-enhanced power to completely obliterate somebody's home. Now that you've got your clue, I'll give you two guesses as to who was behind this horrible mess. I'll wait…

"WHAT KIND OF HEARTLESS MONSTER DESTROYS A MAN'S HOME WITHOUT EVEN KNOCKING FIRST!?" the distraught, frustrated magician further protested as he continued to defend himself by firing a barrage of swirling magic balls at his also-airborne assailants. However, a well-placed *BANG* of a shot (of flashing marble) from a long-range rifle struck him in the chest, causing him to lose his focus and plummet into a nearby sandy shoreline. He met the sand with a debilitating *THUD* as he bounced and rolled along the coast. His nasty fall was gruesome, but the badly-injured sorcerer managed to at least stay conscious. As he lay flat on his stomach in the sand, however, an intensely-intimidating figure emerged from the woodwork, cackling as it made its (or rather, HER) presence painfully known.

"Now THIS is a weapon worthy of a captain," proclaimed none other than the nefarious Risky Boots (SURPRISE), patting herself on the back as she observed the sniper rifle she'd been carrying. "One shot, even with a weaker bullet, and you were down like the floating target you always are," she snidely remarked in her usual unrepentant evil demeanor as she approached the downed conjurer. Evidently, she was the one who shot him down. "How frustrating it's gotta be for you to be reminded of just how pathetic you are, Hypno Baron."

"Urgh… Agh…!" the incapacitated Hypno Baron, grunted in agony as he scrambled to his hands and knees, his cloak coated with wet sand. He was panting heavily as he looked up at his ruthless attacker. Risky stopped before him, grinning with triumphant glee. "If… if only I had my spell book…! You… You will pay for this…!" Hypno Baron threatened, unwilling to submit to her while blaming his defeat on a certain missing possession of his. He was ready to strike while her guard was down, no less. However, as he conjured up just a small current of magic into his hand to strike, a squad of Risky's disreputable Tinkerbats landed in the immediate area with rifles drawn and surrounded the defenseless wizard before he could make his move.

"Now, let this be a warning to you never to try and weasel your way out of an offer as magnanimous as the one I'd already laid out for you yesterday," she coldly remarked, pointing the barrel of her sniper rifle directly in his face. "I might've… 'forgotten' to tell you that I've beefed up my assets since we last did battle."

"Your 'offer' was nothing but serpent hissing. Not to mention, you just completely decimated my home, you wretched pirate snake!" Hypno Baron spat with venomous (pun not intended) enmity. "And for what?"

"To prove a couple of points, simply put," she admitted with a thoughtless shrug. "One point being that, with the weapons I have now, I could easily wipe out any target location I so choose in no time flat. I'm sure I don't need to remind you that my crew and I only came here about 20 minutes ago," she hinted at her destructive power, shocking the victimized sorcerer beyond belief. "And in that 20 minutes, your entire castle, nearly the size of twelve five-story buildings spanned across at least 10 acres…" Risky taunted, only pausing to snicker. "…has been reduced to a pile of flaming rubble and ashes in this quaint little oasis. Take that into perspective."

"Why… why you-!"

"My other point is that if you value your life and plan on continuing that meaningless little merchandising campaign you're on, you'll do exactly what I say, when I say it. Got it?"

"What… What do you want from me…?" Hypno Baron asked, all but compelled to protect himself from further harm; even if it meant surrendering to Sequin Land's worst enemy. Even he knew just how wicked and ruthless Risky Boots could really be.

"I WANTED your permission to set up a secondary base of operations here. You knew that from our last conversation. I was set to offer you a modest 1% of my vast, extensive riches for your cooperation," Risky reasoned, much to Hypno Baron's displeasure. "And you should know me by now. I'm not one who usually asks permission for anything."

"And I explained to you that no amount of your dirty money could ever justify my playing accomplice to your dastardly domination schemes," the checkmated wizard spat. "I've been trying to stay out of the affairs of you and that obnoxious genie whippersnapper since you both came in on separate occasions last month and not only beat the stuffing out of me for no reason, but also ruined my marketing collaboration campaign with Squid Baron! In fact, I'm fairly certain that hair-weaponizing little dancing twit took my-!"

"I couldn't care less about your tawdry little toy market get-rich quick scheme!" Risky shouted in annoyance at his prattling as she lowered the sniper rifle. "The fact is, you were made a very generous offer, and you literally slammed the door in my face. That was just rude…"

"So your response is to come back the next day and blow up my castle!?" he indignantly roared at her, bringing himself to his feet. "You laid waste to it, and all the forestation for at least a thirty-mile radius! What more could you want from me!?"

"Nothing now, except that you apologize by licking my sandy boots clean. At this point, you're more of an example than a business partner," Risky nonchalantly dismissed. "This little demonstration of my enhanced destructive power gives me just the confirmation I need to know the rest of this country will fall just as easily as your childish storybook fantasy palace."

"…Where… where did you even get such incorrigible firepower, anyway?" Hypno Baron dared to ask. "Is this that disgraceful Techno Baron's doing?"

"Don't insult me!" Risky firmly denied. "As if I'd ever sully my reputation working with that filthy, hideous, metal-headed newt. I'd sooner rend his hide and fashion a fancy lizard-skin jacket from it. And even then, I'd sooner BURN it than wear it. These wonderful new upgrades came from a… a 'friend' of mine who is no longer with us," she teased, very loosely referring to a certain someone she robbed.

"A friend of yours no longer with us…?" Hypno Baron repeated in fear and confusion. "If that's the case, then I smell foul play. Well, mostly burning wood, gunpowder, and gasoline, but also foul play. I'm aware of the fates of those fool enough to strike any bargain with you. A trio of zombies let me know all about your duplicitous proclivities…" he warily emphasized, alluding to his former roommates.

"Speculate all you want about how I strike my deals," Risky dismissed again. "The important thing is that you understand that you're outnumbered, outgunned, and out of a home after you so brazenly refused my offer. However, I'm not totally devoid of… dare I say, compassion, so you may go free once you're done cleaning my boots. Your debt would be paid after that."

"MY debt!? Are you kidding me!?" Hypno Baron screamed in rage. "You caused BILLIONS of gems' worth of irreversible damage to my castle, and you'd dare charge ME for it!?"

"Look, that's the nature of business," Risky so eloquently enlightened the indebted magus. "It's all a matter of cost and benefit. You didn't benefit me, so it cost you your home. Simple as that. Even so, I'm still nice enough to give you a chance to save yourself. You should consider yourself lucky."

"…That would make more sense coming out of Squid Baron's insufferably-boisterous mouth…" Hypno Baron complained, clearly not appreciating the gravity of Risky's magnanimous proposal.

"Oh? Then, would you rather I use that ridiculous face of yours for target practice for my new rifle?" she warned, demonstrating her trademark intolerance for back-sass. "I could use the training, since that deceased 'friend' of mine foolishly chose to defy… Hm?" she trailed off as she noticed frantic waving coming from a Tinkerbat floating toward her in the distance. Within a couple of minutes, the Tinkerbat landed, though it appeared to be in horrid shape. It was covered in splotches of soot, its clothes were tattered, and its propeller pack shorted out as soon as it landed, rendering the device totally useless. "You were supposed to be over on the Prickle Stitch Valley for weapons training drills. What are you doing here!?" she shouted at the Tinkerbat. "And why are your clothes so ruffled?"

The Tinkerbat, frightened as one might expect when a Tinkerbat is screamed at by its capricious boss, did its best to explain the situation. Through coordinated-yet-frantic silent charade-style gesticulations, this Tinkerbat explained that its platoon's position was compromised and that they were forced to enact a scorched-earth contingency to prevent losses of precious resources (AKA weapons dropped by defeated squad members) to enemy forces.

"No! We shouldn't have taken such a hefty loss this early in the game! Whoever dares to interfere with me will face my wrath… Tell me, who were the intruders?" Risky demanded to know.

The Tinkerbat made a few choice gestures that let Risky know exactly who the interlopers were. Without saying too much, the Pirate Queen… was… furious.

"Shantae, that bird-brained friend of hers, Ammo Baron's blonde bozo sidekicks, and WHO!?" Risky roared in absolute nuclear meltdown-level anger that startled all of her present Tinkerbats stiff. It goes without saying that she was appalled at the mention of the five people responsible for a recent blunder elsewhere. "Grrrr, that hunch was right all along! So, not only does that despicable little brat have a clue that I'm mobilizing again, she also joined forces with Ammo Baron AND… and that stubborn muscle-bound wretch from the other world that simply refuses to be dead like he's supposed to be…!" Risky ranted, clawing at her own face and stomping the ground in inconsolable anger. "This isn't good… This is not good…!"

"Uh… Am I missing something…?" Hypno Baron interjected with an innocent question. In that moment, Risky snapped out of her display of outrage and glared at the wizard. However, she perked up and grinned a couple seconds later, seeming to get an idea as she stared bullets into him.

"You know what? You just might have another shot at proving your worth," Risky suggested, her evil grin holding strong as she regained her composure.

"What… what do you me-?"

"You're going to do me a huge favor," she interrupted, not even giving him the time of day to speak. "In return, you'll get 2% of my riches!"

"Whatever it is you're plotting, I want no part in it," Hypno Baron refused without a second thought. "I told you, I do not want your dirty mon-!"

"I didn't say you were being given a choice," Risky countered, thus shutting him down. "I'm already offering you more than I'd give anyone else in return for your cooperation. If you dare refuse to work for me, we'll string you up and use you for target practice… for our explosives!" she threatened, pointing her sniper rifle in the poor wizard's face. In enthusiastic collective agreement, Risky's Tinkerbats also simultaneously aimed their weapons at Hypno Baron.

"Well then… W-when you put it that way… How might I be of service, M-Mistress Risky Boots?" Hypno Baron graciously offered in a way that was not at all coerced as he raised his hands toward the smoky evening sky and glanced around in pure terror.

"That's what I like to hear…" she nodded in approval of Hypno Baron's servility, lowering her weapon once more. "So, remember that 'friend' of mine I mentioned earlier? Yeah, turns out he's harder to get rid of than I thought. As in, he's still alive. Worse yet, he's apparently become real chummy with a certain half-genie twerp, and I just don't have the time to hunt them down myself just yet. I've got tons of other work to do, and I need someone to… well, I'll tell you more when things get a little quieter around here," she explained, also hinting to me that I should probably switch gears or else I'd wind up being another one of her targets.

Little did they know, someone else was watching from a safe distance, listening to every word of the discussion as they remained floating in the ocean like a normal cephal—er, generic sea creature. But, that's as much as I'm allowed to say. Soooooo, since I'd prefer that my internal organs be in their rightful places and fully functioning…

 ** _The Next Day…_**

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN LIGHTHOUSE, SCUTTLETOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 19TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1117 HOURS

After a grueling day packed with more perilous adventure than most people have in three months, followed by a heart-to-heart discussion that carried on into the early hours of the morning, our valiant young warriors were up, at 'em, and ready to take on the next challenge… Ah, I can't even be sarcastic about that. They were actually just stirring awake because of how late they stayed up. Well… even then, only one of them was actually awake. He just didn't feel like getting up, though going back to sleep wasn't an option for him, either.

"Urgh, the snorin'…!" Tayshan complained, attempting to plug his ears with his pillow as he tried to get some shut-eye. Apparently, the ambient, melodious sound of his partner's raucous snoring didn't do a thing to help him settle in. "Goodness, it's like listenin' to a symphony of a thousand pigs…!" he further griped, squeezing the pillow tighter to no avail. Sadly for him, a full night's sleep would evade him like the world's hardest game of dodgeball. As such, he soon gave up trying to go back to sleep, electing to let Shantae snore the morning away. In sleepless frustration, he tossed the pillow away and feld up his blanket. After neatly putting his bedtime materials away, he slid down the rope that served as a makeshift staircase and made his way to the first floor.

"I'm still so tired…" he murmured, yawning and stretching as he wiped his eyes. "…yet, it feels like we overslept. Hard t' tell when homegirl doesn't own an alarm clock… even harder when there ain't even a rooster call t' listen out for." With that fatigue-riddled observation, Tayshan moved to collect his handgun from the wooden dining table it'd been resting on, picking the weapon up and studying it closely. As though it were going to speak to him, he stared intently at his marginally-trusty Desert Eagle, momentarily reflecting on how it made it into his hands after all this time… and more importantly, whom he originally obtained the gun from. He closed his eyes and nodded after a moment of silence, placing the gun back onto the table. "I won't let your memory fade… I'll make sure this gun helps me bring justice t' this world…" he solemnly murmured as he got set to get dressed in his usual attire.

However, as the soldier was about to pick up his boots and tank top, he noticed something nearby, lying next to his neatly-feld shirt. "Huh?" he muttered, scanning the wooden table, only to be astonished by what he saw. "Another outfit?" As it turned out, there lay an identical, though much cleaner copy of his usual ensemble right before his eyes. "How…? Where did this come from…?" he observed, picking up the wardrobe and examining it. Immediately, he noticed that the outfit consisted of a white tank top, navy blue camouflage pants, a navy-blue utility belt, and a matching pair of navy-blue boots; the exact same colors worn by a certain doppelganger he'd previously encountered. "The colors are… familiar, if nothin' else, but… Maybe Shantae found this for me? Hmm…" he pondered, taking a few moments to swap his current outfit for the new one, even going as far as to place his handgun in the sheath of the new utility belt.

"It's a perfect fit, too," he noticed, fashioning the new set of clothing as though he were a curious runway model. "Neat… I ought t' thank her for gettin' this for me…" he murmured in gratitude. "That is, if it even was for me. Better take it off for now, though, so she doesn't think I just jumped to a conclusion…" Just as Tay was about to remove the new garments, however, a booming *KNOCK KNOCK* sounded from the front door, startling him. "A visitor? I don't remember her sayin' she was expectin' anybody today. I'd better let them know Shantae's not available at the moment, whoever they are…" he surmised, keeping on the new outfit as he approached the door and opened it. "Hello…? What the…?" he commented, flabbergasted by the appearance of the visitor; a tall, portly, hooded man-creature with a glowing outline of a skull for a face and a purple cloak concealing the entirety of his body. The man stood to be about Tay's height, if not taller, and was folding his hands together within his oversized sleeves across his torso.

"Good tidings, friend," the creature politely engaged, though he exuded a dark, sinister aura that instantly put Tay on-edge. "I am Hypno Baron," the creature introduced himself.

"Hypno… Baron…?" he repeated, studying the unwarranted 'guest' and remembering a warning given to him by Twitch and Vinegar a day earlier. Purple cloak? Check. Skull for a face? Check. Hideous googly yellow eyes with red irises? Definitely check. Irrevocably creepy vibes that would make a small child wet him/herself? ALL of that check. "I… I've heard o' you…" Tay commented, the bells ringing in his head like a distress signal as he glared at the unwanted guest.

"Ah, I see my reputation precedes me," he excitedly acknowledged with a grin. "We can skip the formalities, then. Where is Shantae?" Hypno Baron boldly asked, not even attempting to get to know the man standing before him. "She owes me something VERY valuable that I need from her immediately."

"Wouldn't you like t' know?" Tay defiantly asked back, stepping outside and closing the door behind him. Hypno Baron stepped back, seeming to expect an exchange of this caliber.

"Indeed I would," the sorcerer calmly confirmed. "I would also like to know just who you are. I've heard word there was a new face in this fair land of ours, but I don't believe your description matches. I was told a man about your height and frame that wore black and tan recently allied himself with everyone's favorite half-genie menace. Although, your outfit colors are the only discrepancy I notice here. Everything else checks out. Might you be affiliated with the Ammonian Army?" he asked, interpreting Tay's alternate color scheme as a sign of his affiliation with Ammo Baron. It only made sense to the wizard, considering the information delivered to him by his current… employer.

"No…" Tay answered, unsure of why such an inquiry would be posed to him. Although, he paused when he considered Hypno Baron's intrusive prods. "Wait… You've heard o' me?" Tay warily asked, subtlely raising his hand toward his gun, making it look like he was resting it on his hip near the holster.

"Yes, believe it or not. Evidently, you have a not-so-secret admirer who sent me to… deliver a message to you," he ominously stated, unfolding his hands and resting them on his sides, though one of them was glowing; just the sign Tay needed to confirm the malicious intentions held by this creature.

"Then lemme guess," Tay began his retort, drawing his gun and aiming it at Hypno Baron. "This 'admirer' is a certain pirate woman who sent you here t' ambush and/or assassinate us. Is that it?"

"Clever, you are," Hypno Baron praised, hopping back and raising the pasty, pale glue-white hand in which he summoned magic. "However, assassination isn't my goal. I refuse to carry out the orders of that horrid, cantankerous woman."

"So you just confirmed you're workin' for Risky Boots," Tay pointed out, instantly on high-alert as he stood his ground. "You also just confirmed she knows we're onto her… But, if you're not here t' do what she asked, then what ARE you here for?" Tay interrogated, steadying his aim as the two prepared for battle like an old western stand-off. The effervescent ocean waves crashed against the rocky walls of the peninsula as a gentle, frigid wind breezed through the sunny, tropical landscape. The backdrop of the atmosphere contrasted the intensity shared by the two combatants as they stared each other down.

"Simply put, I am here to…!" Hypno Baron trailed off, immediately launching a cheap sneak attack by launching a green magic sphere at Tayshan, which the soldier dove out of the way to dodge. The blast collided with a jarring *CRASH* against the wall of the building. "Darn it! Missed!" the dastardly wizard cursed as he began charging up additional magic blasts to throw at Tay… W-wait, this is the part where I'm supposed to come up with a witty, humorously-convenient title for a Boss Battle! I'm no good under this kind of pressure! Especially not with Boss Battles that happen right at the beginning of an adventure! Um… Uhh… Here goes nothing!

 ** _HYPNO BARON: ARCANE AMBUSH ASSASSIN! (whew, I did it…)_**

"You cheater!" Tay accused, taking the defensive as he fired a volley of rounds at the underhanded conjurer, who stopped charging up attacks and summoned a neon blue magic shield to block the marbles. The soldier noticed an opportunity right away and began to think of an alternative attack plan. "You really figured I was gonna sit there an' let you dupe me like that!?"

"Would you be insulted if I said yes?" Hypno Baron rhetorically affirmed, levitating and firing a sequence of lightning strikes and green magic spheres from his hands as he gave chase to the soldier. Tay, already feeling the pressure brought on by his opponent, took to evading his opponent as best as he could without sacrificing too much opportunity to counter. His opportunities came few and far between, however, which allowed Tay to score only a couple of hits, though Tay had eaten a magic blast or two from the wizard in the process. Hypno Baron levitated haphazardly in the air, moving with such unpredictability that it made it hard for Tay to aim his shots when the wizard ceased firing attacks at him.

"Well let me show you why it ain't wise t' underestimate me!" he roared, changing tactics. As Hypno Baron summoned up the magic necessary to begin firing another barrage of lightning bolts and energy spheres, he remained airborne, lofting about like a feather in the wind. Tay, seeing a pattern in the malicious conjurer's seemingly-aimless floating, dashed in close, firing a series of shots that, too, were blocked by another magic shield that Hypno Baron consciously summoned as he dropped his offense to focus on his defense. Expecting something of the like, Tay ran in close and jumped to grab onto the sorcerer's cloak.

"Hey! What the-!"

"Get down here!" Tay roared, pulling down on the robe hard enough with one hand to yank the magician down as he stepped back to sheathe his gun and cock his other fist back as far as he could. "Hrrrah!" Tayshan shouted as he pulled Hypno Baron down with all his might. "Haaaaaah!" With a devastating, world-obliterating, echoing *CRACK*, Tay landed a monstrous haymaker on Hypno Baron that sent him flying back by at least a few feet before making a heavy sliding *THUD* of an impact on the grass, clutching his face… thing in anger and horrible pain.

"Why you…!" Hypno Baron rasped through his… skull-face teeth as Tay stood tall before him, flexing his fist as he recoiled from the brutal counterattack. The sorcerer was as astonished as he was angered by the unprecedented sheer force of the soldier's punch as he tried to shake off his dizziness and sudden splitting headache. "My stars, that punch felt like a hundred stacks of bricks falling from the top of Tassel Tower…! That detestable pirate wasn't lying about this young man's absurd strength…! Maybe I can use that to my advantage…"

"I'll say this once, Hypno Baron! Leave now, while you still can! You can go back t' Risky Boots an' tell her we said hello," Tay demanded, pulling his gun out once more and aiming it at the wicked wizard with every intent to bring the scuffle to as quick an end as he deemed necessary.

"Ohohoho, my boy, how right you are about that… in a sense. I'll be saying hello in spirit. Alas, it'll be YOU saying hello to her in person!" he shot back, summoning a bizarre red magic signature into two fingers as he remained on the ground, pointing said fingers to where the serviceman was standing.

"What the…?" Tayshan was about to question, though his feet began to glow with the same crimson aura from Hypno Baron's fingers. It didn't take much thought for him to realize he'd been immobilized by the sneaky occultist. Tay immediately began to writhe and struggle to break free to no avail. Before he could even question that, however, Hypno Baron made his net move.

"I have you now!" he proclaimed as he suddenly twisted his hand and pointed his fingers upward as he extended his arm toward Tayshan. A sudden *ZAP* of horrendous scarlet magic, replete with a rapid flow of gray lightning bolts, coursed through the young man's body, completely paralyzing him where he stood as he dropped his weapon.

"Ghaaaaaagh!" Tay hollered out in continuous, electrified, immobilized agony. "I… I… can't… move…!"

"Welcome to one of my newest spells!" Hypno Baron boasted with a triumphant grin, gingerly bringing himself back to his feet. "With that red aura surrounding and ensnaring you, you are now susceptible to swapping bodies with whomever the first person is to make direct physical contact with you!"

"Wh-what!?" Tay managed to utter in complete shock… in more ways than one. "You… You're gonna…!"

"I'm going to steal your body, take back my spell book, and use the element of surprise to exact my revenge on that disreputable pirate for destroying my home!" Hypno Baron declared. "You're certainly no Shantae, but you'll do quite nicely. You are stronger than I imagined, which will serve as an auspicious benefit to me in complementing my already-unparalleled magical ability with terrifying brute strength! I can also rest assured in still retaining my gender, while also regaining literal centuries of youth and vigor all in one go!" he further proclaimed, approaching the incapacitated soldier with the most hideous grin imaginable on his insidious face. "Honestly, you should feel honored in helping me achieve my greatest goal yet!"

"Get… away from… me…!" Tay weakly choked out, still immobilized by the spell that forced him to stand completely still like a prisoner in his own body… that was about to be set free in the worst way imaginable. Tay's thoughts began to race as he deathly dreaded the possibility losing his identity. He seriously even contemplated how much worse this could've been than losing to his evil clone and letting said clone run rampant throughout Sequin Land. Of all ways to end his time here, though… switching bodies with an ugly, underhanded sorcerer. He couldn't bear to live with that, but there was nothing he could do. Try as he might, Hypno Baron had him checkmated.

"Don't you worry. I'll put your strength to GOOD use," the conniving magus taunted, moving to initiate his nefarious spell that would see him changing bodies with Tayshan. However, as he was just mere inches away from his would-be body swap host, a fireball soared through the air, crashing into the sorcerer's face with a hot *PWOOSH* that sent him stumbling back in horrible burning agony. "Gaaaahahaaaagh! My beautiful face!" Hypno Baron screeched as he fell the ground, trying to wipe literal fire out of his eyes.

"Tayshan!" called a familiar voice from behind as its owner leapt from the second-floor window of the lighthouse. Shantae, still in her pajamas, dashed forward, evidently having been awakened by the commotion. "What's going on out here!? Why is Hypno Baron attacking you!?" she questioned in utmost concern, running up to grab him and try to pull him away.

"No, you fool! Don't go anywhere near him!" Hypno Baron tried to warn as he regained enough of his vision to see the pajama-adorned half-genie doing exactly what she shouldn't.

"Shantae…! No…! Don't touch…!" Tay tried to warn, though it was too late. Shantae grabbed hold of his arm, and, if you were paying attention, then you know what that means.

"WAAAAAAAAAGH!" Both of our unfortunate heroes yelled in conjoined agony as Hypno Baron's spell took effect. Both of the young explorers were paralyzed by a surge of Hypno Baron's red energy. Their senses went into extreme overload. Every nerve in their bodies flared up as though each of the two were set ablaze. Their breath seized in their chests as though they'd had elephants sitting on them. They both blacked out momentarily from the intense, unspeakable pain… or, so it seemed.

"My word…!" Hypno Baron watched the mess he perpetrated unfold. As he studied the phenomenon, he saw what appeared to be astral projections of the two young warriors exiting their own bodies… and within a literal few seconds, being forcibly crammed into each other's as their corporeal forms remained helpless. Once the accidental soul transfer was complete, a *FWOOSH* of the red aura dispersed, flashing through the vicinity as the two fell to the ground near one another, barely conscious.

"Oogh… Every muscle in my body is throbbin' right now…" Shantae (male) groaned, shaking her head… though she immediately perked up, frightened beyond belief as she scanned her surroundings. "What… in the…?" she further quietly murmured in debilitating shock as she noticed a familiar individual lying face-up, rubbing his head. "That… that's me over there… Which means…" the half-genie murmured in TIGHTLY-contained fear as she looked down… to see a glorious cloak of rich, silky lavender hair fall and hang around her face. She also noticed the undeniable femininity of her body as she brought her hands to these strange, round, fleshy bulbs on her chest through her pajama top that she didn't recognize as hers. At that point, she began to breathe as though she were about to hyperventilate as she realized just what happened. "N-no… No, no, this can't be happenin'… This CANNOT be happenin', yo!" she panickedly denied, suddenly picking up an urban, slightly more bass-heavy (for a girl) speech pattern that she didn't have before.

Meanwhile, Tayshan (female) sat up, rubbing his temples as he blinked a few times to reorient himself. "Man, what a shock that was… Literally," the soldier murmured as he regained enough of his sight… to know something was terribly wrong. "Wait… Where's my hair?" he asked himself in sudden panic, feeling around his head for hair that mostly wasn't there. "Where's my hair!?" he screamed, bringing his hands in front of him. Of course, he was frightened to see yet another discrepancy in his appearance. "These… these aren't my hands…!" he worriedly observed, studying his big, broad, masculine appendages from fingertips to biceps. His gaze traveled further as he noticed that he was fully clothed in an outfit he did not remember putting on before he came outside. "These aren't my clothes…!" he muttered again, his fear about to shoot into overdrive. Worse yet, he felt something… something VERY unfamiliar within the confines of his pants that… well, I think you get the gist of it by now, reader. However, I'm not always one to skimp on details. He, in a state of utter bewilderment, reached toward the foreign object and squeezed it a few times. Immediately, he knew something was wrong. "W-W-W-What the heck is this thing!? That… That shouldn't be there!" he panicked, also making evident the change in his speech pattern. Gone was his typical urban vernacular. What replaced it was a higher-pitched (for a guy, anyway), effeminate inflection, complete with a very… definitive girlish lisp. Frightened beyond his wits, he looked up to see Shantae (male) in an equally-panicked state as they locked eyes. Once they did, however, the truth became all too painfully clear to them.

"S-Shantae…?" Shantae (male) called to Tayshan (female).

"T-Tayshan…?" Tayshan (female) called to Shantae (male).

"Why… why are you inside me?" the half-genie asked… b-by which I mean that Shantae (in Tayshan's body) asked Tayshan (in Shantae's body)… Yeah, this is gonna get real confusing real quick. "Why am I inside you?"

"This jerk over here's t' blame for this mess," Tayshan (in Shantae's body) came to enough of his/her senses to reply, angrily pointing toward a flabbergasted Hypno Baron (who was very much still in his own body).

"It… it worked… it actually worked!" Hypno Baron proclaimed in a mix of pride and complete astonishment. "Even without my Enigmatic Tome of the Occult, I managed to pull it off… The body-transfer spell was a rousing success!"

"Body-transfer spell!?" Tayshan (female) roared in a sudden burst of intense rage, appalled by what he/she'd just heard the dastardly wizard confess.

"Correctamundo, my formerly-half-genie guinea pig!" Hypno Baron proudly confirmed with a boisterous cackle, having fully recovered from nearly having his face melted off. "Yes, this is perfect!"

"Change us back, you connivin' son of a-!" Shantae (male) was about to verbally lambaste the wizard.

"Betcha didn't see this coming at all, did ya!?" the wizard laughingly taunted, guffawing like an overzealous patron during a family member's comedy routine while managing to further infuriate his body-switched enemies even further. "Also, much as I'd love to undo such monumental magical perfection so that I may take one of your bodies for my own, this spell sadly has a cool-down period of… roughly eight hours. Regardless, this is what you thieves deserve for—!"

"Hypno Baron, you'd better fix this ASAP, or we're going to come over there and kick your-!" Tayshan (female) attempted to threaten.

"As I was saying, you sticky-fingered bandits got exactly what you deserve for stealing my spell book!"

"What!?" Both of the swapped adventurers yelled out, befuddled and appalled by the accusation thrown at them.

"Is THAT what this is about!?" Tayshan (female) continued, utterly appalled by the revelation. "Why does everybody keep assuming I'm stealing things from them when they lose them!? Also, we didn't steal your book! That was-!"

"Only you and your despicable uncle would know that that book was one of the most powerful relics in all the land, and there's no doubt in my mind that you had a hand in its disappearance!" Hypno Baron further accused, beginning to levitate in midair.

"You couldn't be more wrong, you skull-faced freak!" Shantae (male) brazenly insulted, standing up in preparation to march over to the diabolical magus to give him a piece of her/his mind. "The one who stole your book was that-!"

"Enough of your pathetic attempts at deception!" Hypno Baron put his seemingly-nonexistent foot down. "I could simply force the answer out of you or raid your home, but I feel as though I've got a much less… barbaric and more beneficial way of getting what I want from you. Plus, I'm incredibly low on power and this violent little scuffle in addition to my lack of recovery since losing to Risky Boots drained me of nearly everything I had… It'll be a while before I recharge enough to do much else other than levitate. I need to conserve what little I have left…"

"You think we're just going to agree to help you with anything after what you just did to us?" Tayshan (female) incredulously asked.

"No, I KNOW you will, for I have caught wind that you needed something from me… related to reversing a certain Slug spell…" he coyly remarked with another triumphant chortle, alarming Shantae (male) and Tayshan (female).

"What? How could you-?" Shantae (male) was about to quiz.

"There are eyes and ears all over Sequin Land… and when my own ears start ringing, I always know right away that someone is looking for me."

"Someone told you, didn't they?" Tayshan (female) guessed, shattering the wizard's illusory shroud of mysticism.

"You could at least TRY to not be such a killjoy, Shantae…" Hypno Baron complained.

"What do you want from us?" he/she demanded to know, unamused by Hypno Baron's relentless joking.

"Well, it's more that you'll need more from me than I do from you. And you know what? You're in luck! Of the very few spells I know that are reversible, this and the Super Slugger Spell are in that category!"

"What!? But, you said none of your spells were reversible!" Tayshan (female) argued, though Hypno Baron's confusion brought about some much-needed relief.

"Of course, one as young and naïve as you would believe that… Such a gullible young lady… or, MAN, in this case…"

"…I hate you so much…! You're such a rotten f-!"

"Ugh, when will you learn?" he sarcastically remarked yet again. "Seriously, what kind of master magician would I be without knowing fail-safes for my spells in case they go horribly wrong?"

"Can you stop screwin' around an' get to the point o' what you want!?" Shantae (female) demanded, her temper burning like an oven doused in gasoline.

"Such a potty mouth on such a pretty little lady… Tsk, tsk, tsk, for shame…" Hypno Baron remarked, causing the soldier-turned-half-genie to shoot him a menacing, scowling, bare-toothed, growling death glare that actually managed to startle the wizard. "A-Anyway, if you two surrender my spell book, I will undo the body-swap spell AND give you the incantation for my Super Slugger Spell reversal… that is, if I have one," he slyly offered, though the implied possibility that he DIDN'T have a reversal for the Super Slugger Spell did nothing to calm his enemies down.

"But we don't have your spell book," Tayshan (female) informed the manipulative magician, much to his disbelief. "If you would listen to us, then we're trying to tell you that Squi-!"

"Lie all you want, but it won't get you any closer to getting your own bodies back," he interrupted and shrugged, still refusing to listen to them as he realized something that made him grin with malicious intent. "Actually… why bother rushing to change you back? If I let Risky know what I did to impede your little crusade to thwart her plans, she'll pay me what I am owed, after which I can see about reestablishing myself in Genie's Hem. Much as I'd hate to take money from her, it's all I have to rely on after she destroyed my castle."

"She destroyed your castle!?" Tayshan (female) remarked in surprise.

"Oh, it was terrible! She and her mischievous little minions were armed to the teeth with weapons of mass destruction the likes of which neither Ammo Baron nor Techno Baron could be capable of producing…"

"…Uh-oh…" Shantae (male) murmured, her/his heart sinking into the pit of her/his stomach.

"She obliterated the entire building and all the vegetation within at least a 30-mile radius in a matter of mere minutes! And now the only way to get back on my feet aside from hoping my toy campaign kicks off, is to take an oh-so-magnanimous handout from her! Despicable, I say!" Hypno Baron complained.

"Whoa, whoa…" Tayshan (female) halted the conversation to process just what he/she'd just been told. "She used those weapons from the other world to do the job?"

"Shantae…!" Shantae (male) rasped, holding out a hand toward her partner to get her to stop leaking confidential information.

"If you're going to act as though I don't know those weapons belonged to you, young man in Shantae's body, then you are far too late," Hypno Baron matter-of-factly informed, mortifying Shantae (male) in the process. "Not that it matters… The fact is, I've got to look out for priority number one in as many ways as I can in my recent bout of violence-induced homelessness, and I see a best-of-both-worlds opportunity arising right here and now. You two will come to Genie's Hem by 8:30 PM sharp tonight, with that spell book in tow! If you comply, I will have recovered just enough to reverse the body-swap spell, and you will have your Super Slugger Spell Reversal… maybe. If not, well… no skin off my nose other than a priceless lost relic. You two will just remain stuck in each other's bodies forever in the worst-case scenario. Best-case scenario is that I claim one of your bodies as my own. Either way, Risky will be free to do as she pleases, no matter what you choose to do between now and then. This serves as the perfect distraction!"

"No, wait!" Tayshan (female) called out, desperate to undo the spell as soon as he/she could.

"See you kids at 8:30 tonight! Don't forget! Genie's Hem!" Hypno Baron teased one last time as he ascended into the air, a silver magic signature enveloping his body. Within an instant, he *POOFED* away, leaving Shantae (male) and Tayshan (female) to contemplate their daunting situation.

"…Just peachy…" Tayshan (female) groaned, clearly unhappy with this arrangement as he/she sat down, throwing his/her head back in a contemplative mix of intense frustration and moderate confusion. As far as he/she was aware, he/she was now a boy… with a boy's physique. And no hair to weaponize… and no discernible way to cope with the (hopefully temporary) loss of her body to none other than her own partner. "I can't believe this…! Full-fledged human all over again, but this time, I'm a guy…"

"You're tellin' me," Shantae (male) agreed, trying to keep her/his luxurious royal purple locks from hiding her/his face. "Nobody ever really expects t' suddenly become a genie… especially not like this. Even better, I'm a woman now, too," she/he complained, looking downward to once again study her/his new body. There was no denying it. In terms of physical form, Shantae's body was 100% female from head to toe. The young man (in spirit, young woman in body) studied every inch of her/his new corporeal form, increasingly bewildered and mortified with every passing second that he remained trapped inside the form of a woman. Her/his eyes scanned over her/his bare feet… up to her/his frilly capri pajama pants… and then her/his rather revealing top just as a frigid breeze rolled in, causing her/him to clasp her/his arms over her/his breasts, shivering like she/he was standing in the snow. "Jeez, how… How do you keep warm with such…?" Shantae (male) was about to ask, looking over toward Tayshan (female). However, the sight of Tayshan (female) flabbergasted her/him. "Hey, hey, what are you doin'!?" she/he shouted in complete embarrassment. At what, you might ask? Well, I'll tell you.

Tayshan (female) had become rather… curious about his/her body, taking a more… kinesthetic approach to learning its structure and composition. He/she had, with a facial expression of utter discombobulation, undone the belt holding his/her pants and had been reaching into them to figure out just how different boys are from girls. Of course, as soon as Shantae (male) screamed at him/her, she glanced over to him, his/her face glowing bright red as he/she swiftly removed his/her hand from his/her pants, horrified at the moment he/she was caught.

"Uh, n-nothing, Tay… N-nothing at all…" Tayshan (female) sheepishly denied any wrongdoing, casting his/her gaze elsewhere. Shantae (male) merely shook her/his head and sighed in vexation.

"Now couldn't be a much worse time t' get explorative about our new selves, homegirl—er, homeboy…"

"I'm not a boy!"

"Not as far as I can see," Shantae (male) countered. "You're as much female right now as I am male… biologically speakin'. How are we supposed t' figure this out before we beat up that wizard for doin' this to us?"

"I dunno…" Tayshan (female) sadly replied, having no answers to her partner's question as he/she stood and fixed his/her outfit. "This is the first time this has ever happened to me… I'm not even sure what to call you… or myself, for that matter."

"That's true…" Shantae (male) realized, pausing for a moment to consider… and after a few grueling minutes, she/he came up with something. "How about this, then? You call me Shantay, but with a 'Y' at the end. That way, it's your body with your name, but with my spellin'. And, for the sake of convenience, I guess I can stick t' she/her pronouns, since I… an' I can't believe I'm sayin' this… I'm a… a girl…" she bashfully and disdainfully suggested, lowering her head and blushing with intense embarrassment. Wow, it really doesn't feel right referring to a male with feminine pronouns… even WITH Tayshan inhabiting Shantae's body.

"That's… as good as it's gonna get, what with us having the same name, huh?" Tayshan (female) noticed, sighing in despondency as he/she thought about it. "In that case, I guess you can call me Taeshan, with an 'E' in the middle instead of a 'Y.' That way, it's more like us switching a letter and a syllable around. And you've got a point there. As much as I hate it, I guess… I'll… still… identify as a boy while I AM one…" he also bashfully and disdainfully suggested, lowering his head and pouting. As if it needed to be reiterated, it definitely didn't feel right calling Shantae a boy, even while she was in possession of Tayshan's body. "It's gonna be so weird addressing myself with my own name, though…"

"You're tellin' me… Still, the name switch is agreed on," Shantay affirmed with a nod, making things much easier for all of us… I hope. I'll be honest, I didn't think a situation like this would EVER come up. Ever. "Although…" the spiritually-male half-genie began as she stroked her chin in wonder. "There's a lot we're gonna have t' get used to while we're stuck like this, but I'm not sure I can get over this height difference," she complained as she looked up at Taeshan, who towered over her. "You're so short!"

"No, YOU'RE short," Taeshan expertly pointed out, crossing his arms as he frowned at his companion. "I'm suddenly, like, a hundred feet taller out of nowhere."

"No, that's not…" Shantay was about to argue before realizing the spiritually-female soldier's point. "Forget it," she dismissed with a shake of her head. "Anyway, we gotta figure somethin' out here. I've never been a girl before, so I have no idea how you function in a body like this…"

"I can't really say I've ever had experience being a boy, either," Taeshan countered, shrugging in perplexity. "That said, we can't stay like this forever. We've got to make that sneaky Hypno Baron fix this."

"Where do we begin, though?" asked Shantay as she brushed her hair aside and adjusted her top. "Much as I'd love t' find that egotistical weirdo an' beat his ugly face int' glow-in-the-dark pie fillin' for this, we can't just go in, not knowin' how our bodies operate with each other's minds."

"Jeez, Tay…" Taeshan lamented, already breaking the code of how the two were supposed to address one another. "For one thing, violent, threatening statements like that just don't sound right coming out of my mouth. You make me sound just like Risky Boots…"

"Ooh, wouldn't want that. Sorry…" Shantay apologized, though she realized something odd out of the blue. "Yours and Risky's voices DO sound kinda similar, though, now that I think about it… Very similar. Matter o' fact, I feel like I sound just like her now. Only, with an Ebonics-laced accent, as much as I hate t' say it…"

"Ebonics…? I'm not sure what that means, but you're right… Right now, you DO sound almost exactly like her. Weird…" Taeshan noticed, scratching his head in wonder. Now, imagine that for perspective, reader; a version of Shantae that had Risky Boots's voice and a strong urban dialect. Trippy, right?

"Meanwhile, you're makin' me sound like a stereotypical fashion designer, what with you lispin' with every other word an' your very girly mannerisms…" Shantay complained, crossing her arms and frowning at her comrade.

"Hey!" Taeshan objected, though he resisted the urge to laugh as he placed his hands on his hips and pouted. "I can't help it if your voice doesn't exactly fit my speech pattern! I also can't help that I'm still a girl, even in a guy's body!"

"Stop doin' that!" the young 'lady' shouted, not at all pleased with her friend's grievous misuse of his body.

"Doing what?"

"…Never mind…" she sighed, uninterested in telling her partner how he should/shouldn't act. "I'm just… so frustrated that that jerk got the drop on me like that. I had him right where I wanted him, but then he pulled this trick with the intent t' steal my body for himself."

"Ooohhh… I had no idea. I only came out just as I saw him approaching you while you were stuck in place, surrounded by a crackling red aura. What did he plan on doing with your body if he got it?"

"Even for what this… circus act of a conundrum is, it's a good thing you did drop in at that time. Better late than never. That aside, he said he was gonna take my body an' use it t' get the drop on Risky Boots. Apparently, he had a run-in with her that ended on a very ugly note for him, which he mentioned himself. Somethin' about him bein' forced t' work for her."

"Really? Wow, that doesn't sound good… I guess that's what he meant about Risky coming to him and destroying his castle."

"Yeah, it's a long story… one I don't really have that many details on, but before I get int' that, uh… Do you maybe have a comfortable change o' clothes?" the young lady asked, taking another look downward at her pajamas.

"Oh! Yeah, of course. I do have to ask, though, would you want to dress up in my usual dancing gear?" Taeshan asked a question he never thought he'd have to ask in a million years. "Or maybe one of my modeling outfits?"

"One o' your modelin' outfits?"

"Yep! I've got a ninja outfit, a beach outfit, a space princess outfit, a pirate-themed version of my regular outfit—which might suit you if you plan on using your gun—and even a special law-enforcement-themed outfit that allows me to use the powers of a casual acquaintance of mine! I also have copies of my normal outfit in different colors, but I never find time to bust those out."

"Huh… You spent every day wearin' one of… what, four different versions o' the same red dancer costume, so I had no idea you had others."

"That's true… Sorry, I guess I should learn to mix it up a bit, huh?"

"Hey, whatever makes you comfortable. I ain't judgin'. Still, that's a pretty wide variety. How come you didn't wear any o' the other ones yet?"

"Well, each of those outfits causes me to adopt a whole different move set and sort of changes the nature of my adventures in some way or another; even the pajamas you're wearing now would give you different abilities than the ones you've seen me use. The space princess one doesn't change what abilities I have during an adventure, though. That one only slightly alters my magic ability and defensive attributes."

"Huh… I can't even begin t' imagine what other tricks you could possibly have up your sleeves if you can even switch your powers around just by wearin' a different outfit…" Shantay remarked in unmistakable wonder.

"Yep! I ought to model some outfits for you sometime!" she innocently suggested before realizing the situation they were in. "…Well, once we get our own bodies back. In this case, you'd have to model them with however little time we have before we hit the road… I will warn you, though, it's sort of impractical to use any of my alternate costumes at this point if you don't know how to access my magic at all… especially the Space Princess one."

"And 'Space Princess' doesn't exactly sound enticin' t' me," Shantay uncertainly voiced her unwillingness to wear something with a theme he could only imagine as being quite… racy. "Don't you have anything more… my speed? Like, maybe a camouflage-themed outfit like the one you have on now?"

"Trust me, if I did, I'd have busted out that one a long time ago. Your clothes ARE pretty comfy for the most-part," Taeshan complimented, studying his outfit. "Oh yeah, that reminds me… Where'd you pick up this alternate-colored version?"

"You didn't find that outfit?" Shantay asked, shocked that her partner would ask such a thing.

"Not… that I can remember. I usually remember the things I pick up during trips, but I don't remember ever picking up an outfit for you."

"Oh… Well then, I'm not sure where it came from. It was layin' neatly folded on your table."

"Is that right? Odd… Maybe it's something you picked up without noticing, then. That can happen sometimes."

"I suppose. I won't wrack my brain over it though. If it's here, it's here. Anyway, do you have anything more… I dunno, casual? Like, a pair o' shorts an' a t-shirt? Or at least, somethin' you'd think I might be comfortable wearin'?"

"Uhh… Depends… A lot of my stuff is kind of… flashy, if you know what I mean."

"Flashy in that most o' your wardrobe shows off your bodacious curves, I'm gonna guess?"

"Y-yeah…" Taeshan bashfully admitted, rubbing the back of his neck with a hand. "How'd you know?"

"Wild guess, considerin' I've been livin' with you for the last week," Shantay expertly deduced, shooting her friend a knowing look.

"Heh, I suppose that would give someone a chance to pick up on my habits, huh?"

"Without a shadow of a doubt."

"Right… So, what did you have in mind for 'comfortable attire,' Tay? Because I don't know if my sense of womanly fashion is the same as yours."

"Much as I'd hate t' say it, beggars can't be choosers. This is YOUR body, after all, so I guess I can only make a decision based on what you have. Mind showin' me?"

"Um…" Taeshan hummed with utmost inner conflict. "Th-that basically means seeing everything in my wardrobe… including m-my…"

"What, your underwear?" Shantay spat out, alarming her comrade in the process.

"Hey! Don't just blurt it out like that!"

"Aw come on, Shantae, there's nobody around us, an' you've already seen me in mine. More times than I care t' admit at this point… Not to mention, I've already seen you in yours, if I have t' mention it. There's no point in shyin' away from it now."

"Hmm, maybe you're right… but then, you'd… also… possibly… see me… n-!"

"Trust me, I know that as well as you do," Shantay acknowledged, her face heating up like an oven. "I… guess I should keep my eyes closed while you pick things out? I don't want you t' think I'm a Peepin' Tom after that incident with Sky… or a Starin' Stephanie in this case…"

"…This is gonna be harder than I thought," Taeshan lamented with a flustered sigh. "Okay then… Follow me, so we can get this out of the way," he reluctantly requested with a gesture of his hand, leading Shantay into the lighthouse to play a very complicated game of dress-up.

 ** _A short while later (yeah, I was NOT going into explicit detail about that ordeal. Just know that it was a giant gender-related hassle for both of them)…_**

"So, after going through all my clothes and saying no to just about everything, THIS is really what you're going to wear in my body?" Taeshan asked, seeming mildly upset as he and Shantay exited the lighthouse.

"Hey, what can I say?" Shantay asked back with an apologetic shrug. "You said dress for comfort, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but I meant like, just wearing my regular clothes, Tay. Instead, you went with your black tank top and a really tight pair of short shorts that aren't even mine. Those shorts belong to Rottytops."

"Yeah, I figured you weren't a fan o' skull buckles," Shantay observed, studying her outfit. "Although, did you HAVE t' tie the tank top in a knot so my stomach had t' be exposed?" As the two were discussing, Shantay had apparently chosen something entirely different from what was offered to her. She wore her (technically, anyway) familiar black tank top, only with it pulled to where her abdomen was bare and there was a knot tied into the front. She was also wearing a pair of dark ocean fog-hued short shorts, complete with a black belt with a decorative skull buckle on it. To cap it all off, she was wearing a pair of black sneakers with frilly royal purple socks, as opposed to her regular red genie slippers. Other than that, her ponytail and jewelry were affixed to her the same as they'd always been (sans her enormous golden bracelets and headband; instead, she wore wristbands of a pale midnight-blue that were covered in little golden spikes and a purple bandana that bore an all-too-familiar skull mark.).

"All the stuff you put on my body, and you're worried about the knot I tied into your shirt? Tay, you have me looking like a rebellious delinquent with a chip on her shoulder," Taeshan complained. "Also, I got that bandana and the spiky wristbands from Risky Boots. Just saying."

"Oh. Well, they ain't comin' off, regardless. After you nagged me half t' death about girlish style this an' heroic feminine presentation that, I decided I'd just find some way t' compromise. This whole process was way more complicated than it needed t' be…"

"Clearly, you don't appreciate the sheer delicacy and artistic scrutiny that goes into the process of a woman choosing her outfit for the day," Taeshan observed, to Shantay's chagrin as she scowled at him. "It's a matter of coordination, anticipation of peer reception, and nonverbal message delivery, Tayshan. It's basic aesthetic synchronization!"

"Then please, enlighten me, O Wise and Incomparable Fashion Guru."

"You got it. So, you see, my regular red dance clothes have become a symbol of heroism, girlish charm, indomitable spirit, and just a touch of youthful innocence that can't be tarnished by even the most heinous of villains. The red and gold, combined with the bright royal purple in my hair, are a combination of warmth, valor, integrity, stability, and a healthy abundance of moral virtue. You've kinda got the coordination piece down with the mixture of cool, dark colors. It's… in a sense, representative of your personality. I'll give you that much. Still, all the black, dark purple, and blue…"

"I can't wait t' hear this… Lay it on me."

"Well… Not to be rude, but this whole ensemble communicates a message of intimidation and partially-suppressed anger. Like, the colors are scary enough. The skulls and the little golden spikes on the wristbands overdo it."

"Which is t' say… what?"

"You look too… too rough, tough, and unfriendly, I guess. If I went out like this and still fought for good, I'd come across as more of a brooding, disillusioned anti-hero than a regular good girl. It's just like my one comic, actually. Remember, the one I showed you the other day?"

"Yeah. The Retaliator?"

"Yep, that one!"

"Well hey, you DID say you wondered what it'd be like t' strike fear int' the hearts of your enemies, an' now's your—or rather, OUR chance."

"Yeah, but not like this!"

"Hmph. So, do you want me t' go change int' somethin' you'd normally wear?"

"It'd… be appreciated," he cautiously admitted, though he read the disappointment in his partner's face. "I mean, I'd bet if I had a more diverse range of options, you'd pull off a style much more-!"

"Don't patronize me," Shantay interrupted with the slightest bit of irritation.

"Sorry… I just… I've got an image to protect, y'know?"

"Yeah, sure. I get it. Before we go back t' the drawin' board, I should probably give you a quick rundown o' what I learned from that wizard."

"Oh, right, right… We kinda did get distracted, didn't we…?" Taeshan acknowledged. "What'd you dig up from Hypno Baron?"

"As far as I understand, Risky Boots now knows we're on her tail. So, she sent him over here t' take us out, but he wasn't keen on followin' her orders. I think he originally intended t' steal your body, based on what he said t' me when he trapped me. But, he chose me instead."

"Goodness," Taeshan pondered in a mix of wonder and dread. "Neither one of us was safe… It almost sounds better that we switched with each other instead of either of us switching with him. But now, he thinks we took his spell book and expects us to give it back to him, so he'll change us back?"

"Yeah, but I ain't about t' just give int' that creep's demands. Even if that means fightin' him, we still gotta get it across that that idiotic octopus took the book an' got it completely destroyed."

"Hey, you guys! You guys!" called another voice from the distance as its owner sliced throught the late morning ocean waves in a hurry. Both Taeshan and Sahntay turned in the direction of the voice and noticed a familiar gigantic red eight-legged sea creature speeding toward them.

"Speak of the devil," Taeshan mused as he and his partner watched the creature leap out of the ocean and land with a wet *PLOP* on the grass near them.

"You guys wouldn't believe what I saw yesterday!" Squid Baron hurriedly warned.

"Well if it ain't Doctor Octagonapus himself," Shantay remarked, bracing herself for another battle as she took a defensive stance.

"Doctor what?" Taeshan asked, confused as he was amused as he let out a hearty giggle. "That's a weird one…"

"Blagh," Squid Baron barely acknowledged, rolling his eyes with unamused contempt. "How many things could you get wrong in one statement, genie girl? First of all, I'm not an octopus. Second, I'm not an octagon. Third, my name isn't Octogenari—Octol—Octo—Oktoberfe—Octo-whatever you just said. I don't even know what that is; even IF the name sounds awesome. Fourth, I'm not a doctor, though I WOULD like to be one…" he pondered, seeming to enjoy the idea of holding a professional medical license. "Sweet outfit, by the way, Shantae. Looks like you're ready to knock some heads and take no prisoners, as opposed to your boring old regular costume."

"Why thank you, Doctor!" Shantay so graciously accepted his praise, smirking at Taeshan, who frowned in disbelief and irritation. "See, I told you this would get that 'Don't Toy with Me' message across."

"Anyway, Squid Baron," Taeshan sighingly remarked to bring the conversation back while trying not to be offended. However, the cephalopod reeled back in utter surprise, complete with dramatic gasp. "What were you-?"

"You… You remembered my name this time…" he murmured in awe.

"Don't get your hopes up, Suction Cup," Shantay dismissively retorted, earning the Baron's scorn as he glared at her. "She ain't… or rather, HE ain't quite himself today. What are you even doin' here, anyway? I thought you was busy chokin' on a freshly-detonated grenade back on Naga Mountain."

"…Why are you talking like that?" he asked, his anger curbed only by his utter bewilderment at the half-genie's new speech pattern.

"Talkin' like what?" the human-turned-half-genie asked back, seeming not to understand what he meant.

"Like that!" Squid Baron pointed out. "You sound like you either spent too much time in the big city, or you're going through an angsty teenage rebellious phase to differentiate yourself from the crowd, which kind of explains the cool-but-also-kind-of-scary ensemble you got going on there."

"…How weirdly specific of you t' say," Shantay observed with a scratch of her head. "That said, there ain't nothin' weird about what I'm sayin' t' you, Cephalopod Duke."

"What? And now you can't even remember my name!? What happened to you, Shantae!?"

"Sorry, Squid Baron," Taeshan addressed the land-dwelling sea creature. "We… had a bit of a magical mishap a little while ago…"

"And you sound like a girl!" Squid Baron oh-so subtly pointed out, causing both Taeshan and Shantay to cringe in embarrassment. "As a matter of fact, it almost sounds like you two switched accents. Which means…"

"Yep, we swi-!" Taeshan was about to answer.

"You guys are totally influencing each other's behavior!" he brilliantly deduced.

"Uhh…" they droned, completely floored at the preposterous conclusion the cephalopod drew.

"That has to be it! Shantae must've enticed you with her natural goody-goody girlish charm, which caused you to act and speak more like her; all dainty and effeminate!"

"You uh…" Shantay tried to interject.

"And Shantae, you must have a weird thing for city boys, so you're imitating your boyfriend's accent and acting all tough and disrespectful-like as part of that rebellious kick you're on, which also doubles as a way to try to impress him!"

"Wow… For the last time, he is not my boyfriend, Squid Baron!" Taeshan argued, put off by the wildly-inaccurate accusations hurled his and Shantay's way, though it did nothing to quell the cephalopod's confusion. "E-er, I mean… I-I mean she's… not my… g-girlfriend…?"

"…Why did you just refer to Shantae as a 'he?'" he asked, even more confused than he ever was.

"Because she's got control o' my body," Shantay tried to clarify.

"Why did you refer to your boyfriend as a 'she?'" he asked again, becoming no more enlightened on the predicament as he remained puzzled. "Are… are you guys going through some kind of mutually-flustering identity crisis or something? Because you're both starting to freak me out."

"No, you-! Alright, look," Taeshan made another attempt at clarification. "Tayshan and I aren't ourselves today because of something Hypno Baron did."

"Oh. Oh, wait! That reminds me!" Squid Baron perked up, finally remembering why he was visiting the soldier and the half-genie on a much less adversarial level. "You guys need to watch out! Hypno Baron's on his way here, and he's furious! That meanie pirate lady blew up his house and-!"

"We know that already, Tentacle Tyrant," Shantay cut in, already realizing what he was about to say.

"It's Squid Baron! Your change of attitude shouldn't have made you forget my name! Also, how would you know that Hypno Baron was coming?"

"Because he was here already," Taeshan answered, hoping to finally get Squid Baron up to speed. "You're about an hour and a half late."

"Oh. And here I was, thinking I was making good time. Shoot…"

"And before you jump to another conclusion, he forced Tayshan and I to switch bodies. So now, I'm him, and he's me."

"…Oh," he bluntly acknowledged, though it was evident from the clueless look on his face that he didn't immediately get it.

"Yep. In terms o' timin', you're WAY past late as heck on that one," Shantay colorfully explained, though Squid Baron drew in an appalled gasp.

"Wow, language, young lady. Pretty girls like you have no business using profanity," he scolded the young woman, causing her to shoot him a scornful sneer that also (ironically) helped him to clarify the situation at hand. "Yep, that look you just gave me was dirty, cold, and full of seething contempt. You're definitely being influenced by the gun-toting noob, alright."

"Does… that mean you finally figured it out?" Taeshan asked, unsure if Squid Baron's statement confirmed or denied his understanding.

"Naturally, noob guy, for my unrivaled genius always shines through in the end," he boasted, triumphantly rubbing a tentacle across the area where a nose should've been while tucking another one in such a way that it resembled a person's hand on their hip. "It's all so clear to me now!" he added. Although, I still don't think he really understood what they meant.

"Hmph. How full o' yourself can you get…?" Shantay coldly remarked, rolling her eyes and shaking her head.

"So, Hypno was already here?" asked Squid Baron to verify.

"You guessed it," Taeshan confirmed. "Like I was saying, he made us switch bodies and now he's holding this as a sort of ransom for us bringing him back that spell book you stole from him. Speaking of, he thinks we took it rather than you."

"Right, right…" Squid Baron acknowledged, though the knowledge made him… slightly uncomfortable for some reason.

"An' we're probably—scratch that, DEFINITELY gonna need a way t' convince him that you did it so he'll undo this mess," Shantay concluded. "Although, after our last encounter, how did you make it here? I figured that grenade would've put you out for at least a couple weeks if it didn't outright obliterate you from the inside out. Also, are you here t' pick another fight with us?"

"No, no, don't misunderstand! I was just coming here to warn you about his scheme and what happened between him and Risky Boots!"

"And?" Taeshan questioned, not believing for a second that that was the only reason Squid Baron popped up as conveniently as he did.

"And… nothing," the octopu—er, squid lied through his teeth, fidgeting nervously.

"Squid Baron, I think I understand you well enough to know by now that you never operate on a selfless sense of compassion," the young man deduced, cutting right through the cephalopod's ruse.

"Whaaat? Come on, dude, give me SOME credit. I definitely help people out! Y-y'know, when I feel like it… and uh… and when they give me stuff…"

"Squid Baron…" Taeshan called him in a tone more appropriate for a mother nagging her naughty child.

"Alright, fine… I… I was hoping you guys could share the spotlight with me this chapter," he confessed, breaking the fourth wall as he tends to do in a manner most hazardous to my career as a narrator. "Clearly, going against you as a substitute boss didn't work, and I heard you recently teamed up with that bird trainer and some bad guys—er, girls and they had a blast hanging out with you. They actually got a taste of main character-level victory that no one but Shantae usually gets to feast on all by herself! Both you guys gotta understand that much! The struggle is real out here!"

"…What?" Shantay unwisely questioned. "How could you possibly know about our time with Sky, Twitch, an' Vinegar when we only JUST-?"

"Details aren't important, genie girl," the sea creature dismissed, leaving a giant hole in this otherwise-solid, airtight plot that made me want to jump in there and throw him to the bottom of the ocean where he belonged, never to come back up. He was seriously screwing this up for me! "The fact is, that little field trip of yours did a lot to give us supporting characters hope in getting some serious exposure, and I want in."

"Squid Baron, you can't just barge in, demanding screen time when you aren't even relevant to the plot anymore!" Taeshan argued.

"If you let me help you, I'll come clean to Hypno Baron about what happened to the book," he stated, immediately laying out his best poker chip. He certainly was determined to squeeze himself into the story, I'll give him that much. Puzzled, the two identity-crossed protagonists silently glanced at one another in contemplation before one of them tried to make sense of the offer.

"…So, lemme get this straight," Shantay challenged, crossing her arms and shooting Squid Baron an incredulous look.

"Oh, here we go again…" Taeshan muttered as he rubbed his forehead, recognizing that his friend's observation could mean trouble. Considering how this same interrogative style of clarification happened once with Mimic…

"You tried t' kill us, usin' a magic book you stole from somebody, who now thinks WE took said book an' switched our identities in horribly-misdirected revenge, an' your idea of redeemin' yourself is t' try an' extort us for screen time in exchange for you fessin' up about stealin' the book?"

"…Yes?" Squid Baron uneasily answered, for even he knew how messed-up that sounded. "I-I mean, you didn't have to put it like THAT, but-!"

"Why don't you just go over there and tell him you did it, then?" Taeshan suggested. "That way, maybe he'll come back and undo this little switcheroo, and we can continue looking for Risky Boots."

"That MIGHT'VE been a good idea, buuut…" Squid Baron suspiciously and guiltily began, implying something most mischievous. "I… may have accidentally done a sneaky thing by uh… 'suggesting' to him you guys took the book and were looking for a way to turn that slug back to human…" The instant Shantay heard this most… vexing development, everything nearly went red in her line of sight.

"An' it all comes together!" Shantay angrily began, slapping her palm onto her forehead. "You low-down, lyin', skeevy, manipulative piece o'-!"

"Shantae, no!" he bellowed, appalled and frightened by the half-genie's outburst. "We're not allowed to say things like that!"

"I was gonna say 'trash!' An' I'm not Shantae!" Shantay ironically yelled. "O-or, I am, but not really!"

"Okay…?" he droned, still clueless about the identity switch despite all the INCREDIBLY SUBTLE AND SUBLIMINAL HINTS he was being given throughout this conversation. Seriously, I probably should've considered hiring a detective for the poor squid, so he'd catch on already.

"Were you actually listening to us when we told you we switched bodies?" Taeshan was all but compelled to ask. "Because we said it multiple times by this point."

"I mean… kinda, but I thought you guys were putting on an act to throw me off. Hypno really made you guys switch bodies?"

"Yes!" both Taeshan and Shantay angrily confirmed.

"Got it, got it. At least, I think…" he played along, though it appeared he was still doubtful of the assertion. "So, what names are you using while you guys are switched up? I'm curious…"

"Shantay," the young woman answered.

"Taeshan," the young man also answered. Of course, Squid Baron shot the duo the most befuddled look that a giant, fruit punch-red talking squid could give someone.

"But… you guys are keeping the names belonging to the bodies, even though you're not the same person in spirit. Actually… What's your real name, guy in Shantae's body?"

"Tayshan."

"Oh. Ohhh. Ohhhhhhhh…" he droned, picking up a most vexing conundrum right off the bat. "Your names are… are the same, but the syllables are switched."

"Yep," Taeshan plainly corroborated.

"Well then… wouldn't it make sense just to use your actual names instead of going by each other's?"

"No, that would be confusing," Taeshan cryptically explained. "People are going to recognize me as him, and him as me. So, to skip past the confusion, we'll basically role-play as each other."

"Yeah, but that doesn't do much for you two. I mean, how are you gonna get around using your own real names to address each other? Or, I-I mean, using each other's real names to address yourselves…? Actually, what DO I mean…?"

"Don't read into it," Shantay objected. "We're aware it's gonna be a struggle keepin' from gettin' mixed up. The fact is, we wouldn't have t' play 'Guess Who' with each other if you just told that creepy magician the truth! You pretty much did this to us!" she additionally accused, pointing a finger at him.

"Look, I'm sorry," the cephalopod insincerely apologized, about to justify his terrible misdeeds. "I was gonna tell him, but right after Risky Boots blew up his house, he was in no mood to get any more bad news! He was so steaming mad that he threatened to do so much worse than steal one of your bodies if he got ahold of that book! Imagine what he would've done to me if I told him I took it and got it totally ruined!"

"No, imagine what I'm gonna do t' you right now for settin' us up!" Shantay warned, her temper having long since boiled over as she marched toward the 'master' manipulator with her fists balled harder than stone. At that, Squid Baron scoffed.

"Oh, please… You don't scare me," he confidently rebutted with a shrug. "You're an adorable little girl now," he unwisely added with a condescending chuckle, sending Shantay's wrathful fury into hyper-drive as she prepared to make him eat his words… in addition to the metaphorical tentacle he shoved into his mouth with his dismissive comments. "One who probably doesn't have access to magic of any kind because you don't know how her body works. There's nothing you can-!"

"Tayshan, no!" Taeshan tried to yell to stop his comrade from lashing out. However, it was far too late.

"Zzrrraaah!" Shantay let out an forceful shout as she dug her right foot into the ground, wound up, and let loose an explosive right cross that blasted the unassuming cephalopod's cheek with a damp, yet terrifying *SMACK* that made Taeshan cringe in shock.

"OWW!" the former dictator whined as he scrambled back, having just realized the hard (VERY HARD) way that he probably shouldn't make fun of his soon-to-be allies. "What the heck!? How can you hit so hard!?" he asked in utter astonishment as he clutched his smarting, pulsating cheek with two tentacles.

"How's that for an 'adorable little girl'!? Keep playin' with me!"

"Hey, man! I-I was just kidding," he stammered in utter shock and total fright at the temperamental half-genie with fists like industrial-sized pistons.

"I swear, if you don't go back over to wherever that wizard is an' get him t' fix this, I'm gonna tear off your tentacles, beat you senseless with 'em, an' then feed 'em t' starvin' dogs!" Shantay threatened in a tone very much uncharacteristic of the voice she was speaking with.

"Wh-what!? I thought you guys said you were role-playing each other! Shantae would never say or do something so brutal! Y-Y-You sound more like that scary lady pirate!"

"Tay, stop!" Shanta—er, Taeshan pleaded, laying a hand on his partner's shoulder and frantically pulling her back. "Don't hurt him!"

"What? After what he just admitted!?" Shantay protested, her anger still boiling like lava.

"I know, but I can't have you flying off the handle and punching him in the face! What kind of heroic example are we setting here?"

"Heroic or not, he's gonna understand why he doesn't get t' laugh at me without learnin' a four-knuckled lesson about why he shouldn't! Besides, we are literally stuck in each other's bodies and it's partly his fault!"

"True, but we can fix this! You can bet we're going to. But, we'll do better to go about fixing this body transfer without making a mess of things… well, too much more than we might already have to. Also, I told you that saying those awful things with my voice made me sound like Risky Boots."

"Point taken, but we could just cut out the middle man, go straight to Hypno Baron, tell him the truth ourselves, an' let him deal with this thing, if we ain't lookin' t' make a mess. I get the feel he ain't gonna fess up if we just tell him to."

"H-how come you remember HIS name, but not mine? The word 'Baron' is in both of them!" Squid Baron indignantly (and unwisely) protested.

"Shut it, Count Octopus!" Shantay roared, turning to threaten Squid Baron with a raised fist that prompted Taeshan to hold her back again.

"Tay, relax! Look, I'm angry too, but if he's saying he'll help us and he came here as fast as he could to try to warn us, then he must feel bad for it… Right, Squid Baron?"

"Y-yes!" he panickedly agreed, still staring in petrified fear of the monstrously-ticked off Shantay, whose blue eyes took on a threatening icy shade as she glared death at him. "Yes, I feel terrible, and I'll do whatever it takes to make it up to you! I-I promise! Now get that psycho away from me, please!"

"You heard him," the service(wo)man urged, pulling his comrade back. "Let's give him a chance, Tay."

"You can't be serious! He lied!" the infuriated half-genie shouted, trying to wrest herself free to continue 'negotiating' with Squid Baron. "An' that lie was part o' the reason we're in this situation! What sense would it make if we gave him any chances like that? Especially when he has the NERVE t' slither his way over here an' demand that we work with him t' get ourselves back t' normal!? No, that ain't how I'm rollin'!"

"Tayshan, listen!" Taeshan commanded, prompting Shantay to turn and face him. "I know this is really messed up, and I know the last thing on either of our minds is trusting him, but we have to look at it in a practical sense!"

"Practical how?"

"Well… If we go there alone, then we won't be prepared to deal with Hypno Baron in each other's bodies, for one thing. I'm not sure you can access my magic the way I can, and I'm not sure if you'd know how to use my Hair Whip attack. On the other end, I have no idea how to use any of your skills or abilities. We're definitely gonna need back-up for this one while we try to figure each other out; especially since we've only got a few hours to find Hypno Baron, much less fight him or convince him to change us back."

"Then why don't we call up Sky? Or what's-his-name with the chain mace?"

"Sky said she'd be out of commission after yesterday, remember? She's out of the magic bird seed she feeds Wrench to make him grow into his Giga form and without that, we don't necessarily have a ride to Genie's Hem. Plus, she probably has to tend to her other birds after that disastrous adventure on Prickle Stitch Valley. As for the one with the chain mace, I'm guessing you mean Bolo."

"Yeah, him. Ain't seen him around since our time goin' t' the Sequin Land Palace."

"Honestly, neither have I," the soldier(?) concurred, scratching his head. "I have no idea where he's been. I hope he's okay, wherever he is… Still, I… I don't know if he'd be much help, either."

"Why?"

"Long story. Well, longer than what I've told you about him in the past. Anyway, we're kind of strapped for options here. Unless you were thinking about trying to get in touch with Twitch and Vinegar?"

"No, they said they were gonna lay low for awhile after yesterday, too… Somethin' about havin' t' put out the fires on Prickle Stitch Valley t' collect the guns left there, an' then needin' some well-deserved R&R after brushin' with death at least six different times in one day yesterday. Plus, I… would not want them t' see us like this…"

"True…"

"Don't you have at least one more friend? Or maybe your uncle can help us?"

"The only other friend I have is Rottytops, but she's been M.I.A. since our camping trip after my last big journey wrapped up. That was close to a month ago, so I don't have a clue where she might be. And Uncle's retired. I'm not dragging him anywhere." At that, Shantay frowned in disappointment.

"…So we're really that beat for options that we have nothin' other than the amazin' giant eight-legged talkin' blister over here t' count on?" she unenthusiastically asked, carelessly pointing her thumb at the offended sea creature.

"Hey!" Squid Baron indignantly yelled.

"I'm afraid so, homegirl," Taeshan confirmed with a shrug, going as far as to adopt her partner's moniker for her while doing her best impression of him. Shocked as the young lady was to see this, she found it in herself to chortle after a moment.

"Heh, that's pretty spot-on," she commended, though she let out a disappointed sigh. "Still… Is this really the only way we're gonna get where we need t' be? 'Cuz if it is, then I'm gonna need a good reason t' go through with it."

"If you're still on the fence, then why don't we negotiate an agreement of sorts? A uh… a nonaggression pact, I think it's called?"

"That's a good idea. Still, what would we need him for?"

"Squid Baron can swim across oceans much faster than most boats, given that he's naturally a sea-dwelling species. If nothing else, he'll just be our ride to Genie's Hem… That is, if he knows where that is by sea… because I don't."

"Of course I do!" he offered his vote of confidence. "…I think…" he further murmured to himself, apparently not so confident in himself. Not that he would let Taeshan and Shantay know that, of course.

"Well, if that's all we're gonna go by… then good heavens above, help us…" Shantay acquiesced with a heavy enough sigh that she might've been able to blow out a campfire.

"Trust me, Tay, we'll get the job done like we have been. Even like this. I promise."

"Hm. I once heard an old sayin' about this sort o' thing, 'Taeshan.' Don't make a girl a promise you can't keep."

"Yeah, well I plan on keeping it, no matter what. Above all else, I want my hair back."

"Just as much as I want my height back, I'm sure."

"Clever, Tay… Clever…"

"Right. Okay, then…" Shantay nodded in agreement, turning to face the squid she despised at the moment. "Look here, Jellyfish."

"…Y'know, it's at this point that I swear you're doing that on purpose," Squid Baron complained about being called every name in the book except 'Squid Baron' by Tayshan… or, 'Shantay,' in this case.

"Here's the deal. If you're dead-set on helpin' us, we're gonna have t' lay out some ground rules."

"Okay… and those are…?"

"First and foremost, no backstabbing," Taeshan immediately named off. "We don't have time to mess around, which means we don't have time to deal with you trying to pull a fast one on us."

"Got it."

"Second, no desertion," Shantay added, much to Squid Baron's confusion.

"Desertion? Is that some sort of frozen treat?"

"No, not 'dessert,' wise guy. Desertion. As in, runnin' away at any point durin' our trip to and through this Genie's Hem. If you're gonna tag along, then you're gonna stick around to the bitter end."

"Oh. Well, you don't have to wor-!"

"That includes when we run int' that wizard."

"…Okay, l-let's not get crazy."

"Either stick with us until it's all over, or don't come at all. Take it or leave it," Taeshan sternly reiterated.

"Seriously, think about this. Do you guys know what he'll do if he sees me palling around with you?"

"Oh, NOW that's a problem?" Shantay rhetorically asked, skeptically raising an eyebrow. "What happened t' you sayin' you'd tell him the truth?"

"Well… I-I was going to do that… but I was kinda hoping you'd rough him up enough to where he wouldn't have the energy to get mad and magically remove my ink sacs once I told him."

"Oh. Yeah, that was never gonna happen like that," the young wo(man) casually rebuffed the idea.

"Well… Why not?"

"Because as I've very recently learned, Cuttlefish Lord, you gotta take full responsibility for your mistakes when you make 'em if you expect to atone for 'em. You cannot let your fears or your utmost desires rule your every decision in life."

"Oh. Who told you that heaping load of garbage?" Squid Baron asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

"Ahem!" Taeshan cleared his throat, crossing his arms and glaring at the sea creature whose species I was starting to lose track of. Anyway, the perplexed cephalopod glanced at the soldier standing before him and, upon reading his disdainful facial expression, drew a conclusion.

"Oh, that figures. No wonder this sounds all sappy, derivative, and cliché," he rudely commented as he rolled his eyes, further frustrating Taeshan.

"Hey, it might not sound appealin' t' you now, but the truth will set you free~!"

"Yeah, it'll set my soul free from my body once Hypno's done ripping me a new one…"

"Ah! No more o' this negative talk! We're facin' him straight-up, which leads us to our next stipulation. Taeshan, would you care to enlighten our new tag partner on what that is?"

"When we meet up with Hypno Baron, you're going to come clean immediately," the service(wo)man angrily laid down the law. "You're going to tell him exactly what you did and nothing else."

"Aw, come on! Those conditions sound totally unfair to me! It's like you guys WANT me to suffer!"

"Hey, you came to us lookin' for some time t' shine, not the other way around," Shantay shot back with a nonchalant shrug.

"But-!"

"Besides, you chose t' side with the good guys t' get your chance when you're not good yourself. Of course we'd have t' put you on a strict trial basis an' make you do the honest thing. It only makes total sense. If you don't like it, you picked the wrong people t' associate with."

"Exactly," Taeshan proudly concurred. "It wouldn't make sense to simply let you show up here and take the reins like you just tried to do."

"…Man, I knew I should've just stuck with my original plan of rekindling my partnership with Hypno Baron. You lied to me, gut…" Squid Baron complained, his disappointed gaze falling to the wooden bridge he was settled on.

"Do we have a deal?" asked Taeshan as he and his comrade approached the contemplating sea creature.

"…What choice do I have now?" he asked himself with a sigh and a shrug. "Even with how totally unfair this is, I've gotta make the necessary sacrifices and get that first-class exposure if I'm gonna write and star in my own bestselling novel/autobiography. Fine, I'll go along with it," he acquiesced, offering two tentacles for the body-swapped adventurers to shake. With unmasked enthusiasm (read: disgust, considering the sticky, slimy texture of the squid monster's appendages), Taeshan and Shantay shook… limbs with Squid Baron, rendering their deal sealed.

"Oh, and if you betray us or fail to follow through with what you agreed on, Squid Baron, I'm letting Tay rip your tentacles off. Consider it payback for you spraying ink all over me the other day."

"What!?" he shouted in utter horror, jumping back as he coiled his appendages toward himself. "Th-that was an accident!"

"I'm just kidding," Taeshan assured with a hearty giggle, though the girlish nature of it confused Squid Baron more than it relieved him. Shantay, however, was most negatively affected by it, as she shot her friend a deadpan expression.

"Hey, uh, Shanta—er, Taeshan. Wanna do me a favor?" she requested of her partner.

"What's up?"

"Take this as you will, but uh… Yeah, gonna have t' ask you t' NOT be so girly in my body. You're killin' my rep over here. An' I barely even have one in this world."

"Oh, come on," he complained. "You know that's easier said than done. You try spending sixteen years as a girl, then in a matter of two minutes, losing everything you've ever known to gain a foot in height, a ton of muscles and facial hair, and a p-!"

"Pretty sure I got the point, homegi—er, homie!" Shantay hastily interrupted, a furious blush creeping onto her face as she raised a hand to stop Taeshan from saying something embarrassing.

"I was gonna say a pair of boots that feel like I'm standing barefoot on concrete," he innocently corrected, uncertain of why she had interrupted him.

"Oh… Well, that's fair. Those boots ain't exactly meant for comfort, though they should be. For a second there, I thought you was gonna say-!"

"Also, boy parts," he blatantly informed her as he rubbed his hand on the unmentionable area that had just been mentioned, shocking her stiff as she turned all the way around to face him. "This is definitely gonna be the weirdest thing to get used to," he added, shifting to uh… 'adjust' himself. The utter panic on Shantay's face was so evident that one could TASTE her insurmountable anxiety just by looking at her. Clearly, she shouldn't have let her guard down. Squid Baron, just as caught off-guard, stared blankly at the young man. I'd make a comment about how shocked I was, but… I think the point has been made. "…What?"

"You… You did NOT just do that," Shantay had to ask, gesturing a hand toward her oblivious friend.

"Do what?"

"Are you serious!? You just groped me! In my own body! In front o' this giant goofy cereal box mascot!"

"Now THAT's just rude!" Squid Baron yelled at Shantay, though his complaint went unheard.

"Really, Tay? Everything we've done together in the last week, and THIS is what you get flustered about?" Taeshan indignantly argued. "You know how hard it's gonna be for me to get used to your body!"

"I get your point that it's weird bein' a boy all of a sudden, but show some restraint, homie! It's worse because you haven't stopped pokin' away at me since we switched!"

"As if you're any better! How many times have you curiously grabbed and prodded away at my body in the last hour?" Taeshan shot back, with both of them pretty much revealing exactly why I opted against telling you how they managed to complete their game of dress-up earlier.

"That's… fair, but we were inside, an' I was tryin' t' fit into your—or, uh m-my clothes! Besides, it's… it's real hard tryin' t' adapt to this, y'know?" Shantay worriedly complained, gesturing her hands to draw attention to her new female body. "My point still stands, no less."

"Yeah, I guess, but we can't really ignore that we're the opposite genders now. It's embarrassing for me too, but we've gotta learn one way or another how to adapt."

"True, but does it HAVE to involve you gettin' all touchy-feely while you're me? I'm at least tryin' t' be modest about my curiosity with bein' a woman."

"The longer I listen to this, the more hilariously confusing it gets…" Squid Baron spoke for all of us as he giggled to himself… I-I mean, spoke RECKLESSLY as he inappropriately giggled to himself, for this was a most serious and unfortunate occurrence for our heroes. I wasn't laughing at all. At all.

"Okay fine, I'm sorry, Taysh—Uh, I mean Shantay," the young man apologized. "I can't help it, though. Your body is just… so strange in how it works."

"The same could be said o' yours," Shantay agreed. "I mean, there's gettin' t' know somebody intimately, an' then there's walkin' a mile in their shoes… and apparently, there's also this. We will literally be walkin' at least a mile in each other's shoes."

"That's… actually super true," Taeshan concurred with a surprised nod. "Speaking of intimacy, though, we've already seen and done so much with each other. I mean, between us bathing together, you washing Squid Baron's ink off me the other day, and you sleeping with me in my room for the first time last night… not to mention what we just did an hour ago… How surprising is it to you that I'm curious about the inner workings of a boy at this point, with me having spent so much time around you?"

"I… guess it's not so surprisin' when you put it that way. I'm about as curious about bein' a girl right now as you are about bein' a boy, I'm sure. Also, don't put it that way!" the half-genie screamed, her embarrassment growing more rapidly than a herd of rabbits. "People are gonna get the-!"

"So you guys ARE in that kind of relationship?" Squid Baron asked with admittedly the perfect timing, considering he was getting all the context he needed to make the assumption.

"NO!" the two flabbergasted adventurers shouted, thus reigniting the debate between the duo on proper etiquette for exploring the functions and build-ups of each other's bodies.

"See, look what you did!" Shantay yelled some more, pointing at Squid Baron while facing Taeshan. "Now you've got him thinking we're some kind o' couple again!"

"Me!? I didn't do that! You did, because you're overreacting to me talking about your d-!"

"Don't say another word!"

"I was going to say 'dilemma with me learning about your body,' in case you were wondering. Sheesh, where's your mind at, Shantay?"

"…And then she just says what I told her not t' say…" Shantay murmured to herself in disbelief, planting a hand over her reddened face.

"…Dude… I'm embarrassed for you," Squid Baron consoled, patting the half-genie(?) on the shoulder. "If I wasn't already red, I'd be blushing harder than you are."

"I am not blushin'," she fervently denied, bringing her hands to her cheeks. Upon feeling the scorching heat in her face, she growled in disdain, pouting as she realized Squid Baron was right. "Darn it, I AM blushin'…"

"Told you. Also, uh… 'Taeshan,' was it? Uh, Sh-Shantay has a point. You really should be a bit more mindful about how you talk about certain bits of anatomy…" Squid Baron added his two cents.

"What? It's a body part! A male one, yes, but grow up, you guys," Taeshan complained, frowning as he felt some of the embarrassment radiating from his partners. "I'm sure you two would have no issue mentioning it if it was just you two talking about it!"

"True, but we're guys. Or, I-I used t' be one up until recently," Shantay regretfully acknowledged. "Uh… You ARE male… Right, Octo-talitarian Dictator?" At that, Squid Baron let out a moderately annoyed sigh.

"Yes, I'm male," he plainly answered, hiding his displeasure at the ridiculous moniker. "Also, I agree with your 'we're guys' notion."

"See?" Shantay asked of Taeshan. "It's a guy thing. It just… ain't right to talk about such a taboo thing in front of a girl… even if you ARE in my body."

"Are you kidding me!?" Taeshan asked back, rejecting such a childish, gender-exclusive notion. "Oh gee, a girl makes even a slight mention of a guy's anatomy, and suddenly, all the boys are too stunned to move, much less say anything other than to tell her to stop being improper. Talk about a double standard," he further sarcastically (and confusingly) griped, scratching the area in question on his body to (inadvertently) further make his point.

"Hey! Stop that!"

"As far as your logic is concerned, 'Shantay,' I'm a guy now and YOU'RE the girl, so only Squid Baron and I get to talk about guy stuff and do guy things. You're not allowed!"

"For the record, I never said anything about actually WANTING to talk about this…" Squid Baron mawkishly commented in his own defense, suddenly very uncomfortable with the mess he partially caused.

"So you're really gonna throw my point back in my face when it's convenient for you t' do so… I won't lie, that's as clever as it is underhanded. I kinda walked int' that one. Still, you can make your point without doin'… that!"

"What? It itches, and it feels like the more I rub and grab at it, the less room there is in these pants-!" Taeshan was about to complain in a most unwarranted fashion imaginable.

"That's it! Conversation over!" Shantay shouted, putting her foot down and hitting the 'NOPE!' button harder than a meteor smashing a glass window at full speed. "Octopus, get in the water! We're goin' t' Genie's Hem! A.S.A.P.!"

"Roger that, Taysha—uh, er, Sh-Shantae!" Squid Baron very energetically agreed, feeling just as awkward about the conversation as the half-genie/soldier who kept messing up his name. With an enormous *SPLASH*, Squid Baron plopped into the calm, gentle waters below. "All aboard!" he invited, tapping his head with a tentacle to signify where his passengers would take their seats. Without hesitation, Shantay jumped down, landing safely on Squid Baron's head. Taeshan, thoroughly annoyed by the incomprehensible immaturity of his teammates, sighed and rolled his eyes as he moved to climb aboard.

"Goodness, boys are so weird…!" he ironically complained, climbing down from the peninsula onto Squid Baron's head, where he found a seat behind Shantay.

"I'd say I hope you guys are buckled in, but there are no buckles on my head. I can only move but so fast when there are two unsecured passengers coming along for the ride, but we'll get there with all deliberate speed! Now let's-a go! That's my new catchphrase, by the way."

"…Pretty sure somebody's gonna file a copyright claim if you say that last bit again," Shantay warned, suddenly uneasy about the absolute wrong thing to be uneasy about when one finds themselves using a giant squid for a seafaring ride with not even a life vest to keep them secure in case they fall off.

"What, the 'getting there with all deliberate speed' piece?" the living, breathing transport vehicle asked, missing the point of the assertion.

"…Never mind," Shantay dismissed. "Just… think up a new catchphrase while we're on the way."

"Yeah, let's get moving already," Taeshan requested.

"You got it!" Squid Baron agreed, and with that, they were off.

 ** _Several hours, a few wrong turns, a bunch of aimless wandering over an endless bed of seawater, and a pit-stop for lunch, battle equipment, and directions later…_**

LOCATION: DOWNTOWN, GENIE'S HEM, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 19TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1800 HOURS

"FINALLY," Shantay bellyached as the duo approached a nearby dock leading into a bustling metropolis as the sun set over the horizon. "Any longer, and we'd have been lost at sea in the dark with no way t' hit any kind o' land…" the disgruntled half-genie added as the trio made landfall on the coast of the city of Genie's Hem. While she didn't take full account of what was ahead at the moment, Shantay caught sight of a slew of unscrupulous-looking creatures in the distance as she scanned her surroundings.

"Yeah, this is the LAST time I ever trust you with directions, Squid Baron," Taeshan added, equally as frustrated as he crossed his arms.

"It's not my fault, Tayshan, or Shantae, or whichever one of you two jerks is the gun-spamming noob! I got distracted by you two making all your gross, inappropriate comments about each other's bodies almost the entire way here!" Squid Baron countered in offense, taking no blame for his directional challenges. "This is why I refuse to babysit children; my own included."

"…Wait, you have kids?" Shantay asked in utter surprise that one as… let's be real, incompetent as Squid Baron could ever have children, though the question fell on deaf ears.

"What!? We were talking about how to explore, attack, and defend ourselves while we're stuck like this!" Taeshan protested.

"Oh, so all the stuff about 'you're poking me' this and 'because you're rubbing up against me' that and 'jiggling' the third was DEFINITELY all about attack strategies. Got it," he snidely remarked, completely humiliating his passengers as they went quiet. In all my time, I thought I'd never see the day Squid Baron of all creatures… would actually WIN at something. Truly a momentous occasion. History had been made, folks. Take your pictures now, because proof of an event THIS rare is bound to net you a fortune.

"…You got us on that one," Shantay sheepishly conceded. "I'll hold that 'L.'"

"That's what I thought, Shantae… or, Taeshan? Whichever one you are… I'm never taking either of you for rides on my head again until you get this gender thing figured out."

"Yeah, well we can get it figured out faster if you stick t' your end o' the bargain. Speakin' o' which, we're gonna need t' figure out how we'll begin our search for that shower curtain-wearin' jerk," she rebutted, unamused by his suggestion.

"The way I figure it, Tay, you and I will stick together," Taeshan suggested. "We still haven't fully figured everything out about each other's bodies, so we'll need to rely more on each other until we find some form of rhythm. Squid Baron, do you think you can handle working side-by-side with us?"

"Hmm… Yeah, thought about that, and… I'll go a different route," he denied, shocking both of his temporary partners.

"Different route? What do you mean?" Taeshan asked, scratching his head in wonder.

"Much as I'd love to show off my awesome adventuring skills in battle, stealing the spotlight as I rip through hordes of enemies with my superior abilities and take Genie's Hem by storm in true superstar fashion before taking the reins as the main character of this wacky tale… It stands to reason that I'm a boss character in nature. As such, I simply cannot lower myself to haphazardly beating up on lowly underlings of other boss characters. The trip here burned me out, too. I'm exhausted, and I need some time to rest."

"…You serious?" Shantay dared to ask, thrown off by the cephalopod's self-indulgent explanation for his unwillingness to participate. "All the stuff you was spoutin' about 'time in the spotlight' this, an' 'exposure' that, an' you choose NOW t' change your mind? What's the matter, scared?"

"No, I'm not scared! Not that much, anyway. I just… need a break is all," he apprehensively reasoned, though neither of his teammates was buying it.

"Uh-huh…" Shantay disbelievingly retorted.

"Squid Baron, you have the PERFECT chance right here and now to join me on an adventure and see how I dash, jump, and magic my way through a dangerous landscape. And you're turning it down?"

"Not necessarily. You won't be doing much magic in the noob's body, I'd imagine."

"But that's-!"

"And I doubt he—or, SHE will be doing much magic in your body, Shantae."

"I'm Shantay," Shantay spoke up, thrown off by the sea monster's statement.

"No, I meant the REAL Shantae."

"Yeah. Technically me," Shantay again clarified.

"No, darn it! I-I meant Tayshan or whoever!"

"…Still technically me?" Shantay spoke again, still not understanding who he was referring to.

"No, no, no!" Squid Baron screamed, his confusion about to fry his brain like calamari… Oh, wait, that was dark… uh, anyway, he thought about how to clarify before offering his response. "I mean Taeshan with an 'E' or however you guys are trying to differentiate yourselves from each other!"

"Ohh, well why didn't you say so?" Taeshan rhetorically asked, earning an angry frown from Squid Baron.

"Seriously, what idiot came up with the idea of giving you two the same name, but switching the syllables? Did they NOT see this coming?" Squid Baron complained, clearly unhappy with the very-unlikely coincidence.

"Considering Tayshan with a 'Y' is from a different planet… I guess not," Taeshan with an 'E' clarified. "You wouldn't know this, but he's only been here about a week."

"Shantae with an 'E' is right," Shantay with a 'Y' concurred (oh for pete's sake, this is gonna get old right quick).

"Oh. Wait… which one of you is which again?" Squid Baron asked, even more confused than he was previously about the identities of his former enemies.

"…We don't have time t' keep goin' back an' forth with this," Shantay concluded with a sigh of irritation, already seeing a huge identity problem. "So, back to the point. You said you're not gonna join us, Jellyfish Duke?"

"It's Squid Baron, for the last time! Also, don't you worry. I'm still gonna be there until you find Hypno Baron, and if-slash-when it comes down to you having to Boss Battle with him, I'll… TRY be there to help," he explained. "I mean, I am certainly not opposed to you guys fighting him on your own with zero help from me whatsoever. Seriously, if you can help it, DON'T call me for support against him. I implore you to only call me if you beat him, and only AFTER you beat him. Anyway, you can also summon me every now and again by calling out for an assist at any OTHER time, using…" he trailed off, slipping a tentacle behind his back to dig into in his very own invisible pocket dimension that everyone in this world seemed to have. "Gah, where is it…?" he murmured, feeling around until he grabbed hold of something. "Aha! Got it," the cephalopod proclaimed, pulling out a pink squid-shaped (of course) whistle and handing it to Taeshan. "This!"

"What is this?" the perplexed young man inquired, studying the object.

"That would be your very own Baron Summoner," he explained. "Even though I won't be directly participating in your enthralling battles outright, you can use that whistle every now and again to call me out. I'll come in and use either my patented Quake Stomp Rush or trademark Pinball Spin Attack to wipe out any enemies you find too difficult to take down by yourselves."

"Huh… That actually sounds pretty useful," Taeshan commended, impressed by Squid Baron's explanation.

"Of course, you can only use it once before the hour-long cool-down period, so use it sparingly. Seriously, use it sparingly. I can only move but so fast between points where you might call me in for an assist."

"An HOUR!?" Taeshan reasonably questioned in utter shock. "How is that gonna be any use when we've only got about two hours to work with!? At that rate, we'd only get to call you in once or twice if we're fast enough!"

"Take it or leave it, noob-slash-genie girl, because that's the best I can do. My talents are unrivaled, so you're lucky you're getting THAT much from me."

"Uh, yeah sure…" Shantay cut in, rolling her eyes. "That's unbelievably long for a cool-down time, no matter how you try t' justify it. In that case, why not just come with us if we can call you for an assist?" Shantay asked, evidently taking issue with the arrangement. "It saves you the effort of slitherin' or spinnin' yourself from wherever you plan on goin' in this giant city if we all stay as a group."

"No, that makes us all sitting ducks. Plus, it's like I said earlier; if Hypno sees me getting all buddy-buddy with you two, he'll flip harder than an acrobat being shot out of a cannon into a trampoline," he rather… descriptively denied the request. "I've got my own reputation as a Baron of Sequin Land to protect, of course. That's why you guys can just call me in intermittently to dazzle you with my unparalleled talents."

"As if that's a good excuse," Shantay scoffed. "Sounds more like you're too scared t' face him AND the music."

"I agree with Tay on that one," Taeshan added.

"I thought YOU were Tay," Squid Baron pointed out.

"Hm? Oh, no, I meant Taysha—er, Shantay. In his original body, he went by the nickname 'Tay.'"

"Oh, alright. So, maybe nicknames will clarify things. Except, if both your names have the same 'Tay-Tae' sound in it, how would you know who I was calling?" he asked, though Shantay flinched with discomfort. Only a wonder why.

"Well… There IS another name you could call him, now that you just reminded me…"

"Shantae, don't you da-!" Shantay tried to warn, immediately knowing what her partner was going to suggest.

"What? Tay-Tae?" he guessed, causing Shantay to take on just the most adorable rage-induced scowl, aiming it at the ground to hide her embarrassment.

"Yeah!" Taeshan confirmed, putting the nail in THAT coffin posthaste. "Of course, I don't know if he'll be receptive to it…"

"Aw, that's so precious!" Squid Baron gushed, seeming to be enamored with such a cute nickname. "An adorable nickname for an adorable young lady! So, how 'bout it, Tay-Tae?" he addressed Shantay, who shot him a Risky Boots-level death glare that frightened him stiff.

"Call me that again, Argonaut, an' I will personally stomp your guts out!" she very crossly threatened.

"Hey, hey, cool it, Tay! He didn't know you didn't like the name!" Taeshan defended his former adversary. "Stop making me sound like Risky!"

"N-nah, it's cool," Squid Baron calmly interjected, clearing his throat. "It actually doesn't bother me that much that she made such a violent threat. Coming from Shantae's mouth, it actually sounds kinda cute."

"Squid Baron!" Taeshan called out, appalled and flustered by the absurd observation. Shantay, on the other hand, only got angrier. One could see the vein pulsating from her forehead.

"…You're lucky I don't eat octopus, because if I did, I would be throwin' you on a grill right now an' cookin' you nice an' slow for that remark…!" Shantay growled through gritted teeth, still glaring piping hot death at the cephalopod.

"Joke's on you; I'm not even an octop-!"

"Then again, I could just do that anyway, an' then feed you t' some seagulls…"

"O-okay, now THAT'S scary…"

"Tayshan, stop it," Taeshan admonished, meaning it this time. "Anyway, the whistle… I mean, the whistle is cool and all, but it really doesn't make sense to need it if you'll be coming with us to find Hypno Baron. It's okay if you're scared, Squid Baron."

"I-I'm not scared!" he vehemently denied, though he was flustered.

"Then why won't you just bring your scary behind with us?" Shantay irreverently asked him, taking a breath to dispel some of her rage.

"Uh… Well… W-well, if we split up, we can cover more ground! Genie's Hem is at least five times as big as Scuttle Town, and if we've only got but so much time to find him, then it's more beneficial to split up and increase our chances of finding him before we run out of time!" he hastily reasoned. "Yeah, that's it," he further cunningly mumbled under his breath.

"…Shoot, that's true…" Shantay murmured, acknowledging Squid Baron's point.

"That's fair, but how do we know you won't sell us out to Hypno Baron or try to pull a fast one on us?" Taeshan warily asked.

"Or just run away as soon as things get too scary for you, in that case?" added Shantay.

"Well, I like my tentacles where they are, for one thing," Squid Baron reasoned, staring frightfully at Shantay. "Another thing is that me betraying you or diming you out to Hypno Baron, however much I'd like to do those things to avoid trouble and get revenge on you for feeding me that explosive gunpowder-flavored fruit, is totally cliché and predictable. So, I promise not to stab you in the back, Shantae… or, whichever one of you two is the genie girl at heart," he uncertainly gave his word as he rubbed his head with a tentacle. "It seems like I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place, and I wouldn't get my much-deserved time in the limelight if I ditched you guys."

"Hmph. Because of course it's all about you in the long run, ain't it?" the young woman disapprovingly and sarcastically remarked.

"Baby, you know it," he remarked back, shooting the male-turned-maiden a smiling wink.

"Ew," Shantay stated in pure disgust, flinching and shooting Squid Baron a dirty look. "Don't flirt with me, Octopus. It's repulsive." Taeshan, finding the exchange as amusing as it was surprising, let out a healthy chuckle. Squid Baron merely sighed in mild disappointment.

"Oh well, worth a shot. I'll be taking my leave now. Have fun!" Squid Baron bade as he slithered off poasthaste toward one of the long, winding cobblestone roads.

"We'll call you if we need you, Squid Baron!" Taeshan called to him as he and Shantay watched the cephalopod disappear into the concrete jungle in the opposite direction of where they were headed. After he vanished, the duo turned their attention to one another.

"So, boss…" Shantay began. "How we goin' about doin' this, what with us bein' all nice an' switched up? This city looks pretty big, an' I'm pretty sure we'll have our work cut out for us here," she added, pointing a thumb at the busy, building-laden street ahead. As far as the eye could see, there was a stony forest of colorful buildings with onion domes and flat rectangular rooves with decorative carpets draping over them. The streets were decorated with torch-lights that illuminated the gravelly paths in the waning dusk sunset. As mentioned previously, there were smoothly-paved cobblestone streets abound that to intersect with one another at multiple points.

However, the residents our heroes laid eyes upon looked anything but content with their setting. In fact, many of them were scrambling about in sheer panic. Men, women, and children alike, who were dressed in much the same fashion as citizens of Scuttle Town, were running for their lives while being relentlessly chased by a horde of supernatural creatures that were also vandalizing property all over the place. Some were setting massive fires to buildings, some were demolishing them with magic blasts, and others were running the streets, violently slashing away at everything in sight. It was utter pandemonium, I tells ya!

"You're right…" Taeshan concurred in utter concern. "There's an awful lot of scarecrows, spiders, freaky-looking werewolves, mutant bugs, and pink slime monsters around here, and they're terrorizing the entire city. Looks like we'll be playing judge, jury, and exterminator," the soldier quipped, trying to sound cool.

"…R-right," Shantay uneasily acknowledged, wincing in discomfort at the terrible pun.

"To answer your question, though, I say we learn as we go along," Taeshan matter-of-factly advised, drawing her (partner's) gun and readying it for battle.

"…Not gonna lie; that doesn't sound like the best of options t' just wing it an' hope we succeed," Shantay objected. "There are a LOT o' monsters here, from the looks of it."

"It's the only decent option we have, unfortunately. We wasted too much time riding on Squid Baron, and now we've only got about two hours or so to find Hypno Baron. If you're worried about what some of these enemies bring to the table, I'll let you know as we fight our way through."

"I… I guess if that's how we're goin', then it is what it is," Shantay uneasily commented in understanding. "Although, we really didn't teach each other much. I kind of understand your Hair Whip move, but that's about it. I can use my fightin' techniques t' the best o' my ability in your body, otherwise. Other than that, I don't know much about belly dancin' t' turn int' your animal forms at all, an' we never even touched your fire attack…"

"Well, I could teach you how to belly dance, but… y'know, I don't think that'd be very 'manly' of me to do for you right now," he cleverly delivered his zinger, causing his teammate to frown at him.

"Fine, you got me. I'm sorry about tellin' you not t' be yourself while you're me," she conceded. "I guess, if you're willin', you can teach me along the way? I'll… I'll bite that bullet if it means we can be better prepared."

"Much as I'd like to, the dances you'll need in order to use my transformations are too complicated to pick up in one go. You also have to tap into my magic reserves to even attempt to transform, which is a whole different monster to tackle. No pun intended."

"Shoot…"

"But, if you can figure out how to use my magic, you can at least use the Pike Ball spell I picked up for you on our way here. The Pike Balls don't require dancing of any kind to access."

"How do I tap into your magic, though?"

"Like I told you about before, it's mainly about turning your emotions into power. I'll explain more as we go on, but I'm pretty sure you won't have a problem with that."

"How do you figure that?"

"You said your body had trace amounts of magic in it, right?"

"As far as we're bein' told, yes."

"Right. So, for reference, remember how you feel whenever you have to attack an enemy. Specifically, how you fought those monsters back in the Scuttle Town Forest, or when we work out or spar. It might also help to remember how it was when you fought your evil self. Or even when you punched Squid Baron in the face earlier."

"When I punched the octopus? I used magic back there?" Shantay asked in complete surprise, glancing at her hand as she flexed her fingers.

"Yeah. You didn't notice it, but your hand glowed sky blue with Light Magic when you attacked him. That actually reminds me, though… Did you feel any tingling in your hand when you punched him?"

"Hmm…" the half-genie pondered, reminiscing about her brazen assault on Squid Baron. "Yeah, actually… I was too angry t' think about it at the time, but yeah, there WAS some tinglin' goin' on."

"Okay, good! Remember that. Once you've got a scope of how to access my magic, think about how you want to use it. In your case, your specialty seems to be enhancing your physical strength and durability… at least, in short bursts."

"I… suppose, but does it really work like that for either of us, what with bein' in each other's bodies? Magic doesn't affect different people in different ways?"

"In some ways, yes, but in general, mine and everyone's ability to use magic—should they have it flowing in them—is tied mostly in their sense of focus and emotions. Simply put, magic can basically be seen as an extension of oneself. It's all a matter of how to tap into it and how to apply it."

"Oh… I… I see," Shantay acknowledged, nodding her head in realization.

"You'll get the hang of it. Though, while we're on the topic of learning each other's adventuring styles… How do I use this gun?" Taeshan posed, knowing right away that he would likely struggle with the handgun in his possession.

"You said you've shot a gun once before, no?" Shantay asked back, slightly surprised that her teammate would ask.

"Yeah, Risky's flintlock pistol," the young man answered. "I never used it all that much, though. Firearms aren't my strong suit when it comes to weapons. I'm better at sword-fighting and using my hair and magic to attack."

"Well then… Without your hair or your magic, it's gonna be an uphill fight for you, too, huh?"

"Tell me about it…" he lamented, sulking with dread.

"Believe me, I think I've got some idea how you feel," she consoled. "Anyway, how t' use that gun… It's more or less the same thing as the other gun you used, only… you'll probably struggle at first with how loud that thing is, as well as how much recoil it has."

"Right… How could I forget about the volume on this thing? Or the fact that it jerks upward with every shot, so far as I've seen?"

"No doubt. On the bright side, you should be okay once you get used to it. I never did get t' tell you in detail yesterday, but Twitch actually got t' use it a bunch herself," Shantay revealed, much to Taeshan's surprise.

"Really?"

"Yep. She started off real bad, whackin' herself over the head or droppin' it every time she fired it. But, once she got the hang of it, she actually did a decent job with it. Took out a couple o' Risky's minions while we were on the run."

"Interesting…" Taeshan murmured, wondering how the Ammonian affiliate in question managed to master such an unwieldly weapon. "So, how do I keep it under control?"

"Practice makes perfect, simply put," Shantay offered her advice. "Just keep yourself grounded, use both hands when you aim an' shoot, an' make sure you don't fire it in rapid bursts. Your accuracy will suffer much more than usual if you do."

"Okay," Taeshan commented, nodding in understanding.

"Keep both your eyes open, an' don't shoot unless you're certain o' two things. One, that you've got a lock on what you're aimin' at. An' Two, that you're sure you're gonna hit what you're aimin' at. Or, at the very least, you make sure t' minimize the chances of hittin' anyone or anything innocent if you feel like you might miss for any reason. Otherwise, DO NOT SHOOT. It is not worth it t' fire that gun, or any weapon, if there is even a slight chance o' hurtin' somebody by accident."

"Wow… That's a lot to consider with just using a gun… No wonder you're so good with it…"

"Take it from me, Shantae. Anybody can use a gun, but it takes a LOT of discipline t' use any gun correctly."

"I'll bet…" he agreed, taking a deep breath to dispel his apprehension about having to adapt to a style of adventure mostly unfamiliar to him. Shantay also breathed away some of her trepidation, as she had little idea of how to manage fending off hordes of sinister creatures with a weapon as… impractical as her own hair tied into a ponytail tight enough that the band used to hold the ponytail in place was akin to a snake coiling around prey. Yeah, it was THAT tight.

"If anything, there's nothin' wrong with attackin' with fists an' feet if you have to, homie," Shantay informed her comrade. "I ain't build up all that muscle for nothin'."

"I believe you all the way, Tay," the soldier remarked with a nod as the two prepared themselves for their next perilous quest. "On the flipside, you at least have my Hair Whip, which is my most powerful and most useful move. You also have the shampoo and hair gel that make it a bit faster and stronger than normal. The best part is that you don't even need magic to use it! Just fling your head forward and the rest takes care of itself!"

"Good t' know," Shantay acknowledged with a nod as she and Taeshan entered the first section Genie's Hem, the wooden street sign for which labeled it as Djinn's Junction.

"Of course. Are you prepared?"

"As I'll ever be… Or, in your words, I am uh… Ret-2-Go," she uncertainly answered, adopting a limber, energetic variant of an orthodox boxing stance in which she raised her fists to chest level, spread her hands and feet to the appropriate angles and distance from one another, and began bouncing on her toes, ready to take on all comers.

"That's the spirit! Loving the fighting stance, by the way," Taeshan cheered and praised, entering his own battle stance… which was much harder to describe than his partner's. But, it won't be for a lack of effort in trying. So basically, she was rocking back and forth, also bouncing on her toes. Only, she was also swinging her arms in tandem with her upper body as though she were dancing to a catchy Bollywood tune. There, I tried it. I… don't have many other ways to describe such an unusual battle pose, so bear with me. Anyway, Shantay, watching in confusion, spoke up as she dropped her stance and turned to face Taeshan.

"No offense, but I was meanin' t' ask… What sort o' fightin' stance is that?" the mystified half-genie queried. "I noticed you go int' that stance every time we start an adventure or spar."

"This is my regular stance," the soldier explained, none the wiser to his partner's perplexity as she continued cycling through her stance. "It's reflective of my being at full health and ready to take down all enemies in my path."

"Really now…? That's… interesting, if nothin' else…"

"What?" he questioned, picking up on his squadmate's uncertainty as she dropped her stance. "You don't like it?"

"I never said that," Shantay denied, though she wanted to assess her friend for her stance's usefulness. "It's just… I don't know how practical it is, from an objective lens. Don't you get tired bouncin' back an' forth like that? An' are you able t' defend when someone attacks?"

"No, I don't get tired. I've been using that stance since I became guardian genie of Scuttle Town, and it's been working for me," he explained. "Granted, I know it doesn't come off as very intimidating to bad guys… and maybe I COULD use a stance that doesn't have me moving around so much and has me guarding myself better. Maybe you're right…" he admitted, feeling a bit self-conscious.

"Hey now, if it works for you, homie, it works," Shantay consoled, not meaning to hurt her friend's feelings. "I was just wonderin' how well that stance worked for you. Y'know, what sort o' fightin' style it's from, is what I was gettin' at. Well, that an' how you'd aim my gun from that stance…"

"Oh, it's not from any particular fighting style, believe it or not. It's just something I came up with. I'm sure you know by now that I almost never get to use any of my hand-to-hand fighting techniques on the battlefield," he lamented. "Also, you've got a point. I'll be relying on this thing a lot, so I guess it DOES make sense to be able to aim it from a neutral position. Plus, I know you've got multiple fighting styles under your belt, and your stances look a lot more… professional and practical than mine, I'll admit. If I was a master in any specific combat style, I'd use that style's stance, believe me."

"Don't sweat it, Shantae," the young woman consoled (in case you're getting lost, remember that Tayshan is in Shantae's body and vice versa. It didn't help that they refused to follow their own protocol on how to address each other). "If your current stance works for you, then keep usin' it," she further assured before turing to face their upcoming challenges and assuming her battle stance once more. "Just make sure you're able t' defend yourself in my body. You're a lot bigger now, so you've got a lot more t' cover. Anyway, we're gettin' distracted. We should get on with lookin' for that wizard creep."

"Roger that," Taeshan agreed, taking point as he clasped his hands around the chrome-coated firearm and pointed it straight ahead. "Alright, are you set?"

"Sir, yes, sir!" Shantay confirmed, though she suddenly paused. "W-wait, there IS one other thing I feel like we should be prepared for…"

"Oh, yeah? What's up?"

"Well… if I'm makin' any sense, then I'm wonderin' if we'll have a tough time understandin' each other from the inside…" she pondered, piquing Taeshan's curiosity.

"How so?"

"…Like, I wonder if, because we're in each other's bodies, how that might affect how well we can control or at least understand how we feel."

"You mean like, if we'll still be able to completely be ourselves even though our bodies are so different from each other?"

"Kinda, but…" Shantay paused, unable to fully explain what she meant. After a moment of contemplative silence, she gave up. "Never mind. I'm sure it ain't too big a deal. Plus, standin' here an' talkin' ain't really gettin' anything done but wastin' time."

"Alright," Taeshan nodded, though he was still curious about what Shantay was getting at. For that matter, so was I. If anything, it appeared he'd developed a sort of theory, but was unable to articulate it into words at the moment. "Shall we proceed, then?"

"Affirmative, sir," the young woman agreed.

"Then Let's Rock!" Taeshan energetically announced, getting the next journey started.

"An' Roll!" the young woman added, following suit as the duo began charging bravely into the monster-infested Genie's Hem. The duo began jogging down a long, steep streetlight-laden downhill slope as they began their search. To say they were running side-by-side, ready to take on all comers, however, was kind of an overstatement. Taeshan, having a height advantage over his teammate, bolted far ahead of her almost immediately after the two took off. Shantay did her best to catch up, but she soon found herself wrapping her arms around her chest as she did her best to keep up. This peculiar phenomenon didn't keep up for long, as the instant the duo reached the bottom of the cobblestone hill, they were immediately greeted with a team of haunted scarecrows and voluptuous pink goo girls that made their intentions known. With frightening howls of haunting wrath, the possessed strawmen dashed forward, eager to destroy everything in their path. "Wow, what a greetin' this is… They've usually waited for us to approach before…"

"You've never fought enemies at night before, Tay, so be on your guard. They're tougher and a ton more aggressive when the sun sets. We just so happen to be lucky enough to have shown up here at dusk…" Taeshan warned, aiming the Desert Eagle as best as he could manage. "Our main goal here is to find Hypno Baron within the time limit, so we should probably skip past this horde."

"Fantastic," Shantay acknowledged as she and Taeshan pressed on. The duo dashed forward with the speed of two race cars, brushing past four scarecrows and two goo girls without even sparing them a passing glance. However, they were almost immediately met with a bright, glowing, neon-green magic wall that blocked the rest of the otherwise-open, monster-infested street. Try as the body-swapped pair might, they couldn't force their way through.

"What gives?" Taeshan complained, scratching his head.

"Maybe this is a section where we have t' defeat all the monsters before we move on?" Shantay deduced, turning to face the monster horde shambling and staggering toward them.

"Only one way to find out," the soldier answered, pointing the gun at a scarecrow and firing with little preparation. With a startling *BANG* that scared the 'soldier' out of his wits, the firearm discharged a round that narrowly missed its intended target. The gun itself, however, found itself flung out of Taeshan's hands and past the magic wall. "Oh, no!" he exclaimed in panic, snapping out of his frightened stupor to quickly notice that he was unable to reclaim his weapon.

"Goodness, Shantae, that ain't a good start," the half-genie griped, shaking her head in annoyance and disappointment as she prepared herself for battle.

"You never said that thing was THAT powerful! There's no way I can use that gun with that much kickback!" he complained, understandably upset by such a clumsy turn of events.

"Well unless we can find somethin' easier t' use, we're both goin' in empty-handed." With that, Shantay quickly approached a scarecrow and attempted to whip her hair at it. Unfortunately, her lack of experience with using hair as a weapon made itself quite apparent. Flinging her head back and forth like she was at a heavy metal concert proved ineffective, as she missed whip after whip after whip while the scarecrow approached with a haunting cackle. By the time she missed her sixteenth consecutive hair whip, the foul creature swung its hand, batting Shantay away with an alarming *WHACK* that knocked her flat on her back. "Agh! What in the…!" she grumbled as she sat up, rubbing her cheek where she was struck while adjusting her shirt.

"Tay, you've got zero coordination with my hair," Taeshan criticized in equal disappointment. "You have to aim it at the enemy to damage them. Just swinging away without watching where you're aiming will leave you vulnerable."

"Hmph! Honestly, the whiplash from even doin' your hair whip hurts more than this scarecrow did!" she remarked, getting up to rush and deliver a swift, heavy three-punch combo that vanquished the creature before it could put up any more of a fight, fixing her top after she was done. "I'll just stick t' usin' my fists an' feet!"

"Huh…" Taeshan sighed, uncertain of how this journey would go when neither of them was using each other's most relied-on method of attack. "I guess that's what we're doing until we figure something out…" he further commented before running toward one of the five remaining scarecrows and delivering a vicious soccer kick that caused the creature to instantly explode into a mass of hay and Dark Magic that dissipated in the air. Soon after, Shantay came face-to-face with one of the two gelatin monsters, who immediately tried to entice her by shooting her a coquettish wink and smile.

"Tayshan, be careful! That 'girl' is not what she seems! Slime Gals can be very deceptive!" Taeshan warned, reaching out toward her partner.

"Trust me, I'm aware!" she called back, brazenly attacking the creature with a jump kick that sent a sticky rose-colored substance splattering everywhere. Before she could fully recover from her attack, however, another scarecrow let out a wrathful howl as it tried to lunge at the young woman. "Hyah!" Shantay shouted, throwing a powerful uppercut that obliterated the creature of the night before it could touch her. Her only issue (if you hadn't picked up on it by now) was the way certain parts of her body moved, as she wrapped her arms across her chest and adjusted her shirt after the fact. "Jeez, this 'being a girl' thing is already gettin' t' be such a pain…!"

"Good work!" Taeshan praised, turning his attention toward the second Slime Gal, who'd employed the same method of trying to lure her opponents in. The monster giggled cutely as it winked and jiggled itself to increase its appeal to the soldier. Despite feeling a strong pang in his heart and a rush of warmth that he couldn't explain, Taeshan dashed forward and attempted to strike the gooey monster woman with a punch. However, as he got close enough to launch his attack, the Slime Gal cowered in such fear of being harmed that Taeshan suddenly halted his assault. Noticing this, Shantay looked on in shock.

"What are you doin'!? Destroy that thing an' let's get movin'!" she commanded, dodging a third scarecrow's haphazard hand swipe and countering with a roundhouse kick to defeat it.

"I… For some reason, I can't-! Wah!" Taeshan reasoned before being snagged by the creature, whose gaping maw swallowed him whole. Turns out the 'girl' in question was actually the monster's tongue. Go figure. Anyhow, Taeshan found himself trapped inside the creature, his entire body now coated in the gross, frigid, sticky secretions that made up the monster's form.

"No way!" Shantay cried out, rushing toward her partner and punching furiously at the creature until it exploded into little pink gooey chunks, releasing Taeshan from its grasp.

"Whew… Thanks, Tay," Taeshan commended for the save as he picked himself up and ran toward the fourth scarecrow. With a solid right hook, he demolished the living crop decoration without issue. The young man then moved onto the fifth scarecrow, whom he also sent packing with a jumping side kick. The two banded together and vanquished the sixth and final scarecrow with simultaneous straight-arm punches that wiped it out, thus granting them access to the next section as the barrier disappeared and a big red arrow above them (noticed only by Taeshan) blinked on and off, indicating where they needed to go next. "We did it!"

"Most definitely," Shantay acknowledged, eager to keep the momentum going as she once again played with her shirt, which didn't seem to be cooperating with her. "Wanna take the lead? You're more familiar with this place than I am, so I'm followin' you, as usual."

"I'm not all that familiar with Genie's Hem, but I'll do my best," Taeshan informed, taking point as the duo ran into the next area; the second portion of Djinn's Junction, which was rife with even more monsters with much more diversity than the previous section. Some of the buildings were on fire, though the blazes took on a bizarre sapphire hue as they burned uncontrollably. "Hypno Baron's minions are making a huge mess of this place!" Taeshan pointed out, picking up the Desert Eagle she dropped earlier.

"You're tellin' me! An' take a look at our twelve position!" Shantay warned, noticing another barrier blocking off the next section. However, that was the least of her worries. In front of the barrier was a team of six more scarecrows, two more Slime Gals, and two giant blue scorpion-lobster monsters. Accompanying them, however, was an intimidating-looking giant spider-girl hybrid with long navy-blue hair, bright blue eyes, spike-adorned legs made mostly of bone, and a giant pink-eyed skull on her black-furred thorax. Standing beside this spider girl was another woman with blue skin, scantily clad in a demonic-looking black bat-themed costume. This woman, of course quite dangerous in nature, wiggled her hips, pointed toward Taeshan and shot him a flirty wink that immediately made him uncomfortable. They appeared to be guarding a suspicious-looking red treasure chest that rested on a platform behind them. "What are we dealin' with here…?"

"Those two in the back would be called Bonelegs and Bat Gal," Taeshan nervously informed his partner, seemingly unable to shake some form of apprehension off. This did not go unnoticed, as Shantay turned toward her partner to read the flustered look on his face.

"…Is there somethin' you wanna let me know about?" she asked, cutting right to the point. She appeared to be observing her partner's mannerisms intently. "We ain't been here long, but you seem uncharacteristically nervous… This ain't much like you at all."

"Sorry…" the poor guy apologized. "It's just… the way the girls over there are looking at me…" she pointed out, prompting Shantay to take a look for herself. Indeed, the Bonelegs and the Bat Gal were both making inappropriate gestures toward the soldier, appearing to be flirting with him to get him to lower his guard. "I don't know how to say this, but… They're… They're really cute… I know they're bad… but for some reason, I don't want to hurt them…" The half-genie reeled back in utter surprise, caught completely off-guard by Taeshan's dissonant statement.

"That sounds like somethin' _I_ would say if I didn't know better," Shantay lamented, though it made something immediately clear as she gasped in shock. "Oh… Wait… That's DEFINITELY somethin' I would say… if I was in my own body…" she added, pondering as she drew a troubling conclusion. To be certain of it, however, she asked another question. "Shantae, how do you feel right now?"

"How do I feel?"

"Regardin' our enemies, I mean," Shantay uneasily clarified. "What… what are your thoughts on them?"

"I… I feel confused," she admitted. "I know we have to defeat those girls and their scarecrow minions, but something in my… er, YOUR body is making me feel funny."

"Funny how?"

"Like, 'butterflies in the stomach' kind of funny when I look at those girls… or even the Slime Gals… especially the one that caught me off-guard earlier. There's… something else I feel, too…" he trailed off, looking downward as he nervously tightened his fists and breathed a pressured sigh. Shantay, following Taeshan's gaze, knew exactly what he meant.

"Darn it, that's just what I was afraid of…" Shantay concluded, concerned about what was confirmed by her comrade.

"What?" Taeshan asked, perking up with curiosity regarding Shantay's dread.

"Our minds may have switched, but I'm startin' t' get a feel that our bodies are still the same when it comes t' how they react t' certain things… or people."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that you're probably afraid t' attack those girls over there—and possibly find yourself attracted t' them—because that's how I would normally feel without thinkin' about it," Shantay revealed, much to Taeshan's surprise. "Our bodies might be havin' the same intrinsic reactions t' certain things that our minds have little t' no control over."

"But… but I like boys," Taeshan confessed in confusion, though it rubbed Shantay the wrong way. "I… I didn't think that would change simply by being in a boy's body…"

"Try not t' say that too loud while you're inside me," the half-genie groaned in embarrassment and annoyance. "Also, I'm not sure if it's your own preferences changin' or if it's just a physical reaction… I'm just guessin', but the second theory is the conclusion I'm drawin' right now."

"Good point," the 'soldier' acknowledged, giving further thought to the peculiar postulation made by his technical former self. "In that case… How do YOU feel about the Bonelegs and Bat Gal over there?"

"Indifferent, weirdly enough," Shantay confidently answered. "Like, I'm aware that in mind, I SHOULD be attracted t' them, therefore at least a little bit distracted like you warned me about the other day. But in your body, I feel absolutely nothin'. All I see are two enemies that need t' be taken down sooner than later."

"That IS weird… I guess we can figure this out later, though," Taeshan dismissed as their enemies grew tired of waiting for them to finish bantering. "Looks like they're ready for us," he added, readying himself for battle once more.

"Got it, boss," Shantay acknowledged, also preparing herself for the next battle. "Although, if that theory o' mine winds up bein' true, then maybe it'll help to attack from a distance usin' my gun?"

"We'll see, but we won't know until we fight." With that, Shantay and Taeshan challenged the next wave of opponents, starting with the six scarecrows before them that charged at them simultaneously. "On another note, this might be a good time to call in Squid Baron to make this round a bit less daunting… Adorable girls or not, this is a lot to handle all at once."

"You might have a point there…" the young woman agreed, mildly curious to see exactly what sort of help the cephalopod would provide. "Are you sure, though? Not t' say I don't trust that giant eight-legged pimple as far as I could throw him, but… I don't really know if he'll show up or be much help…"

"Trust me, when he wants his fifteen minutes of fame, he's bound to show," Taeshan assured with a confident smiling nod before taking a deep breath and blowing into the Baron Summoner. With a shrill, glass-shattering high-pitched screech that plagued the ears of literally EVERYONE in the vicinity (all the enemies were covering their ears to escape the torturous noise), the signal had been sent.

"It's about time you guys tagged me in!" Squid Baron declared from afar, plopping in from seemingly nowhere, ready to make a mess of things like he usually do—er, I-I mean clean up the mess in front of him. Y-yeah, that's what I meant. Heh. "Watch this!" he brashly commanded his teammates before charging himself up with a strong, nearly 180-degree twist of his silky red body. "Let 'er rip!" he announced, launching one of his special moves, the dreaded, ultra-devastating, though poorly-named Pinball Spin, in which Squid Baron spun and bounced around the battlefield with dangerous speed and reckless abandon.

Little did he know, he forgot to actually AIM his attack at his enemies, as they began scrambling around the street in a desperate bid to avoid being squashed. Even LITTLER did he know, he collided haphazardly into burning buildings all around, with *CRUNCHes* and *CRASHes* abound that caused frightening tremors as he bounced between the barriers that trapped everyone in this particular section of the city. Jagged stones of various sizes, engulfed in cobalt-colored flames, began raining down with heavy intensity, causing further panic for those unfortunate enough to be within the vicinity of such a brutish, uncalculated display of irresponsibility and unchecked hubris.

"Hey!" shouted Taeshan as he and Shantay dove out of the way in separate directions to JUST miss being knocked for a loop by the cephalopod's high-risk maneuver. "Squid Baron! You're supposed to defeat the bad guys, not destroy the city!" At multiple points during the ten-second rampage (yeah, that's how long this supposedly-awesome move lasted), Taeshan and Shantay were forced to dodge the cephalopod's mostly-aimless assault, as well as the flaming debris he sent flying in all directions. As you might have guessed, neither of them was very happy that he didn't account for them or plan out his attack pattern before launching into action. However, he DID manage to smash his way through most of the scarecrows (others were crushed and burned to ashes by flaming boulders), Slime Gals, and scorpion monsters like a bowling ball through bowling pins. One could even hear the *CLATTER* of a set of pins being knocked over by a ball the size of a truck. Picture that, why don't you? Before long, Squid Baron's special attack came to a gradual halt as he stopped directly in front of his two allies, proud of himself.

"How'd you like THEM apples? Totally main-character material, if I do say so myself. Wouldn't you agree?" he bragged, though he was met with frustrated glares.

"Squid Baron, that was totally dangerous! You almost took us out along WITH all those enemies!" Taeshan complained in frustration, knocking some of the wind out of the cephalopod's sails.

"Seriously, you almost flattened us int' the ground!" Shantay added, equally as miffed about Squid Baron's clumsy maneuver. "An' look what you did t' all these houses an' that grocery store over there! You completely demolished 'em! What was once a neighborhood is now a collection of flamin' piles o' rubble!"

"Y'know, a THANK YOU would work, too!" he shot back, appalled by his allies' lack of appreciation for his much-needed assistance. "Plus, those places were already on fire anyway, so who cares? That aside, I just helped you wipe out a whole brigade of dangerous enemies, and THIS is how you repay me?"

"You didn't get all of 'em, though," Shantay corrected, a strong tinge of contempt in her tone.

"Yeah, take a look behind you," Taeshan added, pointing toward the Bat Gal and Bonelegs that were still stationed on the other side of the debris-laden battlefield. However, the Bat Gal, seeming surprised about something, immediately whispered to her ally before transforming into an actual bat (again, go figure) and soaring off. "Huh… Where's she going? Why'd she leave her friend behind?"

"Clearly, she was so impressed and intimidated by my incomparable technique that she understood she had no chance and ran away with her tail between her legs!"

"Incomparable? More like 'incompetent…'" Shantay muttered, rolling her eyes.

"I heard that!" he screamed, offended by the stinging remark. "Anyway, you guys don't HAVE to call me if you have such a problem with the way I take care of business. I'm sure you could handle entire squads of baddies all by yourselves."

"We probably could," Shantay calmly countered, shocking the squid monster. "Don't underestimate us."

"In each other's bodies, though?" he posed. "Don't get ahead of yourselves. You need me more than you think."

"Not if you're gonna go around tearing down buildings while we're trying to save this place from utter disaster," Taeshan argued. "If this is how you handle things, Squid Baron, then I'm not sure we'll be calling you up again anytime soon."

"Ugh, fine," he moaned, upset by the incessant nagging while secretly worried that his actions might have had a negative impact on his coveted screen time. "I'll TRY to avoid destroying any buildings next time you summon me. There, happy?"

"Only if you really are able to keep the collateral damage to a minimum," Taeshan warned. "You get one more chance at helping us out."

"If you ask me, that's one too many…" Shantay muttered.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Squid Baron dismissed with a shrug, though he was surreptitiously thankful that he was (mostly) forgiven. "I'm outta here. Call me up again after the hour-long cool-down," he advised before taking his leave… by starting up another spin cycle and blindly smashing his way through more buildings and causing a nearby library and at least two other buildings to come tumbling down, their stony remains flooding into the road ahead.

"…Maybe it wasn't such a good idea letting him tag along…" Taeshan brilliantly acknowledged with an exasperated sigh.

"…Wow, not even ten seconds after we tell him t' control himself, and he already just set us back," the half-genie complained, growing intensely frustrated.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean he just blocked the rest o' the street off by plowin' through those buildings," she pointed out, calling attention to a giant, smoking pile of rubble ahead of them that spilled out like a monumental rock slide into the road to create an inconvenient and impassible obstacle. "Now, we have t' find some other way int' the city."

"Great…" Taeshan groaned.

"You guys know I'm still here, right?" asked the befuddled spider-girl hybrid as she called attention to herself, her voice sporting a heavy accent reminiscent of a certain mid-western nation.

"No, we didn't forget you, Miss Bonelegs," Taeshan politely addressed. "Sorry, we were just trying to figure out how to maneuver through the city."

"Oh, well excuse me!" she sarcastically remarked, offended by the implication of the remark. "Sure, go ahead, deliberate away in that case! Really, I don't mind at all that you two have been ignoring me the entire time!"

"I'm… sensin' some tension here…" Shantay cleverly deduced from the bitterly sarcastic tone of the arachnid lady opposing them.

"Oh, really, genius? Tension? That's all you're noticing? Goodness, how dumb are you?"

"You don't gotta be so mean about it…" the half-genie murmured with a scowl.

"Hey, hey, there's no need for name-calling," Taeshan tried to reason. "We'll fight you just like we planned to. It's just… y'know, we've got this situation where we-!"

"Spare me the excuses and prepare yourselves, humans!" the Bonelegs boldly proclaimed, readying her spiky forelegs for the battle of a lifetime, prompting her enemies to ready themselves. "You talk as though you're really going to reach Master Hypno Baron in the allotted time like a casual stroll in the flame-bathed park a mile northwest of this street, but I've got news for you: He warned us about you and your new boyfriend, you despicable genie! Prepare to perish here and now!" she further threatened, taking aim at Shantay, who was caught by surprise.

"…Wait, is this the part where I say you're not my boyfriend, or…?" she whispered to an equally-bewildered Taeshan as she flubbed her line. The young man merely shrugged, as he also did not know how to address the accusation while they were swapped.

"I'm not sure… I was paying more attention to the awfully-specific directions she gave us about a nearby park we can cross through…" he explained.

"And there you two go again! That's it! I've had it!" the infuriated Bonelegs shouted, hastily crawling herself over with unprecedented speed and viciously slashing at the duo, the emphatic *SHWING* of her scythe-like appendage ripping through the air like paper.

"Whoa!" Shantay yelled as she and Taeshan quickly dodged the spider girl's bloodthirsty swipe attack, moving in separate directions. "You ain't playin'!"

"This is no game, I assure you," the Bonelegs threatened as she immediately halted her assault and crouched low. Before either of our fledgling heroes could begin to ponder what she was about to do, however, she leapt high into the air, releasing a spray of webbing from her thorax that splattered around Shantay's feet. The young woman jumped to avoid it and appeared to have no trouble dodging the surprise maneuver. "…but we ARE going to play fair, so why don't you make yourself nice and snug while you wait your turn?" the aggressive spider woman taunted as she landed, prompting Shantay to try and attack her. The half-genie attempted to dash toward the Bonelegs and punch, but she found it very hard to move her feet.

"Agh…! What the-!?" she griped, looking down as she struggled to escape. Greeting her downward gaze was a mass of spider web that held her firm. "Why you-!" Shantay further commented, trying to escape. However, the Bonelegs made quick work of spraying the hapless young woman with more webbing as she tried protecting herself until she was covered up to her neck in the immensely-adhesive excretion, thereby trapping Shantay in place.

"Tay!" Taeshan called, almost as astonished by the maneuver as his partner. "None of that webbing got in my hair, right!?" he asked, clearly having his priorities straight when it came to worrying about who or what was in danger.

"You no-good, sneaky…! I… I can't get out!" Shantay complained as she fruitlessly struggled against the thick, sticky organic binds of the web.

"Why don't you stay put for me, babe?" the duplicitous spider woman teased again, approaching and brushing a hand through her webbing victim's hair. "You won't have to wait long, I promise. You'll make for a sweet dessert once I'm done having your partner for dinner…~" she added with a lascivious chuckle, turning her attention to Taeshan. Immediately on high alert, the young man drew his gun, doing his best to aim it. His enemy slowly, threateningly approached, raising her spiky forelegs to play up the intimidation factor.

"You… You weren't supposed to be able to do that," Taeshan pointed out, slowly backing up as his opponent drew closer. "You were only supposed to be able to use your claws to attack and defend."

"What, you don't think we can learn new tricks?" she rhetorically asked. "How uninformed of you, human. It's that same sort of ignorance that got your friend all nice and cooped up in my webs, and it's that same ignorance that'll have you joining her!" she threatened, jumping again to spray Taeshan with her immobilizing web. The soldier, wise to the attack, quickly dashed out of the way before she could ensnare him. "You're pretty quick on your feet, I'll give you that. Don't think it'll save you, though…"

"Oh yeah? Well if you think I'll just lay down and let you take him—er, her, then you've got another think coming!" Taeshan dared to challenge, raising the gun once more. However, he found himself hesitant to pull the trigger, considering what happened last time he fired it.

"Shantae, don't be afraid o' the gun!" Shantay advised, still struggling to break free to no avail. "Just tighten your stance, steady yourself, aim, an' fire, like I said!"

"That's easier said than done, but I'll try…" he heeded, stopping his retreat. "Tighten stance, be steady, aim, and shoot…" he murmured to himself, gaining focus as the ravenous Bonelegs approached, readying one of her scythe-like, spiky claws for another swift, brutal attack.

"Time to 'cut' to the end of this hunt!" she quipped (yes, even bad guys are capable of making terrible puns), cocking her foreleg back to strike.

"Yo, watch out! She's gonna slice you in half if you don't move!" Shantay tried to warn in a panic, still trying her hardest to break free. However, with barely a second of preparation, she slashed. In yet another twist of events, though, Taeshan felt the world around him slown to a crawl. In that exact moment, the swiftness of the Bonelegs' slash was seemingly reduced to the speed of a bubble blowing in the wind. The young man felt a tingling surge coursing through his body as he tried to recognize what was happening to him. However, aware that he was in imminent danger, he moved as fast as he could to dodge his enemy's assault. He jumped backward, the Bonelegs's razor-sharp claw thankfully doing nothing more than slicing a hole in his shirt. Once he was at a safe distance while the spider girl recoiled from her narrowly-missed attack, he reacted.

"Eat this!" he shouted, firing off a single round with an explosive *BANG* that surprisingly did not cause the gun to fly out of his hands. He staggered back, however, as the intensity of the moment nearly knocked him off-balance. "Whoa!" he cried out, his back hitting the barrier surrounding them. However, he was more flabbergasted by what just happened.

"Gaaaaaagh!" the Bonelegs screamed in horrible, cringe-inducing agony, bringing her human hands to a spot on her abdomen; evidently, where Taeshan's round had struck. Also evident was the fact that the shot severely injured the woman-arachnid hybrid, as she continued to wince in unspeakable pain.

"Good work, homie!" Shantay cheered, relieved that Taeshan was able to take her advice into account before he was sliced and diced by the malevolent spider girl. "You had me worried there for a second."

"Nnngh…! Hah…!" the Bonelegs continued to wince, the pain in her ebdoment evidently not subsiding as she tried to process the intense agony that came with being shot. "You… You heartless brute! That really hurt!" she yelled, on the brink of tears. Shocked by the injured spider woman's whimpering, Taeshan immediately felt an overwhelming sense of guilt.

"Uh… A-are you okay?" he asked, lowering his weapon as he stood still. He had no idea that the firearm could cause as much harm and suffering to someone as it did the Bonelegs, and it doubly impacted him that he'd struck a girl with his bullet. And now, she was choking back tears as she clutched her aching stomach.

"No, I'm not okay! You shot me!" she scornfully hollered, still wracked with pain as she continued trying not to let her tears pour down her cheeks. "What the devil is wrong with you!?"

"I'm sorry… I-I only meant to defend myself, but I didn't know I would hurt you this bad… But, maybe we can stop fighting. My friend and I just want to have Hypno Baron help us. We don't have to go through this anymore," he tried to explain, sheathing the gun and slowly approaching the crying Bonelegs. Shantay, bewildered and unsettled by the scene before her, watched on. She couldn't believe her partner… He was apologizing and ready to console a violent assailant after defending himself. She understood feeling sympathetic toward someone to the point of wanting to help them; back when she was known as a man named Tayshan, she offered the same form of support to various women she'd come across during her (or, at the time, HIS) travels that previously attacked her (him). Seeing it from the outside looking in, however, told her something truly pressing about her old self… however, before she could internalize the point, she spotted a line of web slowly dispensing from the Bonelegs' thorax as she lifted one of her weaponized forelegs while Taeshan wasn't paying attention.

"Shantae, get out o' there! She's about t' strike again!" she tried her best to warn.

"Huh?" Taeshan responded in curiosity, though her awareness of the situation would come almost too late. The Bonelegs, whose despair-riddled frown had turned to a despicably-sneaky grin, slashed with another highly-malevolent *SHWING* at Taeshan as soon as he was deemed within a good enough distance to strike.

"Whoa!" he bellowed as he narrowly dodged backward, stumbling back and landing with a hard *THUD* on the debris-littered ground. Before he could climb back up, however, the opportunistic arachnid hybrid pounced. With unquestionable desire for vengeance, she leapt into the air, shooting balls of web at Taeshan's hands and feet. With disgusting wet *THWAPs*, the web projectiles stuck, trapping him in place. "Agh…! Oh, no…!" he murmured in worry, struggling to break free. However, the Bonelegs wasn't finished.

"I'll finish you off right here and now!" she declared as she descended, landing directly on the immobilized man's chest with a gut-wrenching *THUMP*.

"Waaagh…!" he groaned, the wind crushed out of him like a trash compactor on a bagpipe. The evil spider woman then stood up, pinning her prey's chest down with one claw.

"Shantae!" Shantay screamed in utter panic as she redoubled her desperate efforts to break free. It went without saying that she was intensely concerned for the safety of her friend. "Darn it…! Gotta get… these webs off me…!" she growled through her teeth, wriggling and writhing with all the strength she could muster, to no avail.

"Now now, don't be in such a hurry, little girl," the Bonelegs taunted as she glanced back at the distressed Shantay. "Your turn will come soon enough," she added, focusing her attention back toward Taeshan, who had also been trying to break free. Preferring that her prey lie still, the foul creature pressed the tip of her claw into Taeshan's chest as she remained seated on him.

"Aaaaaagh!" he shouted in unbearable pain, his thoughts racing on how he would escape such a grim, nerve-wracking predicament. However, contemplation became increasingly difficult when his malevolent captor pressed her scythe-like appendage harder into him with the more he struggled. And the harder she did so, the more Taeshan cried out in helpless agony.

"Shh, shh, it's okay, honey," the triumphant spider teased with an insidious smirk as she raised her free claw high into the air. "You won't have to suffer long before you become my next delicious meal. If it makes you feel any better, you won't be alone in my stomach. You AND your friend will feed me for quite a while, with all the meat on your bones…" she threatened with a crazed chuckle as she began to drool on the young man, thinking about her impending feast.

"St-stop!" Taeshan managed to shout, fighting through tidal waves of torture to do so.

"Food has no right to command me," she dismissed, readying herself for the final strike. "Now just close your eyes and keep still. It'll be over before you know it…"

"No… No, no, no…! I can't… believe this…! I can't!" Shantay grumbled, still struggling with all her might as she watched on in nigh-pertified horror. As it stood, Taeshan was about to be turned into spider food right before her eyes. In that moment of desperation and inconsolable panic, she observed the scene before her. Her partner (in her original body), flat on his back in the middle of a rubble and fire-bathed street… pinned to the stony ground by a hideously evil, carnivorous arachnid creature… who was raising a frighteningly-dangerous weapon into the air with unhindered intent to end the life of her partner without a care in the world except for how well she would eat after the deed was done. "Don't you dare!" the furious half-genie roared out, every inch of her body beginning to surge with an arcane tingling sensation akin to a rapid series of electric shocks. From head to toe, she felt a sudden burst of heat as she became increasingly frustrated.

"Aw, are you upset that you're stuck there, helpless as you spend your final moments pathetically trying to resist the inevitable?" the spider girl teased again. "I told you your friend here wouldn't suffer, now didn't I?"

"Get off! Now!" Shantay demanded, the heat in her body spiking from a mild warmth to a raging, fiery pressure the likes of which she'd never experienced as she continued to struggle against the sticky binds locking her in place.

"No use fighting it, but you go right ahead and tire yourself out. It only makes it easier for me. Now, then… It's meal-prep time…" she ominously commented, looking down at her prey one final time as she raised her bladed foreleg with a toothy grin.

"No, wait! Don't do this!" Taeshan pleaded, watching on in terror as his opponent prepared to strike him down. Shantay, incensed as she was afraid of what was going to happen in the next two seconds, continued to give it her all, but the webs wouldn't budge. She couldn't break free. She was stuck like a sheep in a cage awaiting its inevitable sacrifice. Her partner was about to be brutally executed in front of her, and there was nothing she could do about it. The instant that thought crossed her mind, she suddenly flashed back to a conversation she'd previously had with a departed friend of hers; particularly, a certain statement that was made to her recently had become the only clear thought in her mind.

 _"…make sure nobody else ends up like me on your watch, alright?"_ he remembered as the image of that same friend filled his mind with a heavy reminiscent guilt. If she let anything like that happen once more, she could NEVER look at herself the same again. In that moment, Shantay's wrath exploded with the force of the world's deadliest volcano.

"Wrrrrrraaaaaaaagh!" the infuriated half-genie roared loud enough that it could be heard miles away, her entire body overcome with an intense, radiating, burning pressure that washed the vicinity in its nigh-tangible essence.

"What the-?" the Bonelegs was about to comment, distracted as she turned to look at the cause of the sudden burst of heat radiating from behind. Before she finished her statement, however, a dazzling *FWOOSH* of an explosion of bright, sunlight-like red flames scattered throughout the faux arena, causing her to hop off of Taeshan to defend herself by blocking the wayward flickers with her claws. Some of the flickers also burned away the webbing holding Taeshan's limbs to the ground. "What… What is that…?" she asked herself, lowering her appendages once the flames stopped bombarding her. Immeasurable shock painted her face as she gazed upon the source of the sudden rapid increase in air temperature.

"…Tay…?" Taeshan murmured, sitting up with utmost surprise and curiosity to observe the cause of the explosion. The previously-ensnared young man couldn't believe his eyes. His partner in his (her) original body, free from the trap sprung on her by the Bonelegs. Her arms were bathed in twin infernos of magic-induced flames that burned bright like stars. The look on her face exuded a frightening, white-hot rage that found itself hyper-focused on the spider girl standing behind him. The sight of his (her) own original body coursing with this much magic all at once caught him by complete surprise for many more reasons than he could fathom. What was immediately alarming to him, however, was how his partner managed to access it. "How did you…?"

"Get away from her right now, spider!" Shantay again demanded of the astonished spider girl as she stepped forward, her hands still alight with towers of fire.

"…Wait, 'her?'" she questioned, understandably confused by the incorrect use of personal pronoun. However, her failure to move when the half-genie commanded earned the Bonelegs more of Shantay's wrath.

"I said MOVE!" the enraged young woman shouted, cocking an arm back and launching a blast of fire directly at her enemy. The giant arachnid, surprised by the sheer speed and violent intent of the attack, shielded herself with her forelegs, ducking behind them and holding them up. With a devastating fiery *PWOSH*, the Bonelegs was sent staggering back in searing agony as she was pushed a few feet back. She managed to block the vicious incendiary attack, but every part of her front legs burned like… well, like they were set on fire. She winced in pain as she recovered from the assault. Taking her enemy's pained distraction as a golden opportunity, Shantay rushed toward Taeshan, her hands still set aflame as she began to feel rapid stings all over her body as though someone was constantly jabbing at her with thumbtacks, and helped him back to a standing position. "You alright?"

"Yeah, but Tay…" Taeshan began as he recovered, his astonishment shining through everything else he was feeling in the moment. "You… How did you do that?"

"I wish I knew, but we'll figure that out after we dispose o' this man-eatin' spider monster," she assured, turning to face the Bonelegs, who'd already begun showing signs of fatigue from her short bout with the two body-swapped heroes.

"Right," Taeshan agreed, drawing his pistol and carefully aiming it at their shared adversary.

"Darn…" the arachnid girl cursed, shooting a web behind her that attached to the crimson-red onion dome of a nearby tower as a method of retreating. "I have to get out of here before things get worse…!"

"Where do you think you're goin'!?" Shantay challenged, dashing toward her retreating opponent as she cocked a fist behind her. In an instant, the belligerent half-genie launched another fireball, though she barely missed as the Bonelegs zipped herself out of harm's way using her webbing. The projectile hit the ground, its flames spattering around the immediate area as its intended target perched onto the tower just beyond the barrier. "Now you wanna run away!?"

"I'm not running away," the Bonelegs assured from the top of the tower, her tone still as cocky as it had been when she first engaged the duo. "I just know to relent when things aren't going in my favor. However, I know what you guys are here for."

"You do?" Taeshan asked, perplexed by his enemy's assertion.

"Yes, of course. As stated before our battle, I'm aware of your interest in locating Master Hypno Baron within a certain amount of time," she presumed. "I'll have you know, though, that you won't be getting to him as easily as you think. He's set up a total of five loyal security squads across this city, and the only way you fools will get to him is by defeating all of us!"

"What do you mean by that?" Shantay asked as her anger quelled just enough that the flames enveloping her hands dissipated, leaving trails of smoke that blew away in the rushing current of the wind.

"He's made us aware of your annoying proclivity to simply power through his loyal minions and solve his normally-impossible puzzles, genie, so he's come up with a most ingenious alternative; bogging you down by having you face each and every one of us in waves with no chance to skip past, setting up barriers once you've entered an area that will only disappear if you defeat all of our squad members there, and placing a strict time limit on you to maximize your chance of failure!"

"…Wow, I won't lie… That IS pretty diabolical," Taeshan murmured in agreement. "I don't think I've ever been put under that much pressure before…"

"That won't be as big a problem as you think it'll be," Shantay challenged, refusing to be intimidated by the unfair conditions set.

"I beg to differ, considering how much you struggled against just little old me," she taunted with a chuckle, though it was stopped short as she flinched in pain and clutched her abdomen. She was still suffering from the gunshot wound she sustained earlier in the battle. "Just think about how much time you wasted, at that!"

"Why you…!"

"You haven't seen the last of me. Believe that. I'll get my revenge for what you did to me… Just you wait," she warned. "You'll find me next in the Pirate's Peril Park a mile northwest of here. Good luck getting there, though, considering how none of the main roads will take you directly there due to them all being blocked off. Farewell!" she mockingly bade, leaping off the building and shooting another web to swing herself out of the sight of her enemies. With the Bonelegs' hasty retreat, the barriers disappeared, granting our heroes their freedom to move; an opportunity they took posthaste… or, they would've if they knew where they were going.

"Where exactly is northwest from here?" Shantay asked, completely blank on directions around Genie's Hem. "We've barely gotten anywhere, an' yet we have no idea where we're goin'…"

"That's okay," the young man assured. "Seems like we can just follow the big red blinking arrow in the air to lead us to where we need to go."

"…What?" the befuddled maiden asked in disbelief, looking up where Taeshan was pointing. And of course (SURPRISE), there was a giant red arrow blinking in and out of existence pointing toward an alleyway a short walk and a left turn ahead. "…How… in the literal BLUE blazes is that a thing?"

"Beats me, but as far as I've learned throughout my travels… The less questions you ask about the small stuff, the less likely you are to get confused along the way."

"Uhh… Y-yeah, sure. I guess I should've learned that lesson the other day, when Sky brought that blank map that only showed us areas we already explored… That was strange enough as it was…"

"Yep! Speaking of strange, though…" Taeshan trailed off, pointing toward the lonely little decorative red treasure chest that sat amongst the smoky debris littering the road.

"It's one o' those treasure boxes you usually get money or some kind of equipment from, right?" Shantay guessed, approaching the box with the intent to open it.

"Tay, wait!" Taeshan warned, grabbing his comrade by the hand.

"What?" the confused young girl asked in a single word. "Is there somethin' wrong with this thing that's got you all jumpy?"

"Yeah, actually," he confirmed. "Last time I dealt with Hypno Baron, it was made abundantly clear that some of the treasure chests I came across in his castle were dupes that contained some strange, adorable ghost girl that made exploring the place a literal living nightmare…"

"That right…?" she asked, suddenly wary of the treasure chest she was mere inches from opening. "How do we know if it's gonna be a ghost girl or actual treasure, then?"

"We don't, unfortunately. It's a total gamble one way or the other, and as far as I know, that girl is completely immune to any kind of attack I could use whenever I stumbled into them."

"Oh… well that's no good. How do we defeat her in case she's hidin' out in there?"

"Just destroy the treasure chest, basically. But, destroying the treasure chest doesn't necessarily get rid of her. She just disappears and inhabits another treasure chest, though I'm never sure of whichever one she haunts should there be more in this level…"

"Hm… Well, it's your call," Shantay offered. "Do we open this one, or do we just skip past it?"

"Hmm… I mean, considering it's the first one here, I'm pretty sure it's just here to prompt us to open more of them in other areas," Taeshan explained. "That said, I'm sure this one could just be a freebie with gems inside at best, but we'd have to be on our toes about opening any other ones we encounter."

"Whelp, it ain't like we got all night t' deliberate, so…" Shantay trailed off, getting the hint of her comrade's assertion. With her statement, she pressed the silver button on the crimson chest. The box's top flung open, and out of it spewed an ethereal, transparent, blue-toned beautiful young ghost woman with a bobcut, thick-rimmed glasses, a sweater, and a ghostly tail in place of a pair of legs. However, she didn't appear threatening… Instead, she appeared quite drowsy, stretching and cutely yawning as she became aware of her surroundings. "Darn it!" Shantay cursed, leaping back and entering a battle pose.

"Hm?" the ghost woman grunted, rubbing her eyes and adjusting her glasses to view the scene before her; a series of burning buildings in a city, where she was immediately faced by a strange young man wielding a gun and an equally-strange young woman dressed in scary-yet-cute-looking skull-themed clothes striking a defensive stance as though she were ready to fight. "What the heck's going on here?" she asked, looking around in sleepy confusion. "Is it time to distract that gorgeous purple-haired genie already?" At such a… non-threatening statement, Shantay and Taeshan glanced at each other and shrugged.

"Uh…" the genie 'girl' droned, uncertain of how to assess the situation. However, it wasn't much longer before the ghost girl regained her senses and immediately recognized her opponents.

"Oh! You're finally here! How's it hangin', beautiful?" the girl greeted, coming across as far less intimidating than she was built up to be.

"Um… I'm not sure if—!" Shantay tried to rebut, uncertain of how to answer such a salacious question.

"Whoa, check out THAT sweet look!" the ghost girl interrupted, leering at the other young woman in a very inappropriate manner. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you were trying to get me all nice and flustered so I wouldn't attack you! Seriously, you are prettier than ever in that super-attractive outfit!"

"What!?" Taeshan shouted in utter surprise… although, it's debatable as to what he was more surprised about; the fact that this ghost had some apparent previously-hidden affection for him (her), or the fact that she actually liked the ensemble his original body was dressed in.

"Are… Are you hittin' on me!?" Shantay asked, reacting with such uncontainable shock that she couldn't even process what was happening.

"Hm, you could say that…" she unabashedly revealed. "Or maybe I'm just teasin' ya," she added with a coquettish, starry-eyed smirk and wink, further discombobulating the duo.

"…Shantae, what… what do I do here?" the flabbergasted half-genie asked of her partner. "This is new t' me in so many ways, I… uh…"

"I… I've never had anything like this happen in my life, Tay… I didn't know anything at all about this…"

"So, I know I'm supposed to be distracting and haunting you like I normally do when you mistakenly open my box looking for goodies, but… it looks like I woke up too late for the big battle that I guess already went down. Where'd everybody go?"

"Um… Most of 'em got taken out, but two o' your friends ran away before we could finish fightin' them," Shantay answered, her apprehension growing exponentially.

"Oh, AND you've picked up a such a stimulating city girl accent in the last month since I saw you at H.B.'s Castle? Oh gosh, I could just die all over again from how much you're making me gush right now!"

"Okay, what's your deal, ghost gal?" Taeshan asked, thoroughly put off by the ghost's flirtatious behavior and comments toward his teammate. "You were never like this before! You never even spoke! You usually only laughed a bunch and attacked whenever your treasure chest was opened, last I remember…"

"My name is Ikki, not 'ghost gal,'" Ikki corrected, though her tone wasn't even close to hostile. "Also, that's a bummer, genie girl… I guess now wouldn't be a good time to try and fight you two, now would it?" she further observed, ignoring Taeshan's question.

"We'd prefer if you didn't fight at all, t' be honest," Shantay answered, still recovering from Ikki's forwardness as she tried to get serious. "Doesn't mean we won't neutralize you if you get in our way, of course," she added, preparing herself for another fight.

"Ha, I'm kicking myself for not just talking to you last time we crossed paths," she commented with yet another childish giggle. "The more you speak and the more I get to look at you, the more I think I'm developing a bit of a crush on you…"

"Uh! Eh…" Shantay stammered, stricken utterly speechless by Ikki's unwarranted love confession as her face grew hotter than the flames she'd previously wielded, as well as redder than the outfit she previously wore when she used to be Shantae.

"Stop that!" Taeshan demanded, understandably irritated and confused by this ethereal free spirit's… uh, free-spiritedness, if I have to say it.

"Aw, I'm just joking! Mostly…" she teased. "Or, maybe like, thirty percent joking. I pretty much mean it the rest of the way. Anyhow, I'm supposed to stick close to the rest of my squad so I have a decent line of defense against other enemies, so…" she trailed off, pulling out a very familiar green pine cone-shaped device from inside the red box that frightened both heroes out of their wits.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, where did you get that thing!?" Shantay screamed, immediately dashing backward alongside her partner. "Put that grenade down before-!" she tried to demand, though it was far too late. Ikki pulled the pin on the grenade, carelessly dropped it into the treasure chest, and closed it. Taeshan and Shantay, very familiar of the sheer power and danger posed by a single grenade, did their best to duck and cover under some piles of rubble on the ground to avoid being hit by the shrapnel the blast would cause.

"Don't worry, you guys!" Ikki cheerily waved over to her e supposed-enemies. "I'm only getting rid of this treasure chest, so I can jump into my back-up one!"

"With a grenade!? Are you serious!?" yelled Taeshan, panicked beyond belief to the point of not even peering over the building remnants he was hiding behind.

"What the f-!" Shantay was about to yell, agreeing with her teammate as she also refused to move from cover. Before she could finish her statement, however, a monstrous, violent *BOOOOOOM* rang out, startling both the heroes as Ikki, amused by their fright, guffawed and cracked up at the unbearable terror and panic she caused. As expected, a myriad of chunks of metal and wood scattered about at lightning speed, ricocheting off the ground and nearby buildings, as well as flying sky high before clattering to the stony street below.

"Wow, I only heard those things were strong, but I didn't know they could cause THAT much destruction!" she naively observed, impressed by the destructive power of the grenade she recklessly tossed. I suppose I'd be pretty excited about that too, if I were a ghost who had no worries in the world about the possibility of being hurt by explosions. Speaking of, our very-much alive dynamic duo found themselves less than enthused by yet another life-threatening situation. Within seconds, the two of them rose from their shoddy covers, thankfully unscathed by the chaos.

"Are you crazy!?" Shantay immediately shouted at Ikki, who was already in the midst of fading seemingly out of existence.

"See you in the Pirate's Peril Park! Byeeeee~!" she continued to obliviously taunt, blowing a kiss to her enemies before vanishing into thin air.

"Hey! Get back here an' let us bust you for that stunt, ghost girl!" the half-genie futilely commanded.

"She's gone, but now we know for certain where we're headed next," Taeshan acknowledged, dusting himself off.

"I guess so," Shantay agreed with an exasperated sigh. "I'm as concerned as I am furious that even this Hypno Baron's circus attractions are not only tougher than anything we've fought before, but that at least one of 'em has my weapons…!"

"You and me both," Taeshan concurred with equal concern. "I only hope that was a coincidence, though, because as far as we know, Hypno Baron hates technology."

"…He does?"

"Yeah, he refuses to use anything modern unless he absolutely has to. It's part of why he never works with Risky except for now. It's also why he won't work directly with Ammo Baron or Techno Baron, despite them all being Barons of Sequin Land. So, if we're lucky, that'll mean none of his other minions are armed with any of your weapons. Now come on, we can't afford to waste more time," Taeshan urged, eagerly taking off into the the next section.

"H-Hey, wait up!" Shantay called after him, trying her best to keep up. It was made immediately evident, however, that Taeshan was a lot faster because of his markedly wider stride length… amongst other things. "Gah, these tiny legs o' hers, an' these giant, bouncy balloons…! I can't run like this," she further complained about her own body, high-tailing it behind her partner as fast as she could into the alley way as she crossed her arms around her chest.

 ** _About Twenty Minutes Later…_**

As Taeshan entered the urban corridor (you'll understand why it was just him in a bit), his line of sight was greeted with another series of burning buildings whose flames were also a captivating cobalt blue. The alley was narrow, humid with radiating heat from the wind-swept fires that devoured the towers and buildings nearby, and the pathway itself was… awfully perilous for a backstreet. There were shaky scaffolds, seemingly-random pitfalls galore, and a steady bout of fireballs raining down from the smoggy indigo evening sky (TOTALLY a normal weather condition here in Genie's Hem). Don't even get me started on the selection of beasts and monsters here, either…

We're talking hordes of ferocious, snarling, foamy-mouthed, man-sized werewolves with either pale blue or ash gray fur in tattered remnants of civilian clothing. Cyclopean spiders that clung to the portions of building walls that weren't on fire. And of course, where would we be without the duo of seductive succubus women (apparently known as Bat Gals) in provocative bat outfits armed with weaponized mini-anchor chains and the ability to shapeshift into bats? Oh, and did I mention the light sprinkling of Slime Gals? Because they were there, too. Also, I misspoke. By 'light,' I meant 'heavy.' Totally opposite, I know, but bear with me.

"…Oh man, we're in for the long haul on this one, aren't we, Tay?" Taeshan asked in shock, though the person to whom he was talking was nowhere in his immediate sight. "…Tay?" he called again, curiously looking around to figure out where his comrade had gone. After a moment of scanning his immediate surroundings, Shantay finally emerged, low on breath and tightening her tank-top. "Oh, there you are! What took you so long?"

"Look, I don't know how t' say this," Shantay began, catching her breath and adjusting her top. "…but I don't have a clue how you manage t' run around with these things…" she further complained, tugging at her top, evidently struggling to grow accustomed to her new feminine body.

"That's why I told you to wear a bra under that loose, oversized tank-top, Tayshan," Taeshan scolded, shaking his head in disbelief. "Hint, hint: They're meant to hold my… uh, 'girls' steady so it's not such a problem when I go on adventures. That's how the top piece of my dancer outfit is designed, believe it or not."

"No way!" she argued, slightly embarrassed by the nature of the conversation. "Those things were a pain in the neck t' put on an' take off! Plus, all of 'em were too small! It was either your dancer outfit or your bikini top, an' you know I wasn't comin' out here with no strings hangin' off my back! An' as much as I'd have loved t' wear your hero costume, I… didn't like how that felt."

"What do you mean?"

"Well… even if I AM in your body right now, it doesn't feel right t' dress the part when inside, I'm still me… if that makes sense. That's part o' why I chose a different look from your usual."

"I think I understand. Does it have something to do with you maintaining your own identity, even though you're not quite yourself?"

"Wow, you hit that point much more accurately than I was expectin'."

"Trust me, Tayshan, I know about identity crises… well, aside from one where my mind is swapped into another body. I've been through one myself before."

"Really?"

"Yep, but I'll tell more you about that later. Long story short, this isn't my first rodeo with going on adventures while not quite being myself, though you know some of the details already. As for the other issue we were talking about, that's… my fault," he sheepishly admitted. "I got so used to wearing my dancer clothes all the time that I… may have neglected to buy more comfortably-fitting bras to accommodate for my… my growing body." At that, Shantay's face flared up as she cleared her throat to expel some of the embarrassment brought on by their conversation topic.

"Need I hear more about your wardrobe dilemma, homie?" Shantay complained again, untying and redoing the knot in her oversized tank-top so her so-called 'girls' were better secured.

"Hey, you're the one who decided not to wear the right clothes to come out here. I don't want to hear it from you," he countered. "Anyway, look alive. We've got quite a can of worms to open in this alley here," he further redirected, pointing toward the numerous dangers ahead. Shantay, needing only to glance ahead to be made aware of the perils they would face, took a deep breath. "It's kind of frustrating that this alleyway is the only one that doesn't have a dead end, but of course things would pan out like this…"

"Yeah, we're gonna be PRETTY busy… plus, we need t' get through here as quickly as possible while takin' out every single one o' the monsters here if that annoyin' spider girl was bein' truthful, no?"

"Yep! And on that note, let's go!" Taeshan commanded, dashing forward right into the fray.

"Wait!" Shantay called, grabbing her partner by the belt of her pants and stopping her dead in her tracks.

"What?"

"The gun. Use it," she urged, letting go of her comrade and preparing herself for battle.

"I… don't really want to, though," he uncertainly rebutted. "It's too hard."

"That didn't seem to be an issue a few minutes ago. I thought you got used to it."

"No, I haven't," Taeshan countered. "What I did against that Bonelegs was a fluke, thought I'd hate to admit it. I have no idea how that happened."

"I figured you'd say that. Well unless you got some alternative in mind, you really don't have a choice. The way you hesitated an' dropped your guard against those girls back there is a sign that you're safer attackin' from a distance," Shantay advised.

"That sounds like something I should be saying to you," he defiantly pointed out, fully aware of the irony.

"You ARE sayin' it t' me, technically," she quipped back, though she really didn't appreciate the condescending tone her partner's statement carried. "With that in mind, we gotta stay safe. I mean, I'll try as best as I can when I have no choice but t' get up close an' personal, but you get what I mean, right?"

"Yeah, I guess…" Taeshan reluctantly admitted, drawing the silver pistol and taking a deep breath. "I hope I can get used to this thing soon…"

"Ready when you are."

"Right. Blast away!" Taeshan announced, finally getting the duo started off into the alleyway of doom. The instant the two began their trek, a steady spray of raining blue embers descended upon them at a snow flake-level speed. Aware of the dangers raining fire posed, our fledgling heroes resolved to stay low to the ground, periodically glancing upward to anticipate and dodge the airborne embers before taking refuge under the first of many flimsy wooden scaffolds. As one might have guessed, however, within seconds of a shower of embers blanketing the scaffold, it began to burn and crumble, prompting Taeshan and Shantay to dash out from under it before it collapsed with a deafening *CRASH*. There would be no rest for them just yet, however, as more embers cascaded from the surrounding buildings that were still alight in gloriously-horrifying azure blazes that showed no signs of dying out.

"We can't afford to stop, from the looks of it, so let's keep it moving!" Taeshan instructed, taking point as he and his teammate continued their marathon of terror. Within a few feet of their first obstacle, however, they were confronted by two werewolves, one gray and one blue, who made their intentions known by howling at the full moon that was barely visible through the curtain of smoke fogging up the air above. The wolves faced their opponents, bared their teeth with voracious snarls, and charged forward together.

"Homie, you know what t' do!" Shantay urged, bracing herself for impact. She could rightly say, however, that she was freaked out beyond comprehension, as she'd never been charged by such a dangerous-looking canine before in her life. However, she had no time to process it as her adrenaline kicked in immediately. The gray wolf aimed its assault at her, unleashing a rapid series of swipes with its elongated, razor-sharp, ebony claws. "Whoa, shoot!" she commented, dodging wayward slash after wayward slash as she retreated and sprinted around the alley, with each attempt either missing her by mere inches or grazing her across the face and arms.

Of course, she had no time to even consider the raining fire balls that periodically scorched both combatants as they kept their rampant dance of death going. Knowing that she couldn't keep up dodging forever, though, the pressured half-genie did her best to identify a moment at which to launch a counterattack while trying to avoid getting burned further. Thankfully for her, the feral creature's berserk slash rush came to a very quick halt when it ran out of breath, its claw swipes suddenly getting much slower; just the opportunity she needed. The gray-furred creature launched a powerful, but slow downward swipe, which Shantay dodged and countered by wrapping her arm around the creature's wrist and locked it in.

"Gotcha now, you slobberin' mutant!" she called out, tightening her grip with her arm as the werewolf tried to yank itself free. Immediately, the half-genie felt an incredible rush of energy as she prepared her counterattack. "Haaaaa!" the furious maiden roared, throwing a bone-shattering hook into the cresture's ribs, the devastating *CRACK* eliciting a pained whine from her enemy. She followed up with two jaw-breaking uppercuts to the werewolf's chin with the same fist, another couple of cringe-inducing *CRACKs* sounding out. The werewolf stumbled back in a pained, confused daze toward a hole in the ground, unaware of its surroundings through its dizziness. "Hrrraaah!" Shantay shouted again, rushing forward to deliver a brutal roundhouse kick to the werewolf's face, sending it spinning through the air into the trench, where a distant *poof* could be heard.

Meanwhile, Taeshan was charged by the blue werewolf, who resorted to shooting sporadic bursts of cobalt blue flames from its mouth as it approached its target. He tried his best to aim his weapon and fire, but the wolf was quick on its feet. With each *BANG* of the gun, flashing marbles would rocket forth toward the creature, but it would use some form of afterimage trick to dodge the shot before it connected with it as it continued backing its opponent into a corner.

"Darn it, this isn't working!" the (sort of) serviceman complained, opting to defend himself with his fists as he lowered the firearm. "Eat this!" he called out, running forward while the werewolf was recovering from its recent blast of fire breath. throwing a punch that landed squarely on the beast's snout with a *THUMP*. Now, one would think that would've been enough to end this quarrel, considering how Taeshan's partner handled the other wolf. Sadly, your assumption would be wrong, and you know what they say about assumptions. As (un)expected, the mythical creature froze in place, its carnivorous, jagged, drool-soaked teeth bared, and its growling as feral as a werewolf's growling could get. "That… didn't work either?" Taeshan pondered, stepping back as the creature approached, ready to eat him alive. "Wh-what's going on here…? Why didn't that hurt it?" he further asked as his back hit the nearby stone wall of a building. Shocked, the 'soldier' glanced back at the wall before refocusing on his enemy, who was getting ready to pounce and tear him to pieces.

"Stay back, or I'll shoot!" Taeshan hastily demanded, pointing the gun squarely at the werewolf's face. At this point, he had little clue on what he could do other than try to stand his ground and defend himself. Without his (her) original body, he was without access to that world-famous hair attack that (s)he so heavily relied on, much less any of the myriad of magic spells (s)he would've used if (s)he weren't stuck in the body of a full-fledged human male with questionable magic capability. He could feel the previously-established tingling sensation associated with magic becoming available for use, but… without a clue on how it interacted with his current body and no time to figure it out (all things considered), Taeshan was forced to stick to his guns… or gun, in this case. Sorry, wrong time for that pun.

Nonetheless, the wolf continued its slow, predatory approach, eager to feast on its next meal. Deciding to wait no longer, the feral beast let out an ear-splitting roar and lunged at Taeshan, prompting him to, in an adrenaline-influenced, fear-addled rush, aim the gun and solidify his stance. In that moment, however, everything seemingly came to a screeching halt. The wolf's lightning-speed charge was wound down to a slow-as-molasses crawl of a motion to strike. It was like watching a movie in slow motion. Taeshan, though not entirely understanding what was going on, at least recognized this phenomenon as identical to what happened previously in his battle against that equally-horrific Bonelegs. Nonetheless, he glanced around to see Shantay, appearing to be rushing toward him in slow-mo after having defeated the alternate-colored werewolf, none the wiser to another blue one leaping out from the shadows, its gaping maw salivating as it launched its ambush. Taking in a sharp gasp of panic, Taeshan moved. With a sudden *BANG*, he fired a single round into the open muzzle of the canine-like creature attempting to eat him alive. Before he even entertained the idea of watching the result of that bullet's crash course, he quickly turned and fired another thunderous *BANG* of a bullet directly at the werewolf descending upon the unaware Shantay.

Once he made his move, time suddenly began to run normally. The lycanthrope that attempted to eat Taeshan was suddenly flung backward with a pained whimper, disintegrating into dust after having eaten hot, light-speed metal… or so one would presume the mysterious rounds in that gun were made of.

"Hey, I'm on my-!" Shantay was about to call to Taeshan before the sound of snarling from above her filled her ears. Instantly panicked, endangered the half-genie stopped in her tracks and spun around as fast as she could. "What!?" she cried out, doing her best to prepare herself in impossibly-short notice. However, before the beast could strike, it too, was sent hurtling backward through the air with an echoed whimper of defeat, disintegrating into dust and dropping a series of rainbow-colored gems in its wake. "What the…?" Shantay remarked in utter discombobulation, turning her gaze behind herself to see a heavily-panting Taeshan aiming his gun in her direction. "What… happened?"

"I don't know, Tay, but I'm glad it did," the young man remarked, breathing a sigh of relief as he dropped his stance to approach his partner and recompose.

"How… did you do that?" she asked, dumbfounded by the sudden marked increase in her comrade's marksmanship.

"I… I'm not sure," Taeshan answered, equally as perplexed. "It's just like what happened earlier. The minute I was in danger, everything slowed down to where it was almost frozen. I just… took it for what it was and fired those two shots to save us both."

"Huh… I… wow, I'm… I'm impressed. Confused, too, but mostly impressed," Shantay acknowledged with a nod.

"That's fair. I guess what I'm saying is… is that I'm… starting to get the idea your body has at least one more use for magic than boosting your strength, Tay," Taeshan explained, reminiscing about the last few pulse-pounding minutes.

"You don't say?" she remarked in curiosity, raising an eyebrow. "What use would that be?"

"It could just be me, but I think you have some kind of ability where you're able to… either control time for brief periods, or you can increase the speed of your reflexes to superhuman levels when you're in danger," the 'serviceman' theorized, knocking his partner off her metaphorical feet.

"What!? Really?" Shantay remarked, barely able to contain her surprise. "But how? I could still see you the entire time! If you time-traveled, then shouldn't you have disappeared from my sight? Then again, I took my eyes off you when I noticed that wolf about to pounce on me…"

"I'm not sure how or what the exact reason is, but it most likely has to do with what I said about magic being an extension of yourself," he explained. "In my case, I have access to all sorts of spells and most of my magic is accessed through belly dancing, in addition to my having much higher endurance and strength than the average person. In your case, I can only guess it has to do with your talents for fighting and sharpshooting that give you lightning-quick reflexes and coordination, as well as increased durability and strength."

"…Wow, wow, wow…" was all Shantay could think to reply with. She was awestruck by the very prospect. Although, she did recall something relevant to the discussion. "I… I think I'm startin' t' get a feel for it, too. When I fought that other werewolf, your magic kicked in an' I managed t' take it out in just a couple hits after dodgin' its attacks long enough for it t' tire out."

"Whoa, no way! So, not only can you access my fire spells when you're upset, you can also use my magic to improve your reflexes when you're in danger?"

"If… that's how it works, then I guess so, but it doesn't feel like I'm doin' it consciously."

"Hmm…" Taeshan pondered, floored by the discoveries they each made about how to utilize their talents. "That at least tells me something about how I might be able to improve my capabilities when I get my body back… In any case it looks like we really are learning about each other's styles and abilites as we go along," Taeshan concluded in much-needed relief. "In that case, let's keep the ball rolling," he added, facing the rest of the incredibly-perilous alley and readying his handgun. "We need to figure out as much as we can in as little time as possible before we find Hypno Baron." With that, Taeshan took off head-first into the fray.

"H-hey! Hold on, now, don't forget about the plan!" Shantay called after him, though she also remained vigilant. The two were off again, nonetheless, with them having to immediately hop and climb onto flimsy burning scaffolds that stretched over a long, pitch-black, smoky chasm that neither hero would've been able to simply jump across. As the duo ran across, narrowly avoiding sporadic sprays of cascading blue embers, the structures caught flame and disintegrated by the time they reached the other end. As such, it was impossible for them to backtrack. This did not deter our mind-crossed adventurers, of course, as they focused their full attention ahead at the series of scaffolds and floating cobblestone platforms at wildly-uneven positions that also bridged gaps presented in the form of more bottomless pits. Although, this round was plagued with the presence of more werewolves, in addition to the two Bat Gals and one-eyed spiders that hung either from higher levels of the scaffolds or from the walls of the crumbling buildings on either side of the alley.

"We'll have to brace ourselves for—Yikes!" Taeshan tried to warn before he was forced to jump back as Shantay caught up. A spider tried to shoot her down with a laser blast, the bright orange beam striking the ground with a hot *TSST* noise that left a smoking black mark.

"These spiders shoot lasers?" Shantay asked, dreading the sudden difficulty spike as they momentarily paused to assess the situation.

"Yeah, that's another new one…" Taeshan confirmed, rubbing his chin as he thought about how unusual this set of enemies were. "I've never seen them do that before, but it just means we need to keep on our toes," he added before taking off again without warning.

"Oh, come on…" the perturbed young woman griped, none too fond of her partner just dashing into a predicament before understanding what he was getting himself into. Nevertheless, she followed suit. The two of them climbed up a scaffold designed like a series of stairs that conveniently ended at the first floating platform, all the while continuing to dodge additional raining flames and spider laser blasts that set the structure ablaze. They made it just in time to watch the scaffold crumble into firewood and disintegrate, trapping them on the airborne platform. This platform was incredibly large and pancake-shaped, as though it were made to hold ten people as opposed to one or two. However, the moment the duo set foot on it, a pair of transparent glowing lime-green barriers materialized on either side of the mysterious rock formation, trapping them in place.

"Darn! I was hoping there wouldn't be another one of these here!" Taeshan shouted, readying his gun as best as he could.

"You're tellin' me," Shantay agreed, readying herself for another gratuitous slug-fest. Within seconds, a team of scarecrows (twelve in total) rose from the ground, seemingly from nowhere, uttering obnoxious, ear-plaguing cackles as they began their onslaught. Finding little difficulty dealing with them, Taeshan put his weapon away, opting to fight them hand-to-hand while Shantay took a deep breath and cracked her knuckles.

"You take the six on the right, I'll take the six on the left!" Taeshan ordered as he prepared himself.

"Got it!" With that, the two mounted their attack. Taeshan started by booting the first scarecrow off the platform and into the abyss. This was quickly followed up by a haymaker to the second scarecrow's face. Then, he grabbed a third and lifted it high before slamming it onto the platform, causing it to disappear in a purple *POOF* of smoke. Noticing right away that this despicable human was getting the drop on them when THEY should've been the ones getting the drop, the remaining three scarecrows tried attacking the 'solder' all at once, causing him to brace himself. Meanwhile, Shantay did her part by punching and kicking through each of the haunted strawmen without breaking a sweat. By the time she defeated the third one, the remaining three banded together to mount a collective assault in a very similar fashion to the scarecrows attacking Taeshan. The duo backed up, bumping into each other and keeping their backs pressed to one another as they remained alert.

"How you holdin' up, homie?" Shantay asked.

"This is a cakewalk so far," Taeshan confidently replied. "We might be surrounded right now, but these scarecrows seriously couldn't be any easier to beat." Of course, what's a one-sided six-on-two fight without a little bit of situational irony? As in, the scarecrows were closing in when some of the airborne embers touched them and set them all ablaze. With collective howls of incendiary despair, all six of the scarecrows were vanquished by none other than the environment itself. As you might expect, both heroes looked around in confusion.

"…So, they couldn't get any easier, huh?" Shantay asked again, dropping her stance. Taeshan, unable to explain the super-convenient event, merely shrugged as he scanned the airborne battlefield and spotted some gray metal canisters occupying the spaces where the scarecrows were. He inspected the items and got five Thermite Grenades.

"Hey, I found something!" the 'serviceman' alerted, holding up one of the metal cylindrical objects to show his partner.

"Thermite Grenades? How… Where did that come from?" Shantay pondered, remembering what was mentioned earlier about Hypno Baron's minions not being armed with weapons from his world.

"My only guess is that those scarecrows dropped them," he answered, moving to collect the rest of them and load them into his invisible inventory.

"…So many questions, so little time," Shantay commented, shaking her head after a brief, very befuddled pause. "Hopefully, we can make use o' those," she added just as another wave of enemies made their grand entrance onto the platform. This time, it was four werewolves (two gray, two blue) that had leapt over the barrier ahead to land in pairs on either side of the platform, accompanied by two Bat Gals who flew in as bats and revealed their humanoid forms with extravagant smoky *POOFs* once they reached the battleground.

"Guess now's as good a time as any to find that out," Taeshan remarked, hastily studying the incendiary device in his hand to try and decipher how to use it as the new band of enemies closed in. "Umm… How do I turn this thing on…?" he murmured, wracking his brain on what to do. Before long, he noticed the pin and was immediately reminded of how a Tinkerbat had used the same device during a previous adventure. By the time he realized this, however, one of the werewolves lunged at him with a ferocious roar. "Whoa!" he yelped, barely managing to dodge the attack.

"Shantae, I don't think now's a good time for th-! Hrah!" Shantay cautiously pointed out, already under attack as she dodged an aerial anchor attack launched by one of the Bat Gals and kicked one of the gray werewolves in the stomach as hard as she could while it was trying to take a bite out of her. Not hearing his friend's suggestion in the middle of trying to keep himself safe from three man-eating mythical beasts assaulting him with anchors, teeth, and claws, Taeshan hurriedly ripped the pin from the Thermite Grenade and tried tossing it at one of the two werewolves pursuing him. With a primordial growl, the blue werewolf shot a ball of fire from its maw, immolating the device in midair. The instant the projectiles collided, a jarring *PTISSSSHHHROUGH* rocked the immediate area, stunning everyone involved as a haphazard spray of fiery powder rained all over the narrow platform. Taeshan fell to the ground, coughing and trying to wave malodorous smoke out of his face. Shantay, having just enough coordination to see what was happening, dashed toward the gray werewolf about to slash at the incapacitated Taeshan, delivering an immensely forceful thrust kick that collided with the creature's stomach before turning to punch one of the blue ones in the face while it was preparing another attack on her ally. The gray werewolf was sent flying into one of the magic walls, hitting it with a sparking *THWACK* before plummeting to its explosive doom in the abyss. Quickly, the half-genie moved to help her teammate, though the other three werewolves would not have it. All three of them charged at her with malicious intent, biting, slashing, and firing away as they chased her around the platform. "Whauauauauah!" she shouted in panic, running for dear life to avoid being eaten like a little girl in a morbid fairytale about a wolf disguising itself as an old woman to get an easy meal.

"Ugh… That… that didn't go how I wanted it to," Taeshan commented, shaking off the disorientation to be greeted by both of the Bat Gals, who stood in front of him striking seductive poses. "Huh…?" he grunted, blinking to bring some clarity back to his sight. Once he realized just what was happening, however, he hurriedly brought himself to his feet and tried to help Shantay, who was under heavy pressure from claws, fangs, and blue fireballs galore from the three remaining lycanthropes. "Tay! I'm-!" he was about to call before another laser blast stopped him in his tracks, followed by one of the Bat Gals stepping in front of him to block his path. Before he could say or do anything, however, the Bat Gal struck another provocative pose in which she bent forward toward her target, her rear end poking out behind her and one hand resting on her thigh, and blew a lascivious winking kiss at him with her other hand. "Wha…? Uh…" Taeshan barely remarked, noticeably distracted by the overwhelming allure of the fiendish creature. A rush of butterflies in his stomach prevented him from thinking about what the creature was up to right away.

"Hey! I could use some help here!" Shantay shouted, narrowly avoiding a spider-based laser shot and a werewolf claw swipe after that while she remained on a dangerously-perilous defensive.

"Right! I'm coming!" he assured, turning around, only to be greeted by the other Bat Gal that blocked her way. This one employed a much… naughtier method of keeping the young man's attention, opting to slowly peel down the upper portion of her already-revealing outfit to give her prey a 'sneak peek' of her body, wiggling her voluptuous hips as she purposely let out a coquettish giggle to entice him. Immeasurably flustered as he was, Taeshan did his best to keep his focus. "Darn it, I don't have time for this! Move!" he demanded, trying to juke the second Bat Gal out. However, the first one shot an anchor chain that circled around his feet before he realized it and pulled. "Whoa!" he shouted in alarm as he fell forward, hitting the surface of the platform with a hard *THUMP*. He tried as quickly as he could to get back up, but by the time he flipped over and tried to undo the chain links entangled around his ankles, the first Bat Gal pounced, finding a comfortable seat on the distracted man's lap as she straddled him. The other one, smiling with mischievous glee, knelt down next to Taeshan, grabbing his head and hugging him into her chest, jostling herself against his face.

"H-hey! What are you doing!? This… This is gross! Stop!" Taeshan cried out as he writhed and squirmed, though the Bat Gals were intent on keeping him in place. The Bat Gal sitting on his lap redoubled her efforts to keep him at bay by pressing her lower body down on the hapless young man's lap while running her hands up his abdomen through his shirt. The second one continued to try and suffocate him with her… uh, h-her body as she clung tightly to him, rubbing herself against his face. Struggle as Taeshan might, he was stuck between a rock hard—er, I mean a rock and a hard… uh, wait, never mind that. He was in a tight sp… Wait, i-ignore that one, too! Uhh… He was in a compromising situation! There, that's it…

"Oh, you have GOT t' be jokin'!" Shantay shouted as she noticed what was going on and why her help hadn't gotten to her. Once she beheld the embarrassing sight, she became furious in an instant, every inch of her skin burning with rage. As fast as she could and with her fist cocked all the way back, despite being hounded (no pun intended) by werewolves and laser spiders, she ran over toward Taeshan and delivered a harsh, stone-breaking dashing haymaker to the face of the Bat Gal rubbing up on her friend's lower body. With a horrifying *THWACK*, the Bat Gal fell off of him, unconscious for the moment. This allowed him just enough time to shove the other Bat Gal out of his face and undo the chain links binding his legs together. "Stop playin' around an' fight, will you!?" Shantay demanded, quickly growing frustrated with the delays as she continued trying to defend herself.

"I got it!" Taeshan called back, running forward to punch one of the two blue werewolves while it was chasing his partner. The punch landed, but it seemed to do nothing but anger the creature. Snarling in uncontrollable fury, the lycanthrope turned and began shooting fireballs at the 'soldier' as he stepped back and tried grabbing another Thermite Grenade. However, as soon as he pulled it out, a lightning-quick anchor coming from seemingly nowhere knocked the device out of his hand with a *CLANK*, sending it hurtling into the abyss. The remaining Bat Gal, still up and ready to fight, took to the air and launched another anchor shot at him while he was trying to dodge the werewolf hot on his tail. With another *CLANK* against the surface of the platform, the anchor shot narrowly missed the young man's foot as he hopped backward. Noticing that the werewolf had begun charging another fire blast, he rushed forward and struck it in the snout with another fist. However, the werewolf appeared unfazed as it canceled its fire attack to try and bite Taeshan's arm off.

"Hey!" he shouted, yanking his fist away before the *SNAP* of the creature's jaws could claim his hand as he backed away. "These werewolves don't seem to take physical damage at all…!" he noticed, ducking under yet another anchor shot fired from a different angle by the airborne Bat Gal before having to hop backward again to avoid another sporadic laser blast. "In that case, I've got just one thing…" he surmised, pulling out the handgun as fast as he could before beginning to figure out a chance to fire it.

Meanwhile, Shantay was still keeping up her best efforts to avoid being damaged by the remaining two werewolves. Her efforts were met with only moderate success, unfortunately, has her shirt and shorts had been slashed and torn in various places, in addition to her picking up numerous scratches across her arms and legs. On the bright side, the feral canine mutants were also wracked with fatigue, relenting due to their apparent lack of stamina. She wasn't out of the woods, however, as spiders were also targeting her with high-focus laser beams that she kept on her toes to avoid being hit by. As she kept her defensive stance, the remaining gray werewolf completely ran out of steam, panting and huffing as it threw one more lackluster claw swipe.

"Finally!" she proclaimed, grasping the lycanthrope by its wrist and pulling it in close. With incredible speed and power, Shantay drove her knee into the monster's gut, the *CRASH* of an impact knocking what little wind it had in it, out. As it doubled over in agony, she followed up by delivering two swift hooks to the creature's defenseless face before concluding her brutal combo with a swift, heavy upward kick to its jaw. With a shocking *CRACK*, the werewolf let out a howl of defeat, exploding into dust and dropping a juicy, fully-cooked Ham Hock that the half-genie was quick to get. Of course, she wasn't done yet, though she was relieved that some of the pressure was off. The blue werewolf charged up another fireball and fired it, prompting Shantay to dodge it and try to strike her opponent with a two-piece punch combo. The wolf staggered back a bit, but it was otherwise unaffected by the attack. "What!? The other one went down so easily!" she remarked in utter shock. Before she could figure out what was going on, however, another laser blast fired from a spider whizzed past her face, causing her to flinch in shock and realize she was still in grave danger. In that moment, the werewolf launched another ferocious assault, forcing Shantay back into a defensive bout of dodging its claws and teeth around the platform. "Whatever's happenin' here, I can only guess the blue ones are stronger than the gray ones…"

Back on Taeshan's end, he'd also been on the defensive. He, too, had suffered some damage from the terrible scuffle, as tears and dirt marks were present on his tank top and pants. He was still not used to his firearm, and therefore struggled to aim it, much less get a chance to fire it to mount a decisive counterattack. Every time an opportunity to aim the gun seemed to arise in the form of the werewolf stopping to charge an oral blast of fire, the Bat Gal pursuing him would throw chained anchors at him to keep him from harming her ally. There were even points where the Bat Gal managed to score hits on him while he tried to fire the weapon. As if that weren't enough, the infrequent laser beams and raining embers coming from different directions also detracted from his ability to shoot. As such, Taeshan began to quickly grow angry with his lack of success.

"I'm getting tired of this…!" he grumbled, dodging yet another anchor shot from the Bat Gal as she landed in front of him and turned to slap her rump and stick her tongue out at him, giggling with glee as she taunted him. "We're running out of time, and this has gone on long enough! One way or another, you're ALL going down!" he declared, suddenly standing his ground and aiming the gun squarely at the wolf trying to roast him alive. His anger superseding his dread and concern by a long shot (more puns, I know), he glared bullets (another unintentional pun) into the face of the lycanthrope that roared and charged at him. Then, just as the creature hungrily lunged forward to chomp on its target, time began to slow down for Taeshan once more as he tapped into the same mysterious power that increased his dexterity and reflexes.

Immediately following this, a *BANG* rang out from the gun, a single round striking the werewolf in the abdomen to cause it to howl in pain before disintegrating into dust. Taking advantage of the moment, he turned and fired a shot at the Bat Gal getting ready to transform into a bat. That shot struck the seductive, scantily-clad temptress in the shoulder, causing her to wail in pain that echoed throughout the alley as she also began to disintegrate. Her clothes began to rip off of her in random tatters as she disappeared. Of course, before too much was revealed, the defeated Bat Gal vanished, leaving behind a green potion. Although, a beam of light emerging from her vanishing form could be seen shooting off in a direction far ahead, seeming to imply she was still alive and retreating before she sustained further harm. Before Taeshan collected the green potion, however, he turned around to see an angry, battle-damaged Shantay, one of her fists aflame, about to clash with the final werewolf. This werewolf was swiping downward with both its claws, a fireball conjuring up in its mouth to launch a surprise attack. Having none of that, Taeshan fired another shot that struck the werewolf in its side, causing it to howl in defeat as it fell off the platform and disintegrated into dust.

"Haa—Whoah!" Shantay yelled out as she launched a full-range jumping uppercut, expecting her flaming fist to furiously meet with a furry werewolf jaw before the creature vanished before her eyes. As the flames disappeared from her hand, she stumbled forward after landing, nearly falling off the edge before leaning back hard enough to plop safely back onto the platform, intensely relieved that she didn't end up plummeting to her demise. "Man, that was… too close…" she murmured, catching her breath when she heard a series of air-splitting gunshots ring out from behind her. "What the…?" As Shantay turned to look, she noticed Taeshan, a flowing whitish-pink energy flowing around him, seemingly firing his pistol at random, aiming at and around the walls beyond every corner of the platform in such rapid succession that it appeared he was in some sort of wrath-fueled trance. "Whoa… She's movin' so fast an' looks so coordinated, but I don't know what she's aimin' at…" the young wo(man) observed, bringing herself to her feet and watching her teammate work.

Taeshan fired a few more ostensibly random shots from the pistol, though her intentions after defeating the werewolf attacking Shantay were not immediately apparent. Nonetheless, once he finished his bullet barrage, the magic aura dispersed and faded into the humid evening wind. Taeshan fell to one knee, panting heavily as he held his head with a hand.

"Yo! Are you okay?" Shantay called, rushing to Taeshan's side to check up on her despite the sharp, stinging stabs of pain in her own body.

"Y-yeah… My head is killing me, though…" the young man complained, massaging his temple as he caught his breath. "I… I think I overdid it on using the magic in you to take out that last couple of werewolves, one of the Bat Gals, and all the spiders that were shooting those lasers at us…" he added, reaching for the green potion. The instant he touched it, the item disappeared. Suddenly, Taeshan's headache disappeared, though he still appeared fatigued by the battle. Shaking it off, he rose to his feet.

"Ohh, so THAT'S what you were doin'?" Shantay exclaimed, pensively peering around the arena to see no signs of werewolves or spiders. There was, however, one barely-conscious Bat Gal recovering from the merciless sucker punch she'd taken. "You were doin' that focus thing t' wipe this section clean?"

"Yeah, and it looks like I mostly did it," he acknowledged, pointing out the fact that the barriers were still up. "I didn't take out that other Bat Gal because she was already down…" As Taeshan mentioned the Bat Gal, she came to, sitting up and rubbing her head with both hands as she reoriented herself like a computer rebooting after shutting down unexpectedly.

"Well we'd better fix that right now…!" Shantay suggested with a surprisingly-sinister tone, suddenly hot with unexpected, impulsive anger as she marched over toward the Bat Gal as she prepared to finish the job.

"Tay, wait! Stop!" Taeshan called after her, getting up and running toward his friend. The Bat Gal gained just enough of her sense to notice the duo quickly approaching her. Panicked at the sight of the woman who punched her lights out, she attempted to flee by climbing to her feet and transforming into a bat.

"Where do you think YOU'RE goin'!?" Shantay shouted, tightly grasping the Bat Gal by the wrist as she attempted her transformation. Frightened, the scantily-clad succubus tried to yank herself free to no avail, as Shantay refused to let go. "You won't get away!" she threatened, cocking a fist back to end the fight.

"Tayshan, no!" Taeshan called out, grabbing his ally's fist as she reached back.

"What!? What do you mean, no?" she protested, tightening her grip on the Bat Gal as she turned to face Taeshan. "We have t' knock them all out if we plan on gettin' through here, don't we? Plus, we wasted so much time t' get here, an' we're not even halfway through this alley."

"Yeah, but we have to draw the line at who's the aggressor versus who's fighting in self-defense!"

"That's what we've been doin', no? We've been fightin' all this time t' keep ourselves safe from danger, right?"

"Yeah, but this isn't defending ourselves! This is wrong!"

"Are you seriously changin' your mind after what she tried t' do t' you!?"

"No, but just look at her!" he urged his partner, who'd complied after a brief, confused pause by giving the Bat Gal another look. Shantay was shocked to see the woman crying, desperately trying to escape her grasp. Shantay also noticed the gigantic purple bruise on the Bat Gal's cheek from when she punched her.

"Oh…" the mortified half-genie acknowledged, loosening her grip a bit as she suddenly felt bad for the girl she was basically holding captive with the intent to destroy. In that moment, she realized just what she would've done had she been allowed to continue her unsolicited assault. As soon as it hit her that she was about to attack a defenseless woman, she came to a frightening realization. "Aw, man… I… I don't know what I was thinkin'…" she murmured, letting go of the terrified Bat Gal and shaking her head as she reeled herself in, which prompted Taeshan to let go of her fist. She then raised her trembling hands and stared at them, seeming to be contemplating as she noticed a stinging sensation coursing through her body. It was like someone had been puncturing her from head to toe with sewing needles. Her heart was racing as well, though it could've been attributed to the adrenaline rush brought on by the duo's latest brawl.

"Sorry about that," Taeshan apologized to the Bat Gal, uncertain of how to approach admitting faults to someone who had previously tried to seduce him to subdue him.

"L-Lord Hypno Baron said you would be weak! He was wrong! You guys are a couple of merciless brutes and you beat up my sister!" the Bat Gal accused through her panicked tears, backing away.

"No, wait! We weren't coming here to cause any deliberate harm!" Taeshan explained. "Hypno Baron owes us a favor and he's doing everything he can to avoid helping us!"

"Don't try to feed me your insidious lies! He said you two stole something from him and that you were coming to take everything he had left after that horrible pirate destroyed our home!"

"…Wow, really?" Taeshan couldn't help but incredulously remark, appalled that Hypno Baron would be so manipulative. Understanding that there was a discrepancy to hash out in no time flat, he spent a few seconds contemplating how to explain the situation. After that, he spoke. "You probably won't believe either of us, but Hypno Baron tricked you."

"What!? He would never!"

"But he did," Taeshan insisted. "We would never have come here if it wasn't for something he did to us a few hours ago. Also, we never stole anything from him, even if he thinks we did for some reason."

"That's absurd, and you know it! He would never lie to us!" the Bat Gal shouted, refusing to believe her enemy's information about her boss. "He told us specifically that two trouble-making strangers would pass through here, looking to lay waste to our new home and siphon out all our resources! And that's exactly what you're doing! Your girlfriend even knocked me out cold when I was only trying to distract you!" she further accused, causing Taeshan to scoff in disbelief.

"He's—er, I mean she's not… Ugh, just listen, alright!?" he requested, already growing tired of the succubus's refusal to hear him out. "Tay, help me out," he also commanded of his teammate, who was busy trying to process her emotions. She snapped out of her dissonant trance when she was asked to corroborate. "Okay, look. We only came here because Hypno Baron made us switch bodies and told us to find him before 8:30 tonight if we wanted to switch back. All we're trying to do is get to him, but it seems he's got other plans if he has you and your friends trying to stop us. He also thinks we stole his magic spell book, which we don't have because it was actually stolen by Squid Baron."

"Squid Baron? Master's business partner?" the Bat Gal remarked in surprise, the mention of the cephalopod alerting her that something was indeed amiss. "But… he swore never to stab him in the back. Although…"

"What you're hearin' is the truth, bat lady," Shantay finally spoke up. "We fought that giant octopus a few days ago, an' I—in my original body—had t' shoot the book t' stop him from usin' it to enslave an entire population of Nagas on an isolated island. He admitted t' stealin' it with no intent t' return it."

"And why should I believe that?" the Bat Gal queried, though she seemed not to think the idea entirely farfetched.

"Because we had no bad blood with your boss before this point," Shantay continued to clarify. "Like we said, Cuttlefish Duke, or whatever that idiot's name is, flat-out admitted t' swipin' that spell book right from under Hypno Baron's nose," she elaborated before having a much-needed epiphany. "Matter of fact, we even have somethin' t' prove we're tellin' the truth! Shantae, check my invisible inventory. We still have the Super Slugger Spell page that's soaked in squid ink, don't we?"

"Oh, yeah! You're right!" Taeshan proclaimed, digging into his tattered tank-top to pull out the ink-soaked evidence of their story. "Here!"

"Wait…" the Bat Gal began, wiping her face clean and taking a breath to recompose herself once she saw the irrefutable evidence. "If that's true, then… Then why did that moron show up earlier and help you by wiping out that entire battalion of Master's minions?"

"Oh, you saw that?" Taeshan asked in perplexity before realizing a minor detail from earlier. "Wait… You're the Bat Gal who was with the Bonelegs earlier!"

"Yes, I am," she replied. "I was on my way to warn Master that we had a traitor in our midst, but I didn't think he was smart enough to play both sides of the fence."

"…What… what do you mean by that?" asked Taeshan, suddenly very wary of the situation.

"The Squid Baron originally informed us that you two were the ones who stole the spell book," the Bat Gal explained. "He said that he encountered you on the Naga Mountain and that you took the book to… to try and transform some giant slug creature into a human?"

"That sounds… about halfway right," the 'soldier' confirmed… halfway.

"Yeah, except the part where he stole the book himself, used it t' turn a guy into a giant slug for no good reason, took complete control over Naga Mountain by abusin' his power, an' then tried t' use it t' turn us int' ants t' kill us when we stepped up t' stop him," Shantay explained the other half.

"Let's not even forget that neither of us has had any contact with Hypno Baron until today, after it turned out Squid Baron told us that he told Hypno Baron we took the book."

"Hmm…" the voluptuous temptress pondered, seeming to be putting two and two together. "You know what? I believe you," she concluded after a mere three seconds of throught.

"You do?" both Taeshan and Shantay remarked simultaneously.

"Yep! That bulbous buffoon never mentioned exactly HOW you two could've gotten ahold of the book when no outsider could get into Hypno Baron's Castle undetected. He also made no mentions of how he knew you could've been the ones to take it," she rationalized, recalling details of the story Squid Baron told Hypno Baron. "He also knew just a LITTLE too much about the exact place the book was at, as well as the exact point in time it vanished from Master's possession." At that, Taeshan and Shantay took a silent moment to process just how thoroughly Squid Baron manipulated the situation.

"…Yep. That giant sack o' watery camel droppings is dead meat," Shantay 'calmly' threatened after taking in a thoroughly-frustrated breath. "He's just lucky we can't call him back here with that whistle yet…!"

"I knew it…" Taeshan expressed with a disappointed sigh. "And to think I gave him the benefit of the doubt, too…"

"So we've really been wastin' our time goin' through this burnin' city because of a convoluted web o' lies… Unreal."

"I'm noticing there's a big misunderstanding here," the Bat Gal pointed out. "It appears we've all been misled."

"Yes. Yes, we have," Taeshan agreed.

"In that case, I've got to report directly to Master Hypno Baron to deliver this news," she informed her (presumable) former enemies as she prepared to transform into a bat to take off.

"Wait, hold on!" Taeshan called out, halting the woman's transformation.

"What?"

"Is it possible for us to go with you? Y'know, to skip past the rest of the traps that were set up for us here?"

"Hm, I'm afraid not," she delivered the bad news. "Most I COULD do is help you get to the end of this alleyway, so you don't have to deal with my other comrades lined up along the remaining platforms," she suggested, speaking of the other two floating stone platforms hovering over the long, black chasm, heavily manned by more scarecrows, Slime Gals, werewolves, and laser spiders.

"Huh… Whelp, that's as good as it's gonna get, then, huh?" Shantay asked, glancing toward the cavalcade of catastrophic hazards that awaited her and Taeshan immediately ahead.

"You guessed it, gorilla girl," the Bat Gal snidely insulted, still feeling the sting of the full-force sucker punch she took moments earlier.

"Wha!? Gorilla girl!?" Shantay yelled, appalled by the label.

"Yeah. Gorilla girl. No woman I've ever fought against has ever been able to hit that hard. Not even close. It was like being hit by a guy with a metal fist, which is SO very ladylike of you."

"Wha…? But…! Hey!" Shantay protested, for SOME reason offended by the almost-comedic assertion. Taeshan merely shook his head, stifling a chuckle despite realizing that (s)he was (in spirit) technically also being called a 'gorilla girl.'

"Honestly, I don't know what you see in such an ill-tempered barbarian like her, Mr. Muscles, but I think you need a new girlfriend," she remarked to Taeshan, much to both of their collective shock and embarrassment.

"B-but… He—er, she's not… um…" Taeshan babbled, unable to figure out where to begin addressing the succubus's misconceptions.

"Tell you what," this seductive, yet mildly-bitter young woman began to suggest, sauntering toward an increasingly-nervous Taeshan as he began to back up in fear of being put under more uncomfortable pressure. Of course, it was too late, as the Bat Gal had quickly grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pulled him close, giggling along the way. "I like you, and uh… I'll admit, I kinda want you. So, I'll help you two get across if you give me a little kiss…~" she teased with a smiling wink, completely petrifying the body-swapped man as his entire body grew hotter than the world's most intense heat wave.

"U-um… Don't… you maybe want… something else?" Taeshan nervously asked, without a doubt unwilling to accept such a naughty bargain. "Like… ANYTHING else at all?"

"Well, there IS one other thing you could do with me…~" she further teased, glancing downward, her eyes darting toward her target's lower body before meeting his flustered, panicked gaze once more. "…but, I don't think we'll have enough time for that kind of fun…"

"No!" Shantay put her foot down, though the blush on her face was nothing but incredibly obvious. "You might be a succubus an' all, but we are not gonna sit here an' be subjected t' this… this foolishness!"

"Aw, is someone feeling left out over there?" she teased, turning her attention toward the half-genie. Before Shantay could utter another word, however, the Bat Gal dashed over and grabbed her by the hands, interlocking their fingers together.

"What in the h-!"

"Hey there, gorilla girl," she teasingly greeted, pressing her chest up against Shantay's as she drew closer and held her in place. "I'm still a little upset you left this nasty mark on my cheek, but maybe we can… work a little something out," she added, licking her lips as she moved her head forward and continued to pressure Shantay with her enticing wiles. Shantay, undoubtedly uncomfortable, craned her head back as her breath caught hot in her throat.

"But… we're both girls…" she hesitantly spoke, caught completely off-guard. The Bat Gal merely chuckled at the comment.

"And we're both drop-dead gorgeous," she countered, unfazed by this info as she moved to wrap a hand around the befuddled young woman's waist to pull her closer before she got the chance to escape. "You'll find that I'm very open-minded and willing to forgive, so maybe the three of us could-!"

"Seriously, can we get a move on!?" Taeshan protested, so far past done with this depraved conversation that he was already thinking about what he'd do to unwind once he and Shantay beat Hypno Baron. "We don't have time for these silly games!"

"Oh, fine," the mischievous Bat Gal relented with a roll of her eyes as she unhanded Shantay and backed off. "You two need to learn to let loose and enjoy yourselves once in awhile. Anyway, I expect a long, sweet kiss on my injured cheek for my services, no less. Otherwise, you'll be dealing with my friends up ahead."

"Ugh, can it wait until after we're done here and we've switched our bodies back to normal?" Taeshan suggested, her patience having run out. Although, the suggestion alarmed his partner.

"Wait, what!? You're seriously agreein' t' that!?" Shantay asked, never thinking such a prospect would ever be possible, considering what she knew about her team leader… or at least, what she thought she knew. She did her best not to get any funny ideas about how such an unusual scenario would play out. Not saying she succeeded, but she did her best.

"That shall do," the Bat Gal agreed before an answer could be given, transforming into a bat to fly high above the glowing barriers before transforming back and shooting an anchor chain down toward the platform. "Grab on. I will carry you over."

"Well, we have our transport out o' this alley, but… are you seriously gonna kiss her once we're done here?" Shantay asked with utmost curiosity.

"Hmm… About that… you see… I was kind of thinking YOU'D be the one to do it…" he admitted as he grabbed onto the anchor chain. "That's why I said she'd have to wait until after we switched back."

"Oh," the formerly-confused young woman acknowledged as she also grabbed onto the chain. Of course, after a moment of thought, he realized something. "Wait, you what!?" she shouted, understandably angered by the revelation.

"Taking off now!" the Bat Gal warned, prompting the two to grip the chain as tightly as they could. Within seconds, the Bat Gal retracted the chain links just enough that her escorts would be able to clear the barrier. She quickly, yet carefully (and with considerable strength on her part) levitated herself and her dangling passengers over the other two sections of the alleyway, during which Shantay caught sight of a green Weapons Crate on the second platform as they flew over it. A missed opportunity at its finest. Nonetheless, the airlift was a short one, as the three landed at the other end of the alleyway, which led into an open, densely-populated street where more of Genie's Hem's citizens were running around in panic, being chased by more of Hypno Baron's minions… or, roommates? Or, whatever their relationship was to him. Once landfall was made, the Bat Gal took a moment to catch some much-needed air, as she'd nearly exhausted herself carrying the combined weight of Taeshan and Shantay across a gigantic bottomless pit through raining fire. "Oh, by the stars above… That was a lot harder than I thought it'd be…" she breathlessly complained, though she wasted no time gearing up to turn into a bat to make things easier on herself.

"Thanks for the lift," Taeshan offered his gratitude. "We owe you one, Miss… er, what was your name?"

"Venus," the Bat Gal courteously answered with a stretch of her arms and legs. "My name is Venus, honey."

"Awesome," Taeshan nodded in understanding. "Alright, I'm guessing you're on your way to let Hypno Baron know what's going on?"

"Yes, but Master's pretty hard to talk to regarding delicate issues like missing possessions," Venus informed him. "He might be a little bit more willing to listen if you let me borrow that ink-soaked piece of his spell book, though. That's your best bet for getting through to him."

"Hmm…" the young man pondered, wondering if he should simply surrender the Super Slugger Spell to Venus as a way to prove to Hypno Baron that Squid Baron was the true culprit behind the missing spell book. However, before he could deliver his answer…

"No," a thoroughly-infuriated Shantay curtly replied. "If he doesn't believe you based on what you say, then we can show it t' him ourselves," she added, appearing somewhat distrustful of Venus.

"Oh. Okay…?" Venus acknowledged, though she was uncertain of why they wouldn't go with what she thought was the easier option.

"Tay, are you sure about that?" asked Taeshan, equally as perplexed.

"All we need is for you t' let us know where he is, an' we'll take care o' the rest," she suggested of Venus, ignoring Taeshan's question.

"If… you say so, gorilla girl," she replied with a scratch of her head, though the moniker further infuriated Shantay. "You've just gotta go through Pirate's Peril Park across the street there, make a left on Zakat Boulevard, go down two blocks, make a right on Sabr Street, and go all the way down, where you'll find Genie's Hem University. Want me to write it down?"

"Nope, we got it," Shantay plainly replied again.

"And… you're sure you don't want me to take the piece of his spell book with me?"

"Uh…" Taeshan pondered, wanting to interject.

"Affirmative," the irritated maiden made clear.

"If you say so…" Venus uncertainly commented with a shrug. "I won't force you to do anything different. Just make sure you keep up your end of the bargain, sweetie~!" she added, winking and smiling at Taeshan, who nearly froze up with sudden tension.

"Uh, s-sure, of course," he agreed, making Shantay even angrier as she stewed in her own frustration.

"Good. Toodles!" Venus bade with a wave before a *POOF* of grayish-blue smoke emerged from seemingly nowhere, signifying the succubus's instant transformation into a bat. Without hesitation, she flew off into the distance, leaving Taeshan and Shantay to continue their journey.

"We made it!" Taeshan cheered, though he found himself alone in his celebration. "Now we can really get moving. I just hope we're not too far behind schedule. Are you with me, Tay?" she asked, though she didn't get a reply. "Uh… Tay?"

"I'm not talkin' t' you," she angrily remarked, crossing her arms and scowling as she focused her gaze toward a nearby park in the distance, many of whose trees were engulfed in a much more familiar-looking orange blanket of flames, the monumental clouds of smoke above the towering flames billowing profusely and blotting out the evening sky. Shantay's anger was… pretty much that exact scene, only ten times more furious. You could practically see the steam rising off her head.

"Oh, come on, Tayshan. It was the easiest option we had," Taeshan explained, making evident that they briefly discussed something that Shantay was none too fond of. I can only imagine what.

"Easy for you," she shot back. "You ain't the one who's gotta kiss a complete stranger t' make her boo-boo feel better."

"Let's not forget you're the one who caused that 'boo-boo,' Tay," the 'soldier' reasoned.

"Yeah, t' save you from bein' tricked int' doin'… weird stuff in my body with that woman an' her so-called sister!" she argued, her scowl turning into an embarrassed frown as she looked at her partner.

"Oh… r-right, that's why you… o-of course," Taeshan acknowledged, remembering the exact reason Shantay punched Venus in the face.

"Seriously, you need t' get it together with these girls!" Shantay further unhappily expressed.

"What? What are you talking about!?" Taeshan defensively asked.

"Between those goo girls, that Bonelegs, an' those two girls in the skimpy bat costumes, all you've been doin' is droolin' over 'em an' lettin' them take advantage of you!"

"Hey, you don't need to yell!" the 'serviceman' argued back, unappreciative of his partner's tone. "Look, I know it hasn't been the smoothest run through here, but we talked about this before! For some reason, I can't bring your body to attack any of the girls here unless I'm under a ton of pressure!"

"I get that, but that didn't stop me from defendin' myself back on Naga Mountain, what with all the archers an' snake ladies tryin' t' kill us!" she countered. "Here, you almost drowned inside a goo girl, you almost got cut int' sausage links by that spider girl, an' this time around, I almost got mauled by werewolves because you got distracted by succubus women, Shantae! Just look at me, for goodness sake!" she requested in order to drive her point home, gesturing toward her tattered clothes. Her bandana had been burned and clawed to shreds and the golden tie in her hair had long since been sliced off and roasted to a crisp, thereby letting loose her long, flowing curtain of soot-patched lavender hair. Her tank-top had been slashed and cut all around, much of it in ribbons save for one armhole and a portion that managed to cover her breasts, but little else. Her shorts had suffered multiple tears around the front of her legs. Worst of all, she was covered in a series of scratches from her previous encounters.

"Alright, I get it," Taeshan interjected, though his eyes became somewhat transfixed on his partner's disheveled appearance. Though inside, Shantae was looking at her own body (and acknowledged this), her new, male-oriented perspective nearly caused her to stare blankly at her partner. Inside the body of a mostly-grown teenaged young man, Shantae could hardly process the reaction Tayshan's body experienced to seeing her own body with her hair down, her clothes torn in the most convenient places to make for a quite-revealing ensemble, and her attitude endearingly frustrated. As Shantae continued to observe her own body from the perspective of Tayshan, a sudden rush of heat filled the abdomen of the soldier as his mind became somewhat foggy. She'd experienced this feeling multiple times during this recent expedition, but none were quite as strong as the nigh-overwhelming sensation Tayshan's body exhibited in that moment. All this in the span of a literal three or four seconds, mind you. This certainly gave Shantae an idea of Tayshan's preferences when it came to his 'personal' interests, though the revelation only puzzled the poor girl further. Nonetheless, Taeshan shook himself out of his stupor and continued to reply after TIGHTLY stuffing those feelings in a mental box before he was caught staring.

"Look, I'm sorry I've been having such a hard time, but this kinda goes back to what I was saying about how dangerous cute girls could be. I just never thought I'D be the one struggling with that, considering I'm a guy right now. I'll… try to get this under control, but you should take this as the easy way to learn this lesson, Tayshan. Besides, it's not like you're the only one with ripped up clothes here! This new tank-top is already completely ruined, and I've got scratches all over me, too!" the young man further complained, tugging at his torn-up shirt. "It's part of the job, y'know."

"Hm, I guess I can't fault you for that…" Shantay agreed after a moment of thought. "Sorry. This has definitely been a difficult an' confusin' adventure, no doubt."

"Yeah, but hopefully, we'll get done sooner than later so we can go back to being ourselves," Taeshan assured, marching forward into the not-so-busy street with Shantay following. "Which reminds me… Why didn't you want to let Venus borrow the Super Slugger Spell to show Hypno Baron?"

"Because I don't trust her OR that snake-in-the-grass wizard," Shantay plainly stated. "Especially not after everything that happened here."

"I guess, but… don't you think we'd have had an easier time convincing him if we'd let her take the ripped page to him?"

"Possibly, but I feel more like he'd use it t' turn us int' slugs if we just handed it over, and then went in t' face him. He already has it locked in his mind that we stole the book. If we let that succubus take it to him, who's t' say that wouldn't confirm his suspicions? An' who knows what she's gonna tell him when she gets to him? Maybe I'm wrong, since you know him better than I do, but…"

"Hmm… No, you're probably right about that," Taeshan understandingly affirmed. "Given my track record of lending bosses a hand, only for them to turn on me when they saw fit… I wouldn't put it past him."

"Agreed. Whelp, the only thing we can do from here is keep movin' until we get t' him, no?"

"Most definitely." With that statement, our dynamic duo placed all their focus on pressing through the dastardly wizard's besieging forces as they made a dash toward the entrance to the Pirate's Peril Park. Were things to go smoothly, they'd have been there already. It seemed as though they would get to the park without issue in that respect, as the open, mostly-abandoned junction yielded no threats. Illuminated by street lamps with controlled candle flames burning brightly in them, this portion of Genie's Hem was noticeably quiet.

There were indeed environmental hazards our ambitious adventurers had to cross, such as scaffolds with ropes hanging from them, bottomless pits, and even a couple of deep, wide, wildly-misplaced in-ground ponds sporadically littered abound that looked like they were a somewhat-direct passage to the city's sewer system. However, there wasn't a monster in sight waiting to attack them as they traversed through the eerie landscape. The most Shantay and Tayshan could see were the already-incapacitated bodies of werewolves and cyclopean scorpion-lobster monsters, haystacks with witch hats on them that used to be scarecrows, and immobile puddles of pink slime scattered around the streets. There was even the unconscious form of a gigantic scorpion-man wearing a turban, slumped over on a building with a broken scimitar lying near him. There were also the unresponsive, fainted forms of many of Genie's Hem's law enforcement, which consisted of guards clad in silver-and-purple knight armor nearly identical in style to that of guards from Sequin Land Palace, lying motionless around the area.

"Not that it should come as a huge surprise, but it looks like a warzone out here…" Shantay dared to state the obvious as they continued toward Pirate's Peril Park. Their pace had slowed considerably, however, as they took in the dreadful sight of the carnage around them.

"Looks like the city's defense force took care of the monsters here as best as they could," Taeshan theorized. "There are an awful lot of unconscious monsters and guards in this section…"

"True… But then, where were the guards back in the other parts o' this city? I didn't see a single one before now…"

"It's possible they were overwhelmed here before they had a fighting chance. Maybe some were tasked with evacuating the citizens and providing protection on the way out… and maybe some were forced to retreat," Taeshan guessed again. "Whichever ones stayed and fought, it looks like they paid for it… Those poor guys… Just thinking about what they went through to wind up like this makes my heart hurt…" he somberly observed, his voice wavering.

"…Y-yeah," Shantay warily agreed, seeming to be reminded of something as she clutched at her own heart with a hand… almost as though she were reminded of something that resonated deeply within her (his) soul. "Those guys went down knowin' what they signed up for… an' it's that dedication t' the job that we should be respectful of…"

"You said it…" the young 'man' agreed, none the wiser to the seriousness of his partner's words as the two climbed over a series of scaffolds looming like diving boards over the final in-ground 'pool,' whose murky, debris-littered water was questionably safe for swimming. Silently, they reached the other side and pressed on with Pirate's Peril Park in sight after safely crossing the watery gap. However, following a very unlucky trend of frequent blockages of progress…

"Hold it right there, Hypnotist scum!" shouted a booming, super-deep voice from afar, stopping Taeshan and Shantay dead in their tracks.

"Oh, goodness, what now!?" Shantay griped, thoroughly annoyed with the incredible number of hold-ups just when things were going relatively smoothly.

"Oh, no…" Taeshan groaned, seeming to recognize the voice as he turned to face its owner; an incredibly-muscular, one-eyed, man wearing a very… strange and revealing outfit consisting of a small blue-and-yellow chestplate affixed to his torso with silver leather straps, in addition to furry silver-and-blue underwear, wristbands, and fur boots. His outfit left very little to the imagination, as you might be guessing. The man's hair was long, shaggy, and… what do you know? ALSO blue. He was accompanied by a group of four other big, sweaty, muscular, scantily-clad, one-eyed men with odd, one-note color schemes consisting of red for one guy, green for another, yellow for the third, and a very flamboyant flamingo pink for the fourth. Each of the men were fabulously plowing through werewolves, Slime Gals, and scarecrows alike in the distance with their super manly weapons of… of manliness as they hacked, slashed, and bludgeoned away at their enemies while swiftly making their way toward their current targets from different directions.

"Uh… Who in the world are these guys?" Shantay questioned, understandably thrown off by their presence.

"It's Bran-Son and the Overlords of the Galaxy," the young man warned as he braced himself. "And it looks like they're coming right for us. Get ready, Tay."

"…Good, I was lookin' t' pick another pointless fight," she sarcastically remarked with a sigh as she readied herself for battle. Within a minute, the so-called 'Overlords of the Galaxy' surrounded Taeshan and Shantay, axes, swords, and hunting knives at the ready… or, that's what I would've expected. But no. Instead, these eccentric men chose to put their weapons away, opting instead to flash a smorgasbord of goofy poses in which they flexed their bulging, ripply, veiny muscles and let out unnecessarily-provocative grunts as three of them gawked at Shantay, who became immediately self-conscious as her heart began to race and her breath began to catch in her chest. "…Somethin' about all these big, sweaty, muscly dudes is… is throwin' me off," she whispered, heavily distracted by most of the super-manly men flexing and grinning at her as she looked around. Their bold, sculpted jawlines… their incredible physiques, with tight, rippling, bulging muscles at every angle and curve of their bodies… their messy, unkempt, yet-very-stylish hair… and those devilishly-handsome smiles with such perfect teeth that their gleam rivaled that of the full moon…

"Don't tell me you're thinking about refusing to fight because they're a bunch of incredibly-hot, handsome guys with muscles," Taeshan guessed, much to Shantay's chagrin.

"I'm not about t' turn tail an' run, but… man, this is… uh…" she tried to explain, faltering as she failed to find the right words to describe her struggle. She was far too fixated on the wall of virile, masculine musculature surrounding her and her teammate. Inside, Tayshan knew that he would never react this way to seeing big, sweaty, half-naked men… if he were in his own body. He noticed that Shantae appeared unaffected in his body, much the same way he was unaffected by the voluptuous, alluring girls they'd come across on their way through Genie's Hem while inhabiting Shantae's physical form. The mind-swapped half-genie's heart was pumping harder than a jackhammer, each rapid beat causing a jarring quake in her chest as her stomach erupted with butterflies. Each time one of these deliciously-handsome guys flexed a bicep or shot her a wink (or a… a blink in this case, I guess, since every single one of them only had one giant eye as opposed to two smaller ones), the pressure to keep it together grew greater, like the air was being filled with invisible glue as she became distracted by incredibly-impure thoughts the likes of which Tayshan never knew Shantae's head could ever conjure up. Shantay instinctively gulped as she shook her head to rein herself in, though a certain theory she posed earlier was making itself very apparent. "This body's gettin' all riled up for all the wrong reasons…"

"Focus, Tay," Taeshan advised, appearing to notice something wrong with her teammate. "They're insanely hot, but remember what we talked about. Plus, what you might be feeling right now is purely physical; nothing else. Stay calm, and you'll get over it in a flash. I guarantee it."

"Uh, r-right," Shantay acknowledged, clapping her hands to her cheeks to reorient herself before taking a deep breath.

"Wait, I know you…" the barbarian known as Bran-Son pointed out as he dropped his flexing pose to study the purple-haired young woman glaring at him. "You're… You're that rambunctious little dancer girl from Scuttle Town, aren't you?"

"Uh… In the flesh? Technically speakin'…" Shantay answered, previously unaware that this man would know Shantae personally.

"What… What happened to you?" he asked, a strong tinge of disappointment evident in his tone. "Last we met, you were striving to be a natural role model for the kids and following in my footsteps to become almost as great a hero as I am. Now, you've turned to a life of debauchery and crime?" he asked, mistaking her appearance for a supervillain identity.

"What? No, we're not ev-!" Taeshan tried to cut in and correct.

"Such a disheartening revelation…" Bran-Son lamented without listening, shaking his head. "You showed some promise, too. I suppose I may have set the bar a tad too high for you to reach, however, and now you've gone rogue and joined forces with that disreputable Hypno Baron as a form of rebellion against the status quo," he concluded, missing the mark while indulging his evidently-inflated ego. "Even more worrisome that you've even found yourself an evil lackey in the form of this clueless boy."

"No, Bran-Son, you've got it all wrong," Taeshan again tried to reason with the bare-skinned brawler and his elite. "We're not here working with-!"

"Save it for the law enforcement, young man," Bran-Son interrupted once more. "The first step to showing you juvenile upstarts the light is by teaching you the consequences of your descent into darkness and evil. You can be assured I'll guide you back to the straight-and-narrow, so that you'll look upon me and my squad as a source of inspiration and courage to stand against evil," he self-righteously proclaimed, already having drawn his conclusion. The declaration left a sour taste in both Taeshan's and Shantay's mouths, though Shantay appeared to be more offended by the sanctimonious speech.

"…Oh, I see what this is about," Shantay acknowledged, sneering at the man as she quickly got over her previous distraction. "You jerks are just in it for the fame, rubbin' your greasy muscles an' bravado in the faces of whoever's unlucky enough t' cross paths with you." At that, the entire squad of barbarians burst into laughter at the comment, clearly not taking either of our duo seriously.

"That's rich," the yellow-clad Bran-Son clone humorously remarked, approaching the half-genie while still chuckling. "Check out the mouth on this adorable li'l villain-in-training," he further commented, standing over the young woman as she readied herself for a fight. This man towered over Shantay by at least a foot, his height even slightly overshadowing Taeshan's. The 'hero' bent down toward Shantay, smirking as he got up in her face. "Listen here, sweet cheeks, this ain't a place for pretty girls like you ta be playin' dress up."

"… You get one warnin' from me, homeboy," she threatened with a calm, albeit intensely furious sigh, refusing to back down. "Get out o' my face right now. I know about seventeen different ways t' put you down if you choose t' keep playin' with me."

"Tay…!" Taeshan called over as he, too was being stared down by the other manly barbarians. The one in red had approached Taeshan in a similar fashion to how the yellow one approached his partner. "We're outnumbered, so it's probably not a good idea to say things like that…!"

"You should listen ta your henchman, cutie pie," the yellow barbarian 'politely' suggested, still smirking with utmost confidence as he defiantly remained in Shantay's personal space. "We don't wanna hurt such a beautiful thing as yourself, toots, but we got no qualms showin' ya why ya don't mess with the Overlords of the Galaxy."

"So this is how you pigs go about talkin' t' girls, Wheat Bran?" Shantay asked, craning her head to look past the man in front of her to address Bran-Son, who'd been watching his squadmates do his work for him. "You must be so pro-! Agh…!" she was about to add before she felt a sudden, foreign sensation clenching onto her chest. The young lady looked down to see the yellow barbarian's hand firmly grasping her.

"It's rude ta ignore a man when he's talkin' ta you. Didn't your parents teach ya any manners, li'l lady? Also, his name's Bran-Son, so ya'd better address him right," he commented, though Shantay nearly drowned it out… not because she wasn't bothered by it, mind you. It was because every inch of her body began to heat up with a rapidly-burgeoning, blood-curdling, unspeakable rage as she tightly closed her eyes. She'd tried to remain calm, but the disgusting display she was presented with made that completely impossible. She exhaled a deep, burning breath as she tried to collect her thoughts. However, the only thoughts in her mind in this moment all consisted of how thoroughly she wanted to decimate the barbarian who'd just disrespected not only her, but also Shantae in general. It was Tayshan's rancorous disgust, mixed with Shantae's ferocious temper. Mix them together, and…

"Hrrah!" Shantay shouted, moving one foot backward while grabbing the yellow barbarian's hand with both of hers. In one fluid motion, she took his hand off her chest, twisted it outward, and then twisted it inward toward herself.

"Whoagh!" the man shouted as he was reeled in, his opponent pulling him downward toward herself with unprecedented speed and power. His friends and Taeshan watched, unsure of what would happen next. Once the self-proclaimed superhero was in place on one knee, Shantay wrapped one arm over the man's shoulder while using her other hand to force his arm backward, locking in a standing Kimura arm lock. "Aaaagh!" the man screamed, though he was far from deterred. He immediately began trying to use his brute strength to wrest his arm free, but his current position made it nearly impossible to simply pull himself out.

"If you wanna keep your ability t' use this arm, I suggest you learn your lesson right now, you triflin' ape!" Shantay angrily warned, applying moderate pressure onto the arm lock, sending explosive shockwaves of unbearable pain through the man's hyper-extended elbow. Nonetheless, the barbarian continued furiously trying to pull his arm out, yanking and twisting away.

"Nice try, li'l lady, but you aren't strong enough t' keep me down!" he challenged, though he continued to find it unexpectedly difficult to escape. Shantay, growing angrier at his unwarranted taunting, applied a ton more pressure to the lock, forcing the barbarian's elbow to extend to its utmost limit. "Ghaaaaaagh! G-gotta admit though, you're much prettier when you're mad…"

"Keep strugglin', an' you're only gonna make it worse! Give up!" Shantay commanded, ignoring his brazen 'compliment' as she applied even more pressure onto the lock to force the man to submit. However, he showed no signs of giving up, as he bolstered his efforts to escape.

"You dastardly brute! Unhand my comrade this instant!" Bran-Son commanded, stepping forward to intervene as the horrifying game of arm tug-of-war continued. Just as Bran-Son got within arm's length of the scuffle, a very loud, nauseating *SNAP* was heard from directly in front of him, freezing him stiff as he witnessed his friend's elbow contort at a horribly-unnatural angle as the violent young woman forced his arm to twist far beyond its normal range of motion.

"Gaaaaaaaaaaaagh!" the barbarian yelled in utter horror and unfathomable agony as Shantay hurriedly let him go. He stumbled backward, falling onto his back as he held his limp, dangling arm in screaming despair.

"…Oops…" Shantay murmured, very much aware, thereby mortified that she'd just shattered the man's arm at the elbow.

"Brody!" Bran-Son yelled in horror as he knelt by his teammate's side to inspect his condition. "Are you alright, brother!?"

"Ma arm!" Brody screamed, writhing in debilitating pain as he clutched his broken arm. "That no-good temptress went and broke ma arm!"

"Tayshan, what did you…?" Taeshan asked, shocked to the point of queasiness as she witnessed the brutal scene before her.

"I-I was tryin' t' teach him a lesson!" she hurriedly defended herself as she turned toward her friend. "He groped me, so I put him in a Kimura lock t' get him t' stop, but then—!"

"You rotten fiends!" the red barbarian roared, enraged by the sight of his ally having his arm broken. "I shall make you suffer for that!" With that threat, he charged at Taeshan, forcing him to defend himself as he dashed backward to dodge and block a flurry of wild, heavy swings, each one fueled with fury and heroic intensity.

"No, wait! We're not here to pick a fight!" Taeshan tried to reason as he continued his efforts dodging his enemy's attacks. "We're only trying to get to Hypno Baron so he'll-!"

"Save your duplicitous fabrications for the ruler of the underworld, wretch! You will pay dearly for so brazenly assaulting my comrade! I swear it, or my name isn't Brenard the Bruiser!" the red barbarian, evidently named Brenard, declared as he continued trying to punch Taeshan's lights out with no success.

"Darn it, looks like we're in for it now!" Shantay commented, rushing toward his endangered friend before being caught off-guard with a sudden explosive *THWAP* of a sucker punch to her cheek that sent her staggering back in disorienting pain. Growling with newly-bolstered anger, she rubbed her cheek as she regained her composure to see that the green barbarian stood before her, brushing his knuckles against his chest and snickering. "Why you…!" she growled through her bared teeth as she glared at him.

"You now face Bomber Brick!" the green barbarian proclaimed, clashing his fists together as he readied himself to challenge Shantay to a fight. "You're lucky you're still conscious after that punch!"

"You coward!" Shantay spat, having approximately zero respect for someone who would sink as low as trying to knock someone out when they weren't looking. "If that's how you wanna play, then try me!" she further barked, readying herself as she accepted his challenge. Once the two were in position, Brick dashed forward with a fist cocked back as far as he could muster. Wind began to swirl around his fist as Shantay prepared herself. Rather than try to run or dodge the incoming attack, however, she waited for her green-garbed attacker to come in real close. Before she had to wait too long, the pivotal moment arose.

"No! Not the Ultra Supernova Strike! That technique is forbidden, Brick! Don't do it, or else you'll completely erase her from existence! Plus, you were supposed to save your best technique for last!" Bran-Son dramatically shouted out as he watched on while continuing to tend to the broken-armed Brody. Bran-Son's warning fell on deaf ears, however, as Brick's hyper-aggressive approach continued.

"Feel the power of a thousand exploding stars, cretin!" he declared with his booming voice as he stopped right in front of his opponent and froze for a fraction of a second before throwing his devastating punch full-force at Shantay. It goes without saying that he expected to, as Bran-Son put it, erase the 'half-genie' from existence in one punch. Sadly, this wasn't a Saturday morning cartoon or a comic book… even if this ridiculous exchange was playing out like one. Anyway, Shantay quickly countered by moving her upper body to the side and raising her open hands to face level. She dodged Brick's punch, using the backs of her hands to redirect it while simultaneously ensnaring his arm in her grip.

"What in the discolored background blazes…!?" Brick remarked in complete surprise that his special technique was countered, calling attention to the series of blue flames still ravaging some of the buildings in the surrounding landscape. The worst was yet to come, however. Shantay, in yet another fluid motion, grapsed the man by his wrist, using his full bodily momentum to throw him off-kilter before reeling him in.

"Hah!" she shouted as she pulled Brick in by his arm before crouching just enough to build up power for her next maneuver. As she roped her enemy into position, her leg lifted off the ground with the full speed of a freight train, her rising knee quickly folding and tightening to hit hard enough to break… well, brick. As in, the cement kind, though I now realize the irony in that statement. Anyway, Shantay's knee made a terrifying *THUMP* of an impact right between Brick's legs, indeed breaking Brick.

"Aaaiiieeeeee!" Brick bellowed, doing his best impression of a falsetto opera singer as he doubled over in crippling pain as he clutched the offended area with his free hand. Shantay wasn't done, however. Still latching onto Brick's arm, she quickly pulled him down to his knees and moved into position where she stood at his side. Afterward, she cocked a foot behind her as far as she could.

"Take this!" she roared, unleashing a devastating overhead kick that collided with a *BANG* of a migraine-inducing impact upside Brick's head. Shantay brought her foot over his head, holding his arm so that by the end of that brutal kick, Brick's arm was ensnared between her legs as she still held onto it with one hand. She swiftly followed up with a calculated, forceful twisting backward kick with the same leg that resulted in her leg wrapping around the burly man's neck that sent him sprawling back, Shantay in tow as both warriors wound up on their backs with a simultaneous *THUD* on the cobblestone street.

"You despicable little-!" Brick almost managed to insult his opponent, though by the time he could utter that fraction of a statement, Shantay had stretched both her legs across his chest and grabbed his arm at the wrist as it was stretched out toward her through her legs. With Brick's arm in position, she jutted her hips upward toward him, pulling his arm toward herself, locking in an intense and unforgiving armbar. "Ow! Aaaaawwwgh!" Brick wailed, immediately struggling to break free of the dangerous submission move in the worst way possible; by simply trying to pull his arm out of his enemy's grasp. Immediately, he felt the stretching and overexertion of every ligament in his elbow, his arm being stretched to its absolute limits by the 'evil half-genie.'

"Give up, will you!?" Shantay demanded, holding the armbar with enough restraint on her end that she was only causing moderate discomfort. "You an' your friends have stalled us long enough! We don't have time for this!"

"Say what you'd like, you cocky little mop-headed minx! We will not fall to evil!" he defied, still trying to break free of the armbar with nothing but brute strength.

"Mop-headed minx!?" she echoed, evidently upset by the name. "That's it! You jerks need t' learn some respect!" And with that, the armbar struggle continued as Shantay increased the strength of her hold, causing Brick to shout in agony as their relentless power struggle continued.

Meanwhile, Taeshan was occupied with Brenard, as he continued a highly-pressuring rush of swings, punches, and arm thrusts. The 'solider,' though unable to immediately find an opportunity to counter, kept up a steady pace of using very girlsh-looking spinning back dashes and graceful belly dance-like evasive maneuvers to skillfully evade most of her hyper-aggressive enemy's haphazard attacks.

"What is the matter, scrawny boy!? Too afraid to attack me!?" Brenard taunted, still unleashing a barrage of uncoordinated swings.

"Not really," Taeshan plainly blurted out. "You're just too easy to read. Even with all those muscles of yours, it doesn't take an expert to know you don't know how to fight."

"What was that!?"

"Sorry, I guess I should be more mindful. So, you're throwing out too many full-force attacks without even thinking about how you expect to hit me with any of them," he coached as they continued their violent rope-a-dope dance. "At this rate, you're gonna tire yourself out before it's my turn to attack."

"The nerve on you! All that smack-talk, coming from a gangly, girly little runt like you, who has done nothing but dance like a prissy fairy and run away from me with his tail between his legs! I will not stand for it!" Brenard challenged, refusing to give in or take Taeshan's advice.

"Girly? Now that's just mean…" he complained, feeling a tad self-conscious… kind of. I mean, all things considered, he felt slightly offended. He was not deterred by the insult however, as Brenard finally halted his assault, having long since run out of steam. Noticing the cessation of the barbaric barrage right away, Taeshan breathed a sigh of relief and created some distance between himself and his opponent. However, as he and Brenard quieted down, the sounds of another struggle caught both warriors' collective attention as they looked over to see Shantay and Brick entangled in an on-the-ground scuffle. As it appeared (as you already know), Shantay was lying perpendicular to Brick, tightly gripping his arm and pulling on it while Brick shouted and grunted in an effort to break free.

"Brick! How could you allow that grape-haired pipsqueak to take you down!?" he shouted, running over to try and help his partner. "I'm coming! Hang in there!" Taeshan ran after Brenard, hoping to protect his friend from the red barbarian's interference. However, he was more worried about what Shantay would potentially do to her adversary, considering what happened moments earlier.

"Tay, wait! Go easy on him! We don't want another-!" Taeshan almost warned before another unsettling *SNAP* penetrated the air with such volume that it froze everyone stiff yet again.

"Brick! Not you, too!" Bran-Son yelled in horror, at this point understandably queasy as he caught sight of the traumatic aftermath of the armbar the dastardly young woman had administered to his comrade.

"…Did… your arm just…?" Shantay asked her now-disarmed (pun intended) enemy as she held her armbar position, though she stopped applying any form of pressure.

"Yep… Yep, you broke it…" Brick confirmed with a highly-disappointed sigh as he stopped struggling, prompting his arm-snapping fanatic of an enemy to let go of him and climb to her feet.

"S-sorry, dude…" the young woman apologized to the man as he also rose to his feet, his freshly-shattered arm dangling at his side, though he didn't scream at all like his partner Brody, who'd been sobbing his eyes out as Bran-Son coddled him like a baby. Because that's what manly men do. At this point, Shantay seriously wondered why these big, burly, muscle-bound men were so fragile that she felt she'd have a tougher time snapping a plastic hanger in two. "I… I didn't think it would happen THAT easily…"

"Come on, Tay!" the horrified 'soldier' called out, clearly unhappy with a certain someone's apparently-inadvertent mean streak. "Stop breaking these guys' arms! You're gonna ruin my reputation if you keep this up!"

"I'm not doin' it on purpose, I swear!" she defended, aware of how sadistic she must've looked. "These dudes are just really, really weak!"

"Weak!?" Brenard repeated, appalled by the title he and his comrades were given. "I'll have you know we're an elite fighting force who's—!"

"That might be true, but you could at least TRY to take it easy on them!"

"How dare you simpletons ignore me! That is it! Prepare yourselves, you sharp-tongued demons!" Brenard yelled as he turned toward Taeshan and attempted a very slow, moderately-powerful soccer kick. He reared his foot all the way back, preparing to punt his enemy halfway across town, growling as he tensed up every veiny muscle in his leg. His body suddenly burst alight with a rampaging white aura as the ground began to shake, prompting Taeshan to prepare himself. "Feel the wrath of my secret technique! Hyper Ultra Mega Super Awesome Ultra Arcade Edition Dynamic Eruption Drive Enter-Childish-Redundant-Unnecessary-Buzzword-Adjective-Here Punt of Ultimate Power!" he rambled in a long-winded rant as he leapt forward and thrust his foot at Taeshan with all his might, expecting to completely decimate the young man in a single blow. However, Taeshan merely sidestepped the kick, causing Brenard to miss completely. After he dodged, Taeshan grabbed his attacker's foot by the ankle. "Hey! No fair! I was supposed to destroy you with my unstoppable ultimate attack!"

"Well, you should've said something if you wanted me to just stand there and take it," he plainly remarked. "Granted, it was supposed to be my turn to attack anyway, so…" he trailed off, lifting Brenard's foot high before stepping forward and unleashing a powerful low kick that knocked the barbarian's other foot out from under him. With literally no leg to stand on, Brenard fell to the ground on his hands and knee… and, you're gonna love this; his knee collided with the stony ground, where yet another disturbing *CRACK* could be heard, again nauseating and unsettling everyone who wasn't busy already nursing a broken bone. "Oh! Sorry, sorry!" he apologized, letting go of Brenard's other leg and backing up by a few steps.

"These fiends!" Bran-Son cursed, clenching his fists as he growled with vindictive wrath. "They must be a force to be reckoned with… They've swept through my entire brigade like dust and hair shavings on a barbershop floor…!"

"Gaaaaaaaaagh!" Brenard screamed in a manner akin to a child being frightened by a stuffed animal they mistook for a monster. "Curse you, girly-boy! You shattered my kneecap!"

"Hey, there's no need to call me names! My name is Sha—er, T-Taeshan, thank you!" he complained, crossing his arms and frowning.

"…So, what was that about not breakin' any more bones?" Shantay questioned, at this point only mildly surprised that yet another one of these bulky meatheads got a bone broken with so little effort. "Because it sounds like that guy's not gonna be able t' walk for a little while."

"It was an accident!" Taeshan hastily explained. "All I did was trip him after he tried to kick me! You saw the whole thing, didn't you?"

"Hm, I guess… Anyway, we still got two t' go," Shantay pointed out, turning toward the pink barbarian, who hadn't said anything or lifted a finger to fight.

"Right, right… Well, if we have to, but I'd prefer to just skip past this and move on already. This guy's been staring at me the whole time, though, so maybe he's ready to fight now," Taeshan surmised, moving to stand beside his partner as they both struck fighting poses to challenge the pink barbarian.

"Oh, no you don't," Bran-Son finally cut in, raising to his feet (unceremoniously dropping Brody to the ground in the process) and rushing to the side of this eccentric pink barbarian who'd just been staring blankly at Taeshan. "Don't be intimidated by their malice and cruelty, Bruce," Bran-Son advised his friend as he drew his trusty sword. "They may act tough, but they're just two punk kids who need a lesson in manners and humility. We solemnly owe it to our fallen brethren to avenge their demises." As the air settled and the fighters readied themselves for combat, a silence washed over the battlefield… a silence that was made incredibly awkward by the fact that Bruce, who had not entered a battle pose, continued to keep his eyes glued on Taeshan.

"Okay, what are you staring at!?" Taeshan finally asked, evidently very uncomfortable with the attention he'd been getting. "You've been eyeing me up this entire time, but you haven't said or done anything!" Bruce had indeed spent this entire time awkwardly staring at Taeshan, a suspicious blush on his face. Although, the injuries this barbarian's friends suffered greatly deterred him from stepping in, for fear that he might also exit the battle with a dysfunctional limb.

"Yeah, Bruce, you haven't said a thing since we got here. You okay, bud?" Bran-Son asked him, nudging him with an elbow. After a moment, he finally spoke.

"…Yeah, I'm not getting into the middle of this," Bruce bowed out, taking off his pink hair (which was actually a wig) to reveal a brown flat-top hairstyle. "You said we'd just be gallivanting around to meet boys that are cute, Brandon, but aside from the one in front of us, we've spent most of our time beating up werewolves and scarecrow monsters."

"…What?" Shantay, Taeshan, and Bran-Son collectively commented in utter shock.

"Bruce, I said no such thing. I said I was mounting a grand offensive against the monsters terrorizing the town of Genie's Hem and that I was seeking boisterous recruits. How did you get THAT message?" Bran-Son asked, though when you consider the phonetics of 'boisterous recruits' and 'boys that are cute…' Anyway, moving on.

"Ohhh, my 'B,'" Bruce acknowledged, giggling cutely (usually not a term I'd use for a man of Bruce's stature, but whatever) as he blushed yet again. "Total misunderstanding, guys! Although, that boy over there is looking like such a fine specimen…" he slyly remarked, smiling and winking (blinking) at Taeshan, which served to scare the living daylights out of him in many more ways than one. "I'd love to get to know him…~"

"Uh, h-hey, he's mine! B-back off, man!" Shantay blurted out as she stepped in front of her partner and raised her arms out to her sides, further shocking poor Taeshan.

"What!? We aren't-!" he tried to correct before Shantay turned and elbowed him to get his attention.

"Yes we are…!" Shantay whispered in desperation, shooting her best 'please roll with this' wink at her 'boyfriend.' "…at least, for the next couple of minutes, if you catch my drift…!" she desperately added.

"Oh. Ohh! Okay, I got it," he so cluelessly blurted out while understanding the circumstances behind the bold, erroneous claim. "Er, yes. Yes, this is my boyfr—uh, g-girlfriend, and I only have eyes for her. No one else. Ever."

"Smooth as crushed ice on a rocky mountainside…" Shantay complained with a disappointed sigh as she held her position.

"Aw, shucks… The cute ones always are taken…" Bruce lamented. "Although, the way you moved when you were fighting against Brenard…"

"…What?" Shantay asked, suddenly very self-conscious despite her male consciousness being in a female body.

"Oh, right…" Taeshan quickly picked up, becoming a tad flustered by what Bruce pointed out.

"So graceful… so elegant… so wonderfully provocative and enthralling!" Bruce praised without a hint of subtlety. "Seriously, boy, you move your hips like one of the best belly dancers in the country! I couldn't take my eyes off you! I know, I sound like a total creep, but I've never seen such beauty in my life!" he gushed, blushing all the while.

"…You don't say…" Shantay again remarked, shooting Taeshan a side-eyed scowl as the 'boy' in question looked back at her and tittered nervously.

"Sorry, Tay…" Taeshan weakly apologized.

"We're gonna wind up debatin' whose image was tarnished worse by the end o' this, I can tell…" Shantay muttered, saltier than fresh seaweed at the revelation of Bruce's attraction to Taeshan's oh-so exuberant femininity.

"Alas, you're taken…" Bruce regretfully sighed, ignoring the lovers' quarrel happening in front of him. He couldn't hide his disappointment, however, as his hopes in scoring a date were dashed. "Darn. I only hope I can get that lucky here… at least, once this monster infestation gets taken care of. That problem's too much of a hassle for me, though, so…"

"Bruce, wait!" Bran-Son called as his pink-laden comrade. "The Overlords need you!"

"No, sweetie, you all need a hospital," Bruce countered with sass, pointing a finger at Bran-Son. "Two broken arms and one broken leg are not what I signed up for, and honestly, I only joined because I thought I was in like-minded company and getting ready to hit the clubs here. At least, once this awful monster mess was cleaned up."

"Well, we're perfectly open to-!" Bran-Son tried to interject.

"Nah, sorry, I'm not changing my mind. The 'pretend superhero' shtick was fun up till this point, but when it gets to the point where we're actually getting hurt, I have to draw the line and let you know it isn't for me. I'm sure there's another suitable candidate for your team somewhere. Toodles!" Bruce concluded, strolling off into the concrete jungle, but not before blowing a kiss at the apple of his eye (AKA Taeshan, who froze in utter shock alongside Shantay). After that unwarranted romantic gesture, he whistled, summoning a giant brown bat that clasped its talons around the straps of his chest piece and carried him off, leaving everyone else a bit… befuddled.

"…Jeez, I don't think I've been dumped that hard since high school…" Bran-Son bemoaned, disappointed that the one uninjured member of his squad just up and quit. That left him alone to fight against the 'evil' troublemakers standing before him.

"…So, uh…" Taeshan began, feeling nothing but completely embarrassed by the exchange.

"Pretend superheroes, hm?" Shantay dared to sighingly question. "Now, I might not be one t' talk, but have we really been wastin' all this time fightin' a bunch o' clueless amateurs who didn't know better?"

"…So, we're not gonna address the fact that that guy just-!" Taeshan was about to mention. Before he had another thought, however, Bran-Son shook his head, drew his sword once more, and pointed it at his enemies. At this point, he was livid, mortified, and disappointed in one fell swoop.

"You barbaric ruffians!" he accused, quite ironically so.

"…I guess not," Taeshan correctly concluded.

"You've grievously injured almost all of my comrades, made a mockery of us, caused one of my most valued members to quit the team with your salacious mind tricks, and completely sullied the legacy of the Overlords of the Galaxy!"

"Salacious!? What are you on about, Bran Flakes!?" Shantay indignantly shouted, making Taeshan giggle at yet another screw-up of an enemy's name. "Neither one of us has-!"

"It's BRAN-SON! And I'm not interested in your lies, you siren!"

"Excuse me!?" Shantay roared, highly displeased with the superhero's insult. "Who are you callin' a siren!?"

"You! What with your outrageously-revealing outfit and your admittedly-adorable evil tough-as-nails persona! Your enticing beauty won't tempt me!" he brazenly accused, succeeding only in making his 'female' adversary very uncomfortable.

"…Bruh… She's… or, I'm sixteen," Shantay brought up, revolted by Bran-Son's comments.

"And three quarters," Taeshan reminded his partner in a most timely manner, causing her to shoot him an incredulous look.

"Really?"

"Yes, really," Taeshan matter-of-factly confirmed. "I am as close to being a grown-up as any girl my age… o-or, your age. I meant you're as close to being a-!"

"I get it, 'Taeshan'," Shantay cut in, shaking her head.

"No, you're Tayshan."

"Oh, right. Duh," she agreed before realizing something. "N-no, wait, I thought I was Shantay," she attempted to correct, though the mere mention of her name caused Brick, Brenard, and Brody to gasp in collective shock and awe. Evidently, something about the young woman struck them as quite familiar once they could (kinda-sorta) put a name to the face.

"No. W-well, you're in my body, but you're still Tayshan on the inside."

"No, I meant the names we were supposed t' call each other by."

"Ohh, right!" the young man realized. "I almost completely forgot about that!"

"How did you forget!?"

"We made that system up, but we never even bothered to actually commit to calling each other by the names we agreed on. For that matter, nobody has."

"Are you two serious!?" Bran-Son yelled, though he was ignored.

"True, but I thought we were supposed t' use those names t' avoid confusion…?" Shantay questioned, scratching her head.

"Yeah, but I think Squid Baron had a point. It's just too confusing to call you by my own name… even while you're in my body. Plus, I got so used to calling you 'Tay' that calling you anything other than that or your full name just doesn't feel right."

"You speak for both of us. I mean, except the part where I can't technically call you 'homegirl' while you're in my body. So, are we droppin' the name-switch idea, then?"

"Sounds good to me, Tay," Taeshan (Shantae, or whatever) agreed. After this long, they just dropped the name-swap gimmick… That's… just… peachy. A whole chapter of this confusing nonsense, and they expect me to just go back to using their original names while they're in each other's bodies!? I think not! Bear with me, reader, because we're still sticking by 'Taeshan' and 'Shantay' until they (hopefully) switch back. Hope you don't get too lost. Anyway…

"Don't you ignore me!" Bran-Son demanded, incredibly offended by the villains' complete disregard of him in the wake of their insipid banter.

"Oh! Sorry," Taeshan apologized as the body-swapped duo turned their attention back to Bran-Son. "We were having a discussion about-!"

"It doesn't matter what your discussion was about!" he interjected, refusing to be further distracted.

"…Rude much?" Shantay ironically complained.

"You have no room to speak, you dastardly Femme Fatale!" he called out again, using yet another telling name to describe Shantay. Shantay, picking up a vibe and a theme from that very insensitive comment, made an assertion.

"…So, you're definitely attracted t' me wlile bein' afraid t' admit it," the half-genie muttered, cringing in disgust and wishing she could go back to being Tayshan in this exact moment. "That's as worrisome as it is disgustin'…"

"Weird… He's never acted that way toward me before," Taeshan observed in a mix of curiosity and slight dread. "I'm wondering if it has something to do with your outfit…?"

"And you, boy, with your flamboyant, effeminate dance moves and your colors that, now that I think of it, associate you with that gun-crazy tyrant Ammo Baron!" the 'hero' further accused, ignoring the backlash for his previous comment.

"What? N-no, you got it wrong! We're not affiliated with him!" Taeshan denied, shocked that such an accusation would arise out of nowhere as she didn't realize exactly what sort of unwanted attention the white-and-blue military-styled ensemble would earn her.

"You'd like me to believe that, wouldn't you?" he dismissed, unconvinced by the assertion. "Rumor has it, however, that you got awfully chummy with his gorgeous sidekicks as recently as yesterday. Pretty much the whole of Scuttle Town's population saw you two and one other blonde-haired accomplice of yours canoodling with them in the Bathhouse last night, talking about a huge adventure you had together!"

"You're kidding me!" Taeshan shouted in utter disbelief, appalled that such poisonous rumors could be spread… "Actually, Scuttle Town IS pretty small, so word about anything out of the ordinary usually spreads like a virus…" he further murmured, thereby retracting his original surprise at the rumor. "Still, we're not a part of the Ammonian Army simply because we teamed up with Twitch and Vinegar once!"

"Exactly what sh—er, he said!" Shantay corroborated. "Also, 'canoodling'? Seriously? That's not only inaccurate, but completely revoltin' an' inappropriate! Either learn t' think for yourself or at least pick a different set o' words t' use when you spread your dirty lies!"

"…What does 'canoodling' mean?" Taeshan asked his partner, having not heard the word before. The question, of course, threw Shantay completely off her game as she flinched in shock, suddenly becoming very hot under the collar.

"Uh… I'll… tell ya when we're done here," she blushingly dismissed, refusing to get into the definition of a word only she seemed to know. "In a nutshell, this guy definitely misused it. I hope…"

"Enough of this pointless banter!" Bran-Son cut in once again, even more frustrated with the lack of respect being shown to such a prolific and illustrious public figure in the middle of an epic showdown. "Prepare yourselves, evildoers, for justice will be served on a hot dish, with a delectable side of incarceration, and a side drink flavored like strawberry lemonade, that will actually be comprised of atonement for your crimes! Prepare to face the most capable man in the galaxy! Hey guys, we should go get matching purses! No reason they should just be for ladies anymore! Am I right? Hey fellas, don't leave! Fellas, come back!" he… very stupidly recited, making all of his injured comrades groan with embarrassment as they all sulked. Yeah, I'm just gonna come out and say how I feel this time. I can't even be sarcastic with that one. Holy sh…ugar. Holy sugar, is what I meant.

"…What is WRONG with this weirdo?" Shantay questioned, becoming steadily (read: rapidly) more creeped out.

"Beats me, but believe it or not, that last bit was his catchphrase," Taeshan plainly answered, seeming unfazed by this very odd turn of events.

"…Some random garbage about gettin' man-purses an' not bein' ashamed about it, is his heroic catchphrase?"

"Yep."

"…Wow. And just when I thought it wasn't possible, I've somehow managed t' become MORE annoyed that we wasted our time on this worthless poser an' his grabby cronies…"

"Harsh words, but you've got a point. We'd better end this quickly, then. It looks like we'll have to work together to beat him, because he's about to get serious. Honestly, I thought I was bad at heroic quotes, though," Taeshan observed as he and Shantay lined up side by side to take on the toughest member (and the leader) of the currently-defunct Overlords of the Galaxy.

"Feel the wrath of The Advantage, villains! GRODYTOTHEMAX!" he cried out, charging straight ahead at full speed, his sword pointed at his enemies with the intent to punish them for their wrongdoings. Taeshan braced himself, preparing to dodge, but Shantay had other plans.

"Honestly, you won't need t' dodge this one," she advised.

"What? Why?" the 'soldier' asked, surprised by the suggestion.

"Watch," she suggested just as Bran-Son's wild charge reached them. Shantay, already familiar with people haphazardly charging at her with sharp objects, countered the maneuver by sidestepping Bran-Son's sword thrust and clutching his wrist with her hands to redirect the attack. "Now's our chance!"

"Right!" Taeshan complied, moving in to initiate the counterattack. Without warning, Shantay used the blue barbarian's momentum to reel him in while swiftly swinging her foot off the ground to punt him right where the sun don't shine. The *THUMP* of an impact made Bran-Son's teammates cringe in vicarious agony as they watched on. Taeshan quickly followed up with a speedy hook to the man's bold, chiseled jaw, knocking him off-balance before he had the chance to double over in pain from the horrifying kick he'd just taken. Shantay, using this opening to her advantage, twisted Bran-Son's wrist, loosening his grip enough to snatch his sword from his grasp before she backed up. Immediately following that, Taeshan delivered the final blow of the impromptu Team Attack in the form of a roundhouse kick to Bran-Son's stomach that sent him sprawling to the ground in throbbing agony felt in multiple places. Shantay wasted no time throwing the sword in the opposite direction to minimize any chance of the 'hero' reclaiming it, made evident by the distant *clang* of the weapon against the cobblestone many yards away.

"Alright! We did it!" Shantay cheered, though her partner looked less than enthused. If anything, he looked embarrassed, his face glowing red as he masked his surprise with his hands as he gazed at her. "…What?"

"Your shirt, Tay…" he whispered, prompting the young woman to look down and see that the garment formerly known as a tank-top was ripped even more, a giant piece of it hanging off to the side. At this point, very little was keeping the poor girl's uh… upper body from being visible, though she was lucky enough to have her hair draping conveniently over any sensitive spots.

"Ah! Aw, shoot…!" she cursed. Hurriedly, the mortified young woman covered herself and used the hanging tatter to wrap around her breasts before tying it into the remaining shoulder strap. For a very… uncomfortable point of reference, Shantay's tank-top now looked like a makeshift tie-front, one-shouldered bra, as opposed to a makeshift sleeveless tie-front shirt, with the torn garment covering even less of her skin than earlier. Because that was apparently possible. The injured men (excluding Bran-Son, who'd still been writhing in pain) goggled at her, undoubtedly awed and intrigued by what they bore witness to.

"What are you jerks staring at!?" Taeshan screamed, offended as he was embarrassed that her body now had so little covering it. "Haven't you ever learned common decency and consideration toward a lady!?"

"Seriously!" Shantay agreed, folding her arms over her chest, equally as flustered. "One o' y'all got an arm broken over this sort o' thing, so if you wanna be able t' even brush your teeth in the mornin', I suggest y'all find somethin' else t' gawk at!" The barbarians, intimidated by the mention of possibly getting more bones broken, obeyed their enemies' command and averted their gaze to the best of their ability. "And as for you! Wait… what!? When did you change your clothes!?" she asked of Bran-Son, whose outfit suddenly changed to a tickle-me pink muscle shirt, dark purple leggings with a black fur loin cloth around his waist, and bright purple boots with white fur. Also worth mention was that his hair color had changed from royal blue to pale red.

"Oh, right, I forgot to mention…" Taeshan chimed in, remembering a minor detail of their enemy. "He's only able to use his powers when he has that sword on him. Without it, he's just a regular guy."

"Goodness, how many tired old superhero clichés can we fit int' one person?" Shantay asked, walking over toward the man as he climbed to his knees, still clutching himself below the belt in residual agony. Seeing her approach, Bran-Son braced himself as he scowled at her.

"Tay, please don't break his arm," Taeshan called out, expecting his friend to end the scuffle with more violence.

"Oh, come on! It's not like I did it on purpose with the other two! I'm not gonna do anything t' this one," she called back, offended that Taeshan would think she was going to harm a downed opponent. "Anyway, what's the deal here, Bran Muffin?"

"For the last time, it's Bran-Son…" he decried, though his tone was belabored. "Or, it was… Without my Advantage, I've become just a regular man with nothing but his incomparable, devilishly handsome looks and bulging muscles to fall back on…"

"Right… So, what's your real name? Oatmeal, I'm guessin'? Or maybe Rice Mill? Corn Starch, even?" Shantay cluelessly guessed at seemingly-random grains to decipher Bran-Son's true identity, mortifying the injured man while causing Taeshan, and even his own comrades, to laugh. She MAY have been reading too strongly in the 'Bran' part of Bran-Son's name, but I'm not really sure…

"Why you no-good, smart-mouthed…!" the man formerly known as Bran-Son griped, glaring at the curious 'half-genie' before breathing a sigh of agitation and defeat. "It's Brandon. My name is Brandon, you vile vixen…"

"Oh. Well, that's… not very creative. Also, my name is Taysh—er, Shantay," the young woman introduced herself, still uncertain of which name to introduce herself with (considering she and Taeshan had voted to abandon the gimmick moments ago) while also vocalizing disappointment in the missed opportunity with Bran-Son's, or Brandon's names. "Anyway… For the record, we ain't evil, so you can drop that 'seductive temptress' shtick you keep addressin' me with. It's as disrespectful as it is gross."

"You rub your undeserved victory in my face, even while I am down, unarmed, and powerless…" he complained, seeming ready to come to grips with his terrible fate. "You truly are the most despicable villain I've ever encountered…"

"Um, did I st-stutter?" Shantay questioned after a moment of staring incredulously at the burly man kneeling before her. "I just said we are not-!"

"Not to mention the hottest, which is a nice change of pace…" he muttered, though Shantay heard his sly remark loud and clear.

"What!?" she shouted, clenching her fists in intense anger at the man's inappropriate remark. "You pig!"

"Alas, you have defeated me and my men with your lethal beauty, against all the odds. You may as well deal the final blow and get it over with. Go ahead, madame. I will take your beguiling punishment with honor and heroic vigor," he dejectedly (not to mention chauvinistically) requested, looking the young woman right in her eyes as she scowled at him. "Just know that you would lose your chance to fight alongside me, where we could work very closely together if you catch my drift…" It was at that moment that Bran-Son—uh, BranDON shot her what he thought was a disarming, charming smile, freezing the young lady in place. It seemed Shantay was smitten by his irresistible masculine allure as she stared directly back at him, awestruck by such a mighty, godly specimen. In that moment, the 'evil' young woman swooned, unable to bring herself to harm the man she so hungrily desired without realizing it until she came face-to-face with him…

Or, so Brandon had hoped. What ACTUALLY happened was that his arrogant smirk and futile attempt at wooing Shantay made her so violently angry that she gritted and bared her teeth, met his smirk with a soul-shaking death glare, and cocked her fist back, ready to utterly demolish the would-be warrior into scattered atoms in the wind. It's probably also worth note that Shantay's fist was also ON FIRE, and I'm fairly certain we know by now what that means when the 'half-genie's' hands spontaneously combust while a certain soldier was in control of her body.

"Tay! Tay, no! No, no, no, no!" Taeshan shouted, rushing forward in a hurry to keep his friend from potentially murdering someone with her bare hand. Brandon, realizing that his sneaky last-ditch technique wasn't working, did what any self-respecting grown man would do when faced with the imminent threat of utter facial annihilation by way of flaming genie fist.

"Ah! Oh, jeez, I-I didn't mean it! I-I was just kidding, I swear! It was just a harmless joke! Not the face! Please, please, please don't hurt me!" Brandon pathetically begged, shielding his face with his hands as he cowered in unbelievable fear.

"Stop it!" Taeshan again called out, wrapping Shantay around the waist with his arms and lifting her into the air before she got the chance to destroy Brandon.

"Hey! Lemme go!" the agitated young woman protested, flailing around as she tried to free herself from her partner's grasp. "This pompous jerk deserves what's comin' to him! Put me down now, so I can bash his eyeball right int' his-!"

"Yeah, we're just… gonna go now," Taeshan awkwardly remarked toward Brandon, who'd stopped his pitiful sniveling long enough to witness the childish display happening before him. "Sorry about all this, but we're really short on time. You guys should go and get yourselves some medical attention! We've got errands to run, but this was fun! Let's never do this again! Bye!" he hurriedly bade, running off toward the Pirate's Peril Park with a highly ticked-off, flailing Shantay in tow as Brandon and the remained of his crew watched on. After the duo had left the scene of this embarrassingly one-sided scuffle, Brandon and his crew picked themselves up… with the exception of the one-legged Brenard, who needed help from the one-armed Brody and the OTHER one-armed Brick to lift him up and support him… y'know, because he was the one lucky enough to have his kneecap shattered instead of his elbow.

"…Well, that was awkward," Brandon commented, trying his best to save face as he gingerly rose to his feet. "We got our butts handed to us by that stunning young woman and her effeminate boyfriend, but, at least we have our health. Right, fellas?"

"…Yeah, we're quitting the team," Brick brutally informed, speaking for himself and his disgruntled teammates as they glared in disapproval at Brandon.

"What!? F-fellas, come on!" he pleaded. "This was a minor setback! This usually never happens, I swear!"

"I could handle the wedgie-prone, chafin' tights and the itchy fur, and I could even tolerate havin' ta nearly get killed by all these werewolves, succubuses, scarecrows, and spiders while tryin' ta clean this city up. Gettin' ma arm snapped by a national hero, who usually isn't that violent, is where I draw the line, bro," Brody complained.

"Yeah, we're clearly not cut out for this," Brick concurred. "In case you weren't aware, that was Shantae, the Legendary Super Genie we just tangled with," he added, apparently knowing who our favorite hero of Sequin Land was… sort of. Never heard of that 'Super Genie' bit until he mentioned it. Sounds like the name of either some horribly-overrated cartoon flick or a ridiculous, underwhelming, contrived plot twist genie transformation spoken of only in folklore, if you ask me.

"So what if it was?" Brandon scoffed, apparently unfazed by the revelation. "I mean, she isn't all that great. Who cares?" he further dismissed, though his derision came across just a TEENY bit sour for someone who apparently didn't care about the reputation of his enemy.

"Hey, if that's how you shield yourself from it," Brick rebutted with a shrug, seeing right through the false bravado of his former team captain. "Let's not forget you tried to hit on her, only for her to completely reject you. Also, I didn't recognize her until she said her name once or twice. It's definitely her awesome new outfit and that urban accent she apparently has that threw me off. Plus, she wasn't rocking her trademark ponytail. All the same, there's no mistaking it. That was Shantae. We should've expected this to happen when we went up against her."

"I mean, sure, she saved the country a couple times, but—!" Brandon attempted to rationalize.

"Dude, don't even try," Brick shut Brandon down. "She destroyed us outright and had you shaking like a furless kitten in a freezer when she was about to knock you into next week. You're lucky her boyfriend stopped her."

"Hey! I-I wasn't scar—!"

"Plus, did you hear all those hilarious puns she made on your name, dude? Bran Flakes, Wheat Bran, Bran Muffin, and all the other grain-related jokes she made about what your real name could've been? Totally genius! She clowned you without even remembering your name!" Brick continued to gush.

"…Okay, maybe that was a LITTLE clever of her, but-!"

"She's definitely much stronger than any of us hoped, no less. Although, she's much hotter in person. Can't complain about that for a second. She was a lot more… aggressive than I thought she'd be in the personality department, of course. Gotta say, though… That new outfit of hers was on-point!" Brick kept on gushing, revealing himself as an avid fan of the half-genie.

"Right!?" Brody agreed, equally as enthused by meeting a real hero in person.

"Alright, you guys-!" Brandon tried to intervene again.

"That 'tough girl' look totally works on her, what with it perfectly contrastin' how cute and innocent she normally is. She might've broken ma arm in two fer touchin' her, but I don't regret a thing! Well, except maybe makin' such a terrible first impression on her by grabbin' her… In hindsight, that submission hold she put me under was top-notch!" Brody gushed, evidently not learning his lesson on why it's inappropriate to put his hands on a woman in the wake of being starstruck by the very woman who punished him severely for doing so.

"Yeah!" Brick cheered. "I'd be jealous, but she broke my arm, too. Wait'll the guys at the Candy-A-Cornball Club hear about this! We totally got to meet Shantae and get our arms broken by her!" he declared in the most bizarre, totally unusual manner I've ever heard.

"You guys can brag about that much, at least," Brenard lamented, not getting to share the glory of having a bone broken by 'Shantae.' Well, technically speaking. "Her weird new sidekick was the one who busted my knee…"

"That's true, ain't it…?" Brody commented.

"Well, look at it this way, dude," Brick consoled. "With the way he moved when you fought him, there's no doubt she's teaching him how to fight. She must be a pretty good teacher, too, because that guy danced around JUST like her! It was awesome! I only wish I could pull off moves that graceful! He had Bruce hypnotized the whole time, and we all know by now that Bruce's attention span is usually like three seconds tops!"

"Definitely!" Brody added. "I was almost expectin' him ta transform into an animal like she does! Still, even fightin' her sidekick while we were in her presence is somethin' ta be proud of, bro! He's got some skills, too."

"Yeah… Yeah, you guys are right!" Brenard excitedly accepted the nature of his injury for what it was. "I only wonder if she's taking on more recruits. I'd love to join her team if she's making one."

"What!?" Brandon cried out, devastated that he'd lost his followers in such a demoralizing way that they actually favored Shantae over him in the aftermath of their battle. I'm sure this did wonders for his already-wounded pride.

"Totally! I'd offer a high five in agreement, but… yeah," Brody commented, referring to his broken arm.

"Same," Brick concurred. "Anyway, we should get out of here while we still can. If Shantae is here, she's definitely gonna clean this place up lickety-split. We'd only be getting in the way here."

"Without question. Let's go home, guys," Brenard concurred as the trio of injured men turned and, with their mostly-functional arms wrapped around each other, strolled off into the concrete jungle with no discernible destination in mind (with their mostly-functional legs).

"Fellas! Fellas, come on! You guys!" Brandon called after them, devastated that he'd just lost his entire crew, his pride, and that fight in one fell swoop. Seeing that his now-former friends weren't coming back, the poor 'superhero' sulked, trudging over to his sword and picking it up. "Even with all the adoring fans I still have, you're still the only friend I can rely on…" he lamented with a sigh as he walked off in crushing defeat. "I only hope my rep stays intact…"

 ** _Bringing things back into focus…_**

"…Y'know, you could've just dragged me away by the arm," Shantay complained, still somewhat upset about the way their latest confrontation ended as they jogged along a surprisingly-empty cobblestone path leading through a tree-laden park, where the leaves on all the trees were entirely replaced by mixtures of dazzling orange and mesmerizing blue flames.

"It was either I carry you out of there or let you put another felony on my already-extensive criminal record, in case you forgot," Taeshan sardonically countered, referring to previous charges she'd been booked on. "My rep is bad enough with the lingering heat I get from the Palace Guards after that incident with Ammo Baron. I can't have you killing Bran-Son and making that worse by getting everyone in Scuttle Town to hate me."

"I was not gonna KILL him," Shantay argued, perturbed by the accusation. "I was just gonna teach him a lesson about respect an' sportsmanship."

"By punching a hole in his face while your fist was on fire, Tay?"

"…Okay, MAYBE punchin' him would've been harsh… I had no clue my hand was on fire, though."

"Again? Odd that you're not picking up on when your magic activates…" Taeshan pondered, clueless as to how Shantay remained unaware of her use of her magic. There was lack of control, where her powers would activate when she wanted them to, but would maybe present a challenge to properly harness. In the soldier-turned-half-genie's case, the half-genie-turned-soldier noticed that her powers would flare up during moments of intense anger, which mildly worried her. He seemed to have something to say regarding this, though he shook it off after a moment of thought… mostly, as he did still have another point to make. "Anyway, all things considered, even that might've been merciful," Taeshan countered again, upset by his partner's recklessness.

"What do you mean?"

"You violently broke two of those guys' arms! I would never do anything so cruel!" the disquieted 'serviceman' complained. "Not on purpose, anyway…"

"I know, I know," Shantay acknowledged, feeling moderately remorseful for her previous aggression. "I'm sorry about that. Really, I am. But that first guy deserved it. He groped me for basically no reason!"

"He did?" Taeshan asked, reeling back in shock.

"Yes! He just planted his gross, sweaty hand on me while I was tryin' t' talk t' what's-his-name about the mix-up an' the way they were talkin' down t' me," the young 'woman' explained, irritated by the thought conjured up by the mention of the incident. "After that, I admit… I kinda flipped out."

"Oh. I see…" Taeshan pensively considered once the context of the first arm-break was revealed to him. "Well, I can kinda see your point with lashing out on impulse and self-defense, but I still think you took it a little too far. What about the other guy?"

"He sucker-punched me out o' nowhere when I was tryin' t' help you out against the red dude," she further pleaded her case. "After that, I… kinda got a little angry an' beat him down t' where I got him in an armbar that wound up… also goin' too far…"

"Jeez…" Taeshan further contemplated, angered himself by the context of each encounter. "That explains the bruise on your cheek…"

"I wasn't even aware he left one, but yeah," Shantay confirmed, rubbing her injured cheek with the back of her wrist.

"In that case… I-I guess I can understand why things played out the way they did," he confessed, though the very thought of doing so conflicted with his beliefs. "Still, Tay, that's not the way I normally handle a rough situation. If I have to fight, I will, but I can't condone you getting carried away like that. You can't just go around breaking bones and threatening to seriously hurt people because they got on your nerves. You're better than that, and I need you to get it together."

"Yeah, I know… Your reputation," she sullenly guessed, already feeling worse for just how unnecessarily violent she'd been in the last few minutes.

"No, it's more about self-restraint. Speaking of, what's been going on? You've been losing your temper all over the place since this whole fiasco started. Granted, it seems to be giving you some access to my powers, but this isn't like you…" he pointed out.

"I… I don't really know, but you're definitely right t' say this ain't like me… considerin' I ain't me right now."

"Oh, right… body switch."

"Yeah. Speakin' of, the way your body processes anger is WAY different from how mine does. That's for sure," Shantay pointed out.

"Really? What do you mean?"

"In my own body, I can restrain myself most o' the time when I get mad. I mean, I ain't perfect, so of course there was some slip-ups, because I've still got a pretty short temper. I'll admit that. Even with that, though, I know how t' keep from completely losin' it if I'm real ticked-off. In your body, though, it's like… the instant somethin' irritates me, I'm about ready t' relentlessly beat down every bad guy we come across; especially those 'bad' guys we had t' fight just a li'l while ago. An' once I get started with fightin', I can barely contain myself until whatever fight we're in ends. I already know you're probably also gonna mention the octopus an' the werewolves, as well as Venus, but I… I almost feel like the old me when I get mad while I'm you."

"Oh… Hmm, I think I get it now," Taeshan replied, nodding in understanding.

"You do?"

"Yeah… I usually have a really short fuse myself," Taeshan admitted. "In my own body, I mean. I… haven't really done much to control my anger over the years. I mean, you already know to some degree just how quickly I lose my temper."

"Right. I've seen you get real upset right quick, an' man is it scary. I mean, just yesterday in the Prickle Stitch Valley, you were starin' down Twitch like you wanted t' rip her apart despite her doin' nothin' but makin' a couple rude remarks about you."

"Ah! I-I uh…" Taeshan flinched in a sudden, intense wave of embarrassment, harking back to the critical moment in a certain conversation one day prior.

"We never did get t' talk about that, but I didn't think you could get that mad, that easily," Shantay continued.

"W-well, I…. I wasn't really paying attention to how I looked at her," he dismissed. "She was just… doing too much to you after you just got done fighting your toughest battle yet. I mean seriously, did she have to latch onto you, kiss you, and say all those gross things to you like the rest of us couldn't hear or see her? It was totally unnecessary. Like, I just wanted to say, 'We get it, Twitch, you have a crush. Could you at least try to give Tayshan some room to breathe?'"

"I agree, but… I dunno, homegi—uh, homie. It was one thing when our friendly sparrin' match became not-so-friendly an' you broke my rib. We got over that pretty quick," Shantay analyzed, further alarming her friend. "But it seemed like with that situation, you… really weren't feelin' her vibe after she did all that."

"I-I mean yeah, sure, I was a little upset with her, but I just wanted to keep you safe. A-anyway, the point here is that you said you get angrier quicker in my body, right?" she asked, hastily changing the subject. "Because I think I understand something else now."

"Yeah. What's your take on it, in that case?"

"It sounds to me like even with your mind, my body still reacts the same way it would if I were inside it in certain situations, but completely differently when your mind and my body react to one another. The same goes for my mind in your body, which kind of adds to what you warned me about before, with hesitating to attack certain enemies…"

"Hmm… That's true…"

"Tell me if it doesn't make sense, but based on how our bodies reacted to certain situations, I'm starting to really believe what you said. Even though our minds are swapped, our bodies haven't really changed to adapt to our switched minds. And even if they're in the process of it, it seems to be a bit tougher than we could've imagined if we're struggling this much to control ourselves."

"That does makes sense, but I thought we'd be able t' adapt to it faster than we are."

"I guess adaptation isn't enough. Our bodies still react the same way they naturally would when it comes to impulse… or, they mostly do, because we're also still handling things way differently than we would've if we were our regular selves at other points. It's weird because it's inconsistent, but… consistent at the same time…"

"Hmm… that… kinda makes me wonder, then…" Shantay murmured, seeming to think of something as she clutched a hand to her chest and took a deep breath.

"What's up?"

"For some reason, my heart's been poundin' real hard, an' has been all day."

"That's not unusual for the amount of running around we've been doing since today began, Tay."

"I know that, but like… unless I'm crazy, I feel like there's a difference here. Your body's heart has been beatin' heavily on-and-off all day; even as far back as when we hitched our ride over t' this burnt-out city," she explained. "Even while we're just pacin' ourselves along this windin' cobblestone trail in the middle of a monumental fire—which requires explanation as t' how we're not roastin' alive with this insane temperature or how everything hasn't burned t' the ground by now with every tree in this park bein' bathed in red-and-blue flames, or how we haven't been set on fire by now, though I digress…" she rambled before clearing her throat to return to her point. "Anyway, my heart won't stop pumpin'. I've been feelin' real nervous, too, an' I've got this… real strange, almost stingin' itch radiatin' through my skin… Is… is this normal for you?"

"Not that I'm aware of…" Taeshan answered, though his comrade's description of the sensations in her body worried her greatly. "I mean, my heart's been pumping pretty hard, too, and I've got this constant sense of dread brought on by this whole situation that I can't seem to shake, no matter what I do. I'm unusually nervous as well, and I've got a million thoughts running through my head as we speak. It's been pretty hard to focus, too, because my body feels like I'm constantly on high-alert."

"Is that right…?"

"Yeah, and I usually never get this worked up during an adventure. Is this normal for you?"

"Believe it or not, yes," she revealed, much to his shock. "It ain't easy stayin' as calm as I try to, so I deal with what you're feelin' all the time."

"Huh… You make it seem like you're almost always so collected and level-headed… This is… honestly very surprising to hear."

"I'm aware, but that's how my body's wired," she assured. "I've learned t' live with that. Still, the way your body feels…" she redirected. "I… I dunno, Shantae, but I… I feel everything you said you feel, though it's like ten… no, fifty times worse, minus the racin' thoughts… an' then, like I said with my skin constantly itchin' an' feelin' warm like I'm roastin' in the sun, disregardin' the fact that we're in the middle of what we can classify as a wildfire right now… I haven't really noticed it till now, but the feelin' won't go away… an' it's startin' t' irritate me t' no end, which I feel is makin' it that much more prevalent as I think about it…!" she revealed, clutching her arms and scratching, further concerning the 'soldier' as he observed her.

"How long have you felt that?"

"Since… Since we got here, I think, but I'd be tempted t' say it's been goin' on since before we made our trip here," she shared, moving a hand to scratch her head in mild frustration before moving back to scratching her arms.

"Hmm… I mean, we are in kind of a pressuring situation right now, and we have no clue how soon we'll be able to switch back, so maybe you've just got adventurer's jitters? I get those sometimes, so maybe we're both just a little on-edge right now. I haven't ever experienced any itchiness, though, so I… I don't know what that could be."

"Maybe…" Shantay nodded, tentatively accepting Taeshan's explanation as the most sensible one for her current health status as she took a deep breath and ceased with her scratching. After a moment of thought, she shook her head and sighed again. "Oh, well…"

"Tay, look sharp…!" Taeshan called as the duo came across a lonely red treasure chest smack in the middle of the path. Given their previous experience with suspicious treasure chests, our heroes stopped in their tracks to examine it. "Another one…"

"You think we should try t' open it?"

"I don't know… I don't want to skip past it in case there's actual treasure in here, but I also don't want to risk dealing with that strange ghost girl again…"

"Right. So, how do we figure out if we should open it?"

"You won't!" shouted a feminine voice from above as a spray of spider webbing cascaded from the flaming treetops, forcing Taeshan and Shantay to take evasive maneuvers to avoid being caught. Just as they recovered from dodging the surprise attack, a familiar spider-human hybrid girl made her grand entrance, leaping from seemingly nowhere and landing in front of the treasure chest. "Long time no see, boys and girls," she laughingly greeted her enemies. "You're quite late. I've been waiting so long, I've actually had time to heal up from the last time we did battle."

"You again!" Shantay called out as she and Taeshan prepared for battle once more.

"Well, we're here now," Taeshan defied, still quite sour about their last encounter. "What are you up to this time, Bonelegs!?"

"My name is Natasha, thank you very much," the Bonelegs now known as Natasha finally introduced herself. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't address me by species with such uncouth tongue."

"Huh… You know, I didn't think I'd be learning so many personal names for enemies I'd normally never have enough time to talk to…" Taeshan pondered, becoming just a bit distracted by the newest enemy thus far to reveal her name.

"Anyway, NATASHA," Shantay rudely addressed the spider girl, evidently having a bone to pick with her (excuse that horrible pun, by the way). "We got some unfinished business t' take care of. We left off with me about t' make you an example of an old monologue about why you shouldn't take this situation for granted. An' believe me, we're gonna make sure that example is set for you an' all your little pyromaniac squads out here."

"A monologue about what?" Taeshan asked, thrown off by the incredibly-obscure reference.

"You must think you're so clever," Natasha shot back with a chortle. "Only thing is that you're not deities, and I'm in no position to fear you; even with your wrathful genie pyrokinesis, little girl. You should be the one worrying about how truly capricious the hand that holds you over the flames of eternal condemnation is."

"You understood what he—uh, she meant?" Taeshan asked, getting lost in the wordiness of this sudden bout of bantering.

"Trust me, you'll look t' rethink your position once we're through with you," the young genie wo(man) remarked, readying herself for battle. "An' for the record, consider who it really is here that relies on situational advantage t' delay the inevitable. Let's not forget you provoked us once an' ran away when things got too hot for you t' handle. This time, we'll finish what you started," Shantay threatened, ignoring the increase in the rash-like itchiness in her skin as she nonverbally dared Natasha to make a move.

"Wow… I sound so awesome right now, even though I have no idea what they're referring to…" Taeshan commented, reflecting the perplexity of you and… even me. I don't even have a clue what Shantay and Natasha were bantering about. Or, maybe you DO have some idea? I'd love to hear it if you do. Anyhow…

"Just the kind of feistiness I adore in my meals," the malevolent Bonelegs commended with a sinister grin before raising her forelegs and clashing them together twice, the twin *SHINGs* resonating through the progressively-incinerated woodlands. The instant she did so, a whole slew of menacing contenders came out of the (literal) woodwork. An enormous team of cackling scarecrows bathed in glorious azure flames creeping from behind our heroes to block their only way of escape. On one side emerged a colossal pack of ferocious werewolves in both varieties of gray and blue, baring their drool-soaked teeth as they ravenously growled, slowly creeping toward them. Joining Natasha up ahead was a swarm of one-eyed spiders that were ready at either side of her and neatly organized into rows, their laser-shooting eyes glimmering with intent to vaporize their enemies.

"…We've got our work cut out for us now…" Taeshan murmured to Shantay, drawing his gun and taking a deep, nervous breath. "We'd be crazy to try actually fighting off this entire horde of enemies and still somehow make it to Hypno Baron in time."

"I believe it without question," Shantay agreed, utilizing a great deal of her frustration with their disadvantaged situation to summon magic-induced flames that coated her fists without harming her, though the mild irritation in her skin became a torrent of almost-painful burning as though someone had rubbed her entire body with jalapeno peppers. "So, what should we do?"

"I'd say create just enough of an opening to dash through, then bolt. How we'll do that, we need to figure out immediately. Also, I see you're finally getting the hang of my fire spell. Nice!"

"I'm not sure if I'm gettin' the hang of it like that, t' be honest, but thanks. It's more that, as you said, I'm gettin' angrier as this ridiculous field trip continues, which makes it easier for me t' do this for right now… Only problem is that now my skin feels like I'm bein' grilled alive…!" she revealed, causing Taeshan much unnoticed dread. "I still don't really know much else about it, but I'll do my best t' use it t' our advantage. Although, why don't we summon up that octopus t' clean this mess up? It's had to have been over an hour since we've been here, right?"

"Oh, right, I forgot he gave us that Baron Summoner. Although, do you think we should use it again? I think he'd be a big help, but…"

"The thing was that he did more harm than good last time. But then, maybe here, where everything is already up in flames, we don't have as much t' lose?"

"You just read my mind… I really hope this works in our favor this time," Taeshan optimistically commented as he pulled out the Baron Summoner and prepared to blow into it when…

"Alright, alright, folks, let's give these trespassin' punks a chance ta… Wait… Shantae, is that you!?" a gravelly male voice called out from the duo's other side, its owner pleasantly surprised to lay eyes on the 'half-genie.' "Everybody hold ya fire! Stand down, now!" the voice commanded of the entire death squad ready to engage the adventurers in the most unfair brawl-for-them-all this side of Sequin Land. The enemy forces (Natasha included) halted their approach as their commander drew near their intended target. "Whadda YOU doin' here, squirt!?" the voice further asked, prompting Taeshan and Shantay to turn in the direction of the voice to be greeted with two zombie men. One was tall, lanky, and harbored a seemingly-permanent scowl on his face. The other, appearing much more docile, was short, stout, and bore a blank expression hidden behind his beady little spectacles. Both zombies harmlessly approached, though Shantay remained on her guard.

"Stay back!" Shantay commanded, jumping back and striking a defensive battle stance that alarmed the two zombies as they stopped in their tracks.

"Whoa, whoa, kid! It's me! Rememba!?" the taller zombie tried to remind his apparent friend as he drew nearer.

"Come any closer, an' I'll-!"

"Abner? Poe? What are you guys doing here?" Taeshan asked, stunning all three of the would-be combatants as the undead duo went immediately from frightened and confused to… just plain confused.

"You're familiar, huh?" Shantay observed, though she still remained vigilant.

"Yeah, these guys are my friends," Taeshan confirmed.

"Friends…? Do we know you, pal?" Abner asked, scratching his head as he tried to make sense of things. "I don't rememba seein' a face like yours around before. How are we friends?"

"Long story short, it's me! Shantae!" he very eagerly shared, not seeming to understand just how unconvincing his statement was.

"…What? Is this some kinda prank or somethin'? Whadda ya mean you're Shantae, you goof? She's right there," he incredulously observed, though his perplexity prompted Shantay to drop her guard. "You two don't even look remotely alike for you ta even make such a crazy claim."

"That's really her," the 'half-genie' explained. "You don't recognize her because she's stuck in my body."

"…Yer losin' me, Shantae" Abner further commented, still very confused by the situation he was presented with. "If this is some kinda joke, I'm failin' ta see the humor in it. Ya still ain't even explain why you're even here, though I gotta say I like this cool new look you got goin' on. You look like a real contender now. Glad ta see ya finally gave up that annoyin' lame-o goody-goody dancer shtick and went with somethin' much better suited for a hero like yourself."

"Uh… Th-thanks, I suppose," Shantay uncertainly acknowledged as she calmed down a bit, though Taeshan rolled his eyes at yet another proponent of this supposed new ensemble that he himself did not approve of.

"In a nutshell, Hypno Baron paid us a visit this morning and caused me and my friend Tayshan to switch bodies because he thinks we took his spell book," Taeshan clarified as succinctly as he could. "We tried to explain to him that Squid Baron was the one who took the book, but he didn't believe us and made us switch bodies in misplaced revenge. We're trying to get to him before 8:30 tonight, as he scheduled, so we can get him to change our bodies back."

"Ohh, why didn't ya say so, squirt?" Abner acknowledged, seeming to understand the context with the brief explanation he was given as he rubbed his chin. "We were told somethin' like that and ta watch out for some rabble-rousers comin' ta mess up our new home, but that seems ta check out. So if I got this right, H.B. made it so that YOU'RE Shantae…" he deciphered, pointing a finger at Taeshan. "…and YOU'RE the joker that H.B. said was nothin' but a violent brute who needed ta be stopped at all costs," he concluded, pointing his finger at Shantay.

"Y-yeah…" Taeshan confirmed. "Don't la-!" he was about to request. However, Abner immediately busted out laughing as he fell to the ground, clutching his sides as his raucous guffaws penetrated the atmosphere. "Abner! This isn't funny! Stop laughing!"

"I thought the boss was just jokin', but this is killer!" he proclaimed through his laughs, making a death-related pun as he (appropriately) did so. "Wait'll Rottytops hears about THIS one! She'll die all over again, yukkin' it up!" Yet another bad, yet appropriate pun.

"No! Don't tell her anything about this! I wouldn't hear the end of it from her! Stop being such a butt!" Taeshan further protested, though his complaints only fueled the figurative fire that was Abner's laughing fit.

"You sound so weird in that guy's body, too! It's seriously killin' me! Or, it would've been if I wasn't already a zombie, but you get it!" he further declared, continuing to point and laugh at his very unfortunate friend and make very unfortunate jokes about his own very… unfortunate situation. How very unfortunate.

"So, how are you guys handling the body switch?" Poe finally spoke up, directing his question toward a bewildered and flustered Shantay.

"Huh? Oh, you were talkin' t' me…" she acknowledged after a moment of looking on at the highly-amused Abner in disbelief as he laughed away. "Uh… We've been doin' our best, but we REALLY need t' get t' that Hypno Baron as soon as possible so we can get this undone. We have no idea what time it is, though, an' from the looks of it, you guys are leadin' this squad o' monsters?"

"Well… technically speaking, but we're more of a defense force than an attack squad," Poe clarified. "We were told that intruders would be coming to kick us out of Genie's Hem and that we needed to be on high alert in case they showed up. It's pretty clear by now that you and Shantae were the intruders he was talking about."

"You certainly pick up quick," Shantay commended. "Although, half this place is on fire, an' whatever's not on fire, it's either in ruins or abandoned. Plus, it looks like y'all beat up on all the guards here who I'm guessin' were defendin' the city from you. Those who didn't go down fightin', I've been told were probably evacuatin' the citizens from the place. How exactly is it that you were defendin' anything with the damage done around here by your own forces?"

"Hypno Baron's got some… very enthusiastic minions," Poe explained. "We originally did come here peacefully and without issue, but some of our squads got carried away with the 'protect our territory' order given by Hypno Baron himself. It certainly doesn't help that the werewolves mark their territory by setting things on fire, as you might've noticed by now…" he regretfully elaborated, gesturing to show Shantay the carnage wrought by the territorial werewolves. "The rest was caused by our squadmates running many of Genie's Hem's citizens out of town because H.B. was incredibly vague with his command to keep out the intruders. Sorry for the inconvenience there."

"Ohhh, wow…" Shantay droned in realization. "Jeez, what a mess this turned out t' be… So, if that's the case, will we still have t' fight? I mean, we're not necessarily here t' kick y'all out, since we heard a certain pirate woman destroyed your old home an' rendered most o' your crew homeless, but you understand that this can't be allowed t' go on, right? This just ain't fair t' the people who were here t' have all their homes destroyed the way they were. No reason t' spread the residential woes simply because you were displaced."

"Yes, we're fully aware, and, with some sense of direction, I'm hoping my brother and I can try to mend some of the damage done here. We owe Genie's Hem's citizens a sincere apology and much more. Also, no, we won't fight. We can call off our troops and let you through," Poe assured with a nod.

"Cool," Shantay agreed with a nod of her own. "Thanks a bunch, Mister… uh…"

"Poe. My name is Poe," the smaller zombie brother introduced himself. "And yours, since you're not actually Shantae?"

"My name's Tayshan, though you might notice somethin' real subtle there…"

"What, that your name is basically her name, but with the syllables switched around?"

"…Okay, you got it. Good guess," Shantay confirmed with a small chuckle before the two turned their attention to Taeshan, who'd been sulking in embarrassment while Abner finished laughing at him and picked himself up. "Hey, we can get movin' through here without a fight," the 'half-genie' called out to her ally, causing him to perk up. "Mr. Poe here said he can let us pass."

"Really? So, does that mean you two are the leaders of this platoon?" Taeshan was all but compelled to ask the zombie brothers.

"Yep," Abner proudly confirmed. "What we say goes around these parts. It's a nice little gig we got with H.B. while Poe an' me keep it movin' with findin' out our real identities. Of course, if ya expect ta get through that easily, it's gonna cost ya."

"Abner…" Taeshan droned, unamused by 'his' zombie friend's attempt at stiffing them for passage through the Pirate's Peril Park.

"Alright, alright, fine. Since you and Rotty are so tight, I GUESS I can give youse a 'family friend' discount. But don't expect ta get anymore freebies like that from me, squirt. Capiche?"

"Oh boy, you're so generous," the 'soldier' sarcastically quipped back. "Where IS Rotty, anyway? If you guys are here, I'd have expected her to be close by."

"Sorry ta burst ya bubble, but she took off on her own a couple days ago in the Zombie Caravan. So, she was fortunate enough ta barely miss all the action yesterday. Where she went to and what for, I couldn't tell ya, but if ya see her, tell her she owes me big-time for loanin' that thing ta her without supervision. That girl is clumsier and more reckless than a bowlegged peacock with two left feet and vertigo."

"Duly noted," Taeshan assured with a chuckle. "If she comes back before we run into her, tell her I said hello! Anyway, thanks for this, you guys. We'd never get to Hypno Baron in time if we had to fight all your friends here. It's a sort of bonus to the pleasant surprise of seeing you two again after all the time that went by. Sorry about your home, by the way."

"Eh, it's whatevs," Abner shrugged. "Now, you said youse had ta be seein' H.B. by 8:30, didn't ya?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Well you'd better put some Flesh Pops in your trot, because it's almost a quarter past 8:00 now."

"What!?" both Shantay and Taeshan shouted in unified dread at just how much they'd been procrastinating.

"You're kidding!" Taeshan added, his anxiety shooting sky-high.

"Nope," Abner assured with a glance at a watch he'd been wearing. "So if ya know what's good for ya, you two had better quit flappin' yer gums an' beat it."

"You don't have to tell us twice! Come on, Tay, let's step on it!"

"Roger!" Shantay agreed as she and her teammate dashed off together, only to be blocked by Natasha, who'd refused to let them go. "Hey!"

"Oh, no you two don't!" Natasha forbade, spreading her arms and all eight of her legs wide to disallow escape. "After all that trouble you peons put me through and the tough talk you dished out, you expect me to let you slip by without punishment!? I think not!"

"Let 'em go, Natasha!" Abner ordered, glaring at his ally in disapproval. "They've got important business ta handle with the big boss man!"

"But Shnookums, they were practically asking to be eaten alive!" she protested in a much less threatening tone than even I'd have expected. Our body-swapped adventurers shared the same level of surprise at the Bonelegs' tone when speaking to Abner. "Plus, I was going to carve out their brains and share them with you!"

"Temptin' as that might be, sweetie, they're good friends," he vouched for them. "Their brains—and by extension, their bodies—are off limits, ya hear? Besides, you know I'm on a strict no-brains diet right now. It's imperative that I swear off the stuff in favor o' coffee."

"D'oh… But what about the order to keep them away from Master Hypno Baron?"

"We'll just say they got the drop on us and got away," he explained with a carefree shrug. "Besides, the less time we gotta worry about intruders scramblin' around Genie's Hem, the more time you and I get ta play 'Spin the Undead Web,' if ya catch my drift," he suggested with a wink that made just about every werewolf whine in disapproval as they crouched and covered their heads with their paws to abstain from hearing anything more of this ridiculous conversation. The scarecrows followed suit, sounding out a collective ethereal groan of eternal disdain. The spiders… simply scattered, crawling away in every direction to disengage from the confrontation. "Ahh, shaddap, ya supernatural mooks!" Abner complained, dismissively swatting the air at his allies.

"…So can we… leave or…?" Shantay dared to ask, thoroughly disgusted by the idea of a zombie and a spider girl getting flirty with each other.

"…Do we have to sit here and watch you two mac on each other…?" Taeshan finished in equal discomfort.

"Beat it, squirt and mook in squirt's body!" Abner commanded in a sudden bout of furious rage, causing the two of them to dash off past Natasha in such a hurry that one could see the juxtaposed smoke trails billowing from the ground. Unbeknownst to Natasha, however, was the sudden disappearance of a certain red treasure chest she stood in front of. Once the heroic duo was gone, the taller zombie took a deep breath to calm himself before calmly and oh-so confidently approaching his apparent spider girlfriend, who wasted no time snatching him up in her arms and holding him with such romantic vigor that it made everyone in the vicinity (Poe included) much more uncomfortable than they already were. "Now, where were we, Squishy-Boo…?"

"I believe we were at the part where we…" Natasha trailed off before following up in a most impure manner that I at this point refuse to describe, because it was so horrifying… so disturbing… so depraved and utterly vomit-inducingly lovey-dovey that I couldn't hit the 'NOPE!' button fast enough if I was moving at the speed of light. Alas, we move right on out of here (for your sake and mine, however anticlimactic this may have been).

After a dodging, skipping, and dashing through a harrowing series of fiery pitfalls, falling tree branches, cascading flame embers, and random barrages of spider lasers, Taeshan and Shantay hurriedly emerged from the other end of Pirate's Peril Park, though they had zero time to stop and celebrate their marginal success. As it was previously established, they were very nearly out of time, and they couldn't afford one more hiccup or else they'd miss their 8:30 PM deadline to make their appointment with Hypno Baron at Genie's Hem University. The instant they reached the largely-empty Zakat Boulevard, they stopped only to recall where they needed to go next.

"Ah, where did that Venus woman say we should go next?" Shantay asked as she and her team leader entered yet another seemingly-abandoned, open cobblestone street littered with blue-immolated buildings and rubble scattered across the vicinity.

"I think she said to make a left here, go down one or two blocks, and then make a right…" Taeshan recalled, rubbing his chin as he studied the wooden street sign straight ahead of them. "If I'm recalling it right, then we're also looking for a Sabr Street. Also, when did you get that treasure chest?" he further queried, only at this moment noticing the bright red lock box Shantay had been smuggling as they continued left onto Zakat Boulevard in a steady jog.

"I swiped it from behind that annoyin' spider lady while she an' her zombie boyfriend were makin' googly eyes at each other. Why?"

"Tay, are you serious?" Taeshan chided. "We were supposed to fight them to earn it. I don't condone stealing. You know that."

"What?" Shantay asked back in shock at being scolded. "I get it that it wasn't the BEST o' things t' do, but are you really gonna lecture me about why I shouldn't have taken this thing from people who were about t' kill us?"

"No, but we're heroes. Heroes don't steal. We talked about this already."

"Yeah, I remember," Shantay shot back with a tinge of ire in her tone reminiscent of a previous conversation between the two just a day prior. "Except, we didn't take anything they were desperately relyin' on t' survive. If anything, they looked like they were specifically tryin' t' keep this from us because WE needed it."

"That doesn't take away from my main point, Tayshan. As an unspoken rule, we don't steal under any circumstances," Taeshan assertively admonished, putting his foot down. "You should already know that from when you took Bolo's mace the other day." At that, Shantay gritted her teeth in disdain before taking a deep breath to rein in her frustration.

"Even if it was clearly designed for you t' take, where I presume those monsters would have zero use for it? You're tellin' me you'd rather have fought through as many o' those monsters as you possibly could've before claimin' it fair an' square?"

"It might not sound like the obvious answer, but yes," Taeshan confirmed. "It's about principal and honor."

"Okay, fine. So, would you like me t' go back in there an' give it back, then? Because if you wanna earn it fair an' square, I'm sure they'd be up for a long, gruelin' fight over it."

"Well… No, we really don't have time for that," the 'soldier' uncertainly denied. "Plus, they'd probably pretty mad to find out you swiped it right from under their noses."

"So, what should I do with it, then? Because I gotta tell you, there's something… odd about it," she mentioned. "As in, it feels super heavy, but I get this weird vibe from it."

"That's… not too promising… Well, I guess… just keep it in your inventory for right now and see about giving it back later."

"Give it back? What's the point o' that? We already have it, an' we already know that it just might have somethin' useful for us in there. Stolen or not, we could use a pick-me-up at this point after all the trouble we went through t' get this far."

"Hmm…" Taeshan grumbled, crossing his arms in deep thought. "I mean… I guess, but how would we even know if there was any items in there or if it was just that Ikki ghost girl again?"

"Unless one of us has X-ray vision, the only way I can think t' find out is t' open it."

"True, but I'd rather we didn't. At least, not right now. We have literally no time to stop," the 'serviceman' observed as they continued their mad dash toward their destination. "If we get there on-time, we can open it then."

"Sounds good t' me."

"After that, though, NO MORE STEALING. Do I make myself clear?" Taeshan warned again, raising his voice at her.

"You don't have t' bark at me like I'm some kid, but I get it. I won't take anything else unless it's bought or earned," Shantay irritably agreed as they hit the intersection between Zakat Boulevard and Sabr Street.

"Good," he commented as they came to a momentary halt to observe their surroundings. "I think this is it," he further observed as he scanned the environment and noticed a huge collection of enormous, rectangular onion-domed towers and buildings with loads of gothic windows in the distance to his right with a giant banner that read 'Genie's Hem University: Reap the Success Sewn By Academic Exellence' on it. The entrance was a tidy cobblestone path surrounded by neatly-cut emerald grass, leading into a giant set of gothic arch doors made out of the finest wood. "I think that's the place! I'm surprised none of it's on fire or crumbling down like the rest of this city. It looks beautiful!"

"No kiddin'," Shantay agreed. "This looks exactly like a college back on my world, though I've only ever seen that college in pictures…"

"Whoa, really?"

"I could be wrong, all things considered, but yeah. Before we get too distracted about that, though, we've got an appointment t' keep."

"That we do. Let's step on it, then! We're at the home stretch!" Taeshan cheerfully acknowledged as he, without warning, burst into a lightning-quick sprint down the empty street laden with vacant carts, fancy-looking passenger carriages, souvenir shops, and particularly-decorative multistory gothic-styled homes abound.

"Hold up! You know I can't run as fast as you can like this!" Shantay called after him, wrapping an arm around her chest and doing her best to keep up. Try as she might, her partner was rapidly creating distance between them as they raced down the street like children trying to prove which one of them was the fastest. That was the least of their worries, however, as Taeshan had stopped dead in his tracks once he reached the entrance gate to the humungous college campus. Shantay caught up seconds later, though she'd been confused as to why the 'serviceman' had stopped. He'd frozen, staring straight ahead at someone who'd seemed to be preparing for a fight. "What's goin' on? Why did you…?" she was about to ask him, catching her breath as she turned forward to look to lock eyes with this inopportune foe. The second the young 'lady' met her gaze with this opponent, her heart skipped a beat so hard, it was like someone had suddenly knocked all the wind out of her. "Gagh…! What the…? My heart… it hurts…!" Shantay complained in a pained state, tightly clutching her chest as her eyes began to tear up and a knot formed in her throat. She couldn't understand for the life of her why the sight of this individual affected her like this… like his very presence opened up a giant hole in her heart that, no matter how hard it pumped, it couldn't fill. This, in turn, brought forth another ferocious wave of searing hot skin irritation that greatly vexed her.

"By the stars…!" this individual spoke in utter surprise. Before the duo was a young, incredibly handsome caramel-skinned, clean-shaven man with matching multicolored eyes. He was an average height with a svelte, surprisingly-curvy, almost-feminine stature. This young man was dressed in a sparkling sleeveless jade hooded robe with glorious golden trim around the edges. The robe itself was open down the middle, revealing his soft, flat, hairless chest and a pale purple sash around his waist (which was somewhat wide for a male, but I digress). He also wore a pair of baggy midnight blue harem pants rolled up at the ankles, as well as a pair of slippers matching the trim of his robe in color. His hood was down, revealing a heart-melting curtain of ebony-toned, shoulder-length, wavy hair that perfectly draped behind his ears. Look, I know I'm supposed to maintain total neutrality here, but this guy was GORGEOUS! Anyway, his shocked expression was aimed at Shantay in particular as he dropped his battle stance immediately. "What are you doing here…?"

"H-huh?" the young 'woman' he addressed grunted back, still struggling to catch her breath as her heart continued to beat as though every pump of the organ was a grenade going off inside her. Her stomach flushed with butterflies as she felt every fiber of her being fill with a maelstrom of elation, anger, and sorrow that she couldn't for the life of her process as her skin continued to burn intensely. Tayshan (in spirit) tried his best to get Shantae's body under control, but his mind and her physical form weren't necessarily in agreement over how to react to this stunning specimen. It seemed, however, that, based on the extreme mixed reaction of her body, it was possible Shantae had once known this individual.

"…A-Aashiq!?" Taeshan blurted out in equal surprise, halting the man's approach.

"You… know me?" asked Aashiq of Taeshan in moderate confusion. His voice was soft and light, as though it came from a young boy rather than a presumably-teenaged young man.

"How can I not!?" Taeshan yelled, seeming to forget the predicament he and Shantay were in. "We spent so much time together in the months we knew each other that I could never forget you!"

"What? You must be mistaken, kind sir," Aashiq politely addressed Taeshan. "Never have I met such a wonderfully-handsome man in my life. I would certainly never forget a face or figure like yours," he further commented, throwing both of our love-struck heroes for a loop as he innocently eyed the 'soldier' up and down.

"Man? But I-!" Taeshan was about to correct before realizing that he (currently) was not Shantae. "Oh… right…" he murmured as his heart sank. However, that disappointment did nothing to curb the sudden flow of nervousness welling up in his very core from the man's rather forward remark about his looks… which, all things considered, were not technically his (hers).

"Although, I am pleasantly surprised to see you in the company of an old friend of mine," Aashiq continued as he casually approached Shantay, who'd been frozen stiff trying to bring her body under some form of control. "Shantae, my love, it has been ages since we last laid eyes on one another!" he greeted his 'friend' as he took one of her hands onto his own and shot her a most stunning smile that made her heart thump even harder. "Dear me, you are even more beautiful now than I remember from last we met! It sets my heart aflutter!"

"Your… love?" she remarked in confusion, still fighting for control over herself.

"Yes, of course," the mysterious young man confirmed. "I know it has been some time since we last connected, but I could never forget all the days we spent giggling away at our comics… the nights we spent comforting one another as we gazed longingly into the starry night skies of Scuttle Town… the bond we built before fate cruelly tore us apart…"

"…Wait…" Shantay regained enough of her senses to say as she was reminded of something very familiar regarding the nature of the man's words.

"Please do not tell me you have forgotten about me, my sweet kanafeh," Aashiq further commented, seeming hurt by the forgetfulness of 'Shantae.'

"…Wow… I haven't heard that name used to describe me in so long…" Taeshan murmured, though Shantay and Aashiq heard him. "How could I forget a guy as sweet as you…?" And with that question, it all came flooding back to the 'half-genie.' In that moment, she snatched her hand away in a burst of energy, stepping back and upping her guard.

"So YOU'RE the guy," Shantay accused, pointing at the beautiful young man before him. "You're Shantae's ex-boyfriend!"

"Your sense of humor always was the most delightful," Aashiq remarked with a lighthearted chuckle. "To refer to yourself in the third person is-!"

"He wasn't my boyfriend, Tay! Sort of…" Taeshan corrected in a most ironic and… technically incorrect manner, though it completely threw Aashiq off.

"Pardon? I… do not think you and I have even met, much less dated one another," he corrected. "Is… that your way of saying you fancy me, sir?" he asked in a most casual and intrigued tone that again caught both of our completely-flabbergasted heroes off-guard as a blush crept onto his face.

"No!" Shantay hastily barked, startling the poor guys as they tried to make sense of the horrible memory-based mess between the three. "Okay, look, Mister… Aashiq," she continued in an attempt to clarify the situation. "Me an' Shantae are body-swapped right now. As in, this giant, ugly wizard named Hypno Baron showed up t' Shantae's house this mornin' an' made us switch bodies, an' he's forcin' us t' meet him in this college by a certain time t' get things back t' normal."

"Oh… I see," Aashiq nodded in understanding. "So, at the moment, YOU are Shantae?" he asked, pointing to Taeshan.

"Yep," the 'serviceman' plainly answered. "If you need proof, then I can tell you about all the constellations we pointed out when we stargazed together, or that one time you made me laugh so hard I almost choked on a falafel, or that other time we almost-!" Taeshan rambled, eager to confirm the account made by his partner.

"No, no, proof is not necessary," Aashiq interrupted, gesturing his hands to get the other man to calm down. "I believe you, my kanafeh. Inside and out, your beauty is unmistakeable."

"O-oh… that's sweet," Taeshan bashfully replied, blushing as he very effeminately hugged his hands to his face, causing Shantay to scowl at him in disapproval. This, of course, went unnoticed, though Shantay's unfathomable irritation was growing by the second. "But, so long as you know who's who, then I'm glad."

"Indeed," he agreed before turning his attention to Shantay. "Then… who might you be?" he asked her with utmost intrigue.

"My real name is Tayshan," she introduced her (actual) self as she took a deep breath to dispel some of this seemingly-inescapable pressure that came with speaking with this dazzlingly-handsome guy. Shantae's body continued to betray Tayshan's will in the wake of her not-so-hidden feelings for him as her cheeks seemed to turn a perpetual rosy pink.

"Well, well, how adorably convenient!" Aashiq humorously proclaimed. "Your names are the same, only with-!"

"The syllables switched, yes," Shantay interrupted, seeming to think that joke had run its course. Good, I'm not the only one… "Glad you noticed."

"Nevertheless, it is a most wondrous pleasure to meet you, friend," he politely remarked with a bow of courtesy.

"Likewise, though we don't have much time t' exchange formalities," Shantay petulantly pressed, feeling they've wasted enough time fraternizing with enemies. "We gotta meet with Hypno Baron, an' we're almost out o' time t' do that. So, if you don't mind…" she trailed off, attempting to walk past Aashiq, who'd suddenly vanished in a *POOF* of pink smoke, reappearing in front of Shantay to block her path. At this point, however, Shantay (Tayshan, I mean) had become so used to such bizarre, inexplicable events as Aashiq's disappearing act that it did nothing to shock her (him). It only mildly annoyed her (him). "And you're gettin' in the way because…?"

"Believe it or not, I am your final challenge to face before you get the chance to engage with my master," he regretfully admitted, shocking only Taeshan as he gasped in total surprise.

"Of course you are," Shantay flatly commented through an exhausted sigh, scratching her head in building anger, her body only adding to the frustration as her skin began to itch and burn as though she had an unrelenting rash.

"You WORK for Hypno Baron now!?" Taeshan bellowed.

"Indeed," Aashiq confirmed, charging up magic in each of his hands, where one hand glowed red and the other glowed a bright blue. Within seconds, a giant, glowing neon purple square encapsulated the immediate vicinity within a 25-yard perimeter, effectively trapping the three outside on the campus grounds. "That is why I guard the main halls of this breathtaking campus. You must defeat me to reach Master Hypno Baron, and even against you, my kanafeh, I must fulfill my duties. My apologies in advance."

"Hmph. Just when I thought we were all gonna be friends," Shantay remarked, unfazed by the challenge as she readied herself for yet another brutal fistfight. "Fine then, Aashiq. I gotta ask, though. Are you sure you wanna do this? It'd be a lot easier if you stepped aside an' let us through."

"Ah, I do certainly admire that alluring confidence in your tone, Mr. Tayshan," Aashiq complimented with a friendly smile. "Even though you are in Shantae's body and we are enemies at this moment, I do say, I am quite fascinated by you."

"Oh! W-well, then… Uh, you'll get t' know me much better in the next few minutes…?" Shantay quipped as a rebuttal to his compliment, though he wasn't sure how it sounded, considering Aashiq's friendly tone.

"I certainly hope I do…" he countered with a suggestive smiling wink that both confused and further angered the young 'woman.'

"…You know what? I'm done talkin'. Let's do this!" she challenged, though her partner was far from ready to battle.

"Tayshan, wait!" Taeshan protested, pulling Shantay back. "We shouldn't fight him if we don't have to!"

"What are you talkin' about? He's challengin' us to a fight an' he just trapped us in here. It looks like we don't have a choice."

"Yeah, but we shouldn't have to do it this way! I don't want you to hurt him!"

"If you're worried I'm gonna break his arm or beat him int' submission like the monsters or those guys from before, don't you worry. I'll pull my punches an' make sure we only get him t' submit."

"No, that's not what I meant!" he denied before giving it some thought. "Well… it's certainly reassuring to hear you wouldn't be as violent this time, but please, let's not fight. I still don't want you to hurt him…" he protested, though that plea stung Shantay… or rather, it stung Tayshan on the inside. Shantae's body had reacted accordingly to this, however, as Shantay became livid immediately.

"What, is it because this is your old crush?" she impulsively accused, causing Taeshan to gasp in shock at such a brazen question, struck speechless by the insensitive assumption. He was even more astonished by the fact that his friend blurted out a secret that he trusted her with, to the point of feeling utterly humiliated.

"Oh, dear…" Aashiq commented from the side, feeling the impact of the question as his heart began to beat just a bit faster.

"What!? No! That has nothing to do with it! Why would you even ask me that now!?" he found it in himself to shout at the top of his lungs as his face grew hot like a branding iron.

"Not t' be blunt, but you were never this concerned with the wellbein' of anybody else we fought here," she reasoned, disbelieving of Taeshan's overreaction while seeming utterly indifferent to her comrade's feelings. "It just seems strange that you're objectin' t' fightin' him in particular when you had no problem fightin' all our other opponents."

"So you think just because I liked him, that means that's the only reason I don't want to fight?" the young 'man' pressed, highly irritated by the assumption, though Aashiq became even more flustered by the argument erupting before him… because it was ABOUT him, mostly, but still. "That's as rude to say as it is short-sighted to even think, Tayshan! I can't believe you! Maybe I'm not willing to fight because we're almost out of time and we need to get into the building ahead! Ever think of that!?"

"Right, but like I said, if it's a fight your old flame over there is sayin' he has t' participate in, then it's one we should do our best t' make quick!" she brazenly argued back, though she seemed to understand that she may have crossed a line. Though, for some reason, Taeshan's admission to still having feelings for Aashiq stabbed away at her heart as it sunk. She was so taken aback by it that she almost lost her words before she made her remark.

"Then why did you even bring up my crush on him!? That was totally unnecessary, not to mention humiliating! I told you I never got the chance to confess that to him, and you just blurted it out like it was yesterday's news! I can't believe you could do something like this, Tayshan! I trusted you!" he shouted, his voice wavering with extreme nervousness as he defended himself.

"Oh, yeah…" she murmured, forgetting that very important detail of their previous discussion about Shantae's old romantic prospect as she came to. "I… apologize for that."

"Well, it's not okay!" he angrily refuted. "Other than how peeved I am at you for spilling that info like that, I'm honestly surprised that you care that much about how I feel toward him that you would even think it was the reason I suggested we don't fight him! What's wrong with you!?"

"Hey, I personally don't care whether you like him or not! That's chiefly your business, not mine! I just thought that might've been somethin' t' consider! That's all!" Shantay shakily reasoned, her own heart sinking to the ground as she realized the weight of her betrayal of her friend's trust.

"Well it isn't!" he shouted, putting his foot down. "So thanks for embarrassing me on an assumption! How would YOU feel if I just blurted out that you had a secret crush on someone while that person was right in front of us!?"

"I don't know, alright!?" she defensively shouted back, her guilt turning into almost-disproportionate anger. "What would it even matter in this case!? Didn't you say he had a girlfriend already, anyway?" At that, Taeshan froze, shooting a saddened glare at her friend as he drew a tense blank on what to say that Shantay FELT every molecule of. At that, she'd realized she'd said too much. "I-I didn't mean t'… t' say that, Shantae… I…" she tried to apologize.

"…It's fine, Tayshan," he finally built it up in himself to despondently reply, though it was hard to tell if he meant it. "It's perfectly fine…"

"For the record, I am currently single… if that helps clarify things…" Aashiq added in a sense of bewilderment at the explosion of tension between the two body-swapped heroes.

"Hmph. It doesn't, pretty boy, but thanks for that update," Shantay coldly commented. "Anyway, if you're ready, we-!"

"Don't talk to him like that," Taeshan harshly admonished, much to Shantay's surprise. "He hasn't done anything wrong."

"…You're tellin' ME t' watch my mouth?" she asked, almost not believing it for herself. "I was tryin' t' bring things back t' the point because it feels like-!"

"It doesn't give you an excuse to be anywhere near as inconsiderate, brutal, or unpleasant as you've been the entire time since we switched bodies, and you've said and done more than enough up to this point," he interrupted, shutting his friend down while also giving her a taste of just how he felt in that moment.

"…The entire time…?" Shantay asked, barely above a whisper as she felt her breath catch hot in her chest. It went without saying that Taeshan's remark implied that he had been dissatisfied with her actions from the start of their latest adventure, yet had been holding it in up until this very tense moment, where his anger finally boiled over.

"Yes," he matter-of-factly confirmed without sugarcoating it. "Not that I need to even mention everything you did, but at this point, I'm out of patience for it. I should've said something sooner, and this situation here is exactly why I should've. You need to get your act together soon, or else I'll reconsider having you tag along with me."

"…Shantae, you're jokin', right?" she asked, deeply hurt not only by the remark, but the terrible implications it had on how Taeshan viewed her up to this point since the tumultuous day began.

"No, I'm not, Tayshan. I don't like how you've been today at all, and if this keeps up, I'll handle the rest of this adventure alone," he sternly warned, further cutting into his partner while letting loose much of his pent-up frustration.

"I… I-I can see you're upset, an' I'm sorry for everything, but we really gotta get things movin'. That's all I was… tryin' t' get across."

"Then, with all due respect, just… don't say anything else," he further suggested as he struggled to keep himself from losing control of his insurmountable anger. "Let's just get through this fight WITHOUT hurting Aashiq, so we can move on and get our bodies back. No more of your violent moves, either. Got it? You've made me look bad enough inside and out as it is."

"Oh… So that's how it is, huh? Fine… Then in that case, I'm… I think it's better if you took the lead on this one," Shantay submissively suggested as she stepped aside and crossed her arms, shocking both Taeshan and Aashiq.

"What? What do you mean?" Taeshan asked, irked by his partner's sudden refusal to participate.

"If you're that concerned about what might happen t' him, then you can take him on first. If things start t' look bad, I'll… I'll jump in," she added, shooting her gaze sideways as she felt a pang of sadness well up in her throat. Her eyes welled up accordingly against her will.

"Tay, you can't just refuse to participate. We have to do this together," he sternly reminded her.

"You made your point loud an' clear, boss. Your goal here is not t' hurt this guy, an' I've got such a bad track record already that… maybe it's not such a good idea if I fought him. The only way I can think not t' hurt your friend is by lettin' you handle it without my interference. Otherwise, I'll just mess things up worse than I already have."

"Tayshan, come on," the young 'man' urged, surprised as he was further frustrated by his partner's refusal to cooperate with him. "We don't have time for this."

"Are… you sure about that?" Aashiq asked Shantay, concerned about the boiling tension between the two. "It appears to me that you two are not-!"

"Don't…! Just… get on with it," Shantay dismissed, flicking a hand as she kept her gaze locked elsewhere. "We wasted enough time with this mess already…"

"…Very well, then. Are you prepared, my kanafeh?" Aashiq asked in mild discomfort, turning his attention to the half-genie-turned-serviceman.

"Uh… I-I guess so," Taeshan curtly replied, shaking his head to focus on his opponent as they readied themselves for battle. "Fair warning, though, Aash: I've gotten much stronger since we last saw each other."

"You say that as though I had spent the last few months twiddling my thumbs."

"You don't say?"

"Ah, but I do. I have you in part to thank for motivating me to improve my self-defense capabilities. In fact, I will offer you a 'special friends-only' deal, in part as a show of my newfound talents."

"A deal? What deal?" he asked, perking up with hopeful curiosity.

"If you manage to land one attack of any kind on me, I will allow you passage into the campus foyer."

"You're that confident that I won't touch you?"

"We will not know for certain unless you find out, now will we?" Aashiq teasingly asked, smirking at her.

"I guess not… Okay, you're on," Taeshan accepted as he got into position. Aashiq, taking a deep breath, entered a battle stance of his own as he prepared to make good on his end of this unusual bargain.

"Proceed as you wish, my kanafeh," he permitted with a confident smirk, prompting the 'soldier' to begin his offense. Taeshan began by throwing a quick, effortless punch that Aashiq sidestepped in the blink of an eye.

"Whoa, you're fast!"

"Alas, you toy with me, sweetheart," he remarked with a nonchalant chuckle. "You and I both know that was not a sincere attempt."

"True, but I had to know for sure if you were joking or not," Taeshan reasoned. "You're a lot more outspoken than I last remember, too. You're way different from the introverted guy I knew not so long ago."

"I have made many changes indeed. However, we can demonstrate the improvements in our abilities as we go along. Attack me as though you mean it!" he commanded.

"You asked for it!" Taeshan energetically obeyed, throwing another punch that Aashiq avoided at near-light speed. "Hm, this might take longer than I thought…" he further murmured as he began a steady rush of jabs that Aashiq continued to bob and weave to completely avoid. The most surprising piece of this altercation was that he wasn't moving from his current position. Taeshan, quickly seeing that his gorgeous opponent wasn't bluffing, upped the ante by increasing the speed of her attacks. Accordingly, Aashiq continued to casually dodge each punch as though he were moving faster than time itself.

"Having trouble, dear?" he remarked in a most unassuming manner.

"Alright, time to switch things up," Taeshan forewarned as he cocked a foot back and attempted to kick Aashiq. However, the Hypnotist acolyte (according to Bran-Son, anyone working with Hypno Baron was considered a 'Hypnotist') hopped backward, chuckling as he did so. Taeshan nearly lost his balance, expecting his attack to hit something other than thin air.

"Close one, but you will have to do better. I am certain you are more capable than you imply," Aashiq taunted.

"You've got speed, I'll give you that. I can't imagine what kind of training you went through to get so good at dodging attacks coming from right in front of you," the 'serviceman' commended. "But I'll bet you'll tire out soon enough at this rate. You can't dodge me forever!" With that, Taeshan dashed toward his opponent and started up another barrage of jabs and shin kicks. Aashiq, still seeming unaffected by the pressure, dodged, ducked, and hopped backward to continue avoiding his opponent's strikes with such precision that one could swear he had incredible psychic abilities.

"Dodging is not all I am capable of," he warned as he stopped and waited for Taeshan to throw another punch. As soon as his fist was within reach, Aashiq leaned to the side and, with snake-like speed, planted the back of his hand on Taeshan's wrist, redirecting his fist away before using the same hand to ensnare his wrist. Before Taeshan could even remark about what was happening, Aashiq pulled him forward, using the momentum shift to throw Taeshan off balance. Just as the 'soldier' stumbled forward, Aashiq momentarily disappeared with a golden-hued, smoky *POOF*, reappearing behind his 'enemy.' He quickly grabbed Taeshan by the ankle and pulled them out from under him.

"Whoa!" Taeshan yelled, forced to use his hands to catch himself before he ate a faceful of cobblestone.

"I have also learned how to utilize magic and how to counterattack, you see," the robe-adorned beauty of a young man smilingly informed as he held Taeshan's ankles.

"Magic?" Taeshan asked as he twisted himself to free one of his feet from Aashiq's grasp and launch a side kick from his compromised position. Aashiq, seeing this coming from a mile away, disappeared with yet another *POOF*, reappearing a couple feet away. Taeshan wasted no time getting back up and sizing up the other man. In a moment's glance, he continued charging at him to unleash a much slower, more thought-provoked series of punches that Aashiq prssed on with dodging. "How did you learn how to use magic? Was that Hypno Baron's doing?"

"Indeed," the Hypnotist confirmed as he and Taeshan danced around the blocked-off section of the campus grounds surrounded by the magic barrier he conjured up. "In return for my allegiance to him, he granted me the ability to utilize magic of my own. He did not imbue me with much, however. I am only capable of teleportation and summoning barriers at the moment. I learned my self-defense techniques elsewhere, in case you were curious."

"I definitely am wondering who taught you, because you're actually really good!" he complimented before throwing another jab that Aashiq caught between the backs of his hands. With lightning speed, Aashiq directed Taeshan's fist away and countered with a sideways thrust kick aimed at his adversary's abdomen that, with a *THUMP*, sent him stumbling back. However, as Taeshan recoiled from the attack, he suddenly hunched over in terrible pain as an area a bit… lower than his abdomen began to ache like nobody's business.

"Oh, dear! M-my apologies, kanafeh!" Aashiq hastily apologized, realizing what he'd done. "I was aiming for your gut, but it appears your special friend's corporeal form is much taller than I had initially measured!"

"Oogh…" Taeshan groaned in moderate discomfort, still hunched over as the residual pain moved up into his abdomen. "So this is how boys feel when they get hit down there…!? Goodness gracious, this feels so horrible…! Urgh… Now I know never to do this to a guy ever again…!"

"A most unfortunate pain I wished never to inflict on you, Shantae… Again, you have my sincerest apologies."

"No, no…" Taeshan dismissed, not at all angry at his opponent for kicking him below the belt as he took a few deep breaths and stretched to recompose himself through the pain. "It's not like you meant to do that," he further added as he turned his attention to Shantay, figuring she'd be upset at the sight of him taking the worst kind of damage her (his) original body could sustain. "Sorry, Tay! That was a total mistake. I promise not to… hm?" he was about to apologize before he caught sight of his demoralized ally. As it turned out, Shantay hadn't even been watching the fight. Instead, she sat, her back laid up against the barrier on the opposite side of the arena as he head hung somberly toward the grass she sat on. Her knees were up, and her arms were wrapped around them, signifying that she was in deep thought. Her disheveled blanket of lavender hair draped over her head, completely masking her face from view.

"It appears your friend is quite upset," Aashiq observed. "Perhaps we should halt our lovely evening dance to cheer him up?"

"…No, I'll… I'll handle it when we're done here," Taeshan denied after a moment of silent thought. "You issued me a challenge, and I'm fairly certain we're as close to being out of time as we possibly could be… and that's just me being hopeful. Let's pick up where we left off."

"Are… you certain?"

"Yeah," he plainly stated, readying himself for the next round. "I'd rather we got this done first. Ready?"

"…I am when you are," he hesitantly affirmed, preparing himself for their 'dance.' Without another word between the two combatants, they began with Taeshan swiftly approaching Aashiq and beginning the next round with a carefully-aimed kick that Aashiq dodged without issue. Taeshan followed up with two slow, deliberate punches that Aashiq also dodged with little effort as he continued to remain on the defensive by dashing and hopping backward as Taeshan aggressively pressured him. Taeshan, undeterred by his lack of success, continued to throw very slow, seemingly-lazy jabs and low kicks at Aashiq, who'd grown steadily more concerned with what he viewed as a lack of effort on his old friend's part.

"Does something trouble you, dear?" he asked, all but compelled as he dodged another couple of lethargically-thrown jabs. "You do not seem to be putting much effort into trying to hit me."

"That's because I'm not trying to hit you," he remarked, though his sluggish assault continued. Aashiq, understandably thrown off by the confession, couldn't make heads or tails of how such an ironic thing could've been uttered when his opponent's actions betrayed his words.

"Not trying to hit me?" he asked again, weaving and leaping backward again to avoid another jab and low kick. "You are aware that the entire point of this challenge was for you to hit me just once, no?"

"Yep. I know," Taeshan plainly acknowledged as he remained… somewhat determined to win the challenge. At this point, I couldn't even tell what he was doing.

"Then why are you not-! Oof!" Aashiq was set to ask before he was met with an electric *BUMP* of an impact against something solid yet creased on his back. He glanced backward and saw that he had inadvertently backed himself into one of the corners of the barrier. At that moment, he realized what Taeshan was doing. "Ohh… so THAT was your game plan?"

"Yep!" Taeahan proudly proclaimed, cocking a fist back to finally end the game. "It's been fun, Aash, but it's game over for you!" he further declared as he launched his attack.

"Oh, you might think so, but you forget one thing," he confidently shot back, vanishing with another golden *POOF* and rematerializing himself directly behind his enemy. "I can still-!" he was about to taunt before he felt something huge, heavy, and rubber pound into his abdomen with a startling *THOOMP* of an impact. He was sent careening through the air a few feet before landing flat on his back with a *THUD* onto the cold, ridged ground.

"Gotcha!" Taeshan boasted with a smirk as he readjusted himself to a standing position after landing his attack. As it turned out, the 'soldier' anticipated his (her) old flame's maneuver and made a hard read in the form of kicking him the instant he teleported himself out of the corner after he lured him into it.

"My, my…" Aashiq began, grunting in pain as he picked himself up, clutching his stomach. "You are as clever and intuitive as always, kanafeh. Here I was, thinking I had something of an edge on you, too…"

"Thanks, Aash, but I didn't completely come up with that trick on my own," he admitted.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, my friend over there sort of taught it to me the other day when we sparred against each other," he explained, referring to an apparent key point in his and Shantay's very first sparring match… y'know, back during a much simpler time, when they were Shantae and Tayshan.

"Impressive… Clearly, I have much more to learn if I ever plan on becoming a suitable adversary to you."

"Adversary?" he queried. "Why adversary? Actually, why did you even join up with Hypno Baron, anyway? Don't tell me you were evil all along and everything we ever went through was some elaborate plot to get me to lower my guard or something!"

"No, of course not!" Aashiq laughingly denied. "I merely joined because he was looking for someone willing to do a job for him and I needed the money. He paid me quite handsomely, too. Of course, I have not worked for him for very long, and I did not even dream of the job involving being pitted against you!"

"Oh. Well, that makes sense… Still, Aash, it's been so long! I thought you were off in the Great Button Province with your uh… Y-your new girlfriend."

"About that… How did you know about my ex-girlfriend?" he asked, flabbergasted by the revelation.

"Well, I was at the Great Button Province a few months after you left Scuttle Town, and I just happened to catch a glimpse of you kissing her," Taeshan explained.

"Really? Wow, this is indeed a small world… However, she and I have long since broken up," he explained. "She was looking for a long-term commitment, and at that point, I had made a great discovery about myself."

"What discovery?"

"That my true desires cannot be pinned down by societal standards or by traditional definitions of love. A type of love that especially transcends the idea that it can only be shared between one male and one female," he casually revealed, completely blindsiding his old friend in the process.

"…Wait… So… Y-you're telling me that… That you've… changed your preferences?" the astounded 'serviceman' hesitantly asked.

"In a word, yes."

"…So… that means you… like… uh…?"

"Indeed, I am attracted to people of my own biological gender now," he confirmed in a wordy fashion, making Taeshan's heart sink with disappointment.

"Oh…"

"I am also attracted to people of the opposite gender," he also confirmed, instantly switching Taeshan's sentiment from disappointed to confused.

"Oh?"

"You heard it right, sweet kanafeh. However, we will have to reconvene at a later time to catch up. You have an urgent appointment to make with Master Hypno Baron, no?"

"Yeah, you've got a point. Will you still be here once all is said and done, though? It might be a while before we meet again."

"Very likely so. Even if Master Hypno Baron and the rest of our crew do not take permanent refuge here, I planned to station myself here at his behest. Now then, Shantae, off you go!" Aashiq concluded, playfully shooing Taeshan away with one hand as he raised his other one into the air. Within seconds of the young man channeling some magic into his raised hand, the barrier surrounding the battlefield vanished, thus permitting our heroes to bring this fiasco to an end. "I surely would like to see you again once you are back in your own body, so if I may, please hurry and get this dilemma of yours settled."

"You only need to tell me once! Thanks, Aash! We'll definitely catch up once there's time!" Taeshan assured as he dashed over to alert his travel partner of their progress. "Tay, I did it! Come on, we can finally get this situation under wraps!" he proudly informed his friend, who'd still been sulking on the ground. Taeshan even extended a hand to her to help her up to her feet. However, rather than share in the excitement, take her partner's hand, or even look up at him, Shantay simply climbed to her feet under her own power without even attempting to tear her hidden gaze from the ground. "Tay…" he murmured, though Shantay did not respond. She instead turned toward the building ahead and trudged on without prompt. Taeshan, somewhat alarmed by his friend's despondency, followed suit, turning and waving to Aashiq one last time as they marched toward the campus's main building.

The walk to the front door from the entrance courtyard was a short one, but man, do I mean it when I tell you the tense, awkward silence made it seem like an enternity. As if I need to mention it by now, there was some… unaddressed tension between our normally-indomitable adventurers, and it was made very apparent the entire way to the front door of the main building of Genie's Hem University. Once they reached the enormous Gothic-styled front doors, they wasted little time pulling one of them open and entering the campus foyer.

"Well… we're here," Taeshan observed, looking around to absorb the sight that beheld them as their steps echoed loudly off the hardwood floors. The foyer put an emphasis on first impressions for anyone whose eyes were graced by it for the first time. "Man, what a view this is… No wonder Sky wanted to come here. It's beautiful," Taeshan further mentioned, taken aback by the sheer luxuriousness of the college campus's main hall. In it, a giant, glossy, sparkling chandelier hung from the ceiling, its refracting crystalline lights shining all across the elongated, spacious corridor.

Along the center of the floor was an enormous, periwinkle-hued, gold-trimmed carpet that stretched from the entrance of the foyer all the way down to the other end, where another set of decorative doors were located. Neatly organized in designated areas on either side of the carpet were enormous, fluffy velvet love seats and lounging couches of a color scheme matching the carpet. In the very center of the foyer was an intensely-decorative medieval-looking symbol shaped like a three-pointed shield that housed silhouette images of animals and humanoid creatures in various poses. To one side was a dazzling marble fireplace that, even though it was unlit, certainly added to the pizzazz of this extravagant building.

"Goodness, this place is just amazing!" Taeshan spoke again, still taking in the view as he observed the wide, fancy staircase leading up the second floor of the building that seemed to house even more nigh-indescribable classical wonders than you might have the patience to sit here and listen to me explain. Seriously, I haven't even gotten to the portraits of college board officials hung up all over the place, the candles perched along the pillars and walls all around that bathed the entire foyer in a glorious, serene golden glow, the gargantuan analog clock hanging above the fireplace that ticked with every passing second, or the doors abound that led to various offices within the building. Take my word for it; this place was incredible. "This place is much fancier than I could've ever imagined! Can you believe it, Tay?" Taeshan attempted to ask, not even stopping to wonder if his partner was as awestruck as he was. As one might've expected, however, Taeshan's question went unanswered. "Tay?" he beckoned again, turning to look at his partner, whose gaze remained glued to the floor as she refused to say anything. At this point, Taeshan grew concerned, as he had witnessed her exhibiting similar behaviors the day before. "Why aren't you talking? You haven't even looked at me in the last, like, twenty to thirty minutes. What's going on, hm?" he asked in a disarming tone, expecting it to coax Shantay into saying something… ANYTHING… and yet, Shantay barely even moved. She didn't even look up to acknowledge she was being talked to.

"…" was basically what I could interpret as Shantay's words… or lack thereof.

"Are… you still thinking about our fight just a little while ago?" Taeshan asked to try and begin some semblance of a conversation, though the topic he chose was a tad sensitive. At that, Shantay flinched as her nerves betrayed her silence. Yet still, she would not talk.

"…"

"…So you are," the young 'man' deciphered, feeling mildly guilty for his friend's current mood. "Look, I… I know I might've been a little harsh with what I said, but you have to understand why I was upset. You blurted out something to my crush without even considering how I felt about it; especially when I trusted you to keep that between us. You realize that, right?"

"…"

"…I'll take your silence as a yes…?"

"…"

"Okay, then… Aside from that, we need to do our best to fight for the greater good, and that's supposed to include setting a good example for the people around you that watch your every move. I… I won't say you didn't do a good job being me today, Tay, because you did. You also did a good job working alongside me, despite everything we went through. It's just… you need to pull back a little on your battle style. It's great and all, but you were being a little too… wild and aggressive for my liking, to be honest. That's not how I typically like to roll, y'know?"

"…"

"Tayshan, say something," Taeshan commanded, growing somewhat frustrated with the silent treatment. "Ignoring me won't do either of us any good."

"…You told me not t' say anything else," Shantay finally spoke up, though she did not move to look at Taeshan. Her wavering, raspy tone was riddled with a mix of tightly-contained anger and obvious dissonance.

"I… I did, didn't I?" Taeshan guiltily acknowledged. "Well, you have my permission to-!"

"BEGONE, INTRUDERS! YOUR PRESENCE HERE IS UNWANTED! UNINVITED!" a booming, echoed voice roared out of seemingly nowhere, startling the duo as swirling winds momentarily blew across the foyer, making everything quake as though the entire building was moving on its own. Before long, however, a flash of a bright, lime green light, accompanied with a sudden *POOF* in the center of the foyer revealed none other than Hypno Baron, who'd been drumming up the 'maniacal bad guy' piece of his entrance as he cackled raucously, hovering high in the air. Once he made his grand entrance, however, he slowly brought himself to the ground, focusing his attention on his apparently-unwanted guests. "I see you've made it despite all the odds I deliberately stacked against you two. You're a half-hour early, too! I'm as disappointed in my minions as I am impressed you got here so soon. And trust me, I am VERY disappointed in my minions right now…"

"Yeah, well, we—wait, what do you mean a half-hour early?" Taeshan asked, completely thrown off by the assertion.

"It's only 8:00. I specifically told you to come here not a minute past 8:30."

"Right, but… I was under the impression we were late. We were told back in the Pirate's Peril Park that it was 8:15 when we left there."

"Sounds like someone forgot to set his watch ahead for Daylight Saving Time… about six months late," Hypno Baron explained, shaking his head. "Whoever that braindead dolt is, he probably meant to tell you it was a quarter past 7:00. Of course, that also means he did a horrible job keeping you whippersnappers busy in that flame-bathed doggy park. Yeah, he is so fired when I find out who that is."

"…I guess we should be thankful…" Taeshan murmured, being wise to keep quiet about Abner's honest mistake in telling them the wrong time, as well as his assistance with buying them the time they needed to get to Hypno Baron early.

"No matter. The real issue here is that a little birdie—or, should I say, BATTIE, told me something really interesting about you two while you were barbarically pummeling your way through my legion of creatures of the night."

"And that is…?" Taeshan asked.

"Something about Squid Baron being the one who destroyed my Enigmatic Tome of the Occult. I didn't take you to be a bald-faced liar, Shantae. Even if you were dishonest, I'd expect better lies to be told for your failure to return that book to its rightful owner."

"And you still shouldn't expect me to be a bald-faced liar," Taeshan countered. "What we told Venus was the truth. Squid Baron WAS the one who stole your book. Look, we even have proof right here!" he added, pulling out the Super Slugger Spell piece. Hypno Baron merely needed to glimpse at its wrinkly, ink-soaked condition to gather an idea of what may have happened to his spell book. "If you want more proof, why not pay a visit to Naga Mountain yourself and find Barracuda Joe? Or, should I say Banana Slug Joe? Because that's what he is now, thanks to Squid Baron."

"Harumph, I say!" Hypno Baron angrily declared, definitely NOT showing his ancient age. "Your account DOES sound plausible, considering the slimy, sticky-tentacled bandit we're referring to here… Hmph. In true Baron of Sequin Land fashion, he stole my book right from under my nonexistent nose. Seriously, who must I obliterate to discover a trustworthy ally around these parts? Everybody's always in it for themselves, it's ridiculous! Almost as ridiculous as your friend's outfit," he rudely remarked, calling out Shantay for her inadvertently-revealing clothes. Taeshan gasped, looking at his friend to see her reaction. However, Shantay did not respond. She didn't even bother to look ahead at her smart-mouthed enemy. Hypno Baron, of course, quickly took notice after a moment of awkward silence. "Huh. Nothing to say? That's a surprise, coming from someone who originally presented as such a loudmouthed, harebrained brute." Again, Shantay said and did nothing.

"Tay, he's making fun of you. Are you just gonna sit there and take it?" Taeshan dared to lean over and whisper to her. Yet, Shantay still offered no reply. "Earth to Tay. Hello?"

"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" Hypno Baron taunted again, only to continue not receiving any reply. "Suddenly, the strong silent type, this one. What's his deal?" he asked Taeshan.

"He's… a bit upset right now," Taeshan explained. "We didn't have such a good time getting here, simply put."

"Oh, so that's what it is? The poor baby had a bad time here in Genie's Hem, and now all he does is stand there, his head hung low while he pouts like a spoiled toddler?" the magician taunted. "Give me a break! Compared to me and what I've been through in the last twenty-four hours or so, you've got nothing to worry about, kiddo. Shantae, you sure know how to pick the worst sidekicks. No wonder you always travel alone. Why not bring an actual baby with you next time? At least in that case, this pathetic behavior would be appropriate."

"Alright, that's enough, Hypno Baron. Lay off him," Taeshan sternly demanded, taking personal offense to the insults hurled at his friend. "He's upset, but we're still here together, and I won't tolerate you picking on him. Now, what about you switching our bodies back and helping us undo that slug spell?"

"Oh, right. Yeah, fat chance," he laughingly denied with a shrug, utterly flooring Taeshan.

"What!? What do you mean, 'fat chance'!? You said you'd change us back if we made it here in time!"

"With my book!" he corrected, emphasizing his statement by extending his hands upward near either side of his face. "I said I'd change you back if you came here on-time with my book! Yet, all you have is one measly ink-soaked piece of a page of it and the excuse that Squid Baron destroyed it! So now, the only way you're ever going to get your own bodies back is if you figured out your own Corporeal Transmission spell."

"What!? Hypno Baron, you lying, cheating, no-good, word-breaking sh-!"

"It doesn't matter what you call me, little Missy," Hypno Baron conveniently cut in again, seriously making me paranoid about the HORRENDOUS timing of his interruptions. "The fact is, you couldn't hold up your end of the bargain, so too bad for you!" he laughingly taunted, feeling nothing but joy at causing one of his greatest enemies nothing but dread, discomfort, and ire.

"Gragh…! Shut… Up…!" Shantay growled, though she still didn't raise her head. Her statement, however, halted Hypno Baron's raucous laughter as he stopped to look at her.

"Did… did he just say something?" he asked in a mix of shock and wonder, though his question was met only with seething, breathy grunts that seemed to communicate that his half-genie adversary wasn't doing too well.

"Tay? Are you… okay?" Taeshan asked, picking up an incredibly-chilling vibe from his partner as she moved to lay a hand on her shoulder. However, before his hand made contact, Shantay quickly swiped at him, slapping his hand away. "Hey!"

"Don't touch me…!" she growled again, grasping the sides of her head with her hands as she hunched over and continued to breathe as though she were trying to keep control of herself.

"Tayshan, what…? What's wrong?" Taeshan asked, at this point bewildered by the sight of his friend appearing to suffer like she had been.

"Your friend needs to relax," Hypno Baron commented despite being equally as shocked at what was happening in front of him. "A couple of jokes aimed his way, and he's already on the verge of tears. I don't think I've even been this worked up over-!"

"Not…! Another… Word from… YOU…!" Shantay continued to growl, lifting her head up just enough in her agonized state to shoot a most… uncharacteristically menacing wrath-fueled death stare at the astonished magus. It was at that point, however, that he noticed something… off about his enemy.

"Shantae, were your irises always that… creepy golden color?" he asked, remembering a very specific detail about his enemy's normal appearance.

"What?" Taeshan remarked in surprise. "Golden color? My eyes were always blue…" he added, moving to look at his comrade's face. The instant he caught sight of her golden-eyed, vitriolic death stare aimed at Hypno Baron, he felt his skin run cold as he gasped in a mix of dread and fright. "Oh… Ohh, no… No, no no…! I… I didn't think this could happen to me…! Not like this…!"

"Didn't think what could happen to you?" Hypno Baron cluelessly asked.

"He's… he's… I-I think he's becoming overwhelmed with-!" Taeshan tried to spit out, though it was too little, too late.

"URAAAGH! I WILL TEAR YOU T' PIECES!" Shantay roared loud enough to make the foyer quake again before charging forward with reckless abandon, forcing Hypno Baron to take up his battle stance and defend himself. Before any of us knew it, we were off to the races.

 ** _HYPNO BARON: WORD-BREAKING WIZARD! (I was prepared this time… Totally prepared)_**

"Tay, wait!" Taeshan called out, running after his suddenly-berserk comrade as she charged at Hypno Baron with no regard for her own wellbeing. Hypno Baron conjured up a glowing bright green energy sphere and launched it at the duo while taking magic-induced flight to retreat from his current position. Shantay ducked under it and continued her mad dash, leaving Taeshan to be struck with an electrifying *CRASH* of an impact that sent him staggering back in burning pain. "Agh…! Darn it, this shouldn't be happening…!" he muttered through the stinging residual agony as he recovered. Meanwhile, Shantay leapt high into the air, her mind very much set to 'Destroy' as she careened toward the evil wizard with her fist cocked all the way back.

"Not likely, you rowdy little upstart!" Hypno Baron spat, summoning a momentary magic shield that met Shantay's fist with an earsplitting *CRACK* before summoning another energy sphere and throwing it at the airborne half-genie. With another crackling flash, he scored a direct hit that sent her plummeting to the floor below, where she hit the ground with a hard *THUD*. "Your primitive physical attacks won't work on me this time! I'm at full power, so you'll-! Gaaagh!" he was about to taunt before being hit with an enormous fireball launched at him at an unprecedented blinding speed, the *PWOSH* of an impact momentarily filling his ears as the fireball itself filled his face. He, too, was sent plummeting to the hardwood floor with an echoed *THUD* that shook the foyer enough that one of the portraits was jarred from its hanging position and crashed to the floor. He was more astonished than hurt, however, as he quickly picked himself up to examine his enemy, who was standing before him while her hands were shrouded in flames. "How… are you able to access that runt's magic!?"

"You're gonna pay for everything you've done today!" Shantay answered (but not really) as she again dashed toward Hypno Baron, who quickly lifted himself off the ground to summon up another magic shield to block a roundhouse kick thrown at him by the enraged young 'woman' as he began trying to create some distance. Shantay was undeterred by Hypno Baron's efforts to retreat, however, as she pressed on with a belligerent rush of punches and kicks that were also blocked by various shields conjured up by her adversary as she began relentlessly chasing him around the not-so-appropriate battlefield.

"Shoot…!" Taeshan cursed, shaking off the impact of the attack he was hit with as he uncertainly drew his gun from its holster. "At this point, I'm not sure what to do, but one way or another, this has to end before it goes too far…" With a deep breath of air to steel his nerves, Taeshan entered into the fray, taking somewhat-coordinated potshots at Hypno Baron while he was distracted. His aim, however, left much to be desired, as most of his shots missed, damaging the walls, furniture, and decorations in the campus foyer. The startling *BANG* of the discharge of the handgun's first round startled the highly-pressured conjurer as he lost focus to look in the direction of the gunfire as he slowed his retreat. He was hit by a nonconsecutive volley of Taeshan's potshots, further distracting him as he was wounded. In that moment, Shantay took full advantage.

"Take THIS!" she roared with violent intent, throwing a nasty fire-infused uppercut that connected with the wizard's jaw with a blazing *CRACK* that sent him plummeting to the ground again, landing flat on his back with another voluminous *THUD*.

"Agh…! You brats don't fight fair…!" he complained as he sat up, rubbing his chin before being shot from behind once more by Taeshan. "Ow! That's it, you raucous little ruffians! You've already angered me beyond a point of forgiveness!" he warned, conjuring up a magenta-hued force field that blocked the next punch thrown by Shantay, as well as the next shot fired by Taeshan. "Now, you simpletons will feel the power of the greatest magician in all the land!" With that, Hypno Baron rose to his feet and tucked his arms in before thrusting them outward. Suddenly, the force field grew rapidly to nearly the size of a blimp. Both Shantay and Taeshan were caught in the path of the burgeoning magic barrier as they were pushed back. In the next instant, the barrier exploded with a deafening *BOOM*, sending both of our heroes flying in different directions. Taeshan hit a nearby wall with a sickening *THUMP* before falling to the ground. Shantay, no luckier than her ally, was sent rolling across the hardwood floor, every painful impact with the ground resonating throughout her body. Neither of the two were seriously harmed, however, as they soon picked themselves up and readied themselves to continue. The foyer had begun to fall into a state of disrepair from the sheer intensity of the Boss Battle taking place inside it, however.

"Hypno Baron, give up and give us our bodies back! Now!" Taeshan demanded, aiming his gun at the magus. "If you don't, this is only gonna get worse for all of us!"

"You think you can make demands of me, you insufferable whelp!?" he indignantly shouted. "You fools will learn today just who you're trifling with!" he further threatened before noticing Shantay about to make her next move.

"I'll burn you alive!" she threatened, conjuring up another giant fireball to launch at Hypno Baron. Rather than stand and try to block it however, he teleported with a *POOF* of bluish-gray smoke, letting the projectile crash into one of the giant wooden doors of the building. The fireball crashed and immediately dissipated, leaving behind a disfiguring burn mark, though it miraculously hadn't caught anything on fire.

"Tay, don't do that! You'll burn this whole building down if you-!" Taeshan was about to warn before Hypno Baron reappeared in front of him with another *POOF*. "Wah!"

"This building should be the least of your concerns! Now take this!" he bellowed, throwing a magic-infused punch at the astonished 'soldier,' who managed to narrowly dodge it before countering with a hook that landed squarely in the wizard's gut. He soon followed up with a swing with the hand in which he was holding his gun that the dastardly magician ducked under. Hypno Baron conjured up a flow of luminescent blue energy into one of his hands as he used the other one to swipe at his enemy. Taeshan stepped back to avoid the haphazard swing, only to suddenly feel a horrifying burning sting in his abdomen.

"Gaagh!" he screamed in unspeakable pain as his entire body flashed with a deafening *POP* that lasted a fraction of a second, though the agony and resulting paralysis remained as Taeshan fell to his knees, clutching his abdomen.

"Savor that pain, little girl!" he taunted, wasting no time to charge up another current of magic in his hand. "You'll remember it for every time you-!" he was about to continue before he was caught off-guard by his other opponent.

"Time t' DIE, wizard!" Shantay uncharacteristically threatened with a roar of rage as she rushed forward across the hall and grabbed Hypno Baron by his cloak, using her full might to yank him away from her ally. Within the next half a second, Shantay's tightly-clenched fist met Hypno Baron's face with a jarring *CRACK* that sent him soaring across the foyer. Before he hit the ground however, he stretched his arms out, using more of his magic to catch himself in midair, levitating as he charged up more magic through his pasty, jagged appendages.

"You obnoxious little runts!" he bellowed in an insurmountable fury, levitating high into the air. "You have both incurred my utmost unforgiving wrath now! Prepare to feel the power of the incomparable Hypno Baron!" With that, the enraged magus raised his hands high and began discharging a disastrous volley of magic spheres that barreled toward our heroes at top speed.

"Tay, don't let those things hit you!" Taeshan warned, rolling out of the way of one before hurriedly climbing back to his feet. The voluminous, crackling *BOOM* of the sphere as it hit the ground nearly sent the 'soldier' back to the ground, though it sent broken planks of wood scattering about in every direction. Taeshan had little time to consider the collateral damage this ferocious battle was causing, however, as Hypno Baron fired additional blasts at will. The frenzied young 'man' was forced to take evasive maneuvers, running, jumping, and basically dancing his way around the arena as blast after blast homed in on and narrowly missed him. Every sphere that missed him went hurtling into either a wall, a couch, a statue, or a window, the chaotic *CRASH*, *BANG*, and *KABOOM* noises alone signifying the relentlessness of the magician's arcane assault. Do I even need to mention the hailstorm of shrapnel and debris that decorated the now-trashed foyer? Because there was a LOT of that. Already knowing that simply allowing the pressure to build wasn't an option, of course, Taeshan mounted the best counterattack he could muster, finding tidbits of time to fire one or two rounds from his handgun before having to evade another small series of magic spheres. "We're not gonna have much of a chance like this…! He's got us pretty much pinned…!"

Meanwhile, Shantay was on the same boat, though she was forced to separate herself from her partner. Hypno Baron's merciless, one-sided game of dodgeball saw her running and jumping around just as frantically as Taeshan was forced to. Shantay paid little heed to the pressure mounted by Hypno Baron's offensive, however. She was still consumed to the brim with unbridled, seething hatred as her glowing golden eyes remained locked on her target. By all means, she was ready to destroy him once and for all. As she periodically ducked behind couches that were ripped to shreds before her, leapt over piles of burnt wood and glass, and dashed across the foyer for her life while trying to launch fireballs of her own back at him, she noticed something very… convenient about Hypno Baron's position.

"Perfect…!" Shantay whispered to herself with a most sinister grin as she somersaulted out of the way of one of Hypno Baron's magic attacks. Taking this opportunity as just the opening she needed, she charged up a fireball and tried her best to steady her aim as she sprinted across the arena. Within that moment, she threw the pyrokinetic blast as high and as far as she could. Hypno Baron, alarmed by the speed of the attack, halted his assault to conjure up a shield to protect himself. However, the fireball whizzed over him, hitting an object above him without him noticing. A jittering *CLANG* rang out, though he was paying more attention to Shantay's attack and failed to pick up on it. Wasting no time, Shantay ran toward Taeshan as he took Hypno Baron's pause as a chance to catch a much-needed breather. "Hey! Chandelier! Shoot the chain!" she called out, stopping her approach to begin throwing a massive volley of fireballs at Hypno Baron to keep him distracted.

"Huh?" Taeshan asked as he heard his friend's request, looking directly above the wizard to notice the gigantic, glimmering crystal chandelier rocking back and forth, precariously hanging from the ceiling. As Taeshan scanned the fancy decoration, he quickly pinpointed the reason for Shantay's command. The chain links holding the chandelier in place were glowing red where the half-genie's fireball had struck it. Getting the idea right away, Taeshan took a deep, pained breath, aimed his handgun, and tightened his focus. Almost immediately, time seemingly slowed to a crawl, just as it had previously when he found himself in a similar situation. "Steady… Aim…" he encouraged himself as he locked his gaze on the blazing red chain links. They were moving, which made aiming for them difficult. He did not let this deter him, however, as he studied the back-and-forth pattern of the link's pendulous movement.

"Haaaah!" Shantay shouted, continuing to hammer away at Hypno Baron's impenetrable force field with a belligerent spray of fire and flames. "Eat every last one of 'em!" She dared, refusing to let up. She couldn't keep it up for long, however, as the extended use of her ability burned her out… no pun intended. In essence, she had run out of magic to continue using her fire attack, nearly collapsing to the floor as her steaming hands trembled uncontrollably. Panting with heavy fatigue, she kept her eyes on Hypno Baron, who'd quickly noticed her tired-out position. "Darn it…! I'm out already…? Pathetic…!"

"Run out of steam, have we?" he tauntingly asked, dropping his magic shield. His hands were trembling as well, however, as he'd been forced to use copious amounts of his own energy right away to keep his adversaries from overwhelming him. Nevertheless, he was glad to finally have the upper hand. "Good. Now you will pay the price for-!"

"Fire!" Taeshan shouted, startling Hypno Baron as he turned to face the 'soldier,' who fired a single round at him. Frightened due to his guard being down, he opted to shield himself with his hands, though he was more surprised to find himself unscathed by the attack. "Ha! Nice aim, you myopic simpleton! You almost had me worried for a sec-!" he was about to gloat before a sudden *SNAP* rang out from directly above. Before Hypno Baron even had the chance to glance upward to inspect the source of the noise, he felt a massive pressure suddenly crash onto him from directly above. As (kinda-sorta) planned, the chandelier's chain link was severed by a combination of Shantay's fireball and Taeshan's gunshot. With a messy, needlessly-violent *CRASH*, Hypno Baron was crushed under the hulking weight of the gigantic light fixture. Both Shantay and Taeshan shielded themselves as best as they could to avoid being damaged by the shrapnel flying and scattering in every direction, though they were more-so shielding their eyes from the gruesome impact of the crash. After a moment, they recomposed themselves to behold the sight of a seemingly-unconscious Hypno Baron lying still under the shattered remains of the chandelier.

"Whew…" Shantay breathed, wiping sweat off her brow as she scanned the area round her to notice the irreparable damage done to the foyer of Genie's Hem University. "Man, what a hassle…" she further complained, stretching out the kinks throughout her body as she caught her breath.

"You're telling me…" Taeshan replied, clutching his aching abdomen as he put his gun away and walked toward his teammate. "This whole adventure was a total nightmare…" he added, believing Shantay to be talking to him. However, Taeshan stopped in his tracks when he witnessed Shantay wearily walking toward Hypno Baron, a menacing, golden-eyed scowl plastered across her face. "Tayshan, stop! That's enough! We did it! He's down already!"

"Not good enough," she coldly remarked, continuing to trudge over to the incapacitated Hypno Baron. "I won't stop until he's a giant, crimson stain on this floor," she further threatened as she closed the distance between herself and the wizard.

"Tay, I'm warning you," Taeshan sternly admonished. "Don't move any closer to him! I said we're finished here!"

"You don't command me, you worthless weakling. We're finished when I say we are…!" she growled, her rage growing as her aggressive approach continued. She only stopped when she heard a *click* noise coming from Taeshan's direction. When she turned to look at her supposed-ally, she was alarmed to see him pointing his gun at her. "What do you think you're…?"

"I said stop! Now!" Taeshan ordered once more, aiming his firearm at none other than his own ally. Although, one could question if they were allies anymore if they were brought to the point that one of them was threatening the other with violence for the sake of who was supposed to be a common enemy. "I don't fully understand how this happened to you, Tay, but you need to snap out of it!"

"Hmph. Resortin' t' force t' get me t' bend t' your will this time? How truly pathetic…" Shantay brashly spat, annoyed by the fact that her own friend would turn on her… if they could still be considered 'friends' at this point. "If that's the case, I'll just destroy the both o' y'all here an' now, so you won't have t' worry about who kills who…" Shantay 'suggested' with a frightening, malicious grin. At that remark, the 'soldier' exhaled in shock as his heart sank like an anchor in the ocean.

"…That confirms it, then…" Taeshan murmured, taking a long, hard look into his former self's eyes to see that, as he'd suspected, a sinister force had taken hold over Shantay. "I was hoping it wasn't true and that it didn't have a chance at happening, but… The constant anger, the burning and itching you were talking about, the unnecessary violence, and now this… There's no denying it now, Tayshan. You've been overcome with Dark Magic and now you're being controlled by it…"

"Controlled? No…" Shantay menacingly denied, changing direction to begin approaching Taeshan in the same aggressive manner that she'd previously been drawing toward Hypno Baron. "'Freed' would be a better term for it. Regardless, you'd better trust your aim with that thing, because if you shoot an' miss, I'll rip you apart for even thinkin' about tryin' it."

"Tayshan, you've gotta fight it!" Taeshan urged, holding her ground as she took aim. "The Dark Magic is controlling your mind! I know you're in there somewhere, and I need you to snap out of it! Please!"

"There's no use screamin' for your beloved friend now, Shantae," Shantay remarked with a sneer, taking up a stance of battle. "His mind is under MY control now. I gotta thank both o' y'all for makin' this such an easy process."

"What are you-!?"

"All the self-doubts he had, comin' t' this place in your body… Trust me, I was fightin' for the right moment t' take over almost this entire time y'all were here," she revealed. "It was only after you destroyed his faith in you that I could really take hold." At that, Taeshan gasped, her dread amplified by the implications of the statement.

"But… how?"

"You should know by now, Shantae, that you are never truly free from the dark simply because you try t' constantly bathe yourself in light. Like I said, I've been inside you all along," she taunted with a snicker. "But, you knew that already. Funny how you've tried t' keep my existence a secret from everyone all this time, only for me t' come blastin' out the minute somebody else's soul got crammed int' your body. You know very well that I've been here since the day your obnoxious friends sealed me away int' the back o' your mind. Yet, here we are, in a situation where you're literally a whole different person, lookin' me right in the eye from the outside in, an' your reaction is t' pretend you don't even recognize me. I'm almost offended."

"Why you…! What have you done to my friend!?" the 'soldier' demanded to know, angered and further confused by this enigmatic misrepresentation of her ally. As far as he knew, the entity inhabiting her body was still Tayshan… in some respect. The malevolent being spoke with the same vocal patterns as him. However, it claimed to know Taeshan more intimately than he was aware of. The big question, however, was in what she meant when she said Shantae couldn't hide from the dark simply by bathing in light. The bigger question was how this ferocious entity came to be. Before either question could be answered, however, another whirling *CRASH* filled the otherwise-silent air, forcing the two to turn their attention to a thoroughly-infuriated Hypno Baron. The wizard was worse for wear, with wood planks and glass shards poking out of various portions of his cloak, which was tattered as though he'd been tied to the back of a vehicle and dragged around town. He'd used his magic to hoist the heavy chandelier off himself, callously flinging it onto the second floor as he stood at the center of the rubble.

"I'm done playing around!" he roared, summoning up more magic into his hands. This time, one hand glowed green while the other glowed red. "I draw the line at cheap, cliché trap set-ups like chandelier drops, and I will have not a single ounce more of your foolish attempts to defy me!" With that, Hypno Baron prepared himself for battle once more.

"You just don't know when t' stay down, do you!?" Shantay shouted, running toward Hypno Baron with the intent to finish the job. However, Hypno Baron knew better than to let this violent little psychopath get close to him at this point. Using his green-cloaked hand, he fired a volley of green magic spheres. Shantay dodged them by leaping and spinning past them. However, some of them stopped just shy of reaching her, thus blocking her path. Just as she'd stopped in her tracks, she noticed the magic spheres swirling around her, offering her no room for escape. "What the h-!?"

"Helicopter Blast Volley!" he called out (apparently, the name of his attack), clenching his green-clad fist and raising it toward his chest. The instant he did so, the spheres closed in on Shantay at simultaneous blistering speeds, colliding into a monumental lime green *KABOOM* of an explosion that sent the defenseless, Dark Magic-influenced half-genie hurtling across the foyer.

"Tayshan!" Taeshan called out in horror, worried that his friend might've been done in. However, she performed a quick somersault while she was airborne, and landed unevenly on her hands and feet, sliding backward after she landed. Relieved that his 'friend' was at least okay, Taeshan pointed his gun at Hypno Baron, who was at this point paying him little mind. "You're gonna pay for that, Hypno Baron!"

"Urgh…! Darn you…!" the injured half-genie cursed, wincing as she tried her best to recompose herself.

"How you're even conscious after that is a mystery I'd be too angry to solve," Hypno Baron complained. "No matter… I've got you right where I want you now!" he gloated, thrusting his red-clad hand toward her. Though at a disadvantage, Shantay reacted quickly by hopping out of the way before Hypno Baron could ensnare her.

"You connivin' old weasel!" Shantay yelled across the foyer as she braced herself for his next move. "You're seriously gonna try t' steal this body when you thought I couldn't move!?"

"Not quite," he denied with a sinister grin, catching Shantay by surprise. "Why bother being stuck in the vessel of a young woman when I have your original body to take for myself?" he further asked, sending shockwaves through both of his opponents.

"We won't let you!" Taeshan declared, steadying himself to aim. However, Hypno Baron had yet another trick up his sleeve. Using his green-highlighted hand, he pointed two fingers downward. Shantay, witnessing this, searched around the room with her eyes until she noticed a gigantic magic sphere barreling downward toward the 'soldier' without his knowledge. In that very moment, a rush of dread and horror washed over the young 'woman,' seemingly snapping her out of her rage as she came to. Shaking her head as she rubbed her temples with her hands, she regained her composure with just barely enough time to warn Taeshan of the impending danger.

"Shantae! Above you! Get out o' there!" Shantay called out in a panic as she pointed upward, hoping she wasn't too late to warn him.

"Wha…?" Taeshan murmured in confusion, glancing upward to notice what Shantay had become so frightened about. The young 'man's' blood went cold as he bore witness to the impending sneak attack. Just as he tried to move out of the way, however, he soon realized that his feet suddenly felt as though they were cemented to the floor. One glance downward revaled to him that his feet were glowing red. Hypno Baron had trapped him in place. Within the next moment, a disturbing series of *CRACKLES* and *ZAPS*, accompanied by the hapless adventurer's tortured screams, filled the air. "WAAAAAAAAAGH!" Taeshan hollered out in unbelievable agony as his ally looked on, frozen in horror. After a few traumatizing seconds that lasted an enternity, the blast dissipated with a dazzling *BOOM*, leaving Taeshan to fall to the ground, his body fully encased in that malicious red magic that initially stuck his feet in place.

"No! NO! NOOOO!" Shantay roared out in a tempestuous mix of shock, horror, and insurmountable rage as the demented wizard triumphantly cackled in the wake of his successful maneuver.

"Yes! Now then, all it will take is one touch, and I'll be that much closer to having my revenge on that despicable pirate!" he gloated, limping his way toward the incapacitated Taeshan. Hypno Baron had already felt the long-term effects of his tumultuous battle with the soldier and the half-genie, nearly every part of his mostly-hidden body aching and burning incessantly with fatigue. He, too, was running low on magic, as he tried and failed to teleport himself over to his target to make the process easier. He couldn't gather the energy necessary to pull it off. "Perturbing brats did a number on me…!"

"I'll make you regret EVER doin' that! You hear me!?" Shantay challenged, running as fast as she could manage through her own issues with fatigue and residual pain. She couldn't let Hypno Baron claim her original body. She couldn't let him cause further harm to her friend. Doing so would mean failure in every sense of the word.

"Stay back, cretin!" Hypno Baron commanded, thrusting a hand back toward Shantay to summon up a wave of neon blue magic that mirrored gale force winds. As though she were trapped in a hurricane, Shantay did her best to cover her face and trudge on, though many pieces of the objects broken in the chaos began to fly toward her. "You have meddled in my affairs long enough, and now it's time for me to claim what is rightfully mine!" he proclaimed as he held his position. Sizable hunks of wood, glass, and a host of other materials hurtled toward the desperate young 'woman,' some of the pieces even striking her. One particular plank, however, smacked her shin with a nasty *PLOCK*, knocking her off her feet as she fell forward onto her hands and knees.

"You…!" she growled, breathlessly trying to pick herself up to continue her approach, though her body ached all over from the catastrophe of an adventure that brought her and her friend to this once-luxurious college campus foyer. "If it's the last thing I do, I'm gonna make you PAY!"

"You just don't know when to surrender, do you!?" Hypno Baron angrily asked her, making a beeline toward Taeshan with the full intent of robbing him of his corporeal form. Now, when I say 'beeline,' I use the term VERY loosely in Hypno Baron's case. He… wasn't too fast on his feet, as he usually relied on magic more than his own body to get things done. So, he basically tried not to trip over his own cloak as he stumbled across the messy foyer to finish what he started. Luckily for him, however, he was much closer to his target than Shantay was. "Just give it up, boy! Your body will forever belong to me, and that's final!" he jeered, still run-stumbling his way to his 'prize.'

"No…! I refuse t' be stuck like this…!" Shantay griped, staggering her way over to her injured ally from across the main hall. "I can't let this freak be the reason I lose everything…! But what can I do at this point…?" At that, Shantay wracked her brain for ideas on how to beat Hypno Baron in this super-dramatic footrace. As it stood, if things kept going the way they were, his body would be good as lost. Worse yet, Shantae's soul would be stuck inside Hypno Baron's body, and as if it needed to be mentioned, that would be a fate worse than death; living on as a decrepit, out-of-shape, skull-faced wizard. Can you imagine being stuck like that? Seriously…

Anyway, Shantay realized she was low on options and lower on time as she tried to figure out what to do. Every passing second counted, and the longer that hideous magician went unhindered, the narrower the window of opportunity became. She was out of magic, so shooting fireballs at him was out of the question. Simply outrunning him wasn't an option either, as he was too far ahead.

"Think… THINK…!" she urged herself as she limped on, soon getting the idea to check her inventory for anything that might've been of use. By reaching into her shredded-up shirt, she inexplicably searched her item stock as she and Hypno Baron competed for control of 'her' (Tayshan's) original form. She didn't have to search long, however, as she pulled out three big, ash-gray metal spiked balls. "Yes…!" she cheered, though her celebration was short-lived. Hypno Baron was getting dangerously close to Taeshan as he lay, paralyzed on the floor in excruciating pain. The very sight of the very REAL possibility that she could lose her original body forever sent Shantay into an utter panic as she thought of the very next thing to do with the Pike Balls she was holding. "Hey!" she shouted, hurriedly taking one of the Pike Balls and cocking her arm all the way back. Within a millisecond, she flung the first of her three giant, metal projectiles of death as hard as she could. The Pike Ball rocketed toward Hypno Baron at breakneck speed as he continued to stagger toward Taeshan. Just before he got within arm's length of the defenseless 'soldier,' Hypno Baron's back was met with a *THUNK* of an impact from the dense flying metal ball of doom.

"OWW!" Hypno Baron choked out, stumbling forward as he avoided falling flat on his face. Pained and infuriated, he turned around to figure out what exactly his enemy threw at him that would hit so hard and hurt so much. However, he probably would've been better off keeping his back turned. Why, you may ask? Cool your jets, because I'm about to tell you. Hypno Baron turned around to glare at Shantay, only to see another Pike Ball bulleting right at him hard enough that one could SEE the friction-based smoke billowing off it as though it were about to spontaneously combust. He instinctively attempted to summon up a magic shield, but due to his overuse of his already-limited magic supply, all he could manage to do was summon up some neat neon blue sparkling effects that… were pretty much useless for anything other than looking cool. As such, the incredibly-unfortunate wizard was hit with another debilitating *THUNK* of an impact. Take a wild guess where. "…aaagh…!" he barely managed to squeak out, hunching over and clutching the horrendously-offended area with both hands as he tried to mentally process just how much unfathomable pain he was in.

"Eat these balls, you freak!" Shantay shouted once more (very questionably so), catapulting the final Pike Ball at Hypno Baron without a shred of concern for what a thick, heavy, incredibly-dense metal ball (with SPIKES ON IT) flying at near mach speed could do to a person's face. And speaking of… Hypno Baron was struck again with a mortifying metallic *PWANG* in the face, knocking him so far off his feet, he actually flew OVER Taeshan, landing behind him without managing to simply TOUCH him to initiate the body transfer. Talk about unlucky… or, maybe lucky, depending on who you were rooting for. Anyhow, wasting absolutely ZERO time, Shantay kicked it into high gear before Hypno Baron even got a chance to get up. As though her life depended on it (because it kind of did), Shantay sprinted toward Taeshan and dove forward, belly-flopping onto the immobilized 'solider' while he was still surrounded by the incapacitated wizard's sinister red energy.

The very instant their bodies made contact, Shantay and Taeshan were suddenly locked in place as the transfer ritual activated once more. Both of our heroes temporarily lost consciousness as, once again, astral projections of themselves emerged from each other's physical bodies. Swirling, crackling winds spun around them nonstop as the process carried on. Though it felt like an entire lifetime for both of them, the transfer was over in a matter of seconds. With a conclusive echoed *CRACKLE*, the spell was (unintentionally) complete.

"Ooogh… Wh… what happened…?" the half-genie groggily asked, rising up to a seated position as she rubbed her head. "Hm…?" she grumbled, finding something unusual about the feeling of her own head. She curiously grabbed a tuft of her royal purple hair and brought it to her eyes. "My hair's back… Wait…! My hair. It's back! It's completely filthy and frazzled, but it's back! Every last lovable strand of it!" she realized, suddenly overjoyed by the revelation. "Which means…" she trailed off, glancing downward at the rest of her body. She patted herself up and down, grabbing all over herself to make absolutely sure that what she was seeing was real. She didn't even care at this point what she was wearing; she was far more concerned with the very real possibility that she'd finally gone back to being her normal self. Speaking of, the final place she prodded away at was… well, right between her legs, if I'm going to be blunt. As you might've expected, she was ecstatic to find that there were no foreign objects down there. "Yes! Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! I'm back in my own body!" Shantae (in case you didn't piece it together by now) excitedly cheered, barely able to contain her relief and happiness with returning to normal. Of course, in her excitement, she failed to immediately realize she was sitting on a severely-injured Tayshan, who had nowhere near as much energy to celebrate being in his own body.

"Ooouaagh…!" Tay croaked out in unbelievable pain, every inch of his body feeling as though he were set on fire and crushed with a boulder. Hearing the serviceman's pained grunt, Shantae snapped out of her cheerful celebration to notice him lying face up under her.

"Tay! You did it! You saved us! Thank you so much! I don't know what I'd have done if we were never able to switch back!" she gratefully praised, excitedly patting him on the chest as she continued to sit on him. "You're the best!"

"That's… that's cool… an' I wish I could… join you in celebratin', but… everything hurts…" he croaked again, his tone so strained that one could guess it hurt him to even talk. "I… I can't move…!" Hearing this both shocked and greatly worried the young heroine, who quickly climbed off her partner and knelt beside him.

"I'm so sorry, Tay…" Shantae apologized as she laid a hand on his chest. "You might've been in a better condition if I knew better and avoided Hypno Baron's attacks. Don't you worry, though, we'll get out of here, and we'll get you healed up, okay?"

"Not if I have anything to say about it, you meddlesome brats!" Hypno Baron shouted, having just recovered from the vicious Pike Ball assault he suffered. And believe me when I say this… He… was… FURIOUS. His robe was tattered in various places across his body, one of his eyes was squinted shut, and if one didn't know better, then they could say that they even saw a gigantic, neon-hued fracture line going down the middle of his glow-in-the-dark face. Yet, he was too angry to let it keep him down in the wake of his voracious lust for revenge. Seeming to have found some reserve of magic, the tenacious magus's hands glowed jade green with his insurmountable wrath. Just as Shantae rose to her feet to defend herself, Hypno Baron fired a blast at her. The explosive *CRASH* of an impact sent the half-genie flying backward as she tried to block it.

"Whoa!" she bellowed, barely finding the time necessary to make an appropriate landing. Nonetheless, she landed on her hands and feet, sliding back a few yards as she kept her gaze fixed on the intensely-angered wizard, who was already making his next move.

"You really did it this time, you insufferable cur!" he cursed, pointing down at Tayshan, who lay helpless on the floor below him. "Now… Now, you will know unrelenting torment the likes of which neither your body nor your soul could ever comprehend!" he threatened, charging up a magic blast and shooting it downward at the soldier without a moment's hesitation. The disturbing *ZAP* horrified Shantae, who bore witness to the magus's unforgiving cruelty.

"Gaaaagh!" Tayshan hollered out in terrible agony, feeling every bit of Hypno Baron's underhanded attack.

"Tay!" She called out, appalled beyond comprehension. The vengeful wizard wasn't done, however. He fired a few more electric blasts at Tayshan, intent on making him regret even thinking about interfering with his plans as he writhed in unthinkable agony. "THAT'S ENOUGH! STOP IT!" Shantae angrily screamed, utterly sickened and infuriated by the gut-wrenching sight of Tay being mercilessly tortured by Hypno Baron. Hypno Baron did not listen to Shantae's demand, however. Instead, he stopped only to grasp the worn-out serviceman by his face and lift him up off the ground with one hand. Tay, desperate to survive the encounter, made as resilient an effort as he could in his condition. However, this resulted in nothing by the unfortunate young man beginning to suffocate as Hypno Baron's fingers wrapped firmly around his nose and mouth. "Hypno Baron, I said STOP! NOW!" she further demanded, her blood boiling with unquenchable anger as she began dashing toward him with the full intent of saving her teammate from further harm.

"You see, child, I had no intention of putting your body in this condition when I planned to steal it. You and your annoying friend did that together," Hypno Baron taunted, holding Tay high as he tried to break free.

"Hypno Baron, I won't say this again! LET! HIM! GO!" Shantae roared as her temper boiled over. However, before she could reach him, Hypno Baron turned to her and, with Tay in his grasp, made a threatening gesture that implied he would not hesitate to harm the soldier again if she continued her approach. As expected, Shantae came to a screeching halt, glaring intensely at the wizard as she did so.

"That's right, brat, you will sit idly by and watch as your precious sidekick suffers the consequences of your incessant meddling," he taunted with a jeering snicker. Shantae felt her heart sink to her stomach as she desperately thought about what to do to save Tayshan from Hypno Baron.

"If you hurt him, I will never forgive you…!" she growled, squeezing her fists tightly enough that she could've crushed graphene as she boiled with immeasurable rage. Every molecule in her body burned with desire to save her friend from further torment. However, she was pressed for options when she had no magic to rely on at the moment, in addition to being pressured to stand still by Hypno Baron holding Tay hostage.

"And as for you…" the dastardly wizard began, turning his attention back to Tay. "Your little stunt ruined my one and only chance to deliver that loathsome Risky Boots her due comeuppance. Therefore, you-!" he was in the midst of monologuing before he felt a sudden sharp, stabbing pressure in the hand he was using to grab the injured soldier's face, accompanied by a cartoonish *CHOMP*. "YEEEOOWWWCH!" the unfortunate wizard hollered out loud enough that all of Genie's Hem could hear it. As it turned out, Tay hadn't been listening to Hypno Baron; he instead used the small window of opportunity to bite the vile magician's hand as hard as he could. "You disreputable, depraved, distasteful little peon! If you're hungry, then have a taste of this!" he further threatened, hurriedly charging up as much magic as he could in his free hand before cocking it all the way back and preparing to deliver a fierce palm thrust to the otherwise-defenseless young man's chest. Seeing this as a perfect chance to save her friend, Shantae charged in, full-throttle.

"Kyaaahh!" the incensed young woman shouted as she, with a mighty forward push of her feet off the ground, sprinted and leapt forward to deliver a devastating flying kick. With a power-packed *THUMP*, Shantae's foot found itself firmly planted in Hypno Baron's gut.

"Twouuuph!" the wizard cried out in unbearable agony as he was sent hurtling across the room by the half-genie's monstrous kick, losing his grip on the weary serviceman he was set to punish for trying to make a meal of him. Tay hit the ground flat on his back with an unceremonious *THUD*, barely conscious as he lay panting desperately for air that he was previously being denied. Hypno Baron hit the ground rolling a mere second later, sliding into the doorway at the other end of the hall. "Grr…!"

"Hypno Baron, I've had enough!" Shantae protectively shouted, stepping in front of her injured ally as she brushed her long, flowing hair out of her face. "You've gone way too far, and I will not let you hurt him anymore!"

"Accursed genie wretch!" Hypno Baron spat, gingerly recovering from his adversary's surprise attack, though he wasted little time to try and retaliate. With intense focus, he summoned up just a bit more magic into his hands, which began crackling and sizzling with an arcane jade light. "If that is how you wish to play, then come at me! I will vaporize you and your boyfriend here and now!" Shantae, doing her best to conjure up some energy for what appeared to be the final phase of this titanic brawl for the record books, took a deep breath and focused as she tensed every muscle in her body. However, she was immediately aware that her reserves of magic were almost completely tapped out. She was also aware that, due to her hair not being tied up, she had no access to her signature attack. With very little time to spare, she attempted to check her inventory to see if she'd had any spare potions available to replenish her magic. Sadly, she did not.

"Shoot, that's right… We only had enough for the Pike Balls and food we ate before coming here…" she complained to herself, finding a simple Cheesy Kanafeh that she practically swallowed whole to regain just a little of her stamina. "Go figure that THAT'S the only thing I had left," she further commented, realizing the irony of the situation as she prepared herself.

"Prepare to feel years' worth of wrath for all your transgressions, woman!" Hypno Baron threatened, dashing forward, magic-charged hands extended outward as he sprinted toward Shantae as fast as he could. Shantae, understanding that taking him on straight-up might not have yielded the best results, scanned the surrounding area for a possible advantage. Within the three seconds she had before Hypno Baron reached her to commence his assault, she spotted a gleaming silver object lying amongst some of the fabric, stone, wood, and glass rubble nearby. Upon closer inspection, she recognized the item as Tayshan's handgun that she'd dropped earlier while she was in his body. Before she could question how it wound up outside of her possession (or 'his' at the time), Hypno Baron struck. "Yaaah!" he shrieked as he thrust a fist forward. Quick on the draw, Shantae dodged it and countered with a punch of her own aimed at his chest. With another powerful *THUNK*, Hypno Baron was sent reeling back from the attack, the wind nearly knocked out of him as he reoriented himself to attempt another magic-charged swing at his enemy.

"Too slow!" Shantae taunted, ducking under the wizard's uncoordinated attack before countering again by launching a rising uppercut that hit with a jarring *CRACK* against his jaw. Again, Hypno Baron staggered back, struggling to stay on his feet for a second before pulling himself together once more. Shantae, wasting no time, charged forward and unleashed a furious combo of punches and kicks, landing blow after blow across Hypno Baron's face and chest as she beat him backward. The impact of each of her attacks resounded throughout the arena, emphasized by the magus's pained grunts and shouts for every time he was hit. "HAAAAH!" Shantae roared once more, increasing the ferocity of her rapid barrage of strikes as she unleashed all of her anger at her enemy for all he'd put her through. Before too long, however, Hypno Baron made his next move. He wildly swiped a magic-fueled hand at the half-genie while she was busy pounding his guts into clay. As luck would have it for him, his counterattack landed with a crackling *SMACK* across the half-genie's face, ending her offensive as she stumbled back a few steps.

"Agh…! You…!" Shantae hissed through her teeth as she tried to catch her breath, rubbing her cheek as it burned like someone had pushed a piping hot coal onto it.

"You really weren't expecting me to… to lie there and take such a barbaric assault, did you?" Hypno Baron rhetorically asked, though he was panting just as heavily. Shantae had clearly done a number on him, as he struggled to maintain his balance as he hunched over in agony. "I will certainly say, you hit pretty hard for a girl…"

"Oh, don't give me that," Shantae shot back, far from amused by his rude comment. "I've beaten you enough times that you already know what I'm capable of, first of all. Second, you've got some nerve pulling that card on me! You wouldn't say the same thing if I were a guy!"

"I meant because you've only ever used magic and your insufferable hair to fight me in the past, brat. Get off your high horse and try not to get too upset at a simple observation."

"I'm not in the mood for your tasteless jokes!" Shantae warned, having long since lost her temper.

"Goodness, what is it with you women anyway?" he kept going, very much against his adversary's advice to discontinue. "You're all so sensitive! It's to the point that I almost wonder how you function day-to-day without bursting into tears or flying into an inconsolable rage at every time you see something that makes you feel literally any emotion at all! That, or, y'know, blowing up castles because someone didn't want to do you a favor…" he snidely remarked, demonstrating that he was still sore at Risky Boots for a certain explosion-related incident that rendered him homeless.

"Hypno Baron, you're really pushing it…!" Shantae tried to warn, her anger increasing exponentially.

"And you're proving my point! Then, if it isn't you girls getting mad over nothing, it's the constant complaining about-!" he committed himself to continuing.  
"Hey…!" a voice weakly called out from behind Shantae, cutting Hypno Baron off. Recognizing it, Shantae immediately turned to see Tay, struggling to climb to one knee as he regained feeling in his body.

"Tay!" Shantae cheered, somewhat relieved that he was at least still breathing.

"How are you even still conscious at this point!?" Hypno Baron queried, becoming more perturbed by the resilience of his enemies.

"Do… yourself a favor, wizard… an' shut your ignorant mouth…" he warned, ignoring Hypno Baron's question and agreeing with Shantae. However, he was unable to move further, as he was wracked with surges of pain that paralyzed his every limb.

"Oh, and of course YOU side with her!" he complained. "And you call yourself a guy!? I mean, I know you spent the entire day in her body but come on! You know I'm right!"

"Don't… try t' rope me int' your flawed, prejudiced, old-timey belief system…" Tay disagreed, holding his figurative stance firm. Physically, he was struggling to bring himself to a stand, much less hold a stance.

"Are you kidding me!?" Shantae yelled at Hypno Baron, disgusted by the wizard's continued antagonizing of her for being female. "How insensitive can you get!? No wonder you're like a thousand years old and still unmarried! Your attitude toward girls is repulsive!" At that, Hypno Baron reeled back in utter shock.

"Ouch… Savage…" Tay commented with an amused smirk.

"Seriously, how do you live that long and learn nothing about how to respect women!? It really is a wonder that so many women are working under you if that's how you think of us," she added, thoroughly fed up with the magus's impertinence.

"Hey, they could be just doin' it for the money rather than out o' respect…" Tay added. "Provided they're even gettin' paid…"

"Could be? I would think more that they're definitely working with him for a paycheck and nothing else. Otherwise, there's no way any of them would call themselves his employees now," she concluded, putting the final touches on the third-degree burn specially designed for the sorcerer as he sat and took it. "It makes me wonder if they even know this is his viewpoint…"

"Agh! Ergh…!" Hypno Baron stammered, walking—no, speeding himself right into a brick wall at about the pace of light itself. As he froze, utterly mortified by Shantae's justifiably-harsh words, his body temperature rose to rival that of molten lava. It didn't help that the soldier he was seeking some form of approval from was instead laughing at him.

"Wow… Get bodied…" Tay taunted with a pained snicker.

"Fine then… It doesn't take a gender equality expert to make the decision to indiscriminately vaporize the both of you," he vindictively threatened, summoning up glowing, lime-green electric spheres the size of a basketballs in each of his hands. "Enough of this prattling! It's time to meet your maker, genie girl!" With that, Hypno Baron leapt backward and began firing off a barrage of magic spheres aimed directly at Shantae. Realizing the imminent danger she and Tay were in, her first initiative was to protect her friend.

"Tayshan, look out!" she called, dashing toward him before diving and tackling him to the ground before a plethora of magic projectiles soared over them.

"Gaaagh, Ahaagh…!" Tay coughed out in incredible pain from being pancaked by his ally in her effort to save him.

"Sorry, Tay, but it was either that or let you get hit. I'm gonna try and grab your gun, so stay put, alright?" Shantae informed him (as though he had a choice) as she climbed off him and turned to see another barrage of bullets headed her way. Bracing for impact, Shantae took at least six of them head-on, each of the flashing *CRACKLEs* emphasizing the collision of the blasts with her bare arms as she blocked them. "Ouch…! Darn it, this would've been a great time to have a Bubble spell…!" she complained as she made a mad dash toward the handgun. Hypno Baron, intent on destroying Shantae at all costs, chose to focus his attacks on her. At this point, the ailing wizard knew he had very little left in the tank and that he was pushing himself to his absolute limit. His arms began to sting and burn with fatigue and from severe overuse of his magic. He also knew that Shantae's teammate was vulnerable to attack. However, for as long as he'd been battling Shantae, he knew better than to target him… at least, for now. He needed to figure out a last-ditch strategy of his own to irrevocably destroy them both with no chance of them coming back for more.

So, his plan was put into action before he needed to give it a second thought. He continued firing short, controlled bursts of magic blasts in Shantae's general direction, which forced the young woman to leap, spin, and dash out of harm's way as she made her way toward a particular pile of debris in the foyer. Much to Hypno Baron's dismay, however, Shantae was as acrobatic and nimble as she'd always proven herself to be, as she gracefully and masterfully danced her way around his attacks with seemingly no sign of struggle at all. Must've had to do with the fact that she was a professional dancer that she had so little trouble. It was… a minor setback. That's all.

"Curse this obnoxious little troll…!" he spat as he continued to fire blasts at her. Of course, every blast that missed wound up crashing into either a window, a portion of the hardwood floor, or into furniture within the campus foyer. With a *CRASH* here, a *THROCK* there, and a few burning *CRACKLE* noises abound, much more of the foyer was damaged as more debris was sent flying in all directions.

"Got it!" Shantae exclaimed, diving past another spray of magic bullets to claim her partner's handgun. Without hesitation, she struck as prepared a stance as she could with both hands on the weapon as she aimed it at Hypno Baron. "Alright, stop!" she commanded, prompting Hypno Baron to freeze in place. "If you don't want to see what this thing can do, Hypno Baron, you'll give up right now!"

"Curses!" the disgruntled sorcerer exclaimed, nearly burnt out as he panted like he'd just completed a triathlon. "All that effort and careful planning gone to waste! You were not supposed to be that good at dodging my attacks!" he further complained, though his hands were still glowing.

"Hypno Baron, I mean it!" Shantae warned again, pressing her finger to the trigger of the silver Desert Eagle. "If you don't surrender now, I will shoot! I know how to use a gun, believe it or not!"

"You're bluffing!" he disbelievingly retorted, showing no signs of backing down.

"I'm not! You weren't around when I lost my powers and had to team up with Risky to take down the Pirate Master, but during that time, I taught myself how to shoot! Don't make me use this!" she explained, pointing out Hypno Baron's mysterious absence during the Pirate's Curse saga. However, Shantae knew good and well all the problems with her partner's handgun. After all, she spent the vast majority of the night having to use it herself. While she'd gained some experience with its functionality, she was still very wary of its strong recoil and disturbingly-loud discharge. Additionally, she was quite a few yards away from her target and, as far as she knew, she had no access to whatever ability she'd used while she was in Tay's body. Without access to her magic in general at this point, however, this was her best bet in the wake of the magus opting for long-distance warfare.

"In that case, I'd better make this move while I can!" Hypno Baron challenged, charging up one final energy ball the size of Squid Baron into both hands and held it high. "Hope you enjoyed having a mindless lackey to call a sidekick, Shantae, because he's about to become a giant, smoldering stain on this floor!" he threatened, aiming his last-ditch attack at the immobilized soldier, who'd tried his hardest to climb to his feet once he'd heard that Hypno Baron was planning to kill him.

"Don't you DARE, HYPNO BARON!" Shantae shouted loud enough that the citizens of Scuttle Town could probably hear her. "If you so much as bring up another THOUGHT about hurting him, I will make you pay! Do you hear me!?"

"Guess I'd better make this count then!" he teased with a pain-laced cackle as he cocked his arms back as far as he could once the attack was ready.

"No!" Shantae cried out, pulling the trigger of the Desert Eagle. With two frightening *BANGs*, the gun jerked upward, though the young woman was able to keep the weapon in her grasp… even if just barely. Nevertheless, the two rounds rocketed toward their target with extreme prejudice. The flashing marbles took a split-second to reach Hypno Baron, one of them striking him in the shoulder while the other hit him in the face. He was sent plummeting to the floor in unbelievable anguish.

"Gagh! Owww! Augh! My shoulder! My face!" he hollered and whined, writhing in unspeakable suffering on the ground. However, he was shot as he was about to launch his underhanded attack. As such, the blast was lobbed high into the air, hitting the peak of its arc not long after it was fumbled. Watching in utter horror, Shantae turned to see Tay still trying to get up as he rose back to leaning on one knee.

"Tayshan, look out!" she called out in fear of what might happen in the next few seconds. Her mind and her body burned once more with desire to jump in and save her friend… even if it meant taking the brunt of that attack herself. As though her legs operated on their own, Shantae rushed forward with all her might as she warned Tay to get out of the way.

"I… I know…!" Tay croaked out, fighting through swirling torrents of immeasurable agony to bring himself to his feet. By the time he'd done so, the energy ball was on a downward course toward him. "If… if I survive this, I'm gonna pay this wizard back in spades…!" he promised as he very slowly staggered his way backward, trying his hardest in his condition to escape. By the time he'd created a tiny bit of distance, however, the moment everyone (except Hypno Baron) had been dreading arrived. With a disturbing, flashing, explosive, debris-generating *PWOCK* of the blast with the floor directly in front of him, Tayshan was sent helplessly flying high across the foyer with the force of a cannonball. He was fortunate to avoid being hit directly by the sphere, at least. As one might expect, however, there was nothing to break his fall but the hardwood floor that may very well have been made of concrete, considering how hard he was about to fall.

"Tayshan!" Shantae called out, intensely dismayed and frightened by the sight of her friend being harmed so grievously by Hypno Baron. Filled with altruistic determination to save him before his untimely meeting with the ground from at least twenty feet in the air, the desperate half-genie mustered up all the strength she could to give chase. She sprinted at top speed with no plan in mind other than to try and catch him to break his fall. However, the momentum at which the soldier was flung by the blast outsped her by a long shot as he began to rapidly descend. "I'm not gonna make it! No, no, no, no, no! Come on, body, pick it up!" she urged herself, pushing herself to her absolute limit to try and catch up. Sadly, it was to no avail, as Tay's head-first collision with the ground was all but inevitable. Shantae never gave up, however, as she continued her valiant dash. Even so, it seemed Tayshan was done for…

That is, if it weren't for the wildest of strokes of luck imaginable, which came in the form of a *POOF* of smoke, followed by an incredibly-attractive long-haired young man emerging from it and leaping high to catch the incapacitated soldier in midair. The force of impact between the two boys was enough that this oh-so mysterious savior was pushed back, though he retained control of the situation. Descending from the air backward, the young man braced for impact by spreading his legs, bending his knees, and arching his feet before they met with the sleek, shining wooden floor. With an elongated *SCREEEEEEECH*, the magic-powered savior slid across the floor, holding Tayshan up by wrapping his hands around the soldier's chest. Once they stopped, the mysterious individual knelt to the ground, laying the injured serviceman across his lap and cradling his head.

"Aashiq?" Shantae called out in complete shock, stopping in her tracks in the wake of her old flame rescuing her teammate out of nowhere.

"Indeed it is I, my kanafeh," he responded with a smile, looking up at her while keeping Tayshan secure. "I heard every bit of the commotion in here and it worried me greatly that you may have been having a trying time against Master Hypno Baron. Of course, I am glad to see that you and your friend here have returned to your original bodies!"

"Yeah, thank goodness," she confirmed in breathless relief. "Also, thanks for saving Tayshan! I can't even imagine how things would've gone if it weren't for you!"

"Aashiq!" Hypno Baron roared, angered by the sight of one of his own minions assisting the enemy. "What do you think you're doing!? We're SUPPOSED to be BEATING these fools, not SAVING them! That also begs the question of how they got past you in the first place, but you coming in and saving one of them in the middle of our battle is unacceptable, I say! Unacceptable!"

"My apologies, Master Hypno Baron, but I simply could not bear to stand idly by and allow my sweet kanafeh to be hurt," he explained.

"Your… kanafeh? What does a delicious bread-based dessert have to do with this!?"

"No, no, you misunderstand. In this context, 'kanafeh' is my term of endearment for Shantae."

"Oh," he dismissed before realizing something. "Wait, you know her already?" he asked, thrown off by the news.

"Indeed, I do, though it is a somewhat long story. In any case, it had been so long since we had last laid eyes on one another and, considering the circumstances of our encounter, I desired to see her in good spirits… as well as in her own body, but mostly in good spirits!"

"So you're turning on me. Is that it?" he questioned, perturbed by the young magician-in-training's response.

"Not at all, sir! I promised my loyalty to you in exchange for you taking me on as your apprentice, and you have my utmost word that I will keep it to the best of my ability. However, I do not feel comfortable with the idea of you bringing harm to my beloved friend or this irresistibly-handsome stranger," he explained, cradling Tayshan's face tighter into his chest. The brazenness of the confession lit both Shantae AND Hypno Baron with an incredibly-awkward heat. A furious, wide-eyed blush crept onto Shantae's face as she absorbed the sight and experience of her old crush admitting and acting on his apparent attraction to none other than her protege. Hypno Baron, evidently having no skin on his face, did not blush. However, it didn't exactly take quantum physics to read the shock on his face. Tay, still conscious enough to hear and experience such an unexpected turn of events, went wide-eyed with shock as he immediately began trying to move to break away from Aashiq's nurturing grasp. He found it very difficult, however, as he was still recovering from the magic-induced numbness resultant of Hypno Baron's magic attack.

"…Oh. You… you have feelings for that boy?" Hypno Baron dared to ask.

"Yeah… you… you like him?" Shantae also dared to ask, evidently sharing the awkward apprehension her enemy felt.

"Indeed. Since I laid eyes on his gorgeous, battle-weary, sweaty masculine form, I was smitten with him. I desire to be snuggled in his burly, muscular arms much the same as I am holding him now," he unnecessarily confessed, further flabbergasting everyone else. Tay, immensely put off by Aashiq's confession, redoubled his efforts to break free, but that darn magic paralysis kept him nearly immobile as he'd only just begun being able to feel anything in any of his limbs. "His stimulating ruggedness… his lively, feisty enthusiasm… his manly aroma… Oh, it is just too much to contain! I feel like I could love this man for all eternity!"

"…Why… won't my body… just… move already…!?" Tay angrily whispered to himself, becoming increasingly uncomfortable as the numbness in his body was gradually replaced with excruciating stabs of pain all over. However, his unimaginable bodily pain paled in comparison to the awkwardness of being coddled in such an unwarranted manner by the guy who was supposed to be Shantae's ex-boyfriend… or something.

"…b-but… I thought… you…?" Shantae tried to question, feeling her heart breaking into a million pieces as she tried to conceptualize the bizarre confession as it came out of Aashiq's mouth.

"Do not think for a second that I no longer harbor the same intense, soul-binding affection for you, my kanafeh," he further confessed, throwing both Hypno Baron and Shantae for yet another loop.

"What!?" Shantae bellowed in a swirling blend of surprise, excitement, perplexity, a tiny bit of perturbance, a teaspoon of sugar, a pinch of salt, a cup of cooking oil, and two egg yolks to bake up the most wonderful cake of emotional confusion that anyone witnessing this terribly-derailed boss battle could partake of.

"Seriously, what in the blue blazes is going on here…?" Hypno Baron asked, flabbergasted beyond reason. "I don't think I get this whole… 'spontaneous teen romance' drivel at all. Kids these days are so eccentric…"

"It is true that I harbor an undying love for you as well, Shantae," Aashiq continued for no good reason. "Ever since you and I got to know one another, I found myself so enamored with your unique sense of style… your indomitable resolve to help your fellow citizens… not to mention your unrivaled feminine charm…"

"Uh… I-I… Huh!?" Shantae barely managed to comment, floored by everything Aashiq was throwing at her.

"In a nutshell, I return your feelings for me tenfold, Shantae!" he blurted out, making the half-genie's heart skip a beat… though she couldn't tell if it was from flattery at the discovery that Aashiq actually did return her old feelings after all this time, or because of how unfathomably awkward this situation had become thanks to Aashiq's interference and dual confession. Before anyone had much time to process this awful, awful turn of events, however, Tay finally conjured up the strength to slowly raise his hand and lay it upon Aashiq's cheek. Alerted by the movement, Aashiq quickly turned his attention to his newest apparent crush. "Yes, my habibi?"

"…First of all… No," Tay weakly croaked out, voicing his disagreement with anything Aashiq had to say. "No… t' everything you just said. All of it. Second… help me up…" he so humbly requested.

"But of course! Although, are you certain you can-?"

"Bro… Just do it…" Tay reiterated, already uncomfortable enough with this situation as it was. "I've had… just about enough, an' it's time we… drew the curtain on this circus show…"

"If that is what you wish…" Aashiq uncertainly complied, moving to sit Tayshan up before moving to pull him to his feet. Tay, still suffering incredible jolts of pain all across his body, barely found it in himself to stand. Aashiq, attentive to his apparent need, moved again to steady the serviceman, though Tayshan held a hand out to halt him. Soon after, he began to stagger and limp his way across the now-trashed campus foyer.

"Tay?" Shantae called to him, greatly worried about his health. "Are you sure you should be-?"

"Don't mind me, homegirl…" Tay tiredly assured, still limping across the 'battlefield' without any signs of stopping. "I'm… I'm just peachy…"

"Tay, seriously, I don't think you're in any condition to be shambling around like that," Shantae insisted. "You look like a zombie right now."

"I feel like one, too, but… we all know why…" he shot back, continuing his painful stride. It was at this point that it was made painfully evident (no pun intended) he was heading straight for Hypno Baron, who'd stood there, shocked beyond belief that ANYONE could take as much of a magic-induced beating from him as Tayshan had and not only survive, but get up and walk around. Never picturing the injured serviceman as a threat, however exhausted he was, Hypno Baron made little effort to move. He slowly backed up, trying to charge some semblance of magic into his hands to defend himself. However, his limbs fizzled and crackled as though he were struck by lightning, sending waves of excruciating pain throughout his body that stuck him in place.

"D-darn it…!" he cursed to himself in pain as he winced. "I've… I've run my magic reserves completely dry…!"

"Not goin' anywhere…?" Tay asked through his fatigue, finally reaching the immobilized wizard and laying a hand on his shoulder. "Good… because at this point, I got just one thing t' say t' you… so listen up… listen close… an' listen t' me as hard as you conceivably can…!"

"Now, now, young man… I know what you're thinking," he began trying to plead. "But just think a little further about-!"

"Been there, done that… Mind's made up already," Tay interrupted, clenching the fingers of one hand onto Hypno Baron's cloak, making it even more impossible for him to escape in his paralyzed state. "So, you ready for that thing I gotta say…? Are ya? 'Cuz it won't wait…"

"…Here it comes…" he whimpered, fighting through thunderstorms of pain to grasp his hood and pull it downward over his face. In that moment, Tay, hit with a sudden burst of warm, tingling, anger-infused energy, balled his free hand into the tightest fist he could make, cocked it all the way up, took a step back while still holding onto Hypno Baron's cloak, and locked himself into position.

"Tay, hold on!" Shantae called out.

"…Yes, boss?" he paused, figuring Shantae would tell him not to decimate Hypno Baron.

"Oh, thank goodness…" Hypno Baron whispered to himself.

"Maybe you should reconsider what you're about to do," she suggested. "Remember what I said about not being too aggressive?"

"After he tried t' steal my body, only t' force you an' me t' switch with each other, made us waste an entire day chasin' him probably halfway across the country t' this city, where we were made t' fight through hordes upon hordes of his goons t' get here because he tried t' weasel his way out o' the deal we made…" he trailed off, pausing to take a breath before continuing. "…an' then even after we clawed, shot, punched, kicked, an' blasted our way through t' this campus an' arrived a whoppin' thirty minutes early, WITH the correct information AND PROOF that that disgustin' octopus was the one who took his stupid book, he still chose not only t' REFUSE t' hold up his end o' the deal t' switch our bodies back at our request…" he trailed off once more, pausing to take one more deep breath before moving forward with conveying his very detailed point. "…but also decided it was a good idea t' try t' take advantage o' the situation an' fight us while we was switched up?"

"Uh… Well…" Shantae pondered, though Tayshan wasn't finished.

"An' even after that, he had the nerve t' try an' steal my body a SECOND time, an' then after we shut that sneaky trick down an' forced him t' switch us back to our normal selves, he tried t' kill me because he didn't get his way. What exactly do I need t' consider here, after what you an' I have been through because o' him? As far as I'm concerned, he deserves it, an' I'm doin' it for both of us…"

"…Wow…" Aashiq commented, amazed by just how much his friends were put through.

"I mean… when you put it like THAT…" Hypno Baron nervously acknowledged, understanding he MAY have warranted some of Tayshan's justified anger in this scenario.

"…Okay, good point, Tay," Shantae nodded, seeing Tay's point through and through while also remaining moderately ticked-off at Hypno Baron for having made them go through such a nightmarish roller coaster ride of an adventure for basically no reason. "VERY good point."

"Glad ya see it my way," Tay nodded. "Now, what should I do?"

"…Make sure you don't hit him hard enough to do any more damage to this building," the young woman suggested, with an understanding shrug, shocking Tay (though his surprise was tempered by his excitement) and mortifying the soon-to-be-obliterated magus. "Other than that, fire at will, soldier."

"What!?" Hypno Baron screamed as Shantae, serving as judge and jury, handed down a truly harsh sentence.

"Ma'am, yes, ma'am," Tay readily agreed before turning his attention back to his enemy, preparing to fulfill his role as executioner. "Now then, Hypno Baron… Here's a magic trick for you! Abraca…DABRA!" he roared, pulling the wizard in while he fired off the second most vicious uppercut he'd ever thrown. Within a nanosecond, an earth-shattering, resounding *BOOM* rocked and quaked the foyer as Hypno Baron began experiencing a sudden case of Boss Battle detonation, tiny explosions going off all over his body as his chin was comedically jerked upward and jutted out in reaction to the soldier's decisive uppercut. Before long, one final, huge *BLAST* shook the foyer once more, accompanied by a momentary white flash as Hypno Baron was sent flying high into the air, veritably defeated. As per Shanae's request, Tay hit him just hard enough that he didn't go crashing into any walls or the ceiling (though he came PRETTY close, and the ceiling of this hallway was PRETTY high). Nonetheless, he came plummeting down as quickly as he was blasted up before hitting the floor with a boisterous *PLOP* on his stomach, thus finally bringing this terrible (in every sense of the word) saga to a most… uh, unusual, yet oddly-satisfying end. I'm just glad it was over at this point, to be honest.

"Tada…! Magic…" the worn-out soldier-turned-magician conclusively commented before falling to his knees. At that point, he'd used most of what little energy he could gather up and was on the verge of passing out on the spot. As such, he'd begun to fall forward before Shantae rushed over to catch him.

"I gotcha…" she muttered to him as she steadied herself before slinging one of his arms over her shoulders. Tay, trying his hardest to remain conscious, stabilized himself as best as he could with his team leader's support while she returned his handgun to its holster.

"Thanks…"

"Anytime, Tay," the young lady assured before turning her attention to Hypno Baron, who'd gingerly rolled toward the nearest wall and sat himself up, leaning against it. "Alright, Hypno Baron, we beat you fair and square, despite all your dirty tricks. Where do we go from here?"

"What? Why are you asking me that…?" Hypno Baron asked back, climbing to his knees and one hand as he rubbed his jaw with the other to make sure it wasn't broken.

"You know why. Aside from getting our own bodies back, we came here looking for a way to undo the Super Slugger Spell Squid Baron placed on Barracuda Joe. Are you going to help us with that or not?"

"Hmph. Even if I wanted to, I can't do it without my Enigmatic Tome of the Occult," he revealed, much to the shock and disappointment of both of our young adventurers.

"You're kidding me!" Shantae yelled, doing nothing to hide her annoyance at Hypno Baron.

"I'm afraid so, genie girl. Most of my spells and their reversals were in that book. Without it, I have only my memory to rely on, and it isn't the greatest. Had my Tome not been destroyed and had this battle ended with the same result in that case—and trust me, it wouldn't have—I would have been able to help you."

"Great… So we really just wasted an entire day gettin' sidetracked by this clown…" Tay raspily complained. "A whole day we could've used t' either search for a spell reverse or keep tabs on pirate girl, an' we get this instead… Fantastic."

"You're telling me…" Shantae agreed, gritting her teeth in intense frustration and disappointment.

"Master Hypno Baron?" Aashiq chimed in as he approached his mentor to help him all the way up. "If I may, is it possible that the copies of some of the passages in your sacred Tome you had me make includes the reversal these two seek?"

"I'm afraid not, my apprentice," the weary wizard regretfully denied. "I only had you copy some of the simpler, more basic spells in it that would help you to properly harness your power and grant you use of some beginner-level self-defense techniques. Anything more advanced than that, you were not given instruction to record. To that end, I'm kicking myself for not taking the extra measure to let you copy as much from it as possible."

"Oh…" Aashiq groaned in disappointment that he could be of no assistance to his prospective love interests.

"Fret not, my boy, for all is not lost. With what little I have in my memory banks, in addition to your notes, we still have just enough to start anew. We will create a new Enigmatic Tome of the Occult that will surpass the original in contents and quality. And who knows? Maybe we can eventually publish THAT updated version and make a double-edged impact on the market! Not only would it draw in more of a cult following for me and possibly draw in future students willing to pay for my tutelage, you and I could split the royalties from the updated Enigmatic Tome of the Occult 70-30! …Okay, maybe 80-20. Of course, the opportunity is golden!"  
"Oh, splendid, Master Hypno Baron! Truly marvelous!" Aashiq cheered, all the way on-board with the ridiculous idea. "We shall indeed see this glass as half full rather than half empty, and we will rise from the ashes like a mighty phoenix born anew!"

"Couldn't have said it better myself, my star pupil! You are certainly on the right track to becoming an evil mastermind! We-!"

"Not to interrupt another one of your diabolical plots to make an easy profit, Hypno Baron, but what does ANY of that have to do with that spell reversal we're looking for?" Shantae cut in, quickly growing bored with the conniving magician's opportunistic scheming.

"Oh! Right, the slug spell… Well, genie girl, you're on your own in that regard," Hypno Baron dismissed with a tepid shrug of his shoulders. "We don't have a thing that could help you there. My best suggestion is to seek out a friend of mine who might be able to help you. I happen to think he MIGHT be able to do something, but if he's not off gallivanting his flamboyant self around the Kitschy Quilt Desert like he has been over the last few years, I couldn't tell you WHERE he might be."

"That does almost nothin' for us, but… well… that's somethin', I guess…" Tay acknowledged as he rose to stand on his own, fighting through terrible shocks of pain to do so.

"Kitschy Quilt Desert, hm?" Shantae pondered. "Never heard of THAT place before, and I thought I'd seen all the deserts in Sequin Land. Where is that?"

"Sorry, kids, but you've gotten as much out of me as you're gonna get," he sternly rebuffed any attempt to pry into him further. "For free, that is."

"What?"

"My apologies, kanafeh, but Master Hypno Baron has recently employed a practice of only revealing important clues to… well, to patrons," Aashiq clarified.

"Wow… a duplicitous opportunist AND a con man," Tay observed, disapproving of the magus's modus operandi for selling information. "You're battin' a thousand for scummy business practices, homie. So we gotta pay you t' cough up anything more useful?"

"You know it, boyfriend of both genie girl and my apprentice," he teasingly remarked with a snicker, causing Tay to go hot with embarrassment and ire. Aashiq, flattered by his master's acknowledgement of his attraction to the soldier, blushed and giggled like the adorable young man he was. Shantae merely groaned in contempt.

"Real funny, you obnoxious a-!" Tay was about to yell.

"Aash, how WOULD that work, anyway?" Shantae asked, cutting in once more and letting her curiosity get the best of her. "I mean, I liked you for the longest time, but after you left Scuttle Town, I never thought I'd get to see you again. Finding out you felt the same is the greatest feeling in the world, but… how… where…?" she trailed off, finding trouble with trying to word her question. "…Y'know what? I'll just ask: What are we supposed to do if you like Tayshan as much as you like me?"

"Well, I thought that would be obvious," he stated, apparently surprised that neither of his crushes had figured it out yet.

"Thought WHAT would be obvious?" Tay dared to ask, though he dreaded the answer.

"That the three of us should enter a polyamorous relationship, of course!" he naively stated, throwing everyone else for a loop like no other.

"Uh…" Shantae droned, unable to even attempt to find the words necessary for a proper rebuttal.

"Wow, how bold of you," Hypno Baron praised. "I dare say I'm almost as proud as I am disgusted by your relentless pursuit of love, my pupil. And trust me, I'm very disgusted. It's not my thing at all, but good on you for not being afraid and knowing what you want. It's what I like to see in a student of mine."

"…Okay," Tay began after sighing a blimp's worth of hot air out of his lungs before taking a stab at figuring out this situation before it got out of hand. "Look, I'm flattered an' all… I guess… but I don't think that's gonna work. Ever. I'm not the most experienced in the world with datin', but I do know that I grew up learnin' that relationships were supposed t' be exclusively between two people. Two's company an' three's a crowd, man, an' I am not interested in sharin' my relationship partner with anybody else."

"D'aww, Tayshan, you handsome rogue, you…" Aashiq coquettishly praised the soldier, further discombobulating and unnerving him in the process. "I assure you, you would need not feel jealous of Shantae. I would love you unconditionally."

"What!?" both Shantae and Tayshan shouted aloud

"No! No, goodness, no!" Tay continued, growing rapidly more flustered by the fact that he was being hit on by another guy for the second time. "I didn't think I had t' say it, bro, but I'm not g-!"

"Gotta agree with Tay, Aash," Shantae conveniently interjected. "I don't think I'm into the idea of sharing my partner with anybody in a relationship."

"What she said," Tay added after her. "If y'all two have a history with each other, y'all can sort that out on y'all own. I would not be offended if you left me out o' that equation."

"Tay!" Shantae yelled at her partner (for adventuring, NOT romance), displeased with his attempt to bow out of the conversation. "Don't just sell me up the river like that!"

"What? I'm doin' no such thing," he pleadingly defended. "I apologize profusely for blurtin' out what I said earlier about you likin' him, but since the cat's out the bag an' he clearly likes you back, don't you think it's a good time t' get the guy you always wanted?"

"First of all, don't make decisions for me," she sternly rebutted. "I'll decide myself who I like and think I should date. Second, just because I happened to like him, it doesn't mean I'm just going to jump on him the instant I find out he likes me back. Besides, I don't really know HOW I feel anymore, considering he's interested in both of us and loyally working for Hypno Baron!"

"Alright, my bad," Tay pacifically conceded. "So… where do we go with this?"

"Aw, are you certain you do not wish to pursue this matter further with me, Tayshan?" Aashiq asked in mild disappointment.

"Look, I know where I stand here, an' I ain't budgin'; no matter HOW admittedly-cute you are…" he unabashedly stated, alarming everyone in the room as they all gawked at him. Noticing this, he immediately became flustered, somewhat embarrassed that he admitted to such a controversial thing in such an unceremonious matter. Nevertheless, he owned it. "Yeah, I said it. For a guy, you're actually real cute. I hate that word with a burnin' passion, but it's the only one I can think t' describe you with. It's to a point where if I didn't know better, I'd mistake you for a beautiful girl, an' that REALLY trips me up. But, I've got some pretty strict boundaries set, an' I ain't breakin' 'em now or ever."

"Darn… Well, I at least know you fancy my appearance, so I shall take that as a consolation prize of sorts…" Aashiq admitted in dejection, though it didn't stop him from shooting a smiling wink at the soldier who'd just complimented him. Tay flinched in a mix of discomfort and mild regret, a painful chill going up his spine as he stood, baffled by Aashiq's flirtatious mannerisms.

"…Wow, this conversation's getting so weird…" Shantae acknowledged, stunned beyond reason at Tayshan's admission. However, the subtle blushing smile on her face told a different story. Her heart thumped with a most… peculiarly curious interest as she brought a hand to her chest and took a deep breath to calm herself (while biting her lip) before her thoughts ran wild. "Not that I'm complaining… This is one of the most adorable things I've ever witnessed…"

"It's what?" Tay asked.

"A-anyway, Aash, Tay has spoken. Also, like I said, I don't know if I still feel the same way for you as I did back then…" she hastily stated, blatantly ignoring Tay's question. At that, the Hypnotist apprentice gasped.

"You too, my kanafeh?" he asked in shock.

"I'm… afraid so. After I saw you at the Great Button Province with that other girl, I thought that was it for us. I sort of… let go of my crush and moved on, though it wasn't the easiest process. Even now, after giving it some thought, I… I don't think I ever completely stopped liking you, but… I can't say I'd want… to start anything up right now."

"But Shantae…" Aashiq began, his heart pumping as the disappointment coursed through his body. As he spoke, he approached his half-genie love interest. "It is not too late to begin anew. What we had in terms of our friendship was special, and no other person has ever matched the sheer joy and exhilaration I felt when I was with you. I truly felt like we were soulmates, bound by the very cosmos themselves in a world inhabited by literal billions of people."

"Aash…"

"It is true!" he proclaimed, taking the initiative to grab Shantae's hands and hold them up as he confessed his feelings to her. "The very day I gazed into those sparkling ocean blue eyes of yours, peering into the very pure, incorruptible, alluringly innocent essence of your beautiful soul, I knew we were meant to be. However, I was too cowardly and apprehensive to let you know how I felt. I still remember the laughs we shared, the countless nights we spent reading comics, gazing into the stars, and experiencing each other's whole worlds together…"

"Jeez, I couldn't hold a candle t' that level of eloquence…" Tay murmured, taken aback by Aashiq's confession. "I'm almost jealous…"

"Of who? Aashiq or Shantae?" Hypno Baron whispered to him, though he was genuinely curious as to where Tay's mind was at.

"…Uhh…" he droned, caught off-guard by the question, though it led to Hypno Baron drawing his own conclusion without needing a direct answer. Without saying too much, Tay probably should've answered that question.

"Shantae, ever since the day I left Scuttle Town, an enormous hole was punctured into my heart, and I have not been able to fill it," Aashiq continued. "Kinship after kinship in these last troubling months, and no one I had pursued could bring forth the sheer joy I felt when I was around you. After some time in the Great Button Province, I had my epiphany that love is truly blind and that the gender of my lover is irrelevant in the pursuit of ultimate romantic bliss. I had also broken out of my shell, of course. Yet, even when I had begun more openly pursuing love, I could not fill the void in my heart from when I departed from Scuttle Town without even a proper goodbye to you. It is one of my greatest regrets, and I apologize profusely for doing that to you, my kanafeh. If you may find it in your heart to forgive me, I will do everything in my power to make it up to you," he concluded, still holding a flustered Shantae by her hands as they stared directly into each other.

"Aashiq…" Shantae murmured, struck by her old friend's wordy confession. Her heart pounded in her chest like thunder in the clouds. Her body roasted with anxiety and anticipation that she could hardly contain, as her every nerve was sent into overdrive. The air around her grew thick and dense, dripping with romantic tension between her and Aashiq. However, intently listening to him gave the half-genie just enough to know how she currently felt toward him. As such, she momentarily closed her eyes and took a deep, shaky breath. Tay and Hypno Baron, fully drawn in by the scene before them, watched in total silence, eagerly awaiting Shantae's reply. As such, she spoke. "…Those were some of the most wonderful words anyone has ever said to me… I… I can hardly even think of anything anyone else has ever said that made me feel as joyful or as awestruck as I do right now… Seriously, my whole body's on fire and my stomach is doing pancake somersaults because of your words…"

"I apologize for putting you on the spot like this…" Aashiq replied, worried for her wellbeing.

"Don't apologize. I can tell you meant everything you said, and I'm totally grateful I got to hear you speak your mind on how you feel about me. But… as much as it pains me to say, Aash, I… I don't think we'd work out in the long run…"

"What?" Aashiq, Tayshan, AND Hypno Baron collectively yelled in alarm.

"Call it a gut feeling, but… I… I-I think we're walking two different paths now, and I'm not sure there's room for us to be together that way as we travel them," she explained. "You're a wonderful guy, really… The most wonderful… or, rather, one of the most wonderful I've ever met. I don't know how to put it, Aash, but you're one of my favorite people ever. You're cute, you're kind, you're polite, you're funny, and even now, when you're technically an enemy to me, you're still a blast to hang out with. But, it's been a long time since we stopped talking to each other, and we've both changed since then. I'm not quite the same shy, impressionable, awkward girl I was back then, and you're clearly way different now than you were then, too. I'm proud of you to hear you found yourself in our time apart, and I sincerely wish you all the best with continuing to learn about yourself. But, when you left Scuttle Town without a trace, it cut me deep… it cut me even deeper when I saw you with that other girl in the Great Button Province. I was under the impression you'd simply gotten over me and found someone else to share that special bond with. Likewise, with help from my friends, I moved on, too…"

"…Shantae…" Aashiq murmured, never letting his gaze break from hers as she continued to look directly at him.

"It seems like finding love isn't all that hard for you, anyway. I mean, not to sound rude, but it sounds like you've found your groove for entering long-term relationships. Me… I have still never dated anyone, ever, and I haven't even come close to trying. I've spent more time than ever focusing on being a hero and protecting this world from evildoers like Risky Boots, the Barons, and whoever else threatens the safety of our homeland. With that at the forefront of my focus right now, being in a relationship with you would only put you in danger… especially when you're working for Hypno Baron. Besides, when I consider romance in the grand equation, I feel like I wouldn't do the other person much good if I couldn't give all my attention to them."

"I am not the jealous or the clingy type," Aashiq attempted to reassure her. "I would certainly understand when you are busy and would not press you for quality time; especially when you are Sequin Land's greatest heroine. With some discussion, we could make this work. I promise you, I would never let you go in the same way I so foolishly did back then. Why not give us a chance, my kanafeh? If you are not certain of how you feel toward me, maybe we should explore it."

"That's just it, though… I can't bring myself to say 'yes' to the idea of exploring feelings I used to have, hoping they haven't truly changed after all this time when even at face value, they did. It wouldn't be fair to you to have you make such a big gamble on me at this point. You deserve to be loved by someone who can give it to you all the time and who accepts you for who you are. Besides, I think I lik-!" she almost blurted out before pulling herself back, realizing that she was about to reveal something most personal to her. Aashiq's eyes widened at the incomplete statement, his shock and heartbreak evident. Tay, also hearing the cut-off comment, cocked an eyebrow in curiosity. "I-I mean… I… I'd like it if we could still be friends, Aash, because right now, I'd like nothing more than for us to start over," she nervously concluded, gently freeing her hands from Aashiq's grasp as she backed away a couple steps.

Silence filled the room as all four of the participants in this rapidly-deepening conversation contemplated what was said… None did so more than Aashiq, however, who'd sullenly looked toward the glass-littered foyer floor, clutching a hand to his chest. Indeed, he knew what Shantae had meant and where she stood on her interest (or lack thereof) in pursuing a relationship with him. He mentally sifted through his memories with her, ranging from the beginning of their friendship, to the strengthening of their bond, to his sudden separation from her, and his decisions since then leading them to this unbearably-tense moment. Once he had a moment to process, Aashiq cleared his voice and spoke.

"You are right, Shantae…" he began after a sigh of his own, bringing his crestfallen gaze to meet hers once more. "You are absolutely right. We certainly have grown apart in our respective absences from one another's lives, and it would be nothing but foolish to think we could simply pick up where I abruptly left off. I regret that detestable day even deeper now that I know the true consequences of it…" He paused to take another deep breath to keep his composure, though it became difficult for him as a knot formed in his throat. "However, I must thank you for your honesty. Both of you, actually," he continued, roping Tay back into the equation.

"Hm?" Tay grunted, not expecting to be thanked.

"Indeed, you both have shown me by rejecting me just where my thoughts on the topic of love lie. I must apologize once again for foisting my attraction on the two of you and expecting you to welcome me into your budding relationship with open arms."

"…What buddin' relationship?" Tay questioned, growing wary of the pretty boy's assertion. At that, Aashiq giggled.

"Ah, such delightful naivete…" he acknowledged, though Tay looked at him as though he'd missed a joke. "How I wish you would take me into your arms, so that I may enlighten you, Tayshan… Your irresistible charm is matched only by your adorable sense of humor."

"…Let's just say I understand what you're gettin' at an' call it there," he hesitantly replied, getting that Aashiq was implying something he wasn't comfortable with.

"Of course, habibi…" Aashiq nobly agreed. "In any case, I suppose that is it, then. I have much to learn from this, and only then, will I be able to find happiness wherever it may be," he somberly murmured. "I believe I will be taking my leave now. There is… much to consider in the wake of this."

"Aww, Aash…" Shantae commented, moving to hug her old friend. "I'm sorry if we hurt you…"

"Do not be, kanafeh," he rebuffed, returning her hug before they separated. "If anything, I required that wake-up call. I have not been satisfied with things since the day I walked out of your life, and understanding just how that made you feel from your perspective has given me the closure I needed. Therefore, do not feel upset about this. There is no one to blame here. Now then, I must go," he informed her before temporarily turning toward his teacher. "Master Hypno Baron, I am returning to my station at this time."

"Oh! U-uh… good work, my underling," he uneasily praised, caught by surprise. Aashiq merely nodded and smiled before turning his attention back to Shantae and Tayshan.

"Until next we meet, kanafeh and habibi! May your relationship blossom into something truly beautiful," he bade before vanishing with a smoky *POOF*, leaving his teacher and his frenemies to themselves. Of course, an awkward silence passed over the foyer following Aashiq's departure before anyone spoke.

"And I thought I was good at making people suffer…" Hypno Baron commented, irking Shantae immediately.

"What's that supposed to mean!?" she defensively asked.

"You two took that poor kid's heart and ripped it to shreds right in front of him. All he wanted was so little as a measly kiss from at least one of you, and you both shot him down outright. That level of savagery requires skill I don't think even _I_ have."

"We didn't do a thing t' break his heart, bro, come on…" Tay protested. "Dude's just gotta get his priorities an' expectations in order before he jumps into a relationship. We feel how we feel, so don't fault us for not bein' on-board with that three-person arrangement he propositioned."

"Yeah, even someone as heartless and cruel as you would have to understand how hard that was for me to explain myself to him," Shantae added in agreement. "He's still my friend regardless of his allegiance to you, so it was better for me to be honest with him than to just agree with what he was saying to spare his feelings. I wouldn't be a good person if I couldn't be open with him," she added, defending her actions.

"I'm pretty sure there are more delicate ways of handling such fragile topics, but who am I to say?" Hypno Baron commented with a shrug, further irritating the heroes who'd just defeated him in battle.

"Look, we wasted enough time here playin' around with you, so why don't we cut this short an' get t' the real point o' this chat?" Tay demanded, steadily losing his patience with the longer he and Shantae remained in Genie's Hem, talking about anything other than their purpose for being there.

"Fine, fine…" Hypno Baron acquiesced, rolling his eyes. "So, where were we?"

"We were at the part where you were trying to charge us for information about this Kitschy Quilt Desert place," Shantae reminded him.

"Ah, right… So, what do you two have to offer that might loosen my nonexistent lips, hm?"

"All things considered about the other reason we're here, we've got this thing," Tay quickly answered, digging into his inventory and pulling out a familiar-looking whistle.

"What is that?"

"A Baron Summoner, according to Squid Baron," Shantae answered. "Blow on it and Squid Baron shows up to provide assistance in the middle of a battle." At that, Hypno Baron's fury was reignited, though he remained menacingly calm.

"…Is that so?" he irritably remarked, understandably livid that the rumors he'd heard about Squid Baron betraying him were even more evident than ever.

"Yep. Octopus Dictator thought he could play both sides o' the fence an' get his time t' shine in the spotlight, as far as we know," Tay informed him. "He was actually the one who brought us here t' Genie's Hem, which is part o' why we got here as early as we did. He was also pretty—no, VERY well aware that he didn't wanna be anywhere near you once you found out what was REALLY goin' on, but if you wanna have a chat with him about that without goin' through the hassle of huntin' him down, this is your ticket t' doin' so."

"Wow, Tay, that's… actually really clever," she complimented him.

"Well, it doesn't take a seasoned crime boss to know that's an offer I can't refuse," Hypno Baron very quickly agreed. "Kitschy Quilt Desert's southwest of Scuttle Town. It's very far in the distance—I'd imagine at least a few dozen nautical miles—but its gaudy sands and arid winds are incredibly hard to miss. You could even get there by boat if you were patient enough and the tides were right," he splurged, visibly demonstrating his interest in having a… civil discussion with his former business partner without having to play a deadly game of Hide-and-Go-Barbecue-The-Squid-For-Despicable-Treachery to do so. "Now hand that whistle over and beat it, you whippersnappers. I've got a meeting to arrange…" he menacingly commented, letting everyone know just how much trouble poor Squid Baron was in.

"All yours," Tay agreed, handing the Baron Summoner to Shantae, who'd walked over and handed it to Hypno Baron. Hypno Baron got Baron Summoner and cackled in delight. During that moment, the Stage Clear platform finally appeared, signaling the end of this tumultuous quest.

"Actually, before we go, Hypno Baron, do you happen to know what Risky Boots is planning, since she was the biggest reason behind you attacking us in the first place?" Shantae asked, interrupting his triumphant guffawing. Shooting a glare in Shantae's direction, he raised a fist to his mouth and reached his other hand toward the young lady, clearing his throat while subtlely asking for another bribe. "…Of course…" Shantae commented with a sigh. "What more could we give you, though…? We don't have that much money…"

"We plundered a treasure chest on the way here, remember?" Tay reminded her, remembering the Suspcious Treasure Chest he swiped while he was in her body. "If you can part ways with whatever's in there, maybe you could use that."

"Oh! Right," Shantae agreed, reaching into her inventory and pulling out the Suspicious Treasure Chest and quickly handing it to Hypno Baron. As though he were a starving vagabond looking at his next big meal, the wizard got Suspicious Treasure Chest by snatching it out of Shantae's hand and cackling once more, further putting off his enemies. "…Well? What do you got?" she further asked, interrupting his second moment of triumph.

"You need to learn to let me bask in my moments, little girl…" Hypno Baron complained, settling down before recomposing himself. "Anyhow… that deplorable Risky Boots merely paid me off after wrecking my castle with those abominable weapons of hers to distract you two to keep you off her trail long enough to fulfill her plans. What those plans were, she was VERY keen on not revealing to me. Smart move on her part, really, because I would've told you anyway just to spite her. All I CAN tell you is that she tried to force her way into my castle to set up a second lair there. When I told her 'No,' she blew it up. As you already know, I was trying to take one of your bodies for my own to exact my revenge on her for her heinous transgression against me, though I got paid either way. Would you believe she paid me just enough money to buy out this entire college campus in one swift, not-so-hostile takeover?"

"…WHAT!?" Shantae reacted in utter shock, knowing already that the revelation meant bad news for a certain avian aficionado friend of hers who'd been interested in applying for admission.

"Oh, yes! I'm the head honcho of Genie's Hem University now! I'll be raking in the big bucks, forcing—no, 'covincing' foolhardy, impulsive, impressionable young teens and their parents to pay exorbitant amounts of money to have said teens spend anywhere between two to six years toiling away in tedious, monotonous, questionably-relevant classes taught by questionably-qualified teachers, all just to earn flimsy pieces of paper that they SAY will be useful for career building, but don't necessarily actually grant them access to the jobs they'd be blowing all that money and studying so hard for! Oh, and don't even get me STARTED on the decades-long student loan plans for the eighty-five percent of students who couldn't afford to pay out-of-pocket to attend classes here!"

"…See, this is why I never bought int' the whole college thing…" Tay murmured, evidently glad he chose not to get scammed by—er, I mean, enroll in higher education. "At its worst, it's just one big financial pitfall of a gamble designed t' line the pockets o' greedy scumbags like this guy while forcin' an entire generation o' kids t' fall victim to a system that ritually punishes them for bein' poor… ironically, by stiffin' them for more money they won't have unless their so-called 'dream career' really kicks off after they sink so much time an' money into it. Otherwise, they'll most likely die in debt by the time they hit retirement age," he ranted, ending his observation on a particularly dark note.

"…Wow, it's… it's really like that?" Shantae asked, strongly reconsidering her interest in pursuing formal public education while also worrying about the future of a certain bird-training friend of hers.

"Most o' the time, yes," Tay affirmed. "Unless, of course, you get real lucky or you're real good at the job you're studyin' for, as far as I'm aware."

"He's right, young lady," Hypno Baron agreed. "And all I'd have to do is keep the place nice and prettied up and keep the accreditation monitoring entity off my back! And let's not even mention the prices of the textbooks and other equipment related to the major areas of study offered here! When a door closes, an enormous window of opportunity opens! Genius, is it not!? Best part is, I didn't even need a business partner for this scheme, nor do I need to do anything at all to change the curriculum to my liking! It's evil enough as it is!" he further gloated, cackling maniacally once more.

"…Oh man, what a disaster…" Shantae murmured with intense dread, feeling her interest in attending school practically drain out of her like water through a pasta strainer.

"Anyhow, I'll excuse myself. I've much planning and tidying up to do for a special little… surprise party tonight. It's invitation only, and you're not invited. You two are free to continue on with your ridiculous crusade against that miserable pirate woman. I couldn't care less at this point what she does next, because I've done more than enough for her on my part. I will warn you, however… Get in my way again, and I WILL have my revenge. Have a pleasant night now!" Hypno Baron bade without even giving them a chance to reply before he hurried out the front entrance of the campus foyer.

"…I've gotta warn Sky about Genie's Hem University A.S.A.P…" Shantae mumbled in great concern for her scholarly best friend while paying no attention to Hypno Baron's warning. "Tay, let's get out of here. Now," she hastily commanded, dreading the implications of Hypno Baron's latest caper.

"You don't gotta tell me twice," Tay agreed as the two began walking toward the Stage Clear platform. "Twitch an' Vinegar were right… What a weirdo…" he further insulted under his breath.

"Hold on a second there, cowboy and gorilla girl!" called a feminine voice from seemingly nowhere. Before anyone had to wonder who it was, a certain Bat Gal came swooping in, the bruise on her cheek providing just the clue Tay and Shantae needed to identify her.

"Venus!" Shantae called out, though the sight of her filled Tayshan with immeasurable dread. He was, of course, reminded of why she might've been approaching them. "Where were you this whole time?"

"I was watching the fight from the second floor as I helped my sister recover from her injuries," Venus answered with a tinge of disappointment in her tone. "Gotta say, I'm certainly thinking about taking my sis and a few other ladies and splitting from Hypno Baron after what he said earlier about us girls. We deserve far better than what he's given us if that's how he thinks about us. It's a shame though, because I pegged him as being more understanding than that."

"Sorry you had to hear his awful rant," Shantae consoled. "I'm sure that if you do decide to quit, there are other opportunities out there for you; much better ones, at that."

"You know it. Though, our departure might have to wait until after we scrounge up enough money to fix up a plan and move away. That aside, you two are a force to be reckoned with…" she commended, impressed by their battle against the shady wizard. "I didn't expect you to give H.B. such a hard time after all you had to go through to get here. Color me impressed."

"Well, it's part of the job," Shantae modestly acknowledged. "A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do."

"Hey," Tay protested.

"And guy," Shantae added before turning her attention back to Venus. "Anyway, I hope you and your sister find something better for yourselves."

"Right, right…" the Bat Gal agreed with an affirmative nod. "Although, I hope you weren't thinking you could slip away without paying your dues," she teasingly reminded them, shooting a wink at Tayshan, who was immediately petrified with anxiety.

"Uh… R-right, we owe you a… a thing…" he stammered.

"You bet those hot muscles of yours, you do," she affirmed, tapping her index finger to her bruised cheek as she seductively sashayed her way toward the duo. "So, which one of you adorable adventurers is going to take responsibility for this, hm?"

"Uhh…"

"That's all you, Tay," Shantae hastily suggested, stepping back.

"Yeah, about that… YOU'RE the one who made that deal with her, so YOU do it," he argued.

"You're the one who punched her in the face, though," she shot back. "It's only right that you make it up to her."

"I was in your body when that happened, so technically, you punched her in the face and you should be the one to do it. The bruise on her face is shaped like your fist."

"Oh, that's real cute, Tay," Shantae sardonically commented. "If we're playing THAT card, then I was in your body when I made that deal with her, so you've technically gotta keep your word. So go on!" she suggested, gesturing at him with her hands to signal him to get on with it.

"I call shenanigans on that!" he continued to rebuff. "You completely sold me out and didn't even let me know you had no intention on kissin' this succubus until after you made that agreement with her! That just ain't fair!"

"I admit, that WAS kind of sneaky and I owe you an apology, but all jokes aside, you punched her in the face, Tay!" Shantae stood her ground.

"To save you from gettin' m-!" he was about to rebut.

"Enough!" Venus shouted, cutting their squabbling short. "I'm not walking away with this hideous bruise on my cheek, and it seems to me like you're both responsible in one way or another," she further accused. "But, I require only one kiss from one of you to heal, so how about this? I'll pick the one of you I think should do the honors."

"…I mean, I guess," Tay acquiesced, though he'd preferred not to have to do this at all.

"That's as fair as fair gets, then, huh?" Shantae also acquiesced, her heart suddenly thumping with anticipation.

"Glad we all agree," Venus nodded as she prepared herself to make her decision. Noticing that she was ready, Shantae and Tayshan both gulped in nervous anticipation. "Now then… Eenie-Meenie-Miney-You," she plainly pointed, pretending to play the ages-old classic decision-making game before just pointing at Tayshan, who'd nearly jumped out of his skin in shock.

"What!? That's not-!" he bellowed before being interrupted yet again.

"Doesn't matter whose body you were in, stud," Venus reasoned. "You hit a beautiful, voluptuous woman in the face and disfigured her appearance, so you're paying for it. Now get over here and give mama some sugar to make her boo-boo feel better…" she beckoned, striking an alluring pose and gesturing a finger to summon him over. Speechless, Tay glanced over at Shantae, who silently shrugged at him. Afterward, he looked back at Venus, who'd continued striking naughty poses to entice him. At that point, he'd growled in moderate annoyance as he staggered his way over to Venus until he was within arm's length of her.

"…So, one little peck on that cheek should… do it, right?" he hesitantly asked, his heart thumping harder than a parade on a wooden bridge.

"Don't try to sound so reluctant, muscles," she teased with a coquettish giggle. "I'm sure your girlfriend won't mind, since she so eagerly volunteered you for the job."

"Lucky me, in that case, because she's not-!"

"Tay!" Shantae called out, startling the soldier as he turned to face her. Once she had his attention, she mouthed a series of words that seemed to convey a very important point about getting it over with and avoiding arguing with Venus further, so they could go home. While not the strongest of lip readers, Tay understood her point… he thought. As such, he nodded before turning his attention back to Venus.

"Well? You and your lady friend got everything cleared up now?"

"Uh… yes…" he uneasily confirmed, letting out a deep sigh as he mentally prepared himself. Before he could begin the physical preparation, though, Venus grabbed Tay by the wrists and yanked him forward to place his hands on her bare shoulders. She hastily followed up by wrapping her arms around his neck to pull him close. "Hey, wh-!?" he barely had any time to ask before Venus turned her head and pressed her injured cheek to Tay's lips. Almost immediately, the unfortunate serviceman felt a series of shocks, tingles, and needle-like stings course through his body in a continuous sensation as he struggled to free himself from her grip. However, within the first few seconds of the inadvertent cheek kiss, Tay began to feel his body gradually weaken, as though what little strength he had left was being sapped right out of him. One could even see streaks of a bluish-white light emanating off of the soldier, only to be absorbed into Venus's glowing form, as well as hear a most ominous sound like water going down a drain.

"Oh, yes! Fill me up with your energy, hot stuff!" Venus sensually cheered, apparently indulging in the soldier's energy by forcing him to kiss her. "The more of your essence you give me, the better it gets! Make me feel good, boy! Don't stop! Yes~!" she unnecessarily added through loud, breathy sighs, caressing his head as she held him in place. The longer this went on, the more apparent it became that Venus was stealing energy from Tayshan to heal her wound, as he became steadily weaker as the lip-to-cheek contact went on.

"Alright, that's enough!" Shantae yelled, dashing forward to break it up. Before she could get to them, however, Venus let go, allowing Tay to fall to his hands and knees, panting as though he'd run ten miles in fifteen seconds. The worried half-genie inspected her friend's condition before glaring at Venus. "What did you do to him!?"

"Sorry, gorilla girl… I might've gotten a little carried away and sucked him dry," Venus uncaringly admitted with a lascivious chuckle, brushing her fingers over her newly-healed cheek.

"…Ew," Shantae commented, repulsed by Venus's crude remark. Nevertheless, Venus's deceptive trick had paid off. Through as unconventional (and childish) a means as having someone kiss her boo-boo, she was healed.

"You might be upset, but let's be real; I can't resist a long, hot kiss like that. It's in my nature, of course. As his girlfriend, you should know," the triumphant Bat Gal gloated, further vexing the half-genie.

"He's not my-!"

"Consider it a little bit of revenge for what you and your boyfriend did to me and my sister, too. If anyone has the right to be upset here, it's me," she vindictively remarked with a sneer as she prepared to turn herself into a bat. "Alas, the score has been settled now, so I'm happy. Toodles!" she bade, turning into a bat and soaring off.

"That doesn't give you the right to rob Tayshan of his energy, you vampire!" she (incorrectly) shouted, though she (obviously) didn't get a reply. Once the underhanded Bat Gal was out of the picture, Shantae moved to help Tayshan up. The soldier was barely able to stand, his legs quaking as he was forced to use her as support, his arm slung over her shoulders. "I'm… really sorry about that, Tay… I had no idea…"

"I… I told you it was a bad idea t' trust her…" he tiredly commented with considerable strain in his voice, still trying to catch his breath. "I'm even worse now than where I was after that wizard electrocuted me…! I feel… like I got mowed down by the world's heaviest steamroller…"

"I know, and I feel terrible…" she acknowledged, inching toward the Stage Clear platform. "Let's get out of here and heal up, okay? I owe you big-time for letting that happen to you. I can't apologize enough for setting you up like that…"

"Agh…! We… can talk… about this later…!" he raspily spoke again as he and Shantae reached the platform. "Need… rest…" he groggily added, seeming to be slipping out of consciousness as his fatigue REALLY set in.

"Oh, no…! Your health points must be super low at this point because you've taken so much damage without healing…!" the half-genie worriedly murmured as she put forth her best effort to drag the half-dead soldier onto the platform as she climbed on herself. "At the very least, this level is All Clear," she added, which sounded off the disembodied 'Stage Complete' fanfare despite neither one of them striking a victory pose. Soon enough, the duo was teleported out of the decimated campus foyer, thus concluding their most dangerous journey yet. And man, was this one a doozy from start to finish. I didn't think they'd make it out of this one as well as they did… well, for a given definition of 'well,' considering they were both run PRETTY ragged during their expedition. Nonetheless, our heroes earned a much-deserved night of rest and recuperation for the next big quest in their tireless crusade to save Sequin Land from the nefarious Risky Boots.

However, we're not done here JUST yet, as there was a… surprise party for us to attend. The guest of honor? Why, none other than Squid Baron of course. In fact…

 ** _Hours Later…_**

LOCATION: GENIE'S HEM UNIVERSITY, MAIN CAMPUS FOYER, GENIE'S HEM, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 19TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 2355 HOURS

"Alright, folks, are we all clear on what the plan is!?" Hypno Baron asked aloud to his allies as they all stood, circled around him in the still-disheveled campus foyer.

"Are we certain he'll show?" asked Venus as she helped her newly-revived sister wrap her shoulder with gauze due to her being injured by a wayward gunshot wound hours earlier.

"Yeah, we all know that bulbous creep by now, and he always runs from the first sign of danger the minute he so much as smells it," added said sister as she stretched her injured arm.

"Fret not, Venus and Serena," the wizard addressed the two Bat Gal twins, acknowledging their concern about Squid Baron's likelihood of appearing. "He will show, for I have obtained a most valuable item from those troublemakers who ransacked their way through the city to get to me," he further assured, pulling out the Baron Summoner to show to everyone.

"A whistle shaped and colored very similarly to the Squid Baron?" asked Aashiq, who'd been standing beside Hypno Baron in the center of the foyer, which was still littered with shards of glass from the fallen chandelier. "Why would kanafeh and habibi have that?"

"Before I answer that, you really ought to just call those fools by their stupidly-similar names, Aashiq," Hypno Baron chided. "You're seriously making me hungry with your constant mentions of kanafeh. I haven't had a bite to eat all day because of all the scheming I had to do, and my stomach is killing me. Although… What's a 'habibi?'"

"It is… another word for 'beloved,' sir," he answered in mild embarrassment, knowing the reaction it would garner from his mentor.

"Aaaaaand there goes my appetite. Thanks for that, boy," the magus remarked in intense disgust. "Anyway, to answer your question, my faithful student, our sea-dwelling, bottom-feeding guest of honor gave this whistle to them and expected them to use it against us," he revealed, causing everyone in the foyer to gasp in collective shock. "I know, right!? We took him in like family! Gave him a roof over his head when he could've been living in the sewers! Fed him as though he was a part of our extended household! Even developed foolproof business strategies that would see him become rich beyond his wildest dreams!"

"Despicable…" commented Natasha, half of whose attention was spent on her boyfriend Abner as they cuddled together, continuing to gross out most of their allies. "That coward makes me ashamed to even have the same amount of legs as him. He makes us octopeds look so foolish…"

"Yeah, I neva really liked that guy either," Abner agreed. "I say we beat some sense into him as soon as he gets here," he added, though he also found himself distracted by Natasha as they lovingly caressed one another. "Of course, havin' eight legs ain't such a bad deal when they're all attached to such a bombshell like yourself…"

"Ohh, Shnookums…~" the spider girl blushingly replied, hugging her undead boyfriend tighter as they continued to make everyone else monumentally uncomfortable.

"Hey! Stop that revolting lovey-dovey tomfoolery this instant!" Hypno Baron commanded, causing the two of them to separate and stand at attention. "I've seen more than enough of that schlock as it is!"

"Sir, yes, sir!" Abner enthusiastically replied.

"O-Our apologies, my liege!" Natasha added after him.

"You guys are domineering Hypnotist acolytes, and I expect you to act like it when there's official business to take care of. I certainly do like your idea on what to do with our guest upon his arrival, however. Now then…" he trailed off to clear his throat before continuing. "Our so-called ally had apparently become so dissatisfied with our unyielding hospitality that, in a mostly-predictable turn of events, he stole my one-of-a-kind, irreplaceable relic for his own nefarious gain! As I was informed today, the Enigmatic Tome of the Occult is no more, as that thieving octopus had it destroyed by the very same intruders who surrendered this whistle to me! That's just going too far. And it's because of this web of lies spun by Squid Baron that some—no, MANY of us have suffered for his deception! Even me, your completely-capable leader! That deplorable cephalopod has crossed us for the last time!"

"So, what are we to do with him, sir?" Aashiq asked, somewhat out of the loop on Hypno Baron's plans for getting revenge against his former ally. He, of course, was worried that Squid Baron was in for a painfully rude awakening and did not want to see anything… unsavory happen to him; even if he was deemed an unforgivable traitor by the entire collective of Hypno Baron's followers. "We… will not hurt him, will we?"

"I'm so glad you asked, Aashiq," he remarked with a creepy grin as he rubbed the mouthpiece of the whistle on his robe. "Rather than explain what's going to happen, however, why don't we… see what our guest of honor thinks of the show we're about to put on for him?" he further cryptically suggested before taking a deep breath and blowing on the Baron Summoner as hard as he could. The earsplitting noise caused everyone in the vicinity to plug their ears as best as they could. The shrill, incredibly-obnoxious noise was like a cat with a megaphone getting its tail stepped on by someone wearing football cleats. Super intolerable, trust me. Thankfully, Hypno Baron stopped after a mere… FIVE seconds of blowing into the Baron Summoner.

"Gagh, what the heck kinda whistle IS that thing!?" Abner yelled, reasonably annoyed by the horrible ring of the whistle as he found himself massaging his temples. He was not alone, as many his allies were engaging in similar methods of recovering from the auditory assault on their eardrums. The werewolves in particular were whimpering, crouching as they folded their ears down and covered their heads with their paws.

"Seriously, that thing's sound alone is diabolical!" Venus agreed as she and her sister pressed their fingers into their ears in a collective attempt to massage their vibrating eardrums.

"Shhh!" Hypno Baron commanded, somehow not bothered by the Baron Summoner as he cupped his hand around one side of his hood. "I think I hear him coming…!" he rasped, eagerly awaiting the arrival of his favorite business partner.

"I am… honestly surprised you can hear at all after that…" Aashiq commented, doing as everyone else was doing in trying to stop his ears from bleeding. Nonetheless, the cephalopod everyone had been waiting for cam barreling through one of the walls of the building like a mascot for a horribly-unhealthy sugary soft drink, the rocky *CRASH* emphasizing his grand entrance as he came spinning in, causing werewolves, scarecrows, and Slime Gals alike to hurriedly dodge out of the way as he ricocheted off the walls and caused even more collateral damage to the building. Within a few seconds of this madness, he eventually came to a gradual stop right in front of Hypno Baron and Aashiq. Not fully realizing right away what was happening, he spoke.

"Alright! It's about time you punks called me out again! You didn't have to wait a whole six hours to call me again, but it's whatevs. This time, I'm ready to ru…" he trailed off, looking around to see neither Shantae nor Tayshan anywhere in sight. Instead, the discombobulated sea creature scanned the foyer to see himself surrounded entirely by the familiar faces of all his 'friends' as they glared in collective anger at him. Werewolves were baring their fangs and snarling at him. Scarecrows were cackling with malevolent intent. Slime Gals were silently ramming their fists into their other… sticky appendages with wet *GLOOPs* with wicked scowls on their faces. Two Bat Gals were airborne, chained anchors at the ready as the weapons dangled from their hands. An angry Bonelegs and a disgruntled zombie (well, more disgruntled than he usually looks) were boring holes into him with their hatred-filled eyes. As expected, Squid Baron felt a chill go through his invertebrate form. This all paled in comparison to the thoroughly-dissatisfied look he was given by the hooded wizard standing before him, arms crossed in stern disapproval. "What's…?"

"Good evening, Squid Baron," Hypno Baron oh-so politely greeted, though he made no effort to hide his anger at the cephalopod. Quickly picking up on this, Squid Baron flinched as he attempted to back up. The instant he did so, however, the twin Bat Gals launched their anchors at him from midair, the metallic rattles of the chain links filling the otherwise-silent air as they moved to wrap their devices around him. Before Squid Baron knew it, and with a decisive *CLANG* of the anchors hooking around each other after the chains wrapped around him a few times each, he was trapped.

"H-hey, Hypno!" Squid Baron nervously greeted, already putting forth some ill-fated effort to free himself from the grasp of the Bat Gals. "F… F-f-fancy meeting you here, heh…"

"Oh, I'd bet," Hypno Baron flatly remarked, unamused by his former partner's cowardly display. "I needn't even ask why you're here, Squiddy, old boy…"

"Really? U-um, well… you are a master wizard, so of course you'd know I'd be in Genie's Hem… heh heh…"

"Cut the malarkey, Squid Baron," Hypno Baron demanded, already out of patience. "You've got some explaining to do."

"I do? A-about what?"

"…Oh, is this the game we're playing right now? Okay, I'll humor you…" Hypno Baron observed, knowing he'd have to drag the truth out of his ex-partner as he let out a frustrated sigh. "It has to do with a certain half-genie brat and her new meathead boyfriend. Sources say you… had an encounter or two with them very recently."

"Uh, yeah, man!" Squid Baron perked up through the chains locking him in place. "Remember I told you the other day about how they-!"

"Ahem!" Hypno Baron interrupted, clearing his throat as he revealed the Baron Summoner that he'd previously hidden in his sleeve to show Squid Baron. Holding it up, he silently awaited an explanation.

"Uh…" Squid Baron droned, becoming increasingly uneasy as he began to sweat profusely. "Th-that's a neat-looking whistle you got there! I like the design of it, too. Is… is that our latest piece of merchandise for our next big deal?" At that, Hypno Baron sighed in disappointment.

"Squids, you and I both know where this is going. Yet, you insist on playing dumb. Or maybe you're not playing… it's always so hard to tell. Okay, let's try this a different way to speed this along. What if I told you I got this thing off of that long-haired imp and her partner a little while ago?"

"Oh!" Squid Baron exclaimed, seeming to get the idea. "You beat them and got it from them?" he hastily assumed, thereby not only missing the point of Hypno Baron's question, but also ratting himself out. "Good work, Hypno! I knew it'd be easier for you because they were inside each other's bodies-!"

"Dap! Back it up, buttercup," Hypno Baron interrupted, holding out a hand to pause his talkative captive. "First and foremost, I didn't defeat them. Just the opposite, actually. The two of them whupped the living daylights out of me, and only after that, did they willingly give me this repugnant thing," he revealed, causing Squid Baron to gasp in shock. "Oh, and they're back in their own bodies, however relevant that is."

"Why, those good-for-nothing, ungrateful, backstabbing traitors!" he impulsively complained in shock and anger, thus digging his hole deeper.

"Aha! I knew it!" Hypno Baron proclaimed, pointing a finger at the dishonest cephalopod. "So, you DID willingly give them this whistle to aid them in their crusade to get their own bodies back!"

"W-what!? No, no, I didn't! I would never-!"

"Save the baloney for the werewolves, you greasy tub of lies," Venus cut in, yanking on her chain to shut him up. "I saw you with my own eyes, coming in as soon as that whistle was blown and attacking an entire squad of our allies at those ruffians' behest!"

"Wait, what!? Where w-!"

"Oh, and let's not forget that even before that, it was reported that you were spotted riding our enemies into town and fraternizing with them," added Natasha, shutting Squid Baron up again. "It's honestly as laughable as it is pathetic that you didn't think one pair of eyes would notice your sneaky little escapades and report it as soon as they saw you. I needn't even mention that I also watched you plow through that brigade of scarecrows."

"…Oh…" was all he had to say, realizing the gravity of the situation when eye witnesses were involved.

"Yes, you realize now how much trouble you're in. At least, I'd hope. That also brings up my second point of how you would know their minds were swapped into each other's bodies, Squid," Hypno Baron pressed once more. "Or, why you would go out of your way to help them out, despite what you'd originally told me about them being the ones who stole my spell book."

"Uh…" Squid Baron droned again, trying his hardest under the rapidly-increasing pressure to come up with a convincing lie. "W-well, ya see, I… I kinda felt… bad for them, so I… uh…"

"And still, you continue to be dishonest!" Hypno Baron yelled, growing even more agitated with Squid Baron's inability to tell the truth. He was not alone, as a portion of the audience in the room groaned in annoyance. "As a matter of fact, now that I mentioned it, I should've asked you right when you told me the other day: How exactly did you KNOW Shantae took my spell book? When did you see her take it? Why did you not try to stop her if and when you saw her? And, even then, what sense would it make for Shantae of all people to steal anything from anyone, with as strait-laced and goody-goody as she is? In fact, even in the off chance that she DID steal it from me, the question there would be WHERE did you see her take it? Certainly not from my castle, which was always brimming with minions 24/7! And, in case you DO say she took it from my castle, I'd defy you to tell me how she would go in through the front door, which was the only open entrance, navigate the room puzzle maze and sneak past every single member of our group here, as well as the troops we lost in the fight against Risky Boots yesterday, snag the book right from under my nose, and leave without being detected by a single soul."

"I… I don't really know," the highly-tense cephalopod eked out, his voice shaking as he became drenched in sweat. "Maybe she's just that sly? I mean, she got through the maze and all your guys last time she ventured through your castle, remember?"

"Yes, but I made specific reinforcements after the fact to make sure it didn't happen again. And yet, no one I've asked in the last few hours could tell me that they even recall HEARING about Shantae returning to my castle since that incident. So, I find it interesting that you happened to be the only one to see her with my book, yet no one else could even imagine seeing her at any point in time between last month and tonight. So, here is another set of questions for you to add to the bunch: What happened when you saw her? What did you plan on doing once you saw her with the book? Why is it that no one else can corroborate your story? Why is it that I've been given an account of events drastically different than what you've told me?"

"Uh…" Squid Baron nervously paused again, gulping hard as the air suddenly got hot and thick for him. Nevertheless, he took a deep, shaky breath and tried. "Um… Well, I… th-those are some very good questions, Hypno, and… well, wh-when I think back to it… um…" he sputtered and stammered, causing Hypno Baron, Aashiq, and most of the crowd of minions to shake their heads in disappointment.

"Shantae wasn't actually the one who took my Enigmatic Tome of the Occult, was she?" the severely-annoyed wizard bluntly asked after a brief pause, having thoroughly run out of patience.

"No," Squid Baron plainly and hastily answered out of fear that his lies were coming apart and crumbling down around him. To the surprise of absolutely no one, the room went silent again, save for Hypno Baron's hot, quaky, furiously-angry breaths. The exasperated wizard pinched the bridge of his nonexistent nose as he bowed his head to try and keep from losing it.

"…Okay. So, we can skip that part of the interrogation," he acknowledged, though getting Squid Baron to crack did nothing to soothe him. "Alright, Squid, I'm going to attempt to level with you. At this point, it's abundantly clear you orchestrated a VERY large portion of the mess we're in right now. I hope you know that."

"I… don't know what you mean…?"

"Really? You don't? Actually? Honestly? Candidly? You sincerely, genuinely don't know what I mean? Are you kidding me!?"

"…No?"

"Of course not… Well, how about I break it down for you?" Hypno Baron began, taking another deep breath. "Without my book, I didn't have enough spells at my disposal to defend my castle from Risky Boots; who, by the way, is much more dangerous and volatile than ever at this point. My access to my spell book was, without exaggeration, the deciding factor in my ability to repel her forces' brazen assault on my home. Likewise, without adequate protection, she wiped out a sizable portion of our group and completely demolished my castle. Many of our kin are no longer with us because of you. Also, that attack left not only me, but EVERYBODY around you except little Aashiq here homeless. Without a castle to call home, we all had to migrate here to Genie's Hem and, now that I realize it, we're gonna have to clean up the place big-time if we plan on calling this place home without unnecessary trouble until I figure out how I'm going to rebuild my castle. Lucky you, I was granted enough money from Risky Boots as a bribe to buy this college campus out, though it's left me nearly broke until the next big check rolls in. Although…" Hypno Baron trailed off, digging into his cloak and quickly pulling out the Suspicious Treasure Chest given to him by Shantae and Tayshan hours earlier. "Those interlopers WERE generous enough to fork over this treasure chest. I do wonder if there is a sufficient supply of gems in here…" he pondered, though Natasha instantly recognized the crimson lock box.

"Er… Master…?" she timidly spoke up, realizing that that same treasure chest was the one stolen from Pirate's Peril Park by the aforementioned interlopers. Hypno Baron, in his excitement, failed to hear the disquieted spider girl as he opened the chest. Rather than gems, of course, a ghostly figure came whirling out of it, startling him as he dropped the chest on the floor. Natasha, ashamed of the pitiful display happening before her, buried her face into her hands. "Oh, no…"

"Behold, Shantae and friend! It is I, the ghastly and adorable, but mostly ghastly Ikki," the ghost girl spookily moaned, unaware that yet again, her plan to ambush her favorite half-genie had gone horribly awry. "This time, you will not escape my unrelenting onslaught from beyooonnnd the graaaaave~!" she continued, really wanting to sell her grand entrance. "And once I have captured you and your companion, I will make you into my personal playthi-!"

"Ikki!" Natasha yelled, seeing that Ikki didn't realize what was happening. Shaken out of her performance, the naïve young phantom woman looked around to once again see that nothing was in place. She then glanced at Natasha, who was making frantic, silent gestures of waving her hand below her chin to signify her to stop.

"Wait… This isn't Pirate's Peril Park…" Ikki brilliantly observed, scanning her surroundings, though she was unable to make sense of the situation. "How… did we wind up here of all places? And what's Master Hypno Baron doing here? Where are Shantae and her sidekick at?"

"Get back in the box, Ikki," Hypno Baron commanded, even more disappointed that he'd fallen for a trick unintentionally played on him by his heroic adversaries. He picked up the treasure chest and held it up.

"Aw, really?" she groaned in disappointment that she didn't get another chance to show her stuff. "I barely got to do anything this time!"

"Trust me, I know how you feel. Shantae and her friend were already victorious in their idiotic little quest, however, so I'm afraid there's nothing for you to do at this time. Plus, it's past your curfew, young lady. Now, back in the box with you."

"Ugh, fine…" she complained, sulking and pouting as she sunk herself back into her treasure chest. "G'night, I guess…" she added before fully disappearing into the treasure chest, after which it slammed shut with a definitive *WHAP* before the lock automatically fastened itself. Hypno Baron sighed, shaking his head as he stashed what was basically Ikki's bedroom back into his cloak.

"My apologies, Master," Natasha attempted to offer her condolences. "The half-genie and her partner swiped Ikki's treasure chest from me when I wasn't looking… I… didn't think they'd get the idea to give it to you…"

"Great… So, I'm not NEARLY broke… I AM broke for the next couple weeks," Hypno Baron griped, seeming to ignore Natasha's apology completely. "Well played, Shantae. Well played… Actually, that leads me to the next big point I wanted to make here," he perked up, reminded of where he left off in his previous tirade before turning his attention to Squid Baron once more. "That point being that, because I wasn't able to defend my castle, I was coerced by Risky Boots into being her pawn in her little war against Shantae and that newbie sidekick of hers, which is the whole reason I got that bribe from her in the first place. Without a choice of whether or not I wanted to get involved in the matter, my interference led up to a day-long siege of the city of Genie's Hem, which invariably led up to me getting my butt kicked all over this campus foyer. By who, you might ask? None other than Shantae herself and her newbie sidekick."

"Oh… I didn't reali-!"

"No, stop talking, because I'm not finished yet. Listen to me," Hypno Baron interrupted, quieting Squid Baron down again. "So, even before all that, I'm ALSO hearing from Shantae that not only did you encounter her and her friend on the summit of the Naga Mountain the other day, I've additionally been told that you stole my spell book and… used it not only to turn one of Ammo Baron's subordinates into a banana slug, but also take complete control of the island in a foolhardy attempt at elevating your status to that of an iron-fisted dictator? And then when you got down to fighting Shantae and company, you… wound up getting my book destroyed? Because they came here asking for a reversal to the spell you cast on that Ammonian soldier, as you partially told me. Although, they showed me the page of the book that the Super Slugger Spell was on. And guess what, Squid Baron? It was matted with your ink stains, which strongly corroborates their story as opposed to the one you told me! Care to explain that?"

"W-well hold the phone there! I-I totally didn't take your book!" Squid Baron attempted to lie again. "They did it! That's how they have that page! Honest!"

"Don't you DARE throw that word at me, Squid Baron! You JUST said Shantae didn't take the book! And, unless you've got an accomplice hidden somewhere amongst this crowd, all the fingers point to you, and you alone!" Hypno Baron screamed, startling half of the crowd and nearly petrifying Squid Baron.

"Uh…"

"Before you drum up another craven lie, let me summarize what I think happened. As far as it seems to be, the actual series of events is that you swiped the book, seeing as you're the only one here dumb enough to attempt it, yet devious enough to pull it off. How that works is beyond me, but it's you. You were the only other person with access to my quarters in my castle anyway, so that much is clear to me now. It's the only way no one else would know who had possession of it, if it wasn't in my hands. So then, you slinked your duplicitous carcass out to Naga Mountain with the book and without anyone noticing, so you could abuse a priceless, irreplaceable relic for your own gain, only to come face-to-face with Shantae and her boyfriend. At that point, you fought them and not only LOST, but also got my book destroyed in the process! After THAT and at some point right before Risky Boots's destruction of my castle, you LIED TO ME that Shantae stole it, and then misled me into believing you were innocent and they assaulted you on Naga Mountain without reason, which begs the now-irrelevant question of why you were even ON Naga Mountain…"

"I… was covering for the Naga Qu-!"

"I don't CARE!" Hypno Baron yelled at the top of his lungs, further frightening everyone in the room. The area of the floor under Squid Baron suddenly turned a suspicious black in that moment. "The fact is, you've done quite a lot to disadvantage me, and after I'd been nothing but hospitable and accommodating to you. So, my last question to you—and you'd BETTER answer honestly for your sake—is why. Why would you go to all that trouble just to gyp me and all my minions out of a house and home? Why would you stab me in the back so hard that I could see the tip of the knife blade poking through my ribcage?"

"…Because I… wanted to be a more important character than just another pointless boss fight and figured that if I couldn't beat Shantae, I might as well join her like her new sidekick did…" Squid Baron hesitantly admitted, finally, FINALLY seeing no more reason to try deceiving the angry magician. At that, Hypno Baron laughed, much to Squid Baron's surprise. However, no one laughed with him. Those who knew Hypno Baron well enough knew he wasn't chuckling out of humor. No… he was chuckling because he was at his wits' end on what to do with his backstabbing cephalopod acquaintance. Squid Baron, fully cognizant of this ominous behavior, gulped again in fright as he once again attempted to break free of his binds. Venus and Serena held him firmly in place with their chains, however, so he was going nowhere fast.

"Of COURSE that's what it all came down to," Hypno Baron acknowledged once he was done anger-laughing. "The starving wannabe celebrity wanted his fifteen minutes of fame, but he didn't know how to get it until he found a way to cheat his way to superstardom. Why would it be anything actually respectable, like taking over the world? Or honing his skills to potentially become a better magician than even I, the incomparable Hypno Baron? Or, at the VERY LEAST, actually going out to attempt to destroy both Shantae AND Risky Boots when they least expected it in a bid to eliminate the two biggest contenders to this precious, highly-coveted spotlight of his? Why would it!? Would that make too much sense for you, you gargantuan, gelatinous red idiot!?" he rhetorically (and very angrily) asked, though he made a VERY valuable point that made Squid Baron's head sink in disappointment and realization.

"Wow… I can't believe _I_ didn't come up with those ideas…!" he muttered to himself, almost completely ignoring the reason Hypno Baron made his suggestions.

"See, what you've always lacked, Squid Baron, is foresight. You never take much time to think before you act, because you're an impulsive buffoon. I don't know if that can be helped at all, so that is all I will say there. But, all can be forgiven, and we can most certainly let this imbroglio of unfortunate circumstances be water under the bridge," the frustrated wizard proposed, causing collective shock amongst his followers.

"You don't say, Master Hypno Baron!" Natasha called out. "This detestable, traitorous waste of space deserves none of our mercy! He requires punishment!"

"Yeah, don't let this connivin' joker off the hook!" Abner agreed, shaking a fist in Squid Baron's direction. "We need ta show him what happens when ya think bein' a teamkiller's a better choice than stickin' by yer friends! There's gotta be some consequence fer this!"

"Master, I have to agree with Abner and Natasha," Serena spoke up as she and Venus continued to hold Squid Baron in place with their chains. "Should we really give him a chance to-!"

"SILENCE!" Hypno Baron commanded, shutting down all the clamoring and uncertain mumbling. "I assure you all, this forgiveness does not come without a very particular condition," he proclaimed, raising his hands and gesturing toward his followers to calm down.

"Er… what condition might that be, Master?" Aashiq warily asked, as he had been worriedly watching this mock-trial go on with great anxiety over what would happen to Squid Baron if he was found to be unable to make up for his egregious actions.

"Again, good question, Aashiq!" Hypno Baron praised, though the adorable young man could not bring himself to be proud of the positive words aimed his way. He had no desire to see Squid Baron get hurt, though there was nothing he could do if that were to be the case. Nevertheless, Hypno Baron continued as he turned his attention back to the tied-up Squid Baron. "So, Squid, most of everything that's happened to us, even though it's all your fault, can be forgiven, under this one simple, very basic condition. Do you accept?"

"Oh, okay! Sure!" Squid Baron naively accepted the offer before he even heard what it was, thus proving how impulsive and short-sighted he truly was. "Lay it on me! What can I do to make it up to you?"

"Give me my book back," Hypno Baron replied, holding his hand out as though he were actually going to get his wish.

"…What?"

"You heard me, Squiddy, old boy… Give me the book, and everything will be peachy-keen. It was quite invaluable, and it would just be the greatest if I had it back in my possession."

"But… I… I don't have the book…"

"Oh?" Hypno Baron asked, pretending to be surprised by the already-revealed information. "And why, pray tell, is that?"

"…B-because I stole it and got it destroyed…" the unfortunate, yet guilty sea creature regretfully admitted.

"Right, right, of course… That was the thing we all had to browbeat you to get you to EVENTUALLY tell us. Now, we can move PAST the browbeating… onto the actual beating…" he menacingly hinted as literally every supernatural creature in the room, perking up at the commencement of Squid Baron's punishment, began to collectively prepare themselves for their shots at their new, appropriately-shaped punching bag.

"Wh-wh-what!?" Squid Baron justifiably stammered in total astonishment and panic. Knowing he would want none of what was coming to him, he attempted to wriggle and spin himself free from the Bat Gals' chains. "No! No, no, no, no, no, no, no, nuh-uh! No way! Get me outta here right now!" he pleaded as he began to levitate as he struggled, giving Venus and Serena a run for their money with keeping him contained. Before he made too much progress however, a host of the other monsters in the foyer began to turn the impromptu court session into a mosh pit, belly-flopping and piling themselves onto the terrified cephalopod until he was forced back to the ground, still struggling to escape. "C-come on, Hypno, be reasonable here! After all we've been through, does it really have to be like this!?" he continued to beg for his safety, though Hypno Baron was unmoved.

"I'm afraid so, my soon-to-be ex-partner," the vindictive wizard mockingly informed Squid Baron. "You've caused far more trouble than you're worth, so an example needs to be set for those who seek to betray me," he added with a most… malicious grin that sent a horrible chill up the spine of the worried young apprentice.

"Master…" Aashiq spoke up, tugging gently on Hypno Baron's cloak to gain his attention.

"What is it, boy?" he irritably asked, hating to be interrupted when he was seeing his revenge to fruition.

"Must we go about such an unnecessarily forceful route to reprimand the Squid Baron?" he asked, the concern evident on his beautiful face. "Can we not just… er, make him a sort of indentured servant until his debt to you has been repaid?" he suggested, preferring to see the cephalopod unharmed, and thus showing his distaste for needless violence.

"Y-yeah, what that insanely-attractive young lady said!" Squid Baron added, confusing Aashiq's gender based on his appearance.

"Actually, Mr. Squid Baron… I am male," he informed, much to Squid Baron's surprise.

"Really?" he rudely remarked. "You're almost as pretty as Shantae, though!" he further brazenly added, causing the young man to silently turn away with an embarrassed, somewhat-disquieted blush on his face.

"Enough of this nonsense!" Hypno Baron cut in. "Aashiq, you raise an excellent point. Maybe Squid Baron COULD still be of some use to me. Therefore, I will consider it."

"Really?" Both Aashiq and Squid Baron remarked, this time sounding hopeful.

"Of course! Because I'm certain that even now, you'd undoubtedly take the easy way out of this scenario, Squid. And even at my most furious, I remain magnanimous. Therefore, before we renegotiate the terms of your business contract with me, please pick between these two options: Right side or Left side?"

"…What?"

"Right side or Left side, Squid Baron! Which one would you prefer? I don't have all night, so just pick one!"

"…Uhh…" he uncertainly hummed as he continued to struggle against the combined weight of all the scarecrows, Slime Gals, and werewolves piled up on him. He wasn't certain what the question meant or why Hypno Baron had asked it. Nonetheless, he was short on time to figure it out, so he simply answered. "Right side?"

"Fantastic," Hypno Baron acknowledged with a snap of his fingers before turning his attention to his right-hand side of the foyer. "You heard him, ladies, gents, and beings of indiscriminate gender! Have at him!" With that, most of the monsters already piled on him climbed off, only for every single one of the monsters on one side of the foyer to bum rush, gang up on, and begin collectively pummeling Squid Baron in a giant, cloudy dust ball of flying fists, feet, claws, droplets of pink slime, and tentacles, complete with stars and your typical rapid *SMACK*, *BIFF*, *THWACK*, *POW*, and *POOMPH* noises galore. If there were a camera on this most bizarre and cartoonishly brutal scene, it would've panned away as Squid Baron got his guts (figuratively, not literally) stomped out.

"Hey, what about us?" Abner asked, cracking his knuckles as he unfortunately found himself, as well as Natasha and a host of other monsters, on the LEFT side of the foyer that didn't get chosen. "I've been dyin' ta harden my knuckles on somethin' ugly, and you're tellin' me I don't get a chance!?"

"Now now, Abner, you will get your turn. Give it about thirty minutes, and then we'll switch sides," Hypno Baron sadistically commented, much to Aashiq's dismay, yet to Abner's conditional approval. "We will alternate until I decide when enough is enough. That, or when my magic fully restores itself. Whichever comes first, considering how thoroughly I burned myself out against those two loathsome teenagers, in addition to how much punishment he deserves for losing my most prized possession and betraying me…"

"Heh, as long as I get my fill, I don't really care how long it takes," the zombie man enthusiastically remarked, stretching and snickering as he waited his turn. Hypno Baron, just about done commenting on the situation, spectated the organized group beating and cackled aloud as he found SOME comfort in watching Squid Baron get bounced around and whacked like a giant, squishy, slimy pinata. Poe, who hadn't said anything at all since this 'meeting' started, moved himself toward the center of the foyer and, alongside Aashiq, stepped backward as though to communicate that he preferred not to participate in the persecution of Squid Baron.

"…Oh, dear… I may have made a grave mistake…" Aashiq murmured to himself, quickly growing more concerned with the heartlessness and ceaseless vindictiveness of his mentor. Evidently, this was not what he had signed up for, and the thought made his stomach turn in a mix of regret and consternation.

"You're not alone, my friend," Poe finally spoke up as they helplessly watched Squid Baron get his comeuppance for his poorly-coordinated plot to achieve a higher level of fame. "I… wouldn't blame you if you needed a moment to step out and get some air. If H.B. asks, I'll tell him you got tired and went home."

"Thank you, Poe. You are much too kind," the worried Hypnotist apprentice offered his gratitude. Much as Squid Baron deserved it for all he'd done, Poe and Aashiq both agreed that Hypno Baron may have taken things a little too far. At that, Aashiq silently made the decision to walk out of the foyer and venture into the burning town on his own to collect his thoughts. Poe, understanding of his ally's dissonance, merely watched as he left. And so, that is where we finally conclude this messy, messy, MESSY saga of body-swaps, deception, coercion, unrequited romance, and citywide destruction and conquest. Yet another adventure wrapped up in as… organized a method as our heroes could conceivably manage.

However, because of the enormous distraction, it also meant yet another day Sequin Land's biggest villain was left to her (stolen) devices unhindered to plan her next big move. Even still, there are plenty of other questions to ask, based on what happened here, and I know exactly what you're going to ask. What was the deal with our heroes being unable to fully control each other's bodies? What was it with the hang-ups they experienced with attacking certain opponents? Why did they exhibit so much difficulty working together when they seemed to coordinate just fine previously? And most importantly, what happened there when Tayshan (while in Shantae's body) lost control of himself and, while apparently being controlled by the malevolent influence of Dark Magic, became hostile toward his own partner and tried to kill Hypno Baron? These pressing questions, I must say, will be answered later on, so long as you're still down for the ride. Because trust me, it is FAR from over. Whelp, that's my spiel for this wrap-up speech. Catch ya for the next episode!


	9. Interlude: Insight & Intuition

Interlude: Insight & Intuition

Surprise! Yet another filler chapter to hopefully help fill in some of the blanks here. Heh, get it? Filler chapter to fill in the blanks? Y'know, rather than it just being a pointless, inconsequential snore-fest where no one learns or does anything substantial and it winds up being a colossal waste of time? Ironic, right? No? Well too bad, because I have to do this anyway; not that I'd ever purposely deprive you, my most wonderfully-diligent and enamored reader(s), of the non-stop, chaotic, cataclysmic action you so ravenously crave, of course… but by now, you're probably aware that there are many details to cover here, and, as mentioned at the end of our main adventurers' last big… uh, adventure, there are some questions that haven't been answered. Now, I know I might not have led on with the strongest premise here, but if you're in it for more than the catastrophic cavalcade of clashes, conflicts, and crusades, then by all means, read on. If all you want to see is fast-paced, flying fists of furious fervor, then you COULD technically give this excerpt a pass and go right onto the next adventure... Not to say I'd recommend it (for reasons I hope are obvious), but there you go. I'm giving you a choice, which is something far from common for a narrator as acute as I am to do. Thank me later. If you've left already, then see you next time!

...

Still here? Good. Now then, prepare to have… some of those concerns I mentioned abated. For the rest of your pressing questions to be answered, you'll have to be patient with me as our harrowing tale progresses. At least you'd be a bit more "in the loop" than anybody who so foolishly chose to miss out on what's in store here because you stuck around like a true soldier. For that, I proudly present you an imaginary ribbon of gratitude and an honorary "I'm a good listener/reader" cookie. Enjoy! Anyway, I'm wasting breath. Moving on.

This time, we begin NOT with Shantae and Tayshan, nor with Risky Boots (who was adamant this time that I not stick my nose in her business under the mortifying threat of her cutting it off). No… This time, we begin this short intermission with… (wait for it...)

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN BATHHOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 20TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1623 HOURS

"Miss Sky!" a female bathhouse attendant greeted our most favorite bird trainer (sans Wrench) as she watched her stagger into the luxurious, soothingly-humid building. Her clothes were filthy and matted with prickly grass blades, soot, and mud. She appeared somewhat weary as though she'd had quite a long day. "How are you this afternoon? You aren't a regular customer like your purple-haired friend, so it's surprising to see you here more than once in a week," the attendant cordially pointed out as she inquired about Sky's condition.

"Hey hey," she tiredly greeted as she flashed her guest pass. In a moment's glance, she was handed a couple of towels and a bathrobe by another one of the bathhouse attendants. "I know what you mean, but I definitely need this right now…"

"My, you seem as though you had quite a trying day today," the attendant observed in concern as she offered to help Sky into the dressing room to prepare herself for a soothing afternoon healing dip. Sky declined, however, opting to go into the dressing room under her own waning power. "Are you okay, Miss Sky?"

"I'm fine, thank you. I wouldn't want to burden you," she politely declined as she continued to stagger through the area past the giant, steamy pool and into the next room. "I just… need to get out of these rags, and I don't want to get the bath dirty," she assured.

"Understood," the attendant acknowledged. "In that case, please don't be afraid to call one of us up if you need any additional help."

"Will do," Sky affirmed as she made her way through the not-so-busy bathhouse. Within minutes, Sky stepped into the dressing room and got changed out of her regular avian-themed outfit and into a two-toned turquoise-and-blue bikini that left little to the imagination. In place of her usual hood and head wrap, however, was a one of the white towels she was given. Now that you've got that image in your head, try to focus on the important details here. So, the exhausted young woman stepped into the bath and took a seat near the rim of the pool as she let the enshrouding warmth envelop every inch of her body. "Ahh… goodness, I need this…" she breathily moaned, stretching herself out to try and mend the aches and pains coursing through her limbs and torso. She leaned her head back, taking a deep breath to relax as the rejuvenating, rippling bath water seemingly penetrated her body to its very core and nearly sent her into a dreamlike stupor.

"Man, this has been a week for the record books," she spoke aloud, though she appeared to be speaking to herself. The bathhouse attendant she'd been previously speaking to had gone back to the front counter and there were no other guests or attendants in the vicinity. For the time, she'd had the bath all to herself. "I must've done more recon and adventuring in just this week than I have the entire rest of this year. I can't believe I spent this last two days going between scrounging up more growth seed for Wrench, nursing my other birds back to health, and revisiting the Prickle Stitch Valley to put out those rampant fires… I also can't believe those two troublemakers Twitch and Vinegar went out of their way to help me…" she began to reveal, absentmindedly explaining what she'd been up to. "Granted, it was because of all those dangerous weapons they wanted to collect that they even considered bringing any of their troops there TO put out the fires, but it's at least good that we saved as much of that island as we could. I actually want to go back there and study those monuments sometime… Still, most of my birds are all tuckered out from the extensive amount of effort it took to make sure the island wouldn't be roasted out of existence, but it was well worth it… Hm…~" she sighed again, adjusting her position to where she sunk herself deeper into the pool to let the water work its revitalizing magic.

"Even better for us that those Ammonian creeps didn't get their hands on too much, considering a good deal of what they found was too damaged to work," she continued to monologue. "It's still concerning that they got any of those weapons at all, though… I still question Tay's decision to let them take those things, considering just how harmful they've proven to be. Well… what's done is done for now, so I can only hope he and Shantae made the right call… Speaking of whom, I haven't come up with a single new place for us to explore in the wake of getting more seed for Wrench, making sure not to overwork him, and cleaning up those rotten Tinkerbats' mess…" the entranced young bird tamer soliloquized, flipping over to where her backside was faced upward as she leaned her head and arms on the rounded rim of the bath. Afterward, she let out another pleasured sigh as she stretched once more and let her slender, curvy form float lazily in the pleasantly-warm water.

"Mm-hmm, this bath hits all the right spots…~" she moaned once more, continuing to indulge in the healing effects of the bathhouse as her pains and aches gradually melted away as though the bath itself were massaging her. "Still, I never did get to press Twitch on her unnecessary clinginess to Tay…" she spoke once more, her heart beating a bit heavier once the topic entered her mind. "She and I barely made eye contact, much less speak to each other, and whenever we did, it was always loaded with tension. She needs to get a clue right away that she can't have everything she wants… I only wonder if that's why she acts the way she does… Not that I care that much, but she seems so… immature. Seriously, I still can't wrap my head around her being a year older than me because of that… Oh, well… Things should work out in the end, hopefully…" Sky confidently monologued some more, giving up some insight into the obvious personal beef between her and the Ammonian acolyte with whom she found a certain form of competition. "Actually, I wonder if Shantae and Tay are alright…? I haven't seen or heard from them in a couple days now, and we probably should reconvene soon to figure out our next move for tracking down Risky Boots… Maybe once I'm done here, I'll go to the lighthouse…" she pondered, still indulging in the relaxing static tide of the bath by herself.

Of course, all good things must come to an end and, in this case, Sky's much-needed alone time was cut short. Within a couple of minutes, a barrage of noises was heard coming from the entrance of the bathhouse.

"'Scuse me, sorry, pardon, pardon…" another feminine voice, sounding just a bit strained, spoke aloud as its owner came rushing in. "I'm okay! I just need to get him in this pool for a little while! Not to be rude, but this is urgent!" the voice spoke louder as the patter of footsteps on the tiled floor, alongside the sound of something being dragged through the facility became steadily more apparent.

"Hm? That sounds like Shantae…" Sky noticed, waking from her stupor and shifting herself to where she was sitting upright to look toward the entrance. "Why does she sound like she's in such a hurry to get in here?" Before Sky had to wonder too long, however, she was greeted by the flying, limp form of a man about to do his best impression of a boulder. "Wah!" Before Sky could make adequate preparations to climb out of the pool, a sudden *SPLASH* scattered water all over the place, forcing her to shield her face in the momentary chaos. Once she recovered, she readjusted herself and examined the seemingly-lifeless form of a shirtless, barefooted, brown-skinned man wearing blue camouflage pants, floating face-up in the bath. "Tayshan?" she cried out, immediately concerned that the man in question appeared unconscious. "Are you okay!?"

"Sky!" called the young woman responsible for recklessly tossing the man into the bath. The woman, as you might've guessed, was wearing a red two-piece dancer costume, a ton of gold jewelry, and had her hair tied up in her instantly-recognizable ponytail.

"Shantae!" Sky called back, though her confusion was evident as her attention pinballed between her half-genie companion and the unconscious young man floating listlessly in the bath. "What's going on? What happened?"

"Hold that thought," Shantae hastily requested, taking off her shoes and pants, revealing the bottom piece of her blue-and-white striped bikini. "I'll explain in a second," she further assured, dashing into the dressing room to prepare herself for a dip in the bath.

"Uh, o-okay… I guess I'll just… make sure he doesn't drown," she acknowledged in confusion, moving to grab Tay and adjust him so that he was sitting up, most of his torso above the water as he was laid up against the rim of the pool. He was hunched over, his head hanging downward as he sat upright. As Sky took care of that matter, Shantae emerged from the dressing room in her bikini, a towel wrapped over her hair much the same as Sky's was. With little hesitation, the purple-haired young lady joined her friends in the bath.

"Ahh, this is great…" Shantae sighed in satisfaction as she made herself comfortable next to Sky. "Nothing like the soothing, rejuvenating waters of the bathhouse to whip you back into tip-top shape. It's at the perfect temperature, too… Fancy meeting you here, though, Sky. You don't usually come to the bathhouse. You are rockin' that bikini, by the way. You look fantastic!"

"Uh, thanks, girl," Sky accepted her friend's compliment, though she still found herself understandably confused about the method in which her friends made their grand entrance. "I'm here because I spent the last two days cleaning up the mess on Prickle Stitch Valley, amongst other things that kept me busy day in and day out. I only just wrapped things up over there earlier today."

"Really? Wow, that must've been tough. I was sure that place was going to burn up, with how much of it those Tinkerbats set on fire. How'd you do it?"

"We'll have to trade stories," she suggested. "I'm still curious as to why our friend here is unconscious to the point where it looks like you had to drag him all the way here. You guys have time?"

"Plenty, as you might've guessed," Shantae remarked, pointing her thumb toward Tayshan, who hadn't moved an inch on his own and remained unresponsive.

"I see… What… what's going on with Tay?" she asked, worried as she noticed bruises and cuts all over both of her friends' bodies. The pained facial expression on the unconscious soldier's face further worried the bird tamer as she tried to make sense of the ordeal. "Did you two wind up getting into another one of your insane, needlessly-violent sparring matches or something? You both look almost exactly like you did last time!"

"No, not a sparring match this time. It's… a little worse than that…" Shantae sheepishly hinted. "Yesterday was a handful for both of us."

"Well, don't leave me hangin'! What happened!?" Sky practically begged to know. At that, Shantae thus filled her in on their adventure in Genie's Hem.

 ** _A very long recap later…_**

"…and after we beat Hypno Baron, we gave him Squid Baron's whistle and a treasure chest we found on our way to fight him in exchange for clues on where to find a Super Slugger Spell Reversal."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa… You and Tay were in each other's bodies for an entire day? You actually ran into that quiet kid you used to have that giant, raging crush on? Squid Baron came back and helped you!? Hypno Baron OWNS Genie's Hem University now!? What kind of stark raving madness did _I_ miss?" she rapid-fired questions at her best friend, utterly floored by the details she was given.

"A lot, Sky. A LOT. Yesterday was a catastrophe and a half," Shantae confirmed.

"My, oh, my, and I thought I had it rough, having to work with Twitch and Vinegar to clean up Prickle Stitch Valley. Still, I'm gonna have to withdraw my application and find a different school to apply to… It was my top choice, but I want nothing to do with a school whose curriculum could potentially be twisted out of proportions by that crazy wizard. No thanks!"

"Sorry about that, Sky…" Shantae apologized. "I know you really wanted to go to that college. It WAS a nice view, though, like you said; especially the one room we fought Hypno Baron in… before we completely trashed it by accident in our battle."

"Great… That's a good 5,000 gems, at least three hours of paperwork, and about four months of waiting down the drain…" Sky lamented with a sigh. "Back to the drawing board on that one…"

"Yeah… sorry… How was Prickle Stitch with Twitch and Vinegar?"

"Awful, as you could imagine," Sky answered, the disdain evident in her tone. "I hardly said a word to them, and all they did was give me the stink-eye at every opportunity they got. Plus, they spent most of their time hanging around Ammo Baron himself, and all he did was gawk at me like a hungry wolf eyeing up a sheep. Totally gross that a guy his age could even fathom being so creepy to a girl so much younger than him…"

"You're telling me," Shantae agreed, apparently able to relate. "And I'm a year younger than you."

"Even worse… Anyway, we got the job done pretty fast through the combined efforts of the Ammonian Army with their aircraft and me and my birds, so most of the awkwardness with those three was thankfully avoided. Plus, take this news as you will, but those guys didn't get their hands on very many of those guns."

"Oh, yeah?" Shantae understood, though she found herself more relieved than anything else. "I mean, I know they're supposed to temporarily be on our side… at least, as far as Twitch and Vinegar say… but I'm glad to hear they didn't get much. I was never in agreement with them getting weapons from this other universe or wherever Tay is from, and I think it sort of takes a load off our backs knowing they don't have a lot of access to those things. They're insanely dangerous."

"Agreed, sister," Sky concurred with a nod.

"Yeah. Still, I'm glad to see you're safe and sound after two straight days of being a firefighter and working with Ammo Baron's troops to save as much of Prickle Stitch as you could. I'm still not a hundred percent on trusting them, to be honest."

"True. Gotta give 'em credit, though. They put in a pretty strong effort to clean the place up. No talk of mowing it down and turning it into a military base or anything, either. They were there for a purpose and they left it at that once we cleaned up. Of course, I've still got my eye on them, so if they try something sneaky, I'll know."

"Good, good," Shantae approved, stretching as she got comfortable in the bath. "As long as we can anticipate any unfavorable moves, especially after those girls kidnapped Tay, we should be able to deal with them."

"You know it. On another note, though, how was it being in Genie's Hem? Y'know, minus the fact that you had to go there to beat up Hypno Baron?"

"A ton of it was on fire, but it was a beautiful sight otherwise."

"Oh, that's wonderful news," Sky sarcastically remarked, brushing over her face with a hand as she sighed. "I only wish I actually WAS a firefighter. I'm sure I'd be over there in a heartbeat. Seriously, what is it with all the fires all of a sudden? Scuttle Town numerous times, then Prickle Stitch, and now Genie's Hem?"

"Trust me, I know. To answer your question more clearly, though, Genie's Hem was at least six times bigger than Scuttle Town, with much cleaner-looking buildings and a ton more stores lined up around much more straightforward streets. They even have their own giant park! Granted, the park was also on fire and most of the citizens of Genie's Hem had fled, but still…"

"Wow, you must've seen quite a bit to have that much to compare between Scuttle Town and Genie's Hem; even with the giant mess you were forced to clean up."

"Trust me, there's a ton more I want to tell you. That aside, we actually didn't see any Tinkerbats or any signs of Risky in Genie's Hem. Granted, it was mainly because, as it turned out, Risky completely obliterated Hypno Baron's castle using Tay's weapons. After that, she apparently found out that we know about her and that we're tracking her, so then she paid Hypno Baron to come and distract us long enough that she'd get a whole day of us not looking for her," she explained, disconcerted by the circumstance she brought up. "She got the drop on us, and now she's probably that much farther ahead with using those things for evil…"

"Oh, no…" Sky murmured, equally as concerned as Shantae. "We haven't really even begun digging up any clues on where Risky's been hiding, either. Sorry, Shantae, I've been so distracted myself recently that I haven't even been looking for her like I should've…"

"It's not your fault, Sky. Risky's playing her cards differently from how she usually does, so we're all in the dark on what to expect. For all I know, we could run right into her as soon as tomorrow, just because. Still, we all have to be on the lookout from here on. I don't think we can afford to lose another day without at least taking out some of her Tinkerbats; especially after what we saw just the other day."

"You don't have to tell me twice," the bird tamer agreed. "I'll redouble my efforts to find her as soon as Wrench and I are fully rested. You can count on me," she further assured, eliciting a warm smile from her best friend. "Still, your adventure in Genie's Hem must've been a real nightmare… especially since you had to spend most of it trapped in Tay's body while he was stuck in yours."

"Tell me about it…" the half-genie griped, lamenting the entire ordeal as it happened.

"Right… So… not to get sidetracked, but… like…" Sky began to ask, suddenly becoming warm with embarrassment as she drummed up the words to use. "What… What was it like? Y'know, with… being a boy for a day?"

"In a word, Sky… Weird," Shantae bluntly commented, causing Sky to chuckle. "Super weird. The weirdest I've ever felt since losing my powers…"

"That bad, huh? How so?" Sky prodded, trying not to sound TOO curious.

"Where do I begin? I mean, the guy's already, like, a foot taller than me, so there's that right off the bat. And then, imagine if most of the hair on your head was gone, your chest is suddenly rock-hard rather than soft and bouncy, you've got hair in places you most certainly don't want it, and your whole bodily shape is nowhere near as curvy as you're accustomed to. Like, imagine that almost every part of your body is packed with muscle instead of how your body is now."

"Yikes…" Sky laughingly commented. "I-I don't mean to laugh, but none of that sounds pleasant at all…"

"Right!?" Shantae agreed wholeheartedly, though she wasn't finished. "And don't even get me started on…" she paused, realizing just what she was about to mention as a blush flared up across her face. "On… uh… that… one place…" she stammered, suddenly too nervous to even mention it. Sky, knowing what she meant, became equally as flustered.

"You mean… down there?" Sky cautiously whispered as she leaned toward her friend to maintain privacy.

"…Mm-hmm," Shantae sheepishly nodded.

"…I… I almost don't want to ask, and I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable, but… I'm… I'm curious…"

"…Sky, let's just say that boys have a lot more going on than we thought they did," Shantae rather dismissively informed her friend.

"Do they, now? Huh…" she murmured again, her imagination taking her to places we're not allowed to go. "So… like, what…" she stuttered, her heart pounding a bit harder than normal as she struggled to figure out what to ask Shantae. "How… How… does… Wh-what goes on down there?" As one might expect, Shantae had approximately zero interest in indulging Sky's morbid curiosity.

"D-don't ask me!" Shantae answered in a panic, stretching her arms out in front of her toward Sky. "Ask him!" she rebuffed, referring to the conked-out serviceman who thankfully (more like HOPEFULLY) couldn't hear them.

"I can't do that!" she protested with an equally-sudden rush of embarrassment. "That would be so awkward!"

"How do you think _I_ feel about it?" the half-genie countered.

"…Good point," Sky acknowledged after a moment of thought about just what she was trying to find out about. "Sorry… Let's just bring it back to the point then. How did the rest of your trip play out with you guys in each other's bodies?" she asked, thankfully changing the subject before things got more awkward.

"I think I pretty much gave you the full scoop as it is," Shantae explained. "Between us tirelessly fighting horde after horde after horde of Hypno Baron's monsters in a burning city six hours away from here with the help of Squid Baron of all people, beating up Bran-Son and his band of sweaty, muscly super friends, arguing with each other the entire time about how to behave while we were in each other's bodies, getting confused on what to call each other, catching up with Aashiq, who I am no longer interested in because of his new and overly-explorative ideas on relationships… as well as having Tay nearly become totally possessed by Dark Magic while he was in my body, and me nearly getting Tay's body swapped with Hypno Baron—which would've meant I would've BECOME Hypno Baron—before Tay came to his senses just in time to stop him and take the chance to change us back to our normal selves before we beat Hypno Baron… I gotta say, Sky, it was a huge mess. Like I said before; catastrophe and a half."

"Wow…" Sky remarked in awe, unable to even fathom the number of shenanigans involved in such a chaotic tale. "Wow, wow, wow… There are SO many questions I still have, and even then, I don't know where to begin. An adventure like that, no doubt, would make me retire right off the bat."

"I wouldn't blame you. If it meant losing myself all over again, I might almost consider quitting being an adventurer to go full-swing with my dancing career to play it safe," Shantae agreed with a deep, heavy sigh of relief that the situation was in the past. "It's been way too long since my last show anyway, so I'm sure my return to the stage would be warmly received."

"Honestly, Shantae, I'd advocate for that wholeheartedly if that were your choice," Sky encouraged, offering her support as she laid a hand on her best friend's glistening shoulder. "I think I speak for Sequin Land as a whole when I say we're eternally in your debt. You've done so much over the last few years that even the Palace Guards can't shake a spear or a sword at…"

"Aw, thanks, Sky!" Shantae modestly accepted her friend's praise, blushing slightly as she rubbed the back of her neck. "I-it's nothing, though. I don't think anyone should OWE me anything… I just want to do the right thing and make people happy, y'know?"

"Even so, you've risked it all on numerous occasions and came out on top every time. This time around, even in someone else's body! From the sound of it though, that last trip alone was one that pushed the boundaries of your expectations on what an adventure would hold in store for you," Sky countered. "I mean, if I had to spend an entire day in the body of a man, with my only hope of switching back to my own body lying in the hands of a shifty, underhanded, scheming sorcerer like Hypno Baron, I couldn't even think of what I'd do beside panic. Yet, you still seem like you're a hundred percent ready for the next big challenge whenever it presents itself. If I haven't said it before, I'll say it now: You have my utmost respect, girl. Seriously," she sincerely praised her friend again, drawing her closer for a warm, wet, but mostly-warm hug. Shantae, touched by Sky's words, returned the gesture as the two young women fully and tenderly embraced each other in the bath with full appreciation for one another. "The fact that you're doing it mostly alone is another thing I've gotta commend you for."

"You don't know the half of how much that means to me, Sky… Thank you for that," the half-genie again accepted the bird tamer's praise as they continued to hold one another close. "It's hard, but somebody's gotta keep the bad guys in check, and as long as I can still breathe, I can still fight for the greater good," she added, hugging Sky tighter. "I'm never really alone, though, as I've realized. Thank you for always helping me and putting up with all the nonsense I might wind up blowing your way. If it wasn't for you, I don't know if I'd even still be here to have this conversation with you. I can't tell you enough how much I love and appreciate you."

"Aww, Shantae…" Sky cooed, returning the increased strength of the affectionate hug. "You're always welcome! I know I might come off as short sometimes when it comes to your adventures, but you know I've always got your back; no matter what. I love you, too," she assured as they separated, though Sky kept one hand rested on Shantae's shoulder and smiled at her.

"Same here," the purple-haired maiden agreed and reciprocated with a heartfelt, smiling nod before they separated completely. "Not that I haven't said it already, but I'm glad to have you as my best friend, Sky. I mean it."

"I know, Shantae, and I feel the same," Sky agreed as they went silent to enjoy the all-encompassing, healing warmth of the bath. The enjoyment of such a commodity was short-lived, however, as Sky took another look at the non-speaking partaker of the bath. "Um… Is… Is he going to be okay?" she asked, pointing toward the still-motionless soldier as Shantae moved toward him. "He hasn't moved an inch since you brought him here. I'm getting a little worried…"

"I don't know…" she worriedly answered, tapping him on the shoulder and rocking him back and forth to no avail. "He's been like this all day, and I've tried everything to wake him up. Yelling, shaking, slapping, and poking him didn't work, and I tried those things for hours. I even took drastic measures like using my animal transformations and fire spells to see if SOMETHING would work. Evidently, nothing did."

"That's not good…" Sky commented, sharing in Shantae's increasing concern. "Bringing him here doesn't seem to be working, either…"

"I know… Worst part is, he hasn't woken up since we went to bed last night, and he fell asleep way before I did… I was really hoping the bathhouse would do its trick, but if he hasn't popped up by now, I'm afraid of what it might mean. All his wounds look like they're healed, but he's still knocked out."

"My goodness, that's scary…" Sky murmured, her heart sinking as she instinctively raised two fingers to the serviceman's neck to check for a pulse. She breathed a sigh of relief when she found her result. "He's still alive, so that's something. Why won't he wake up, though?"

"I dunno…" Shantae worriedly answered, still wracking her brain for an explanation. "We both took a nasty beating from our battles throughout Genie's Hem, but I figured we'd be up and at 'em by the next morning. I had to drag him all the way here, hoping that the bathhouse would be of some help."

"What could the issue be then, if he hasn't woken up?" the falconer began, further examining the unstirred young man lying in the tub next to them. "You must've been through something really awful for Tay to wind up like this. I mean, Hypno Baron's not exactly a guy you want to mess with, and if he forced you two to switch bodies and then electrocuted Tay before AND after you finally got your bodies back, I've gotta say, he's lucky to be alive right now."

"I know… The craziest part was that he still got up after being zapped to a smoking crisp, walked over to Hypno Baron, and punched his lights out with all his might to end the battle. He was even still standing and talking afterward."

"Interesting… so, why is it that he's so out of it now?"

"I don't know… There wasn't really a problem until after I made him… kiss that… Bat Gal…" she explained, though she came to a screeching halt when she remembered that very tiny, tiny detail that she seemed to fail to mention. "Hmm…"

"You what!?" Sky shouted, evidently panicked (and somewhat secretly perturbed) by the revelation as she nearly flew out of the pool. "Why would you go and make him do something like that!?"

"Because!" Shantae tried to explain. "When he was in my body, he punched her in the face and left a nasty bruise on her cheek. After we cleared things up with her, she said she wanted a kiss on that cheek in return, so I… well, in Tay's body, I promised her he would do it once we finished our business with Hypno Baron. And eventually, Tay did… or rather, she forced him and…"

"…and she sapped a ton of energy out of him," Sky finished, much to Shantae's surprise.

"What? How'd you know?"

"Bat Gals are known for that, Shantae," Sky informed her previously-unaware comrade as she made further motions to check Tay's condition. "Legend has it that when they spot unsuspecting human males, they use their seductive feminine charm to lure them into their clutches, after which they drain the life force from them… usually by intimate contact. How could you not know that!?"

"I'm a girl! How would I know Bat Gals preyed on boys like that!?" she protested, feeling even more guilty for Tay being unconscious.

"Ugh, Shantae…" Sky droned in disappointment as she sat back down. "The legend goes on to say that any guy who finds himself attacked by a Bat Gal will fall into a deep, unshakable coma-like slumber until either he wakes up on his own—which could take anywhere from a week to a whole month—or he receives a kiss from the person with whom he has the strongest connection…"

"…Wait, what? What!?" Shantae remarked in a mix of embarrassment and shock.

"…That, or he dies in his sleep after a day, I think the rumor went…" Sky pondered, further panicking her best friend in the process.

"Are you serious!?"

"I'm not one to tell jokes about this situation, so… yeah," she affirmed, unnerving Shantae even more. "I mean, you're a fan of fairy tales, aren't you?"

"Well… They're okay, I guess, but I don't pay near as much attention to them as I do comics. That aside, are we really going to factor kids' stories into this situation?"

"I won't lie, that's a very surprising question coming from someone who routinely encounters and fights the very creatures depicted IN those children's stories," Sky rebutted, making yet another fantastic point. "Plus, it isn't like there's much irrefutable factual literature on most of the creatures in question, because they either pop up out of nowhere, or anyone brave enough to try and study them winds up disappearing without a trace at one point or another. Anyone who lives to tell the tale barely has anything to say for one reason or another. Trust me, I know. I've searched high and low for info on a lot of the monsters we've come across in every library I've ever been to. We still don't even know exactly where Tinkerbats come from, for example, and we've been dealing with those things for ages!"

"Wow… I… didn't really think of it like that at all…" Shantae pondered, realizing just how right her friend was. "Okay, I'll give you that, but if we're really going this route, then isn't it usually supposed to be the guy who kisses the girl to wake her up in a situation like this?"

"Usually, but gender norms are obsolete, and clearly, this is a prime example of it," she explained with a shrug. "It's about time something changed there, anyway. Not enough guys in the role of 'damsel in distress,' where a girl has to save him."  
"Wow, Sky, you're on a roll," Shantae complimented. "That's actually super true…"

"Thanks, but I'm rambling at this point. So, what do we do here?"

"Well, I don't wanna kiss him!" she refused, repulsed by the idea of having to kiss her friend to wake him up. "That's gross! Plus, we don't even know if that'll work or if that rumor turns out to just be a rumor!"

"I knew you'd say that," Sky remarked, unsurprised by Shantae's reaction. "I was thinking the same thing. Looks like we'll just have to wait and see what happens tomorrow, then."

"What? Why? Aren't you going to do it?"

"Me!?" Sky reacted in surprise, her face turning a peachy pink. "Why me?"

"Well, you're the one out of the two of us who has a crush on him, so I thought you'd be all for it. Plus, that whole 'strongest connection' thing you were talking about…"

"Really, Shantae?" she incredulously asked her half-genie companion. "I'm offended. Much as I'd like to take advantage of a poor, defenseless, insanely-hot guy in his sleep, I am a woman with moral standards, and this crosses the line by at least a mile."

"Fair, I guess… But… if there's a chance he'll die or be stuck like this, then what can we do?"

"I don't really know, but I'll be the first to say everything about this situation is all sorts of messed up. And… you're sure you don't want to test out that theory?"

"Yes," she sternly rebutted through her apprehension. "I mean, I like the guy, but I don't know if I like him like THAT…"

"Well, something's gotta give, and—wait, what do you mean you don't KNOW if you like him like that? Are… are you saying you-?"

"That's not important," she hastily shut her friend down, realizing she may have misspoken. "The fact is, there's gotta be some other way to wake him up."

"Any ideas, in that case? You've tried everything else, haven't you?"

"Yep… I'm honestly stumped, Sky, and now that you mentioned that part about him dying, I… I'm scared now…" she admitted, nervously nibbling on her finger. "What if we DO wait until tomorrow and he stops breathing? Or if he really does wind up staying asleep for the whole week? We can't take care of him like this and still expect to have as much time as we need to stop Risky from bringing an end to Sequin Land as we know it! Plus, if he dies, I… I don't know what I'd do because it'd be all my fault because I didn't know he wasn't supposed to kiss that Bat Gal, and that technically means I killed him and… and…" the poor young woman rambled, her thoughts racing as she suddenly felt a heavy guilty pang in her heart. Her eyes began to water as she nibbled harder on her finger, wondering exactly the unfavorable fate her interdimensional friend was doomed to.

"…I… Shantae…" Sky quietly called to her, her voice halted by her second-hand guilt and anxiety over the situation presented to them. As she watched Shantae's face contort into a sorrowful frown as she continued chewing on her finger, Sky gulped and took a shaky breath to compose herself as she considered the daunting scenario for what it was. As she'd said previously, any male that found himself victimized by a Bat Gal would fall into a deep, unshakable slumber. That much was proven true already, as far as we've seen. However, as she'd also said, the only way to break the curse was for the male in question to be kissed by someone who held a strong connection to him. There were just a few SLIGHT problems with that, though… Namely, did the connection have to be platonic, familial, or romantic? Did it have to be true love? Or did that not really matter? Also, did the gender of the kisser matter? Additionally, where did the victim need to be kissed for the curse to break? Furthermore, how much time would it supposedly take after a kiss happened that the victim would wake from his comatose state? Adding onto all that, would the victim wake up instantly? Or would it be slow and gradual, as though he'd gotten a full night's sleep?

Before we really dig into all the practical, fundamental, and moral problems with this scenario and supposed solution, I'll have you know that approximately NONE of those considerations went through either Sky's or Shantae's heads. Shantae was too busy trying not to cry about her friend potentially dying, and Sky was about to come to a very important conclusion. That conclusion being…

"I'll do it," Sky volunteered after a moment of silent panic between the two girls. Hearing Sky loud and clear, Shantae perked up in a mix of relief and situational excitement.

"You will!?" she emphatically asked, unable to hide her faith in her friend's ability to save her other friend.

"Yeah…" the bird trainer reluctantly confirmed as her heart began to pound. "I… I can put my pride and considerations aside if it means keeping him alive…"

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, Sky!" Shantae cheered, splashing through the water and sending droplets of it in every direction (some of it even hitting the unconscious Tayshan in the face) to ensnare Sky in the tightest, wettest, most slippery hug she'd ever given her. In the wake of their bombastic moment of premature celebration, they did not notice the subtle grunt coming from the serviceman as he reacted ever-so-slightly to the *SLAP* of the water against his face.

"Agh…! O-okay, girl, you…! You can show me your appreciation later…!" she assured, choking as the half-genie bear-hugged her. "Let's just get this over with…"

"Oh! R-right…" she understood, letting go of her bestie to commence Operation: Save the Soldier. "So, before you go ahead, how will you do it?"

"Well…" Sky pondered, observing the soldier as he sat, stationary and hunched forward. After a moment of thought, she made a suggestion. "I'm probably going to need some help keeping him in position. He's good sitting up, but do you think it'd be an issue for you to get behind him and hold his head up? That should make things a little easier."

"Of course!" the now-excited-beyond-reason young purple-haired woman enthusiastically agreed, climbing out of the hot tub to run over to Tay with echoing wet *PLOPS* of her bare feet against the floor, before kneeling down and placing one hand under his rugged, hairy chin. She then wrapped her other arm across his bare chest over his shoulder to lock him in place. "Okay, we're all set. Are you ready?"

"…As I'll ever be…" Sky murmured with another nervous gulp, her heart about ready to explode with anticipation over what she was about to do. She brought a hand to her chest and took a deep breath as the bath suddenly hit a sweltering temperature… at least, for her, it did. Suffice to say, she was incredibly nervous as she slowly waded through the effervescent bath water toward the helpless soldier in dire need of saving. "Shantae, you owe me for this…"

"I know…" she readily acknowledged. "I'll make it up to you the best way I know how, girl. I promise."

"I'll hold you to that," the anxious falconer assured as she reached her destination in no time flat. There she stood, in front of the guy she had been exceptionally fond of, in a most vulnerable state, held in his current position by none other than her best friend. At that point, Sky considered just what it was that she signed up for. Without really even knowing if the rumor she brought up was true, she was about to straight-up kiss a guy in his sleep. There were so many racing thoughts in her mind at that moment that one could compare it to an all-out, seven-sided aerial war between seven different types of birds, relentlessly clawing, squawking, and flapping at each other. The only thought she could conjure up in that moment that brought her some fleeting sense of relief was that she was doing it to save her newest friend from potential certain death. That thought was all our noble, valiant young bird trainer needed to press on. It… may have helped a tiny bit that she was sweet on him, but that was totally only a guess on my part.

"Well, Sky? Are you ready?" Shantae prompted as she continued to hold Tay in place, snapping her comrade out of her stupor.

"Right, on it…" she assured one last time as she approached the soldier. The pressure on like a five-ton boulder, Sky propped herself up on the step of the pool Tay was sitting on, very carefully straddling him as she ran through a thousand and one mental practice drills. Her breath caught in her throat as she got closer and closer to doing the deed, and every earthquake of a heartbeat was a harrowing reminder of the unrelenting intensity brought on by the task she assigned herself to do. Yet, there she was… Face-to-face with a man she barely knew, yet had been infatuated with and whose lap she was practically seated on as she rested her hands on his shoulders… Her best friend holding him in place by his chest and jaw as though the two girls were in the midst of interrogating a criminal… I need not even think to mention that she and Shantae were in bikinis while he was shirtless, wearing just a blue pair of camouflage fatigues in a hot tub. The more Sky hesitated to complete hers and Shantae's impromptu, very poorly-thought-out mission, the harder it became to concentrate. She gazed intently at his soaking wet visage, analyzing every detail as though she were studying a textbook about the anatomy of an exotic animal. However, she again failed to notice that Tay's facial expression had indeed changed since he was cast into the comforting bathhouse pool. Despite this, Sky took one last look at Tay's sleeping face, reminding herself that his current facial expression would be all anyone would see of him if she did not act.

"Okay, Sky…" the thoroughly-nervous war bird trainer whispered to herself in mental preparation. "Remember… there is nothing wrong with this… except basically everything other than the fact that this is to save someone's life. There's no time to waste… so… let's… just… do this…!" And with that, Sky very gingerly proceeded. She locked her hands onto Tay's shoulders and very slowly closed the distance between herself and the man she'd be responsible for bringing back from the brink of oblivion. As she did so, she closed her eyes and puckered her lips to brace for impact.

"That's it, Sky… just… a little closer…" Shantae cheered her on, her own heart thumping with anticipation as she held her unconscious teammate in place. Though she was… uncertain of the method in which this situation was playing out, the young woman knew one thing… That thing being, she couldn't have been thankful enough to have a friend like Sky, who was so willing to correct a mistake she didn't make, that she was basically taking a 'Shantae'-inscribed bullet for her. "I bet it'll be quick, too, so there'll be nothing to worry about once it's done… right?"

It was a matter of a few seconds before Sky's wet lips would meet Tay's in a totally non-romantic embrace meant purely for the sake of protection and survival… if one was to draw zero conclusions based on the… compromising context laid out in this situation. Nevertheless, as per a certain unofficial ages-old law, it is said that anything that CAN go wrong, WILL go wrong. Wanna find out how that applies here? Well guess no longer (if you were. Otherwise, enjoy)!

"Urgh… Ugh…" the previously-unconscious Tay grunted as he finally came to. Perfect timing, of course. He opened his eyes, blinking them a few times to gain some form of clarity in his vision. However, upon waking, many, MANY things were immediately amiss to him. What was this warm, wet sensation all over his body? Why was the air so thick and steamy? Where was he? Why did it feel like someone was holding him in place from multiple positions? But most importantly… Who was this strange bikini-clad woman sitting on top of him with her hands on his shoulders? And why did it seem like she was going in for a kiss? Unable to process so much information all at once to make sense of the situation, Tay panicked. With a sudden *SPLASH* of the hot tub's water, the serviceman's hands flew out of the bath and immediately clasped themselves onto the face of this unknown assailant with a loud *SLAP* before she could plant her lips on him.

"Oogh!" Sky grunted in a mix of pain and shock as both her cheeks were ensnared and smushed in the bewildered soldier's grasp. He had grasped her by the face and directed her upward, though he didn't let go. Immediately, Sky began to panic, flailing her arms while trying to free herself from Tay's digital vice grip. "Shernteee! A lertur hurlp hrrrr!" Sky called on Shantae through her attempts to break herself from the soldier's adrenaline-riddled grasp as he tried to lift himself out of the pool.

"Oh, no!" Shantae also panicked, instinctively putting Tay into a headlock as he tried to get out of the bath. "Wait, stop! It's us! Don't panic!" she tried to advise while inadvertently choking him to try and get him to let go of Sky… and inadvertently doing the exact thing she was telling him NOT to do. "Stay still!"

"Agh…! Wha… Dagh!" Tay eloquently responded, flailing, splashing, and kicking all over the place as he let go of Sky… only to try frantically grasping at whoever was bold enough to try choking him out from behind.

"Whoawhoa!" Sky bellowed, almost falling backward into the pool. In yet another kneejerk move, she lunged herself forward, wrapping her arms around the soldier's neck and pulling herself in to avoid losing her balance. You might be seeing by now how horribly wrong this whole 'fairytale kiss experiment' went. But, by the genies that helped bring situations like this into existence, we're gonna keep exploring, because it keeps getting better.

"Goorgh!" Tay shouted, though it was muffled by the feel of something wet, warm, and fleshy pressing itself against his face. As it appeared, he was being suffocated from two directions, though he still couldn't figure out anything about the predicament he was in. All he knew by this point was that he needed to survive this brazen, calculated assault on him at all costs. As such, he reached one of his hands forward to press against the force of the person trying to smother him. Being unable to see what he was touching, he only felt the sensation of something wet, warm, squishy, and wrapped in some kind of fabric. Whatever it was, he firmly squeezed it and tried forcing it off him, though the assailant was intent on keeping themselves locked onto his face.

"Agh! Oh, my gosh!" Sky shrieked, highly alarmed by the feel of a giant hand on her chest as she continued latching onto the still-struggling Tay to keep from falling into the water. Embarrassed as she was, she immediately became eager to bring this ridiculous situation to an end. "We've gotta do something! He's flopping around like a flounder out of water and he's groping me!" she warned her friend while making a marginally-ironic observation about water.

"I know, and I'm trying! He's not letting up, though…!" Shantae replied, not hearing everything Sky said as she continued to unintentionally strangle Tay. "Hey! Stop squirming and calm down, will you!?"

"I don't know who you people are, but y'all ain't gonna get the drop on me…!" Tay finally spoke words, keeping one hand firmly planted on the unknown attacker trying to press themselves against him while reaching his other hand behind him.

"What do you mean you don't know who we are!? We're your f-!" Shantae tried to reason, though she was cut short. She drew in a sharp gasp at the sensation of a hand planting itself firmly on her backside. "Agh…!" she grunted, utterly mortified as she nearly froze in place. It didn't help that the offending hand continued to grab at her from behind. "TAYSHAN!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, already fed up with trying to restrain the thoroughly-confused serviceman. That seemed to do the trick, however, as Tay immediately stopped everything he was doing, freezing in place as he recognized the sound of the voice that shouted his name.

"Huh…?" he grunted in confusion, though he appeared much calmer as he took in the somewhat-limited view of the environment around him. The pale blue tiled floors… The rocky waterfall-like decoration on the nearby wall that led into a sizable pit filled to the brim with water that, now that he felt it, filled him with an unmistakable rejuvenating warmth as he sat in it… The giant, leafy potted plants settled in the corner of the room… The smooth, sand-colored walls surrounding the area… "The… Bathhouse…?" he correctly guessed. "What am I…?" he asked, next moving to figure out who'd been trying to smother him. He looked forward, seeing nothing but a mass of caramel, turquoise, and purple blocking his view.

"Looks like you've finally come back to your senses, Tay…" Sky spoke as she loosened her grip on him, prompting him to look upward to meet her gaze.

"Sky…?"

"Yep, it's me."

"Why are you…?"

"Not to be rude, of course, but… do you think you could um… take your hand off me, please?" she humbly asked, her cheeks red with embrarrassment as she briefly flicked her eyes downward. Somewhat alarmed by this request, Tay moved his gaze downward once more to see what she meant. It didn't take long for him to realize why she'd asked him to let go of her. His hand was planted on her chest, as he finally realized.

"Whoa!" he shouted, ripping his hand away from her faster than you could say 'Panic!' "What… what is goin' on here…? How did…? Why am I…?"

"Finally, he's back to normal…" Shantae sighed in relief, having since loosened her grip on her subordinate as she took a moment to catch her breath. Hearing her voice again, Tay perked up.

"Shantae…?" he called, trying to turn to look in the direction he heard the voice. Feeling the sensation of someone pressing against his back, however, he was unable to fully turn around. "Where…?" he asked again, using the hand he didn't previously have on Sky to continue grabbing at whatever it was he'd planted it on before. "What is that…? Why does it feel all… round and squishy…?"

"That's my butt! Stop that!" Shantae protested, grabbing the soldier's hand and forcibly removing it from her hindquarters. Thankfully, she only needed to remove his hand partway, as Tay did the rest for her by frantically and speedily pulling his hand back to where he could see it. Mortified and still confused, Tay stared at his filthy, filthy hands in a traumatized daze.

"Uh… Wha… Huh?" he continued to babble, barely even able to conceptualize that he'd inappropriately touched not one, but both of his comrades in his hyperactive episode.

"…Uhhh…" someone else's voice droned from the entrance to the bath. Shantae, hearing the sound, peered upward as she used Tay's shoulders as leverage to balance herself. Within a millisecond, however, the half-genie became utterly stiff with shock and embarrassment. "What… are you…?" the spectator, rightfully flabbergasted, asked.

"Bolo!" Shantae called out, revealing the identity of the confused spectator as he stared blankly at the situation before him. From his perspective, he saw Shantae and Sky, his two best friends, each wearing their bikinis, smothering the guy that stole his chain mace the other day. The guy in question had no shirt on and was halfway in the tub. Sky was propped up on top of him in a most… unsavory position. Shantae was kneeling behind the guy, her hands planted on his shoulders as though she were massaging him. If that wasn't enough evidence to assume something weird was going on in this bathhouse during his normal 'peek-at-hot-girls-in-bikinis-that-were-not-Shantae-or-Sky' hours, Bolo didn't know what else to think.

"Bolo…?" Sky murmured, her heart still beating more rapidly than a suspenseful drumroll as she craned her head around to see the young man in question. She also noticed him staring blankly at her and the others, at which point, she followed his gaze… and soon realized she was still mounted on top of the serviceman she'd tried to 'save.' Realizing the inferences anyone just walking into this scenario might have developed, Sky did what any normal, rational young woman in a situation like hers would do. "Wah!" she yelped, hurriedly climbing off of Tay, though she immediately lost her balance. She fell backward and hit the surface of the water with a gigantic *SPLOOSH*.

"H-hey there, buddy! Uh… how ya doin'? Been awhile since we last saw you…" Shantae casually greeted, removing her hands from Tay's shoulders as she moved to stand, nervously scratching her head. "You uh… you planning to take a dip?" Bolo did not reply to this question, however. He was too stunned by the ludicrously-inappropriate situation he assumed he'd just walked into. Without a word (or even a blink of his wide-open eyes), Bolo slowly and very awkwardly backed out of the bath area. "Bolo, wait! This isn't what it looks like! Sky just needed to kiss him to save him from dying in his sleep!"

"Don't just blurt that out!" Sky chided as she recovered from her graceful back flop into the pool, removing her now-useless towel from her head. "They're both gonna get the wrong idea!"

"…What?" Tay queried as he scoured the room with his eyes, having absolutely no idea what Shantae was talking about. Bolo, wanting to hear none of it, looked his half-genie companion in the eye as he plugged his ears with his fingers and continued slowly backing away until he was far enough away to turn and run out of the bathhouse. Honestly, that was the best thing anyone's done this entire chapter.

"Bolo!" Shantae called again to no avail. "Darn it…" she cursed. "We'd better get out of here before we get in trouble…"

"AHEM!" another voice authoritatively made its presence known. Entering the room was the bathhouse attendant, who appeared very unhappy with what had transpired. Her arms were crossed as she wore a most disapproving frown on her face.

"…and we're in trouble…"

"I don't know what kind of bathhouse you kids think this is, but I will have none of your shameless debauchery in a family-oriented establishment!" the bathhouse attendant scolded as though she were their babysitter.

"But we weren't doing anything ina-!" Sky tried to defend, her embarrassment shooting sky-high (no pun intended).

"No excuses! The three of you get your things and get out! You'll receive a verbal warning and a temporary ban lasting for the remainder of today this time since you're normally such good guests, but this type of behavior will neither be condoned nor tolerated!"

"But ma'am, we really weren't doing anything like what you're thinking!" Shantae called out, equally as mortified as her friends.

"Shantae, as Scuttle Town's local hero, you should really do better to set a positive example for the children," the bathhouse attendant continued to scold, taking no time to listen to the plight of her 'offensive' guests. "It doesn't look very good for a lady as highly-respected as you to be gallivanting around with strange boys in a public place."

"What!? I-!"

"And as for you, young man…"

"…Me?" Tay asked in astonishment, pointing toward himself.

"Yes, you. The only man in this room. I don't know who you are, but the last two times you were in here, you've had grossly inappropriate contact with other patrons. You're on thin ice, pal. The next time you're caught in here with a woman doing unsavory things, you will receive a life ban, and your portrait will be hung on our wall of shame. Is that understood?"

"Wait, what!?" Tay shouted, even more astonished as he came back to his senses. "I never did anything o' the sort! Last time, that other girl kept gettin' fresh with me even though I told her t' stop! I have NO idea what happened this time! I was unconscious until a few minutes ago!"

"I will hear none of it, sir. You have been warned."

"…Wow…" Tay murmured with a deflated sigh as he sunk.

"Alright, I think I've made myself clear. Now out with you three. You've also been causing a line out front, so please make your exit a hasty one."

"…Yes, ma'am…" Shantae and Sky simultaneously acknowledged, seeing no further point in combatting the bathhouse attendant over who did what. Quietly, the two young women and the young man changed back into their regular clothes (Tay, having been dragged into the bathhouse in the first place, remained shirtless and shoeless, and therefore service-less) and made their exit.

 ** _Shortly Thereafter…_**

Shantae, Sky, and Tayshan made a rather quick and moderately-shameful trip back to Shantae's home on the outskirts of Scuttle Town, spending more time clarifying exactly what happened earlier than they did speaking about anything else. We rejoin our heroes as they made it back to the lighthouse as the sun begant to set.

"So we're clear; what happened in the bathhouse STAYS in the bathhouse. Right?" Sky propositioned.

"Roger," Shantae agreed.

"I… guess…" Tay uncertainly went along. "I'm still not real clear on why y'all thought I needed t' be kissed t' wake up, nor am I understandin' why you girls were in bikinis goin' to the bathhouse this time, when we were all in normal clothes the other times… or, why my shirt is gone…"

"You're overthinking it," Sky cut in, picking up some of the embarrassment she was supposed to have left at the bathhouse. "I already told you, Shantae and I are NOT those types of girls, alright? I might have a thing for you, but I would most certainly not EVER entertain the idea of climbing on you like I had to while you're unconscious and vulnerable. It honestly didn't feel right doing it when you weren't even awake, anyway," she stated with a nonchalant shrug. Tay, caught off guard by her admission, cocked an eyebrow.

"…So, what you're sayin' is-!"

"Ah! You know what I mean, buster!" Sky blushingly scolded, pointing a finger at the soldier, who wisely clammed up. Shantae, finding some humor in the exchange, giggled away some of the awkward tension. "Any funny ideas you might be getting, you keep them to yourself!"

"Right… Ironic I'm the one bein' yelled at, considerin' I was unconscious until the minute you tried t' kiss me in my sleep while Shantae held me in position," he countered with a slight frown, though both the young ladies in question flinched. "If y'all didn't explain what was happenin' there, I'd have been convinced y'all were really tryin' t' put the moves on me when y'all got the chance…"

"Yyyyyyeah, no," Sky sardonically countered, shutting that naughty idea down quick.

"Keep dreaming, bud," Shantae jokingly remarked in amusement.

"Hmph. I probably would've, if you didn't chuck my unconscious body into a hot tub t' wake me up," Tay shot back, causing Shantae and Sky to reel back in surprise, momentarily glancing at one another to share their surprise before looking back at him.

"Wow, T.M.I…" Sky pointed out, cringing in revulsion… at least, I think it was revulsion. I couldn't tell. She was still blushing.

"Too… Much… Info…" Shantae added while also blushing. Her remark nevertheless completed a combo of castigation against the soldier.

"Now y'all know I ain't mean it like that. Gimme a break," Tay flatly stated, shaking his head and rolling his eyes. "Anyway, I can't say I don't appreciate how far you girls are willin' t' go t' save my life. I sincerely thank you for your efforts. Seriously though, who's the moron who came up with that 'awakened by true love's kiss' nonsense and told you it'd work in real life? I mean, I've been questionin' everything I've ever known up t' this point because I'm not from this world, but even I still know when somethin' sounds fishy…"

"Uhh…" Sky awkwardly droned, for SOME reason scared to admit that she was the one who brought up the idea in the first place. "Um…"

"Does it really matter who came up with it in the long run?" Shantae cut in, saving Sky. "The important thing is that we now know it isn't true and that, bringing it back to the reason we even had to try it, you are not allowed to ever touch another Bat Gal ever again. Ever. That way, we can avoid a situation like this in the future," she reasoned, after which she turned to Sky and subtly winked at her. In return, Sky formed a heart with her hands and mouthed the words 'Thank you' to her. Oblivious, Tay sighed and shrugged.

"I guess, but that still leaves the question of why you had me kiss Venus in the first place," he posed, opening up a whole new can of worms. "Never mind the part about me bein' banned from the bathhouse if I do anything else undesirable in there."

"Right… You and I do need to clear some things up based on how yesterday's field trip went…" Shantae acknowledged with a nod.

"Yes, we do. Still, I at least appreciate how far you two were willin' t' go t' save me, like I said. If I ever get the chance t' return the favor, you can guarantee I will."

"Even if that meant you had to kiss one of us? Hmm?" Sky asked, smirking with full knowledge that she was turning his own words against him.

"Absolutely," he confidently answered, matching Sky's smirk with one of his own as he took up her challenge. Both girls reeled back in shock at his forwardness, evidently expecting him to react differently.

"Wow…" Shantae murmured, going silent as she processed just what her sidekick had admitted.

"Whoa, really?" asked Sky, her curiosity piqued as her expression changed to match her surprise at him.

"Don't underestimate how far I'd go t' protect my friends," he assured, his confident grin holding strong as he looked both of his comrades in the eye. "You two have already saved me so many times, it'd be crazy o' me t' say I wouldn't do everything t' return the favor."

"I thought we agreed that you didn't owe me a thing," the bird tamer contested.

"Yeah, but come on… If I didn't find SOME way t' show my appreciation, I'd look like a jerk. I mean, I could pay you with the gems I earned durin' our adventures, but that seems too easy an' insincere."

"Good point, hon," Sky agreed, picking up what he was putting down as a very… suspicious grin crept onto her face. Unbeknownst to her, however, Shantae knew better. "Good point… In that case, if you want to be sincere, how about you make it up to me by—!"

"Nope!" Shantae hastily interrupted, bringing the hammer down harder than an angry judge after a heated trial as she stepped in, waving her hands and shaking her head. "That's as far as we're going there!"

"Shantae!" Sky complained, upset that her best friend ruined her chance to flirt with the serviceman.

"No way! I am not sitting through another cringe-inducing, romantically-charged conversation between you two. It's awkward enough to just sit here and watch! Plus, don't you think Tay's had enough for the day, waking up to you almost kissing him?"

"Uh, I-!" Tay tried to cut in, though he wasn't sure what he was going to say.

"Plus, we both got WAY more than enough of that gunk over in Genie's Hem with Hypno Baron's creepy minions!" she added, making another excellent point.

"Oh, fine… Way to kill the mood," Sky complained, crossing her arms and turning her head away.

"The… mood?" Tay asked, understandably confused as to what 'mood' Sky referred to. As per usual, however, his question fell on deaf ears.

"Sorry," she apologized. "I still haven't even fully recovered from the bathhouse incident, so I might be a bit… jumpy right now."

"Hmph… I guess that's fair to say. Maybe that WAS a bit too soon," Sky pensively agreed, calming down a bit. She couldn't help but feel a tad embarrassed, however. "Sorry about that. We all should probably give it a little more time then, huh?"

"That sounds like a good idea," Shantae agreed, though she did feel somewhat guilty for refusing to let Sky flirt with Tayshan. "We just cleared the air on it after thinking Tay was going to die, so it wouldn't hurt to relax a bit for the rest of today."

"True, true… On that note, I'll try to find Bolo and explain that bathhouse scene to him before he spreads any crazy rumors," Sky offered, turning and hurriedly walking off to Scuttle Town. "Catch you guys with the next update on my progress looking for Risky!"

"Oh! Uh, alright, Sky. See ya later," Tay bade with a wave, though he was surprised to see her take off so suddenly.

"Bye, Sky!" Shantae also waved, though she wasn't nearly as surprised to see Sky go. Sky merely turned and waved as she broke into a steady jog through the grassy path leading from the lighthouse into Scuttle Town. "Eyes over here, Tay," Shantae sternly commanded Tay, suspicious that he might make another egregious Sky-related mistake. Hearing the terseness of her tone, he turned around and frowned with disapproval.

"You seriously have so little faith in me that you think I didn't learn from last time to NOT stare at her as she walked off?" he dared to question, a bit offended. "Unreal…"

"Sorry. But, it's good to know you learned your lesson," she defended, raising her hands momentarily. "I'm just keeping my eyes peeled."

"For whose sake, in this case? Mine or hers?" he asked, causing Shantae to perk up in curiosity. "My hard life lesson aside, you put an end t' her flirtin' before she even got the chance t' start. That's pretty unusual for you."

"Unusual? What do you mean?"

"As far as I've seen, you usually let her slip in one comment before you step in an' shut the party down," he observed. "That, an' she seemed a little bit out o' sorts once you did shut it down. Is there somethin' I'm missin'?"

"Nothing I'm aware of," she denied, feeling as though she'd been put on the spot a little. "I just didn't want anyone to feel uncomfortable, is all; especially after what just happened and how uncomfortable we all were."

"That's… understandable," he agreed with a nod after a few seconds of thought. "That situation WAS pretty bad. Shoot, I didn't even get t' apologize t' her for grabbin' her… Uh, sp-speakin' o' which…"

"It's fine, Tay," she preemptively forgave, her breath getting somewhat tighter in her chest as she thought back to their time in the bathhouse. Needless to say, she didn't want to be reminded of it. "We were in a weird position, and you weren't fully aware of your surroundings. I won't hold that against you."

"Oh. Er, okay. Thanks for understandin', then."

"Yep. Anyway, about yesterday…" she led on, changing the subject.

"Right…" he agreed with a nod. "Without wastin' any more time than we already have, I'm… I'm sorry for the way I behaved while I was in your body, homegirl…"

"O-Oh! I… I didn't think you'd go right into that…" she commented, focusing on him in her surprise.

"Yeah, but I know there was a lot I was responsible for, an' I wanna get it off my chest now. I know I was… a little bit out o' line for most o' that trip, an' I honestly couldn't begin to explain why I did half the things I did… I'm usually much more composed than that, an' I feel like what you saw might've been glimpses o' my old personality…"

"I understand, Tay. I do, really…" Shantae began. "But it isn't like you're the only one who made a few mistakes here and there. I definitely didn't feel like myself, either… and I'm not even talking about us being switched into each other's bodies. It's strange, but… it's like, half the things I was saying or doing, were things I would probably never do if we were in the same situation and I was in my own body…"

"Really?" Tay asked in moderate surprise that his companion would admit to such a thing. "I thought you handled bein' me pretty well. Shoot, you even hesitated to attack female enemies like I… usually would. Not to mention, when it came down to it, you wielded my gun in such an identical way t' how I normally would, that I almost thought I was just lookin' at another me rather than it bein' the case o' me in your body lookin' at you in my body. And, even before I went int' that strange, jealousy-laced rage, you were doin' pretty good fightin' your old flame in a similar way t' how I would've tried figurin' him out." The honesty in Tayshan's statement caught Shantae by complete surprise, as she hadn't expected him to openly admit to being jealous of anything in their time assuming each other's identities.

"Wow… There's a lot to be said there," she replied before taking a moment to think about how she would proceed the conversation. "Uh… I mean, I guess I should say thanks for your compliments, first and foremost. You have some very interesting abilities I wasn't aware of. Beside your super strength, did you know you had the power to increase your reflexes to insanely-acute levels when you aim your gun in a pinch?"

"I… do?" he asked, having no clue what she meant.

"Yeah! You didn't know about it?" she asked, almost equally as alarmed as he was regarding his lack of awareness of his innate ability.

"Not… really…" he answered with utmost uncertainty, momentarily glancing at his hands as he pondered Shantae's assertion. "How do you know that wasn't just you gettin' used t' how I move?"

"Because whenever I did go into that hyper-focused state, I felt the same kind of tingling warmth I would feel when I use magic… Which is to say, you definitely have a little bit of magic flowing through your body, Tay. It took me a bit to figure out how to use it in your body, but there's no more doubt from me that you have it in you. Uncle was right on the nose, just like he always is."

"No way…! It's just like what that woman said…" he whispered to himself, stunned by the confirmation of the theory of him absorbing magic into his body upon his arrival in Sequin Land.

"What was that?" the half-genie queried, not quite understanding what he was mumbling about.

"…Nothin', just… takin' that revelation in…" Tay dismissed, realizing that he didn't want to take the conversation too deeply in the direction of the mysterious jackal-masked woman that swore him to secrecy. "Thanks for lettin' me know that. Still… This magic business is somethin' else. Now that you mention it, I definitely do feel like somethin' just surges through me when I'm in a tight spot an' need t' rely on my accuracy with a firearm… It happened at least once back on Prickle Stitch Valley, and… I definitely feel like I might've had some experience with it on Naga Mountain, too… So that's what magic really feels like, huh?"

"The more you learn, right?" she rhetorically asked with a smiling nod. "Speaking of, I'm honestly surprised you knew how to tap into my magic as well. The way you gained access to my fire spell the first time when we were up against Abner's girlfriend… You just… exploded!"

"Yeah, I remember… I was so scared of what she was gonna do t' you, an' at the same time, so furious at myself for lettin' her wrap me up in web so I couldn't help you… an' then the memory of my… of… one o' my old friends popped up."

"Oh…" Shantae pensively commented, her heart beating heavier in her chest when Tay brought up his dearly-departed friends.

"Specifically, the promise I made t' him t' never let you get hurt the way I let him…" he admitted, further astonishing his team leader as she gave him her full attention. "Honestly, I wasn't expectin' such a huge rush o' flames t' come roarin' out o' me the way it did, homegirl. It was like… the fire was perfectly in tune with my anger in that moment. I mean, excuse me if this sounds inaccurate, but I think it calls back t' what you said a little while ago about your magic bein' tied very strongly t' your emotions."

"Wow, Tayshan… I didn't know it ran that deep for you… I'm sorry I made you worry so much about me that… you were scared I would've-!"

"You don't need t' apologize for it," he cut in, shaking his head and shooting her a small grin. "I'm certainly glad that situation played out in our favor so we're alive t' even talk about it. Plus, it helped me understand just how serious I am when it comes t' havin' your back."

"Aw, Tay… You're the best," she complimented, touched by his confession. "Thank you for saving me, because you really pulled through when I needed you to."

"Not a problem at all. Honestly, you saved me as well when I needed you to. If it wasn't those werewolves, it was those bat women. If it wasn't the bat women, it was Hypno Baron. Seriously, if you didn't jump in like you did an' beat some sense int' that wizard before grabbin' my gun an' actually managin' t' land both your shots so I had just enough time t' move out o' the way of his underhanded surprise attack on me, I'd have been dead for sure. It… also helped that Aashiq caught me before I hit the floor, though it pains me t' admit…"

"True, but that situation could've played out much worse if one thing went wrong. Thankfully, we made it. But, we both have to admit, I did get myself into some pretty tight situations I could've avoided had my mind been in better sync with your body. You did have to save me from certain doom two or three times because I couldn't bring myself to go all out against that Natasha girl, the Slime Gals, or Venus and her sister… If I were in the right mindset, I'd have at least been more capable of avoiding being captured by them."

"I… guess, but that definitely further proves the theory I had about why we couldn't figure out how to be each other."

"Right, we did talk a little bit about that while we were out there."

"Yeah, we did. Which is why I wanted t' apologize for how I acted while I was in your body…"

"You don't have to…"

"Much as I'd like t' believe that, I do," Tay countered with a solemn nod. "On the same point with the emotions, I… let my emotions get the better o' me while I was you. I mean, you pointed it out t' me when you yelled at me while we were figurin' out what t' do with Aashiq," he brought up, prompting Shantae to gulp with contemplative guilt for their tense conversation during their travels.

"R-right…"

"You had a point. The entire time, I was so on-edge about us switchin' bodies with the possibility o' never changin' back that I spent the whole time beside myself… an' the worst part was that I feel like I was gradually becomin' worse as time went on."

"Tay, it's-!"

"I mean, I bullied the octopus, I was so much more aggressive with my battle style than I've ever been, t' the point where I ruthlessly beat up all those monsters when I've normally tried t' hold back unless they were Tinkerbats… I broke those guys' arms for somethin' so childish as them puttin' their hands in the wrong places an' makin' some rude comments, I stole that treasure chest without even thinkin' about how you'd feel, an'… an' I even blurted out a secret you trusted me with, an' before you pointed it out t' me back then, I almost completely missed why that was such a terrible thing t' do…" he rambled on, his burgeoning guilt causing his heart to pulse harder as his breaths became shaky. "Shantae, I can't even begin to apologize enough for how bad I made you look, an' I probably lost your trust in me-!"

"Tay, stop," she commanded, basically feeling the regret emanating off him. "I'm not mad at you anymore, if that's what you're thinking. A lot of unfavorable things did happen, and I'm glad you understand your actions for what they were. I also appreciate that you're willing to own up to them. But, I'd be lying if I said I didn't understand why you were acting the way you were… especially when I consider the hidden negative influence you might've had…"

"What? What do you mean?"

"I refer to the moment you lost control… or rather, the moment someone else inside me tried to take control over you," she clarified.

"Someone else… inside you?" he asked, mystified by the revelation of there possibly being another presence in his comrade's body.

"Yes," Shantae affirmed, the look on her face radiating with seriousness the likes of which she rarely showed. "Before the point she took control of you, I was under the impression you might've been having a tough time adjusting to being me while you still had your own mind. It's like you said; our minds were heavily influenced by the ways our bodies reacted to them. The more we talk about it, the more it makes sense."

"Huh… I didn't think what I said had so much credibility…"

"Believe me, it does. From my perspective in your body, you definitely take a LOT of things into consideration when you fight. It's to a point where I found myself overthinking things pretty much all the time and almost panicking at every turn because of it. I'm not used to constantly trying to consider every possibility when I fight, which slowed me down a ton. It seemed to me like you have some intense anxiety, Tay… No offense."

"None taken," he calmly acknowledged. "You're right. I have terrible anxiety," he further admitted, embarrassed as he was to do so. "I can't say I'm surprised you figured that out, with the way you explained it."

"Really? You usually seem so calm, though!" she hollered in astonishment. "You deal with anxiety like that?"

"Yep. It stems from all the problems I faced as a kid an' even after I enlisted in the enforcement services. Almost nothin' about bein' trapped in Sequin Land aside from talkin' t' you has helped me at all, I'm afraid. In more ways than one, homegirl, I didn't come out o' my past situations scot-free. That said, I'm tryin' t' find some way t' bring myself under control so I'm not so tense all the time…"

"Gosh… the more I learn about you, the more surprised I am…"

"I could say the same," he agreed. "Still, what were you sayin' about your perspective from my body?"

"Oh! Right. Umm…" she hummed, taking a moment to think. "So, I'm more of a 'tackle things head-on,' kind of girl, if you hadn't picked up on that already. It was really hard to be that kind of person when your body is adjusted to you being more of the 'examine the battlefield and adapt' type. It's mainly because of that, that I found myself getting more frustrated with how things were going than I thought I would. Once I got mad enough, though, I took some of my anger out on you. Even with the thing about you bringing up my feelings for Aashiq, I was unreasonably mean to you there. I wanted to let you know to calm down and keep your head in the game, but in my moment of embarrassment and anger, it came out… well… like it did…"

"I understand now…" Tay realized with a nod as he took in some of the brisk evening air through a pressure-relieving sigh.

"I didn't mean to say you were upsetting me to the point where I'd stop letting you tag along with me. I only wanted to remind you that we had a job to do, and that our lack of coordination was getting in the way. I… I know I hurt you with what I said, though."

"I mean… a little bit, but I get why you said it."

"I know… but, that's no excuse for how I treated you. I could tell after that discussion and after I was done fighting Aashiq that you were hurt. Your whole demeanor changed… to something completely unlike you, or even me… or rather, it was like you suddenly became someone I thought I'd done away with during my last big adventure to save Sequin Land." At that, Tay began to get an idea of this person to whom Shantae referred. After a quick moment of thought, he gasped.

"…You… don't mean… that the-!"

"The evil version of me I told you my friends helped me get rid of? Yeah, she's… still around," Shantae revealed with an almost tearful frown, completely blowing Tay away. "I'm embarrassed to even admit it, but… she's still here…"

"No way…!"

"Yeah… I didn't realize she was back until she took control of you in my body, though," the worried young woman explained. "Tayshan, the minute I saw your whole attitude change when I stopped you from finishing off Venus, I wondered why you'd become so unnecessarily cruel to someone when you're normally so considerate. At first, I thought you were just following my instincts, because I tend to fight first and ask questions second. That much, I'll admit I've gotta work on. But then, like you said, you felt yourself becoming more and more impulsive, angry, and indifferent toward me or most of what I had to say to you as we went on. After I beat Aashiq, I started to have my suspicions that you… were even less of yourself than you could've been while you were in my body."

"…I… I don't even know where t' begin askin'," Tay commented as he attempted to conceptualize Shantae's confession.

"I don't blame you," she agreed. "Still, it got to a point where even Hypno Baron noticed the change in your attitude. Nasty as he might've been with his words, he was right about one thing… that thing being the… almost sadistic, violent look on your face, accompanied by the blue in my eyes turning to a frightening golden yellow…"

"Right, right…" Tay nodded, drumming up some of the memories he had regarding the incident. "I… can't remember everything, because it was all such a blur, but… I do recall not havin' complete control o' myself… if any at all when we fought Hypno Baron. I remember bein' so consumed with such vicious, inhumanly vile, hatred-fueled intent that every inch o' your body burned like the sun with the desire t' rip him t' pieces…" he tried his best to explain as he was reminded of another point. "…which reminds me about what you said before, with how… how Dark Magic feels…"

"Exactly," Shantae confirmed. "That also explains why you were itching so much on our way to fight him. The influence of Dark Magic starts off like that; a nagging tingling in the skin not quite like the tingles you get when you use Light Magic."

"For real?"

"Yeah. There's a huge difference. Light Magic feels almost like feathers are tickling you, and you feel comfortably warm. Dark Magic feels like you have needles poking at you while they're piping hot, which is why it comes off as so irritating. If left unchecked, the itch becomes harder to deal with until you feel like fire ants are crawling all over your body and biting every inch of your skin. After that, well… Yeah," she somberly explained, trailing off where she knew Tay was aware, based on his experience.

"…Wow…" was all Tay could even think to say.

"I wish you'd never had to know that feeling, but that's what Dark Magic feels like; to a 'T.' Still, it's interesting to me that you mentioned being jealous as the biggest factor behind you losing control," she added, causing Tay's body temperature to rise along with his nervousness at what he anticipated what she would possibly ask. "That said, what were you jealous of?" And there it was. Expecting this question, however, Tay did his best to reply.

"I… I don't know," he hesitantly began. "It had somethin' t' do with your old boyfr—er, I mean, your old crush…"

"That much, I'm sure was obvious."

"Tease me all you like, but it didn't necessarily have t' do with what you're thinkin'," he was quick to point out. "It wasn't because I thought he was better lookin' than me, or because I thought you were givin' each other more attention than me or anything like that. I mean, how could I feel that way when I was in your body?"

"That's… really interesting," Shantae commented, raising an eyebrow in wonder. "So, what were you thinking about?"

"I… If I could still remember what it was while I was you, I think it had somethin' t' do with how much more… open he was with his romantic feelings than I was? Or, some kind o' pit in your stomach that formed from the minute we saw him. It was some mixture of anger, sadness, hope that he still had feelings for quote-unquote 'me,' an' some sore disappointment in him for havin' been with other girls an' then all of a sudden flirtin' with another guy right in front o' me. It was such a complicated mix, homegirl, that I'd need at least a dozen textbooks t' figure out why your body was so confused about him; especially when _I_ don't have any history with him, so t' speak. Still, the best thing I could relate the feelings to was jealousy."

"Wow… You felt exactly like I know I would've in those moments," she admitted, though Tay wasn't quite as surprised to hear the admission as he thought he'd be.

"Yeah, but that feeling got swallowed up by the soul-crushin' guilt I felt when you yelled at me," he admitted. "That guilt quickly festered an' grew int' thoughts about me not bein' good enough t' team up with you, which were followed by this… this swirlin' cyclone of buildin' anger at everything that eventually became disproportionate t' the situation we were in… An' by the time I looked at that wizard when he showed up, I… I lost myself. I was screamin' so hard internally t' get myself t' stop attackin', t' stop tryin' so hard t' burn Hypno Baron alive… an' especially not t' turn against you when you told me t' stand down. Every step o' the way, though, your body was just on autopilot, an' whatever the pilot was, was intent on obliteratin' everything around it…"

"…Darn it, that all but confirms it," she cursed, clenching her fists in frustration. "I'd been trying so hard to keep that part of my magic locked away, but I can't believe it's still present to the point of showing up like this…!"

"…So it's true? I know you said it a second ago, but I gotta be sure… You still have Dark Magic in you?"

"…Yeah…" she disdainfully admitted. "My friends helped me convert back to good after Risky used the repurposed Dynamo on me, but I… I still struggle with the lingering effects of that transformation… I haven't told anyone about it, because I thought I had it under control…"

"Jeez…!"

"I'm sorry you had to see that first-hand, Tayshan," she preemptively apologized. "No one was ever supposed to know that the evil me still existed, much less know what she was capable of… I can't express enough how bad I feel that I hurt you enough to basically give her an easy way out…"

"Homegirl, I understand… As much as I'm capable o' doin', I understand," he assured her as best as he could. "If it makes you feel better, I was able t' regain complete control the minute I saw you get trapped an' attacked by Hypno Baron," he tried to console. "Sappy as this might sound comin' from me, my desire t' protect you completely overrode that other Shantae's desire t' harm you an' Hypno Baron. It might've also helped that she tapped your body out for magic, but still… As far as I've experienced, I think your willpower is much, much stronger than you give yourself credit for. It's that same willpower that pushed me forward in gettin' us switched back into our own bodies… for better or for worse, considerin' what happened t' my body throughout that whole ordeal."

"Wow… You were able to overtake her like that?" she asked, sounding hopeful that it wouldn't be hard to suppress her dark incarnation from this point on.

"In a sense, but it took all of my focus an' then some t' really get a grip," he explained. "Whoever that evil being inside you is, she's unbelievably hard t' overthrow for control o' your body once she's sunk her claws in. It was almost like how I fought the evil version o' me, though the fight over control o' your body was purely mental an' it was harder because it was the evil version of you I was up against instead. I don't know what I could've done if wasn't for me bein' fired up with desire t' make sure we at least made it out o' that Boss Battle alive…"

"Oh… I thought so…" she murmured, still very concerned about the presence of Dark Magic in her, when she was normally so used to possessing only Light Magic. "I've got to figure out some way to keep her at bay, then…"

"You've been doin' a pretty good job at it at this point, no?"

"Sort of, but it hasn't really been all that long since the incident with Risky's Magic Reverser happened. I wasn't expecting to walk away from that situation still tainted by even the slightest inkling of Dark Magic. I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier, or else you probably would've been a lot more mindful of yourself during our trip to Genie's Hem."

"Hmm…" Tay pondered, thinking of the consequences of being consumed by Dark Magic, as he was warned during his time in the Grotto of Judgment. "I mean, a warnin' would've been appreciated. I can't deny that for a minute," he added as delicately as he could. The half-genie's head sank a bit, regardless of Tay's attention to tact when delivering his statement. "Still, how often are we expected t' switch bodies?"

"Good point," Shantae acknowledged. "It shouldn't happen again, considering no one has ever made me switch bodies with anyone before. Now that we know Hypno Baron has that trick up his sleeve, we of course know how to avoid it if he ever tries it again. I can't imagine he would, though."

"I certainly hope that was the only time, because I'll kill him if he tries it again," Tay tersely and darkly stated, looking Shantae right in the eyes as he said it.

"Tay! Don't joke like that!" she disapprovingly shouted. "That's too morbid, not to mention too soon!"

"Right, sorry…" he apologized, though he remained adamant that he would neutralize the potential threat of losing his body again if the chance arose. To him, it was more about fulfilling his self-assigned duty than it was about bearing any grudges against Hypno Baron… even if he DID hold something of a grudge against the wizard. "Anyway, after what I experienced, I thought I understood how t' avoid bein' overwhelmed by the influence of this Dark Magic business… Last night's trip proved me wrong to the point where I now know I need t' learn somethin' myself about how t' stay on the straight-an'-narrow. Regardless, I still take full responsibility for everything I did, Shantae. Even with the influence o' Dark Magic bein' there, I was still conscious for most of it, an' I barely did anything to stop myself from goin' overboard. I have no excuse an' I've gotta do better, because it still reflects on my character… or, my 'soul,' as I recently learned I apparently have," he pensively stated, clutching a hand to his chest.

"Gosh, Tay… I didn't know you took the experience to heart like that."

"If I didn't, I'd have no room t' grow, no?" he pondered.

"That's… that's true," she agreed, momentarily gazing toward the grass beneath her feet before returning her eyes to focus on his. "Well, if that's the case, I'll let you know I'm not holding anything about what happened against you. It's kind of reflective on the quality of me and my soul, too, so I've got some improvements to make as well. That aside, I hope you understand what I'm getting at…"

"Of course I do. And hey, you were much better at bein' me than I was at bein' you. You didn't do too much wrong aside from offerin' me up as a sacrifice for that succubus," Tay nonchalantly brought up, though Shantae flinched at the very mention of the situation.

"Right… I'm… really sorry about that, Tay," she apologized as she gulped with guilt. "I honestly had no clue Bat Gals were capable of draining you of energy. Otherwise, I'd have never made you do it…"

"That much I understand, but why have me do it in the first place?" he asked, moving to the other pressing concern behind the encounter with Venus. "I mean, for all intents an' purposes, I'm surprised you even made that agreement with her; even after what you warned me about regardin' how dangerous many o' these monster girls are."

"That's true too, isn't it?" she acknowledged, feeling even guiltier for her actions. "I… Honestly, there's no excuse for it. At the time, I was thinking that a harmless little peck on the cheek wouldn't be much… which, of course, makes me look like a total hypocrite when we consider all the times I got mad at you for even glancing at a girl in a way I didn't appreciate…"

"Took the words right out o' my mouth," Tay readily agreed with a chuckle, though Shantae pouted at him, turning her body sideways as she pressed her index fingers together.

"Hey! There are better ways to say, 'I understand,' Tay…" she complained as she became slightly flustered.

"What can I say?" he smilingly asked with a shrug. "Much as I'd love t' tell you there was nothin' wrong with that whole ordeal, it just wouldn't be very good o' me t' do as your friend. You said it yourself t' Hypno Baron about why you—or rather, WE had t' let Aashiq down easy. You said somethin' about agreein' with him t' spare his feelings versus bein' honest t' come to a better understandin', right?"

"…Hmph. That's true, but don't make me regret saying that," she protested, still a little embarrassed at how blunt he was with his admission.

"Fair. Sorry for makin' you feel worse than you already do," he understood and apologized with a nod before clearing his throat. "Still, considerin' what happened, what could I say t' try an' cushion the blow? I'm not sayin' I'm angry at you for havin' made that deal with Venus. On the twisted bright side, it DID get us through that burnin' city a lot faster than if we was t' claw our path out o' that super-dangerous, werewolf-infested alleyway, only t' fight that gaggle o' wannabe action stars right after, where we'd probably have had way less energy. That, an' even if she stabbed us in the back with that grudge-riddled kiss she stole from me… along with what energy I had left at the time, she did seem t' put in the word t' Hypno Baron about that manipulative octopus like she said she would."

"That's a good point if I've ever heard it," she agreed with an affirmative nod.

"I'd hope. Granted, I think I still reserve the right t' be at least a little bit concerned you sold me up the river like that without even knowin' what could've happened. I assumed you knew everything about the enemies we came across, since most of 'em were so familiar t' you."

"That's also a good point… and you're right. What I did back there was mean and inconsiderate. If I ever do that to you or anyone again, I give you the right to force-feed me sea algae until I get permanently stuck in my Crab transformation," she swore as she solemnly raised an open hand above her head.

"Now now, don't tempt me," Tay joked to lighten the mood a bit. Shantae, reading the smirk on his face, found it in her to chuckle some of her nervousness away. "So long as you know what's up with that, I can't continue t' hold it against you."

"Thank you for your forgiveness, Your Honor," she joked back, eliciting a chortle from her sidekick. "Still, you definitely bring up another excellent point. I don't know everything about my enemies, and that's not good if they can get the drop on us like Venus did. Or, really, like most of those monsters did. They all did things I'm not used to seeing them do. We'll both have to be on our guard from here on. Like I said, I won't do that to you again. I promise."

"Agreed. Also, thanks, homegirl."

"Mm-hmm. I do have to say, though, I have no idea how you're able to negotiate so peacefully with monsters that I'm usually spending much more time vanquishing," she admitted. "That's a skill I'm becoming just a LITTLE envious of."

"As envious as I am of you for havin' access t' such incredible powers that it makes me wonder how anybody could think t' stand against you?"

"Yes," she cordially answered with a smirk, knowing he was trying to flatter her. "Not once have I ever been able to talk my way out of a bad situation like you have. It's to a point where, if we were in our own bodies at that time, I'd bet you'd have made a much better agreement with Venus than I did. We even got a bit of info out of Hypno Baron about where to go next. Granted, we had to give him the Baron Summoner and that treasure chest to get him to talk, but still, you blew me away with that. I don't quite remember if I said it to you before, but if I had your diplomacy and negotiation skills, I'm sure my reputation would skyrocket here in Scuttle Town."

"Heh, thanks for that," he accepted, scratching the back of his head as he drew in a breath of the brisk, dry seaside air and exhaled. "Can't say it's the easiest thing t' do, though. I had t' learn how t' do it in various classes I had while I was in school, basic trainin', an' after I really got started with my military career. Seriously, there were definitely points I probably would've gotten myself killed if I didn't understand the person I was talkin' to at least enough t' keep them from attackin', be it Twitch, Vinegar, Priyanka, or even the flamethrower-wieldin' Sana. Them, or that spider girl Natasha and her zombie boyfriend. On the flip-side, I'd dare t' say that if we gotta fight, then we fight, because I don't always know how reliable talkin' my way out of a scuffle could be. It sure as heck didn't work with pirate girl, that's for sure."

"That much is clear, considering how often I've had to fight enemies that wouldn't listen to reason when I tried it," she agreed. "Especially Risky Boots. Abner and Poe are acquaintances of mine, considering they're my friend Rottytops' brothers. We had that much going there, so thank goodness they were there. Of course, I still think it'd be a useful skill for me to have. I'm always up for learning something new. Your fighting techniques aren't the only thing I'm trying to learn more about."

"A quality of a true leader if I ever heard one," Tay commended, making the half-genie smile at him. "I suppose the same could be said about my marksmanship, considerin' how you managed t' just pick up my Desert Eagle an' not only fire it twice, but also actually hit Hypno Baron with both shots despite how unhandy it can be without proper experience. This, even after you said you weren't sure about how t' use it AND with me not givin' you anything but a couple pointers an' maybe a five-second demonstration."

"What can I say?" she modestly acknowledged with a mildly-bashful shrug. "I'm quick on the draw." Ugh…

"Oohoohoo, and there's the pun o' the century," he pointed out with an amused chuckle that Shantae shared with him. "Er, before we get too sidetracked though, I will say persuasive reasonin' has t' start with a trio o' terms I'm not sure exist here; Ethos, Pathos, an' Logos."

"Ethers, Panthers, and what?" she questioned, making the soldier chuckle a bit.

"I'll… tell you another time," he dismissed. "It's a long lesson there, even with how quick you seem t' learn. Anyway, you seemed t' be pretty good at negotiatin' a deal o' sorts with your old flame when we encountered him."

"Yeah, but it helped that I already knew him, so that was easy," she countered. "You negotiate deals with total strangers and have way more success than I do. Heck, you even negotiated a huge part of that deal with Hypno Baron, like I mentioned a second ago."

"Yeah, but let's be real; that octopus is t' thank for that," he clarified. "And for… pretty much everything that went wrong with that trip, like us even' havin' t' go there in the first place," he added. Shantae, picking up on flat, sardonic delivery of his statement, mirthfully laughed.

"That's true. Good ol' Squid Baron to the rescue," she commented, though she already had something else on her mind. "About Aashiq, though… I'm curious. What do you think of him up to this point?" At that, Tay sighed.

"I knew you was gonna ask me that."

"Then in that case, I'll bet you have an answer," she teased.

"Yeah, I do. So… he's… an interestin' guy, t' say the least," Tay answered candidly. "If you're lookin' for detail, he gives off a real strong impression of a man who's super considerate an' very, very accommodatin', as far as I could tell… I also found it interestin' how he never used any words with an apostrophe in it unless he was referrin' t' somethin' that belonged t' him or somebody else."

"Wow, that's true! He doesn't use words like 'it's,' 'they're,' or 'you're,' at all!" she realized after taking in a dramatic gasp. "I can't believe I forgot about that!"

"Yep. Real easy t' pick up once you listen t' him speak long enough. Other than that, he comes across as… a tad strong with his feelings. I know he pretty much said it himself, but that poor dude seems like he's not all that focused when it comes t' his ideas on love. It seemed t' me like he still likes you. That much was obvious. Even so, he still proved his own point that he was actin' on his feelings toward you more out o' regret for a lost connection with you than for a better reason, like a present an' fully-informed attraction t' you. He didn't even bother t' ask you how you'd been or what you've been doin' since y'all broke up, as far as I'm aware."

"Goodness, you pretty much hit the nail on the head with that. I'm still not sure how to feel about him, if I'm gonna just say it. Like, I want to still be friends with him, but now I'm concerned he's gonna get the wrong idea and think it's a gateway for us to start dating… It's definitely everything you mentioned, too. Well, that and the fact that he turns out to also have a huge crush on you now without even knowing you."

"Hey, hey, for goodness sake, do NOT remind me…" Tay pretty much begged, eliciting a lighthearted smirk from his comrade. "I'd say he's all yours, but it seems you don't really wanna bark up that tree anymore, either."

"Yeah…" she affirmed, though she momentarily looked away as a blush crept onto her face. "I'm… not really into the idea of dating a guy that likes other guys as much as he does girls… At least, not as into it as he was. Which reminds me, on a side note… You… don't happen to… um…" she nervously tried to ask, fidgeting with her hair as she did so.

"If you're gonna ask me if I like your former crush or other guys in general when it comes t' my preferences, the answer is an INTENSELY strong 'No,' with a capital N-O."

"Got it. But… you said Aashiq was cute, didn't you?" she asked, giggling a little at his flustered answer. She, of course, couldn't hide the blush on her face as she curiously pried into him a little about his preferences. "Doesn't that mean you… like him at least a little…?"

"I know what I said, but like I told him yesterday, it's because at a glance, he looks like a girl. The long hair, the unusually wide hips, the dressy outfit, the softness of his physical features… even his voice! No joke, the only thing that he would've needed t' convince me he was a girl was a dress in place of his pants."

"You really know how to word your statements, Tay…" Shantae smilingly commended. At this point, however, Tayshan (for once) picked up on her bashful demeanor and immediately became suspicious of her. "I definitely appreciate your honesty, and I admire you for outright stating your attraction to Aashiq in the heat of the moment, despite your preferences…"

"My attraction!? What…?" he questioned, reeling back with a mix of disdain and confusion. "I never said anything about bein' attracted t' him! Matter of fact, what's with this giggly, blushy attitude o' yours all of a sudden?" he prodded, making the young lady flinch as though she were caught sneaking a cookie out of a forbidden cookie jar.

"Wh-what!? What are you talking about!?" she asked, turning away to try and hide the smile on her face with a hand, though she kept her eyes locked on Tay, who'd crossed his arms and cocked an eyebrow at her. "I'm not entertaining the idea of you and Aash getting love-dovey together at all!" she blurted out, realizing it only after the words left her mouth. "Oops…"

"Oh, my goodness!" Tay exclaimed as he pointed at Shantae, appalled by her slip of the tongue. "I knew it! I had a feelin' you were thinkin' somethin' weird when I saw you with that same look on your face yesterday, but this just takes the cake! Are you kiddin' me right now?"

"…I… hold my right to remain silent?" she guiltily stated, trying to hide herself behind her ridiculously-long lavender ponytail.

"Unbelievable… Homegirl, I expected more from you than t' get your sick kicks off shippin' me with your old crush."

"What? You're both very handsome guys, and you both definitely admitted to there being some mutual feeling of attraction going on there!" she defended, peeking out from behind her hair. "What do you expect me to do? NOT totally fantasize about you and him entering a spicy, forbidden, and wholly passionate romantic relationship the likes of which Sequin Land has never seen? You have to admit, that IS kind of hot—er, I-I mean… well, 'interesting' to think about. You were in my body at one point, so there's no denying you know what I mean." At that, Tay paused to question everything he'd ever known about his half-genie comrade before he even attempted to formulate his rebuttal. The silence was so awkward that even the wind stopped blowing in that very, VERY uncomfortable moment that they stood outside Shantae's home.

"…Y'know, as we talk more about this, I seem to recall a very useful piece of advice you gave to me recently."

"Oh? What advice did I give you?"

"I think it went along the lines of… Keep dreamin'," he cleverly remarked, throwing Shantae's own words back at her. She froze for a moment, astonished that he'd turned that table on her, though she chuckled afterward.

"That's fair…" she conceded. "You got me there. I still stand by my point, no less." At that, Tay awkwardly paused again, his image of his mentor's innocent disposition seemingly shattered into a billion pieces.

"…I don't know whether t' feel honored that you're sharin' this intimate a secret with me, or utterly repulsed that you're admittin' your super-gross intrigue in such a horrible, depraved idea, Shantae. You're definitely makin' a whole new impression right now, either way," he warned.

"Consider yourself lucky I still can be this open with you, even after you blurted out my crush right in front of Aashiq. Maybe consider yourself even luckier I don't ship you with that Bruce guy," she further teased, causing Tay's eyes to go so wide with unquestionable revulsion that they probably could've expanded and exploded with confetti.

"Wow… Yet, I bet I'd be in the wrong if I turned around an' said the same things about you an', say, that overly-clingy ghost girl or Venus, if we're takin' this conversation in THAT direction," he pointed out, crossing his arms as he pouted.

"Oh, most definitely," she nonchalantly agreed.

"Of course you'd say that. How about Sky, in that case? What if she-?"

"Gonna cut you off right there and say 'Nooooo' to that," she fervently denied, wanting to hear nothing of Tay's crude suggestions about her and Sky's relationship.

"Then how is that fair!?" he complained, clearly wanting nothing to do with Shantae's crude suggestions about his and Aashiq's relationship.

"It's an unspoken rule, Tay. You don't have to know what that rule is, because I just made it up. In my head. Alongside the idea of you and Aash getting together because you couldn't resist each other. You're not allowed to ship me with Sky, though. Or, anybody I don't actually feel that way for, really. That's just how it is, and rules are meant to be followed. Before you even ask about it, though, it's so unfair that it's paradoxically and unquestionably fair," she argued, definitely convincing us all why it made sense AT ALL.

"What!? You-!" Tay dared to foolishly defy, though he would not get a chance to continue being wrong.

"Besides, you're the only guy I know who was open enough to say anything positive about another guy's appearance without being afraid. Plus, Aash did the same right before you. All the evidence anyone would ever need is right there!"

"…So, what, my argument's invalid just because o' that?" he guessed.

"Yep! Sorry, but that's just how shipping works. You don't get a say at all in who you get to be in a relationship with; only those who THINK you should be in a relationship with someone gets to decide that. I say this with the full knowledge that quite a few people think we're a couple, but no one said shipping has to work in absolutes… unless the shipper believes in the whole 'One True Pairing' thing."

"…" Tay eloquently and colorfully stated, staring blankly at his friend as she graced his ears with her words of indisputable wisdom about the art of pairing people into relationships they had no interest in entering. As they say… Sometimes, silence speaks louder than words… or was it that Silence is Golden? Because that seems WAY better to say in this context.

"Aw, I'm just kidding, Tay…" she dismissed with another giggle. "It's just so interesting a thing to happen between you and him, y'know?"

"Sure, whatever," he dismissively replied with a shrug and a sigh. "Then again, a lot of 'interesting' things happened over there in Genie's Hem. Seriously, so many o' that wizard's lackeys were so… oddly open about their romantic preferences. An' then there was that Bran Flakes dude when he was eyein' me up an' down while I was you… So creepy…" he commented with a reflective shiver.

"You've certainly got a point. Hypno Baron's crew WAS pretty… diverse, if I had to say it myself. You're definitely right about Bran-Son, too. I didn't expect him or any of those guys to take such a liking to you or the outfit you wore, however tacky it was."

"Hmph. That wasn't what everybody else thought," Tay shot back with a triumphant smirk. "Everybody else loved that 'tough-as-nails' ensemble I put together for you. I'm surprised you didn't come around t' likin' it, too."

"Yeah, well that outfit just wasn't my style at all; even if it DID seem to give me a boost in my attack power while limiting the use of my magic."

"What?" Tay asked in utmost surprise. "Even THAT outfit changed up your abilities?"

"Yep. As far as I could tell, it made my punches and kicks much stronger, but it seemed like it made it so my magic meter was cut in half," she explained. "That probably explains why you ran out of magic so quickly. I only wonder how strong my hair whip would've been if I had my hair tied into my usual ponytail by the time we switched our bodies back, though."

"Wow… You never cease t' surprise me…" he observed, again mystified by his team leader's revelation.

"Also, everybody else is entitled to their completely wrong opinion," she countered. "Especially Bran-Son and his group. Although, now that I think about it, you DID pull a pretty odd move with that one guy Bruce, making it look like you and I were dating just so you could avoid him flirting with you."

"Not gonna lie, homegirl, that was more so YOU wouldn't have t' deal with him while you were in my body," he revealed. "He was starin' at you pretty hard when we were fightin' that motley crew o' meatheads. He said it himself that he mostly appreciated the feminine touch you put on every move you made in my body. So, that's your fault more than it is mine."

"I-I guess, and I'm sorry, but really? You had to say we're boyfriend and girlfriend to get him to leave me alone? I mean, I know I played along, but you totally put me on the spot! Not to mention we made everyone's speculations about us worse!"

"Unfortunately, that was the only thing I could come up with in such a tense moment," he admitted, bashfully rubbing the back of his neck. "Sorry about that…" At that, Shantae let out a sigh of mild frustration before she spoke.

"I'll let you off the hook this time, but the next time we run into him, we're telling him the truth that we're not involved like that. And trust me, we will very likely run into him again."

"Fine…" he reluctantly acknowledged. "Are you sure, though? I have no problems lettin' him think we're datin', t' be honest."

"I'm sure. I've never been one to pretend I was in a relationship to dodge someone's attraction, so yeah. Plus, maybe if we explain it to him that our minds were swapped, he'll understand and move on."

"Good point, I suppose. Much as I hate to admit it, I… I think you're right about that. Honesty is the best policy, they say."

"Glad you agree. Plus, how gross is that for us to be that close, anyway?" she remarked with a shrug, catching him by surprise as her comment seemed to come from out of nowhere. "Can you imagine? After everything we've seen of each other, I'm almost certain we don't need to go that route… No way!"

"…Uh, I…" Tay hesitantly spoke, his mind wiped blank by Shantae's confession of her disinterest in the idea of them being an item like so many others had been misconstruing. "I mean, I never really gave it any thought…"

"I know, right!?" she emphatically agreed before he could make another statement. Soon after, she began a long, incredibly-nervous rant the likes of which no one prompted her for. "Like, we're totally fine where we're at! Y'know, as friends who also happen to go on adventures together and technically temporarily live with each other. It's so much better than getting all unnecessarily attached to each other to the point where if we're not joined at the hip, we'd wind up losing our minds... well, figuratively, in that case. Not literally, like yesterday. Anyway, even if I DID entertain the idea, I don't think we'd have near as much fun hanging out as we do now, where we're not worried about who's doing what at this time and when to celebrate anniversaries, or any of that junk. There'd be way too much pressure there. That's totally how it was with Aashiq before all the emotions came in. And then, to run into him after all this time and to see how a missed opportunity between us affected him? Not to say I'm glad we never dated, but it probably would've hurt a lot more if I did confess to him, only for him to move away anyway. I wouldn't want to do the same thing to you, Tay, considering your main goal is to return to your own home. Something about being in your body yesterday helped me realize that we're definitely at our best as friends and allies," she rambled, seeming to allude to a particular point in time during their most recent adventure.

"...Huh..."

"Believe it or not, yeah. I can't really put my finger on what, but I think it had something to do with how our bodies reacted to each other," she vaguely explained before continuing her rant without letting Tay speak. I kinda would've liked to know exactly what she meant, but the opportunity was lost as quickly as it was presented. Oh, well... "That aside, you've been too good a friend to me to let that happen between us. Seriously, you're like, my fourth best friend, even though we've only known each other but for so long. No offense, but that's why I could never bring myself to even think about dating you, even if I liked you that way. I wouldn't blame you if you felt the same, considering you've seen and heard so much from me. Like, being a hero aside, why would anyone want to date a crazy, out-of-sorts, boring, goofy, nerdy girl like me, right? A cute guy like you could do way better than frumpy old me anyway," she rambled, getting increasingly nervous as she went on, showing her apparent low self-esteem. Tay, knowing Shantae well enough by now, was aware that she often unnecessarily tore herself down, but he was still completely blindsided by this confession of hers.

"…um…" Tay tried to cut in, at the very least disagreeing with her assertion that she was 'crazy' or anything else she mentioned... He was too stunned to even object to her calling him 'cute,' which she knew by now that he hated.

"In the off chance you wind up getting stuck here, though, I could see us all just hanging out and having fun times together with no relationship issues to get in the way," Shantae continued, cutting Tay off. "Of course, there'd be plenty of adventuring to do, but that would make it so much better! You, Sky, Bolo, Rottytops, and me, all as one big happy group of super friends who save the world together, just like in this comic I want to show you once we're done out here."

"…" Tay went silent, taking in every word of his team leader's wordy monologue as all sorts of strange feelings welled up inside him. He knew what she was trying to say… or rather, he thought he knew what she was trying to say. This tentative knowledge did nothing to quell the sinking feeling he experienced in his abdomen, nor did it keep his body temperature from rising as though he was sitting right next to a nuclear reactor. Tay could at least attempt to make sense of Shantae's words. However, he couldn't make sense of why it made him feel so… dare he say, upset. Not quite disappointed, but not quite relieved either. It baffled him.

"Sorry, I'm going on and on without even giving you a chance to speak," Shantae realized. "Still, that's… pretty much my thoughts on that. I hope none of that sounded offensive, but I at least want you to know you're a great friend."

"…R-right…" Tay hesitantly agreed, still concerned about how Shantae's speech affected him in relation to some other thoughts he'd conjured up as he listened to her.

"…Tay, are… you okay? You seem… bothered," the half-genie asked, fearing she may have said too much. "I might've gotten carried away. Sorry…"

"No, no, you're good. I understood everything you said," he spoke again before letting out a tension-riddled sigh and temporarily shooting his gaze toward the evening sunset. "And… I agree. Well, except the parts about you bein' boring, nerdy, or whatever else you said. I like hangin' out with you. Plus, you already know how I feel, based on what I said before in our last conversations. Don't put yourself down like that, homegirl."

"Sorry..." she nervously apologized with a frown. "I-I know I shouldn't say things like that, but it's hard, y'know?"

"Right, but you know you're much, much better than you give yourself credit for. I know it because I've seen it time and time again."

"Oh! Wow, I... I don't know what to say," Shantae stammered, lifted up by his poignant words. "Thank you, Tayshan... That means a lot..."

"It's the truth. I don't think you need me t' tell you, but yeah. Also... I... I think you have a point. It's… better for us to stay focused and t' keep our friendship where it is if we plan on gettin' the job done. Still… can I just ask you a thing or two?"

"Sure! What's up?"

"Back on Prickle Stitch…" he began, his heart racing the minute he brought it up. "Y'know, when Twitch clung ont' me an' kissed me…"

"Huh? O-oh, that?" Shantae asked, though she knew full well how the topic made her feel. Her heart sank into her gut as it began to beat heavy enough to resonate in her eardrums. "What about it?"

"I could just be overthinkin' things, but… Why did you get so mad at her?" he finally asked, putting his friend on the hot seat. "I mean, I could understand it if Sky got almost as angry, but the way you… glared at Twitch when you told her t' get off me. What… what was on your mind then?"

"Nothing, really," she dismissed with a shrug to feign ignorance. "I just… don't think she was being very appropriate, considering the situation. Like, come on. We just ended a super-dangerous journey that she and Vinegar started, and you had just finished your hardest Boss Battle at the time, and she's all over you like snow on Frostbite Island. It was a bit much."

"Hm. That's true…" he nodded, though he wasn't done just yet. "Although… if… if it turned out that wasn't the case, an'—hypothetically speakin'—it instead turned out I was gonna go for her instead o' the way it is now, what would you say?"

"Well… uh, I mean…" Shantae began, thinking hard about the question being asked. After a moment, however, she had her answer. "I wouldn't recommend it, I guess. You know already how much trouble she can be. I couldn't stop you if you fell for Twitch anyway, but I don't think that'd be the best idea."

"Interesting…"

"You're… not saying you actually LIKE Twitch that way, are you?" she prodded, hit with an almost-disproportionate sense of dread at the mere thought.

"No, no," Tay denied. "She's nice an' all, but like you said, the matter o' trust comes int' play at every turn. I never really know what she's thinkin' until she says it. She's a better friend than you might think, though."

"Huh. Well, there's nothing wrong with you being friends with her, though I'd still advise you to watch your back," Shantae warned, making her distrust of Twitch (and by extension, Vinegar) more evident.

"Noted. So then, what about Sky?"

"Sky? Well, we already know she likes you, and we talked about that."

"Yeah, but… I dunno, homegirl, I'll be honest an' say I get a vibe that you wouldn't want me t' date her, either."

"What? Why would you say that?" she asked, caught off-guard by the assertion.

"It's nothin' you did or said," he began his explanation, though he paused for a moment as the brisk autumn wind swept through the peninsula. "Or, maybe it is…"

"What did I say or do that would give you that idea?" she asked, becoming somewhat defensive.

"I think back t' our conversations in Scuttle Town an' on Naga Mountain a while ago, regardin' your theory for why she likes me as much as she does. You said somethin' about her not gettin' over her last ex-boyfriend, mixed with her pressurin' herself t' find a guy she likes before she turns eighteen, an' she's definitely let me know both those things by now. But, I also get a vibe from her that it could be deeper than that… based on what she an' I talked about regardin' her future plans. Still, it seems like whenever she does show some sign o' wantin' t' get closer t' me, you… never really seem t' be on-board with it."

"Me? Not on-board with you getting closer to Sky?"

"Yeah," he confirmed with a slight chuckle. "You don't think I picked up on all the disapprovin' stares I get from you every time either one of us says somethin' that comes across as even SLIGHTLY romance-oriented to the other?"

"Most of that was because I was under the impression you liked to play with girls' feelings, considering how we started off. I was just making sure you weren't getting yourself in trouble, is all."

"Fair," he acknowledged with another nervous titter. "I only hope you don't still have the same impression by now. Still, in that case, if I told you I liked Sky back, what would you really think about her an' I gettin' together?"

"What!? Why!? When!?" Shantae reeled back and shouted loud enough that the citizens in Genie's Hem might've been able to hear her. The instant Tayshan's words rung in her ears, her heart felt as though it exploded with a mixture of feelings she was not aware she'd even had until this very crucial moment. Her heart began to beat harder than someone stomping on a bass drum with all their might. Her eyes were wider than full moons as her breath caught in her throat. Her breathing became tense and heavy as her mysterious feelings ripped through her body.

She couldn't tell exactly what she was in that moment. Was she angry? Because she certainly did feel a rush of it. But, she had nothing to be mad at. Was she hurt? Not really, because there was nothing to be hurt about. Yet, the pang in her heart told her a different story. Did she feel… dare she even name it, betrayed? Kind of… but she couldn't understand why. Tay had every right to choose who he liked. That knowledge, however, did nothing to cushion the impact of his words on her. It was like, after all they'd been through, how could he even fathom liking someone else? Why was it even a thought to him? What about his friendship with her? Would it suffer? Would it stay intact? Or would it possibly fade into nothing if he spent all his time around Sky? Actually, why did she even care that much about him liking someone else? Before Shantae began to rationalize it, however…

"Jeez, chill, homegirl," Tay calmly advised, startled by his team leader's disproportionate reaction as he gestured his hands as though to communicate there being no reason for alarm. "I didn't actually say I liked her back. I was just askin' another hypothetical question, though I can say you did kind of answer it for me."

"Uh… you…" Shantae stammered, trying to bring things back into perspective. Her hesitation prompted the serviceman to draw a conclusion.

"So, you don't want me t' date Sky. Is that right?"

"What!? No, I never said that!" she protested, so flustered that she could feel the excess blood running through her cheeks.

"Okay. So, would you not have a problem if the case ever did turn out t' be that I liked her back?"

"I don't know, Tayshan," she dismissed with a sigh, suddenly annoyed by the question he posed. "I mean, there's a lot to consider in that scenario because you're both my friends. Like, would I become a third wheel, or would that interfere with our adventures, or would I really be okay with two of my best friends dating each other, and so on… Why are we even talking about this? Or rather, do you like her back or not?"

"Hey, I'm just tryin' t' figure things out, alright?" he defended, picking up on her unprecedented frustration with him in that moment. "I'm gettin' all these mixed signals from you, an' I figured I'd ask you about your thoughts, so I don't wind up doin' somethin' that makes you upset. Granted, this comes with the ever-present question of 'if I was stuck here with no hope of ever goin' back t' my own planet,' but my point still stands."

"Well, what do I care about what you do in that regard? I've said it before, you can date whoever you want!"

"So long as it ain't you, Sky, Twitch, or presumably Vinegar," he finished for her, only getting more confused at her indifference. "Or, as if I gotta say it, any o' the monster girls I met since I've been here. Yet, you're perfectly fine with me hookin' up with Aashiq, which I have ZERO interest in doing."

"I was joking, Tay," she assured him, the unwarranted annoyance still evident in her tone. "I wouldn't actually want you to go out with him if you're not into that sort of thing."

"Great, but who does that leave, then? Risky Boots?" he sarcastically shot back.

"Oh gosh, no!" she answered in a thoroughly-flustered panic. "That's too scary to even imagine!"

"Trust me, I know. Either way, as far as you're concerned, there's no one I could date that wouldn't make you upset in some regard. What gives?"

"Alright, look…" she stated, growing uncomfortable with the inquiries into her thought process about his preferences as she realized she hadn't really given him a clear picture of what she should expect of him. "I want you to do what makes you happy. I also want to make sure you don't do anything rash or unwise, considering how many ways there are for you to get in trouble here. I guess… if I have to say it, it's because I care about you, Tay. You're my friend, and I hold all my friends dear to me. Plus, because you're still learning the ropes of this world, I'll admit I do worry sometimes about how well you're adapting to it. I guess I just… wouldn't want to see you get hurt, if that makes any sense."

"Nah, I get it now…" he solemnly acknowledged with an affirming nod. "I should've figured that from the start. Goodness…" he murmured with a sigh of relief, though some of his previous tension still lingered within him. Accepting Shantae's explanation of her reasoning for being so… vigilant when it came to certain aspects of his experience, he understood for himself that, as friends, she had his back. What better explanation would he need, right? He was aware, however, that such a platonic explanation did little to ease his discomfort regarding Shantae's opinions on who he was allowed to be interested in. "Thanks, homegirl. I deeply appreciate your concern. Sorry if it seemed like I was cross-examinin' you. I'm not used to anybody payin' much attention t' the things I do unless they're a drill sergeant."

"Of course, Tay! I'll bet you feel pretty much the same way, no?" she asked, breathing away some of her own nervousness as she perked up with a smile.

"Without a doubt," he confirmed with a confident grin and a thumbs-up.

"Great! Sounds like we're on the same page now. That said, this conversation is to be mentioned to NO ONE ELSE. I mean it. Got it?"

"Of course. So long as we never switch bodies again, you can guarantee my lips are sealed. I'll be spendin' more time scrubbin' my brain, so I forget most o' the events mentioned in this conversation ever happened, anyway," Tay snidely remarked. Shantae let out a hearty, mirthful chuckle at his comment.

"Aw, you don't have to be ashamed," she joked. "I mean, going back to it, I'd bet it took a ton of courage to admit to Aash what you admitted to him. I'm serious when I say I admire you for saying it when no other guy I've ever known would. Honestly, if I had that kind of courage, I'd have probably grown much more as a person."

"Fantastic," he dismissively remarked, wanting to talk about Aashiq no further. "Gonna gimme a medal for it now?" he further shot back, still very sour about the fact they were still on this topic.

"No… but, I can give you one of these," she answered, approaching the soldier with wide-open arms. Just as he realized what she was doing, Shantae wrapped her arms around Tay's midsection, gently leaning her head into his bare abdomen. The static-like tickle of her hair against his skin, in conjunction with the alarming chill of her bracelets pressing into his back nearly made the serviceman jump, though he was too distracted by the fact that she hugged him to actually jump. His heart jumped into his throat as it beat harder than the steps of a stampede of elephants as he also registered the warm squish of her body against his. Nonetheless, he carefully returned the gesture, wrapping his arms around her before softly pressing his hands to her upper back and the back of her head. "Sorry if this was sudden, but after all we've been through in this last few days, I feel like you could use some reassurance."

"No need to apologize. Surprisin' as it is, thanks for this."

"Of course. Don't expect me to hug you all the time, and don't expect me to go jumping at any offers you make, but after all of what we've been through, you deserve one."

"Great t' know I gotta earn these from you, then," he flatly remarked, causing her to mirthfully giggle before they separated. "Still, thanks. You're right in that it helps relieve some o' the stress I'm experiencin' about everything goin' on here. Also, thanks for lookin' out for me, if I haven't said it enough."

"That's what friends are for, Tay!" she cheerfully accepted his gratitude. "Thank you for looking out for me, too! Although, I do at least realize I should be a lot more considerate to you," she added, her tone becoming morose. "After... after what you'd been through just two days ago, I... um... I-I feel like I wasn't very nice to you yesterday... especially when I screamed at you. You-!"

"If you're gonna say you're thinkin' about treatin' me differently because o' what I had t' go through with my old friends the other day, then I humbly ask that you don't," he cut in, seeming to know how she felt regarding his recent tragic experience. "We've been over it before. The last thing I need is for anybody is t' pity me."

"Yeah, but after what happened, and after all we talked about..." she wanted to press, though she paused. She certainly didn't want to bring up any piece of their post-Prickle Stitch Valley chat to use as a refutation point in this conversation, for fear of offending the serviceman. However, she knew she had to get it off her chest.

"I know, I know..." he stated with an understanding nod before she even finished her statement. "But please don't let that change how you think you should treat me; even after last night's disaster of a trip. If you wind up startin' t' feel sorry for me now, we'll never be able t' put the experiences behind us an' grow from 'em. That's one o' my objectives, Shantae... t' move past it, an' grow from it, no matter how long it takes, an' no matter what the experience was. Otherwise, I'd be stuck in an emotional rut for the rest o' my life."

"...I see," she acknowledged, her gaze momentarily hitting the ground as she took some time to process his statement. After a moment of mutually-shared silence, she spoke up. "You're right, Tayshan. I agree. I think... I should learn how to do that, too. After all, it just might... help me in the long run the same way it's helping you..."

"Glad we understand each other," Tay approved with a smile and a modest thumbs-up. Shantae, taking note of his friendly demeanor in the aftermath of their adventure, smiled brightly back at him. "We'll keep workin' together t' save the day, no?"

"Absolutely!" she excitedly agreed, breathing a sigh of confident relief afterward. "We're in it to win it. We could use some down time for now, though. So, let's go inside so you can put your shirt back on. I'm sure you're freezing out here, and I think it's good for us both to try spending the rest of today relaxing before our next big quest."

"Heh, you ain't gotta tell me twice," he agreed, following his half-genie partner into her house to wrap up their day. So, ended a day of downtime that started off intensely stressful for our heroes, but thankfully ended on a mostly-positive note. However, would this level of peace last? I don't know what you're thinking at this moment, but I will tell you one thing; you'd better hold onto your seats for when the next quest rolls around. Of course, why begin our speculation in one place, but not end it there? By which, I mean…

 ** _Elsewhere…_**

LOCATION: MAIN STREET, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 20TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1939 HOURS

In a particularly battle-damaged section of everyone's favorite bustling port town, where many of the buildings bore wide-ranging, irreversible burn marks, cannonball-sized holes in need of repair, and shoddy patchwork consisting of wooden planks nailed into the roofs and walls, accompanied by the pungent stench of burning wood and fabric seeming to permeate the very molecules of the air in the vicinity, Sky was in the midst of a conversation with a certain friend of hers she set out to look for after departing from Shantae's lighthouse. She'd indeed caught up to this friend and was intent on clarifying to him that nothing weird was going on in the bathhouse. After repeated attempts at bringing that situation into perspective, it seemed she'd finally gotten through to him.

I'll just go and mention, though, that saying Main Street was like a ghost town during the evening was an understatement, considering this area of Scuttle Town had fallen into a sudden state of Risky Boots-related disrepair. Why Sky and this TOP SECRET individual were just strolling through, passing by singed piles of wreckage that used to be homes, places of commerce, and… piles of wreckage that were most likely there and not singed BEFORE Risky attacked, is beyond even me. However, I digress. Onward, to their conversation!

"…So you're really saying that you weren't climbing on that guy in the bathhouse to try and-?" Sky's totally-unknown target tried to ask.

"For the last time, Bolo, I swear I was not putting the moves on him," she denied for the umpteenth time in frustration, rolling her eyes at him as they strolled through the mostly-empty section of the town as the sun had long since set over the horizon. "How many more times do you want me to say it before you believe me?"

"Hey, you're always so full of surprises, so how am I supposed to know what you're up to half the time?" the now-identified young man defended with a shrug. "And what would it matter to me how you lure your boyfriends in? I'd be more concerned about what your mom and dad would do to him once they figure out you found another one… I heard about the last one, and man am I glad you're not on my radar."

"Wow, rude much?" she remarked, offended by his assertion… which, if we remember correctly, was true. "Leave my parents and Joe out of this! Also, don't flatter yourself, kiddo. I'd never give a gross Peeping Tom like you the light of day. You'd be better suited for Wrench," she teased.

"Ooh, you're so clever," he flatly shot back, not denying his status as a 'gross Peeping Tom.' "Seriously though, Sky, keep that crazy purple eagle thing away from me. All it ever does is stare into my soul as though it wants to swallow me whole."

"That's probably because he does," she confirmed, doing nothing to ease Bolo's discomfort. "For some reason, you appeal to his very… carnivorous tastes. Don't worry, though, I'll keep making sure he doesn't eat you. You'd be bad for his diet."

"Whatever…" he dismissed. "Going back to the point, I still don't know if I really believe what you said about what you were doing in that bathhouse. It's even weirder when you factor in that Shantae was there."

"She's completely innocent, and so am I," she sternly rebutted, sneering at him.

"If you say so, but I don't really know what other conclusions you want me to draw," the young man pointed out with a scratch of his spiky, dark blue hair. "Not that I really care. You can drool over whoever you want without any worry about me spreading rumors. I'm more concerned about why you and Shantae have been hanging around that guy so much. I told you what he did to me before, didn't I?"

"Right, that he stole your mace after dodging your questions as to who he was?"

"Yes! I'm telling you, something's really fishy with him!" he exclaimed. "Who just goes around, stealing weapons and being so afraid of someone wanting to get to the bottom of things that he runs from them before he does anything else? He's bad news, I tell ya."

"Give it a rest, dude," Sky defended. "I thought we were over this; he's not evil, and he's definitely not working for Risky Boots."

"You say that like you know what's going on…" he incredulously observed.

"That's because I do know what's going on, bonehead," she insulted. "Shantae and I have been working with him to stop Risky Boots for the past week."

"What!?" he shouted, apparently offended by the revelation as the two paused their casual stroll through the dilapidated, war-torn section of Scuttle Town.

"Yep! We've been on the hunt, trying to track down Risky Boots, because as it turns out, Tayshan is from a different world that Risky kidnapped him from," she explained. "The bigger problem, though, is that she didn't just bring him here; she also brought over an entire arsenal of ultra-powerful weapons that exceed even Ammo Baron in terms of the sheer danger they pose to the general safety of Sequin Land. Shantae, Tayshan, and I have been working tirelessly to find and stop Risky as soon as we can, because she's apparently been in hiding since she got back from whatever dimension she traveled to in order to gear up for the invasion of a lifetime. We've traveled to Naga Mountain and the Prickle Stitch Valley thus far, though I've also been scouting for clues while flying on Wrench independently. The two of them recently came back from a trip to Genie's Hem and battled Hypno Baron, actually. Meanwhile, by the time you saw us in the bathhouse, I'd just finished working alongside Ammo Baron and his forces to put out a huge wildfire in Prickle Stitch Valley set by Tinkerbats using portable flamethrowers from the other dimension."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa…" Bolo interjected, becoming steadily more frustrated and confused with the more context he received from Sky about the nature of the adventures he'd largely been missing out on. "You're telling me that we're already locked in another war against Risky Boots? And that I've been missing out on all the action?" At that, Sky sighed, knowing that Bolo had completely missed the point of what she told him.

"…Yes, Bolo, we're locked in another 'war' against Risky Boots. She's even more dangerous than she's ever been, and she's proven it by way of her Tinkerbats using weapons she stole from Tayshan when she dragged him from his dimension," Sky reiterated, this time putting the situation in layman's terms. "Did I mention she also used those weapons to completely wipe Hypno Baron's Castle off the map? Because she did. Apparently, it's nothing but a giant pile of flaming rubble now… which is saying something, because his castle was huge."

"Well, why didn't you tell me sooner!?" he shouted, evidently appalled that no one kept him in the loop about Sequin Land being in danger. "Do you know how much time could've been saved if you guys took me on adventures with you instead of slacking off!? Or, I know you don't usually like going on them, but Shantae and I talked about this! She said she'd trust us more! How could she still be going alone when the stakes are so high?"

"Hate to break it to you, bud, but… Shantae hasn't been going alone this time around." Bolo couldn't believe his ears.

"…You're kidding me."

"Nope. I mean, you saw her traveling through the Scuttle Town Forest with Tayshan on their first quest. I don't know if you were there to see it, but the two of them fought Twitch and Vinegar outside the Sequin Land Palace and won. Since then, they've been working together nonstop. I've also teamed up with Shantae twice by this point."

"…" Bolo went silent, his jaw dropping upon learning that Shantae was co-op'ing on adventures out of nowhere.

"Shantae, Tayshan, and I all traveled together to Naga Mountain the other day, actually," she revealed.

"But you said you didn't like being involved in her quests! What were you doing there!?"

"I went primarily to provide back-up for Shantae, but I also mentored Tayshan on how to navigate through the landscapes Shantae usually explores. Nonetheless, we totally bowled through that place with relative ease. Shantae and Tayshan went on to fight and beat down Squid Baron, who'd taken over the island using a spell book he stole from Hypno Baron. I won't lie, though, aside from… an unfortunate encounter I'm not interested in bringing up right now, it was a lot of fun fighting alongside those two. We got through so much, so fast! Like I said, we dominated that place."

"…" Bolo went silent again, his jaw dropping further, nearly to a point where he might've actually touched the ground with it.

"After that, Tayshan got kidnapped by Twitch and Vinegar, where they took him to the Prickle Stitch Valley," she continued to recap. "Shantae and I kicked it into high gear to save him from them, but get this; by the time we got there, Tinkerbats with propeller packs were setting everything on fire! Some of them were chasing after Tayshan, Twitch, and Vinegar as they ran for their lives. Side note, he actually made a truce with them and converted the two of them to kinda-sorta good girls in the wake of us all working together to stop Risky. So, they got to experience a Shantae-styled adventure, too."

"What!?" Bolo screamed in an evident jealous rage. "They aren't even supposed to be on our side! Even THEY'RE seeing action and not me!?"

"If you want to put it that way," Sky dismissively agreed with a shrug. "Anyway, Shantae and I worked together to take down a few of the Tinkerbats before we caught up to Tay and company. Something happened with Tay getting stuck inside this creepy-looking cave, but it got resolved in a matter of a couple hours. There are some details I'm missing, but yeah, we cleaned up shop there, too. From there on, Twitch and Vinegar became temporary allies to the cause, and they might get Ammo Baron in on it, too."

"Are you kidding me!?"

"Bolo, relax. It's not like we're always having FUN while we try to prevent another catastrophe from befalling Sequin Land. I mean shoot, Shantae and Tayshan told me that they had to arrange a one-time team-up with SQUID BARON when they went to Genie's Hem after Hypno Baron ambushed them and made them switch bodies! Does that sound like fun to you?"

"YES!" he shouted with an emphatic outward gesture of his hands, both startling and confusing Sky. "Dude, everything you're telling me sounds like you guys are tearing it up! To add insult to injury, you're teaming up with BAD GUYS before you even consider your best option for a travel partner! Do you know how backwards that is!? Don't you also think I've sometimes wondered what it's like to be Shantae for at least an hour!?" he frantically asked, throwing Sky WAY off her game as she stared blankly at him.

"…Um…"

"Don't answer that," he quickly cut her off, realizing the awkwardness of the inquiry. "Anyway, instead of Shantae, you, and me working together like we always do, it's Shantae, you, those two hotties who always hang around Ammo Baron, and the rotten, shady thief who stole my chain mace!? I'm not even going to acknowledge Squid Baron, because that's just insulting. Either way, how did Shantae even turn that thief good!?"

"Lay off him," Sky sternly warned. "Tayshan was never evil to begin with, like I've been trying to tell you. He told me why he shoved you out of the way and took your weapon, y'know. Apparently, you marched yourself right up to him and challenged him to a fight before you even knew what he was doing hanging with Shantae in the first place! Does that make even a lick of sense to you, to just pick fights with people simply because they're new to the neighborhood?"

"N-no, but I thought he was working with Risky!" he defended, realizing he may have made an error in judgment.

"Well newsflash, Bolo: He's not. He's on our side. I repeat. He's ON OUR SIDE. As far as Shantae describes it, he's basically her apprentice."

"A… Apprentice?"

"Also, take this as you will, but he told me himself that he wanted to apologize to you for what he did. So, whenever you get a chance to meet him, maybe you can clear the air."

"Yeah, sure, but what do you mean 'Apprentice?'" he asked, much more interested in hearing about Shantae's newfound 'Mentor' status than he was in hearing any apologies for his weapon being taken from him.

"Gosh, you're such a blockhead!" she yelled, scaring him slightly as he flinched at her outburst. "Haven't you been listening to anything I just said, or are you just filtering everything out that doesn't have to do with adventures you weren't included on?"

"Basically that," he confirmed with no sense of shame or regret. "Now tell me, what's Shantae doing taking on recruits to our squad without consulting me first? I was her teacher once, so I thought she'd consider me for consultation when she scouted for new hires. I didn't even know she was looking to expand our team!"

"What are you even rambling about!?" Sky asked, vexed by his indifference to most of what she said. "You only taught her like three kick attacks and a dodging move when she lost her genie powers, and I doubt she even used them! That doesn't count as you being 'her teacher.' She and I are actually teaching Tayshan all sorts of things about how to survive on adventures, navigate landscapes, get through Boss Battles, and even how to coordinate with teammates while we work together. Y'know, things that are actually useful to know."

"Hmph. So this guy's actually just a rookie with a chip on his shoulder that needs some discipline, is he? That means there might still be time to show him AND Shantae how to really cooperate on adventures."

"Oh, for goodness sake, Bolo!" Sky yelled again, having already lost her patience with the young would-be warrior and his very blatant misconceptions about… well, about pretty much everything. "You make me want to tear my own hair out sometimes… You know that?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever," he dismissed, preparing himself to take off into the sunset-bathed ruins of Scuttle Town's Main Street. "I've gotta get my supplies ready."

"Hey, where are you-?"

"Catch ya later, Sky! If we're saving Sequin Land again, then I've gotta do my part! I'll catch up with Shantae once I've properly equipped myself to tag with her on the next big crusade!" he yelled as he took off sprinting ahead of Sky. I wish I could tell you where he was going, because I have no clue. All I know is that he was planning to prepare for his time to shine. "Gotta admit, I like the proactive approach we're taking, but we gotta get this communication thing down!"

"Wait!" Sky called after him, though it was too late. Before long, she watched the eager young crime fighter disappear around a corner in the blink of an eye. "You didn't even let me know how you planned on contributing!" she yelled, at that point suspecting her effort to be futile. At that, she sighed and pulled out a silver gym whistle. With a catchy jingle that sounded nothing like a gym whistle, she summoned forth her gargantuan, plum-and-sky-blue-colored, avian partner. Wrench soared through the clouds at nearly mach speed before stopping on a dime and landing. He crouched low to allow Sky to climb onto the saddle he'd had fixed onto his back. "Whelp, this has been a real fun day," Sky most indubitably concluded, setting up to return home. "I guess I should be relieved he wasn't too focused on the bathhouse thing, but I hope he doesn't get carried away with this 'real hero' kick he's on. I only wonder when Shantae and Bolo will run into each other again, because that is gonna be one huge headache of a conversation for her to have with him. Of course, it was going to happen eventually. Meanwhile, I'd better get back on-track searching for clues on Risky Boots. Let's fly, Wrench!" she commanded. With a mighty flap of his enormous wings, Wrench lifted off and took flight in a flash to ready themselves for the next day's tumultuous tasks.

Looks like things are in full swing for our heroes, though there certainly was a lot to sift through at the rate they were going. Three or four big quests in, and they were no closer to finding out where Risky Boots was than when they began their search for her. While Shantae and company certainly did their part in protecting various landscapes within the magical nation of Sequin Land from grievous harm by the same colorful cavalcade of crooks and criminals she'd always dealt with, it did little to stop the notorious Risky Boots from making strides toward her goal of ultimate destruction… or, whatever it is she's planning to do. Will Sky get lucky at some point and spot a telltale clue that would lead to an early confrontation with Sequin Land's most intimidating enemy? Will Shantae and Tayshan hit it big on their next quest and obtain the Super Slugger Spell Reversal like they'd been trying to do for the last couple days? Will Bolo finally stop getting gypped at literally every turn and get his time in the spotlight he felt he rightfully deserved? You know there's only one way to find out unless you're some kind of psychic, so while you practice your telepathic mind tricks, I'll practice my own by strongly suggesting you sit tight and brace yourself for the next installment of this turbulent tale! Bye-bye!


	10. Shocking Trial Separation

Chapter 7: Shocking Trial Separation

LOCATION: MIMIC'S WORKSHOP, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 21ST, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1026 HOURS

"…and that's just about all the important details about the last two or three days in a nutshell," a familiar young ponytailed woman concluded as she watched the elderly scientist to whom she was talking keeping himself busy in his quaint little laboratory.

"Hm… So the most intriguing mystery of our extraterrestrial acquaintance's existence here was solved just like that, hm?" a certain elderly scientist plainly surmised as his favorite visitor, none other than his lavender-haired adopted niece, just finished explaining to him the events of the last few adventures she'd been on since they'd last met.

"It seems that way, though I'm sure there's a ton more we could stand to learn about," Shantae confirmed with a nod as she watched her uncle Mimic tinker around with an undisclosed project using a series of test tubes full of various liquids and a dilapidated stone slab that seemed ready to crumble at the slightest touch. "I didn't think the answer to the reason he has magic in his system would just be thrown at us like it was when we went to the Prickle Stitch Valley, but even then, the answer brings up a ton of other questions. Like, I'm still a little concerned that he's not telling me the whole story, but whenever I try to ask him for more details about his time in the Grotto of Judgment, he barely budges and changes the subject. So, I don't know what else he could've found out…" she confessed to her uncle in worry.

"Certainly not the most… conventional method of uncovering such a crucial bit of information, that's for sure," he agreed as he remained hard at work, juggling the tasks of completing his experiment and drumming up theories with Shantae. "However anticlimactic it is for me, I am at least glad to know I was on the right track. Given a couple more days and another opportunity to run another couple of tests on the young fella, I'd have concluded that the magic in him stemmed from my Dynamo-turned-Portal myself," Mimic confidently asserted. "There is still some work to be done that could further solidify that conclusion, nevertheless. It's just a matter of scheduling an appropriate time to do so…"

"Right…" Shantae droned in mild discomfort at the idea of her teammate potentially being her uncle's guinea pig for his experiments again. "So anyway, I definitely didn't think it was possible to switch bodies with someone until yesterday…" she added, changing the subject right away.

"Oh, right, right, I nearly forgot you mentioned that…" Mimic agreed, though his attention was unevenly divided between Shantae and his workbench. "I can't believe that dastardly magician made you two exchange bodies at that rotten pirate's behest. It seems so unlike Risky Boots to ever solicit assistance from anyone unless she was seeking to manipulate them as she saw fit."

"You're telling me," Shantae agreed with a heavy sigh as she pondered at what point she'd next encounter her archenemy. Since this wacky series of adventures began, the half-genie had yet to lay eyes on her, which was a tad unusual. However, the residual impact of her nefarious plotting could be felt for miles upon miles; as demonstrated by multiple encounters with Risky's heavily-armed Tinkerbats, amongst other experiences she'd had in the last week or so. "I didn't even mention that Hypno Baron only went through with it because Risky completely obliterated his castle, and then forced him to do her bidding."

"Obliterated, you say?" Mimic remarked in surprise, though he was certain to contain it. "You certainly do know how to draw quite the hyperbole, Shantae…"

"Uncle, I'm serious! Using Tay's weapons, she literally wiped his castle off the map! It was the whole reason he relocated to Genie's Hem and took over the college up there!"

"Oh… Goodness, what a catastrophe," he nonchalantly stated, still toiling away with his test tubes as he poured the contents of one onto the slab to see it sizzle and cause the stone to crack more. "Drat… That wasn't the right formula for the Auto-Potion at all…"

"Are you even listening, Uncle?"

"Yes, dear, of course. You're still not allowed to date him just because he has magic in him," he rambled without even looking at Shantae, causing the half-genie to gawk at him in total embarrassment. "I will hear nothing about how you two switching bodies brought you closer together and established some unbreakable bond or some other hogwash, you understand?"

"What!? That wasn't even close to what we were talking about!" she yelled, appalled that her surrogate parent had missed the mark of the conversation by ten thousand light years. "Uncle, you really weren't listening! You're the worst! Also, Tay and I are not dating!"

"Good, good. As long as you get the idea, doll… Where is your alien buddy, anyway?" he casually asked, almost completely ignoring her embarrassed outburst. At that, Shantae sighed, giving up on trying to get his full attention as she calmed herself down.

"He's not… well, technically he IS an alien, but don't call him that," Shantae admonished with a light chuckle that eased some of the distress she felt from Mimic's bold, inattentive assumption. "He's at Sky's place, seeing if she's home because we have somewhere new that we need to explore. We could use a ride, but she may have already left by now."

"Oh? You're still bumming rides off your friends to get around?" Mimic reacted with surprise, though he still hadn't turned away from the wooden table he'd been conducting his experiments on. At the very least, she'd finally caught some more of his hard-earned attention. "I'm surprised Sky hasn't become exhausted with how much you treat her like a transport service. You should really consider finding your own method of navigation at some point."

"I'm not bumming rides, Uncle… I don't own a boat or a plane, and you never got around to inventing that 'bicycle' thing you said would help me get around easier," she complained with a slight pout as she crossed her arms. "And Sky's just fine helping me on my adventures. Plus, if I don't have a ride, I can always use my Warp Dance… at least, as soon as I figure out why it hasn't been working like it did in the past… a-anyway, I also don't have a problem getting where I need to be by my own two feet."

"I suppose, cupcake, but you know you can't always expect her to drop what she's doing to accommodate you," the retired Relic Hunter lectured. "Let us not forget that many of your recent trips have required you to travel either by air or by sea; two avenues that no amount of perambulating would help you with."

"…Parabola-what?"

"No, this has nothing to do with angles or equilateral curves, Shantae. I said, 'Perambulating.' As in, walking."

"Oh. Another 'Uncle' word to add to the dictionary, then…" she commented with a pensive nod.

"Also, as far as I am aware, your Warp Dance has only been able to take you to places you've previously visited, no?"

"Yeah, you're right…" Shantae begrudgingly agreed, beginning to see Mimic's point.

"So, regarding places you haven't been, that leaves you with limited options if someone isn't there to provide transportation. At one point or another, neither Sky nor any other transport resource will be available, and the day that happens, you'd be stuck. Again, I suggest looking up some alternative measures of traveling if walking or relying on your magic won't get you there."

"I guess, but what else am I supposed to do?" she countered. "Sky is the most reliable person I know of who can help me travel long distances. Risky's out for obvious reasons. And there's no way I'm asking for Squid Baron's help again after what happened the other day…"

"Well don't you know how to steer a ship all by your lonesome anyway?" Mimic brought up as he poured another liquid onto the stone.

"Yeah, but like I said, I don't have a boat just waiting for me to sail in it."

"Well that changes for today, believe it or not."

"What do you mean?" she asked with utmost intrigue as she wondered just what Mimic was getting at.

"If this next place requires a ton of sea travel and Sky isn't available, then you can borrow my-!" he was about to offer before his experiment went awry. The resulting room-shaking *BOOM* caused by a sudden explosion of the liquid he was pouring startled both him and his adoptive niece as he was flung backward across the messy laboratory. He landed on his feet, thankfully, but his stone slab swiftly went up in brilliant pink flames. "Oh, dear… Shantae, could you-?"

"Yeah, I got it," she agreed before he could finish. With a stretch of her arms and a few shakes of her hips… "Transform!" Shantae called out as she struck her patented pose to turn herself into her Mermaid form. The minute she did so, she conjured up a few water balls and fired them at the burning table. In no time flat, Mermaid-Shantae put out the chemical fire before it threatened to burn down Mimic's Workshop. Unfortunately, the method in which the fire was put out actually made the smoke even worse as it billowed heavily from the scorched work table to the point where it began fogging up the entire laboratory. As Shantae *POOFed* back into her human form, Mimic quickly committed himself to opening his windows as quickly as he could, coughing profusely as he did so. "It's best that you step outside, cupcake! You don't want… AGH! You don't want to breathe this in!" he instructed as he moved to try and contain the magenta-colored smoke with a wet blanket before it enveloped the entire workshop.

"Are you sure? I could at least-!"

"No, no, sweetheart, go on outside! I'll be there momentarily! This is no big deal, so don't you panic!"

"Alright, but I keep telling you not to mess with those chemicals, uncle," Shantae remarked as she turned to step outside. "They're bad for your health. If you need anything else, I'll be waiting outside."

"Yes, yes, I'll catch up, but don't be surprised if it takes me a while to get this under control!" he warned as Shantae exited the workshop, shaking her head. She patiently waited outside, leaning up against the wall of the workshop as the gloomy gray of the sky above was nearly overshadowed by the murky-looking bright purplish pink entity that was the smoke from Mimic's failed experiment.

"Oh, uncle… What am I gonna do with you?" the half-genie asked herself, crossing her arms and shaking her head in mild amusement as she turned to watch the townsfolk peacefully carrying on with their respective days, seeming completely unfazed by the fact that Mimic's laboratory had smoke pouring out of every open window on the oddly-shaped building. Just an average day in Scuttle Town, I suppose. However, as Shantae noticed, a horsefly had flown directly into the smoke and within seconds, a sudden *POOF* of pink smoke burst all around the bug. Instantly, the normally-harmless creature grew about five hundred times its original size and mutated to where it was spewing flames from its oral cavity as it let out a series of vicious, horrifying screech noises. The intimidating, disgustingly-loud *BUZZZZZZZZ* from its gargantuan wings further solidified the jade-green, shiny-bodied, orange-eyed mutant fly monster as a threat to the safety of Scuttle Town's citizens.

"Whoa! That could be trouble!" she observed, getting ready for an early-morning boss battle from nowhere. However, rather than challenge Shantae right away, the abominable fly monster took off, haphazardly zipping through the air over a few buildings as it spewed erratic blasts of flame every which way. It was at that point that Shantae heard a sudden series of *BANG* noises coming from somewhere nearby that startled her all over again. Right as she turned in the direction the noises were coming from, her trusty sidekick came rushing toward her, gun in his hands as he tried to assess the situation.

"What the heck is THAT thing!?" Tayshan, dressed in his newly-revitalized white tank top and navy-blue army fatigues and boots, asked in mild distress as he scanned the area to notice other citizens either staring at the mutant fly as it buzzed off or running away in terror. Tay himself was also evidently freaked out by the revolting creature he'd just tried to shoot down. "It zipped right by me, breathin' fire everywhere an' almost burned Sky's house down! An' why does it smell like week-old deviled eggs out here!? What's all the pink smoke about!? Is your uncle alright!?"

"I'll explain later, but it looks like that thing is headed in the direction of Oasis Town!" Shantae warned as she hurriedly prepared herself for yet another field trip. "We've got a job on our hands already, Tay, so let's get rolling!"

"Wait!" called Mimic as he finally emerged from the smoked-out building with his clothes and beard matted in soot. He was hacking up a lung as he held out a hand to halt the two young adventurers.

"What is it, Uncle!? We've got to move now if we want to save Oasis Town!"

"When you come back… Auto-canoe… You… borrow that…!" he sputtered between coughs as he continued to explain. "If… Sky… not availablrhuhuhohuagh!" he tried to spit out before he erupted into another uncontrollable coughing fit.

"Uh… Do you need help, sir?" Tay asked with utmost concern for the old man's health.

"No-hoh-ho!" Mimic tried to shout, though he was predictably interrupted by another series of coughs before he stood himself up and took in as deep a breath as he could. That… only made it worse as he hunched over and fell into yet another coughing fit, spewing chemical smoke from his mouth that further concerned his teenaged audience. Almost immediately, he dashed past the duo toward the nearby dock where he borrowed (read: snatched) a canteen of water from a random blue-robed bystander and chugged the whole thing down right in front of them.

"Hey, whaddaya doin'!? Just whaddaya think you're doin', ya thievin' old coot!?" the civilian screamed, though Mimic paid her little mind.

"My apologies," he offered before politely handing the stolen water container back and running back toward Shantae and Tayshan. He was ragged and out of breath at this point, but his composure held as strong as it could.

"Uncle, you… are just too much sometimes…" Shantae remarked with a mildly perturbed sigh as she rubbed her hand through her hair.

"Dude… You alright, there?" Tay asked after her, uncertain of if they should go and chase the fly monster at this point or attempt to aid Mimic in his recovery from his lab mishap.

"Yes, yes, I'm… I-I'm fine," he assured through a much-abated sporadic series of coughs before he cleared his throat and patted soot from his clothes. "I was saying that if Sky isn't available for your field trip, you two can borrow my newly-crafted prototype Auto-Canoe! I also wanted to check in on your progress with that HUD Monitor, but it appears you've got a task to complete!"

"Lucky us, because Sky ain't home," Tay answered, all but confirming their method of transportation to their next adventure. "But as for the HUD Monitor thing, we-!"

"Great! Now that that's all settled, we've gotta go! Come on, Tayshan!" Shantae urged as she cut in, grabbing her sidekick by the hand and practically dragging him off. "We'll be back, Uncle! Try not to get sick while we're gone!"

"Whoa! Hold up, let me get at least a little bit organized here!" Tay pleaded as he tried to keep his balance while Shantae dragged him through Scuttle Town on the path to Oasis Town.

"No time!" she firmly denied his request as she continued to dash forward and pull him along like a wagon full of stolen goods. And before they knew it, they were off on their next big quest… or rather, a mini-quest, because as you're probably aware, Oasis Town was not the destination they'd originally set. As such (and you're probably gonna hate me for this), we won't have much time to go over exactly what happened there, though you won't be completely left in the dark. Instead, we fast forward a bit to a closer point in time before they made their next (intended) grand voyage into parts unknown…

 ** _Hours later…_**

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN LIGHTHOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 21ST, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1430 HOURS

It was a cloudy, chilly afternoon, where our dynamic duo found themselves loafing around in the upper deck of Shantae's lighthouse, huddled together and reading comics to casually pass time by following a quick little excursion to Oasis Town to take care of a not-so-little problem. Their time since their trip to the mostly-immolated Genie's Hem was somewhat quiet, though they'd found some ways to keep themselves busy… as you PROBABLY already know. We rejoin them in the midst of a casual comics-related discussion just before they were set to venture off to their actual destination…

"I like how the Secret United Genie Alliance of the Republic Sultanate talk about how they don't appreciate covert government interference with the general public's daily lives, even though their whole league was created by the same regime they accuse of corruption," Tayshan, back in his usual black-and-tan-camouflage ensemble, analyzed of the story he and Shantae were sharing as they read the final panel.

"Well, to give you some background, the S.U.G.A.R.S. were initially instated as the government enforcement service in the name of a tyrannical dictator," Shantae, dressed in her usual red dancing garb (in case you were wondering) explained. "They at first were known as the Shurtat Aldawla, or the state police, established by the diabolical Sultan Sharun. He wasn't originally supposed to be the Sultan of Jumhuria. His brother Mahayid was supposed to inherit the title from their father. Sharun manipulated government officials behind the scenes, staged a coup that led to the assassination of his father, and covered it up by framing his own brother, who was banished and locked away until he went insane trying to clear his name. Sharun basically cheated his way to the top. Once he gained control of Jumhuria's government, he had everyone who helped him get there banished or otherwise silenced, so that no one would uncover the horrible truth before he turned the government upside down, one corrupt nationwide decree at a time."

"Yikes… Nothin' like a ruthless, egomaniacal madman with the right resources t' shake things up for the worse…" he commented, though he couldn't help but draw a comparison between the villain in the story and a certain conniving pirate mistress with eerily similar proclivities and ambitions… "It sounds just like a certain someone we've been tryin' t' hunt down for the last week…"

"You said it. Good point, by the way," she acknowledged with intrigue. "Sharun DOES seem to act an awful lot like Risky Boots, huh? That's uncanny… Still, that's why Jayid and the six other genies they unknowingly enlisted infiltrated the forces of the Shurtat Aldawla, turning some of its other members against Sharun as they became a beacon of light on a country ravaged by the government's darkness, greed, systematic oppression, and legalized crime. It didn't take long for Jayid and his group to be found out as genies though, which is why the general public's opinion of them is so mixed."

"I see… So the S.U.G.A.R.S. are like, a rogue sect of the state police who are workin' toward deliverin' the power t' govern back to the people by endin' the totalitarian iron-fisted grip Sharun has on it? And then, because o' the bad name genies were given, the public doesn't trust them an' refuses t' lend support?"

"Exactly!" she excitedly confirmed, happy that Tay was catching on.

"That… actually sounds a lot like our time on Naga Mountain, if you scramble a few details around," he humorously observed, making Shantae gasp with surprise.

"Oh my gosh, that's so true! I mean, Squid Baron was no Sharun, but you're totally right! There are a ton of parallels to draw there, too! How weird is that!?"

"Pretty weird…" the serviceman acknowledged with a mirthful chuckle. "One more big comparison, an' I'll start thinkin' this comic somehow predicted the events of our own adventure."

"Who knows? I only showed you this and two other issues, so anything is possible! Anyway, Jayid and a team of other genies were watching the fall of Jumhuria as they knew it from the Maginexus, the Genie Realm of this comic," the half-genie explained, unaware that she'd drawn yet another parallel as she went on. "Deciding that enough was enough, they transported themselves to Jumhuria disguised as regular humans and got to work unearthing the roots of the city state's darkest days; even with genies having a history of committing equally-atrocious acts upon the people of Jumhuria long before Jayid came along."

"Ohh… Yeah, I was a bit confused as to who was who," Tay pondered, mentally comparing what he'd heard in this peculiar comic to what little info he was given about the history of Sequin Land.

"The three issues I showed you were pretty much in the middle of everything, so I get it if things were hard to follow. The beginning of the series is slow and sometimes, it feels like things are just dragging until the writers develop a new major plotline. It's my favorite series of my entire collection, regardless. I wanted to show you the really juicy stuff first to see if it caught your eye. I hope you enjoyed it."

"Yeah! It's exactly the kind o' comic I like most! A deep an' intricate plot, a diverse range o' characters, that irrevocable grit an' drama… an' of course, the spicy, suspenseful will-they-won't-they buddin' romance between Jayid and his half-genie rival Shakyra…"

"Isn't that part the best!? Shakyra is my favorite character of them all!" Shantae enthusiastically gushed. "She's strong, beautiful, confident, independent, determined to make big changes for the good of Jumhuria, and even has powers just like mine! She can shapeshift into animals, monsters, and various inanimate objects, use her long, luxurious sapphire-colored enchanted ponytail to whip enemies into submission, and even summon bolts of lightning and towers of fire at will!"

"She sounds like a real tough competitor."

"Without a doubt! She always proves to Jayid and the others that having a human mother and a genie father is by no means a weakness of hers. She takes pride in it and keeps everyone on their toes, so they know not to underestimate her. Even better for her character background is that she is living, breathing proof that genies and humans are capable of coexisting and loving one another as equals."

"Heh, puttin' it that way, sounds more like Shakyra is less a 'favorite character' an' more-so an indirect homage t' you. Or, maybe a direct one, because I'm drawin' a LOT more parallels right now…" Tay observed, raising an eyebrow as he began to grow just a tad suspicious of the comic book's eerily-relatable content.

"Aw, no way…" Shantae deflected with a sheepish giggle. "I've never done any of the awesome things Shakyra's done over the course of this series. She's a total bombshell who's always oozing with confidence, quick wit, catchy one-liners, mastery over her powers, and she even has one of the most powerful full-blooded genies in the universe as a potential lover. No way I'm like that at all… I can't even figure out how to make an appropriate heroic statement before kicking things off, much less stay confident in myself or get anyone other than Aashiq to like me the way Jayid likes her…"

"Come on, don't put yourself down, Shantae…" Tay consoled as he laid a hand upon her shoulder and gently rocked her back and forth. "You've got plenty goin' for you. We've already been over that."

"I know… but it's like, Shakyra is the kind of hero I aspire to be, y'know? She's got it all, while I barely have a thing in comparison…"

"Hmm, I can tell by now that these comics play a pretty big part in how you handle your own adventures," Tay observed as he registered Shantae's self-deprecating comment and drew some comparisons of his own regarding what he'd seen of her.

"You can?" she asked, surprised that he would make the connection without her telling him. "Wow, you're good… and yeah, I know it sounds super geeky that I try to be the kind of hero I read about in comics…"

"Hey now, it's perfectly okay," he assured as he patted his tour guide's shoulder. "If it makes you feel any better, I sometimes thought about action heroes I've watched or read about whenever I did trainin' drills."

"Really?" she asked, perking up as she felt moderately less ashamed of her heroic habits.

"Yeah, though it ain't somethin' I tell everybody," he admitted with a bashful rub of his head. "Granted, you get t' do it for real, which is amazin' in itself. I only ever did it for motivation t' push through my trainin' sessions, as well as tryin' harder with martial arts classes an' exercise…"

"That… Wow… Thanks for understanding, Tay…" she expressed with a relieved smile. "Of course, you're also doing it for real now too, if you didn't think you were already. I hope it's what you expected."

"Trust me, no amount of expectation I had could've prepared me for what we've been through, homegirl…"

"A good point… A good point without a doubt from me," she very much agreed with a thoughtful nod.

"Glad we're on the same page. Still, I think if you were every bit like Shakyra, you wouldn't be near as much fun t' hang out with," Tay countered, catching his companion by surprise as her eyes widened at him.

"What do you mean?"

"Well… Shakyra's a great character. No doubt about it. But I think she definitely takes things way too seriously, if you ask me. All the time. No offense, but I got the feel that she's so busy provin' the point that she can hang around a crowd she feels is inherently superior to her that it's sorta contradictory to what she stands for, t' try so hard t' impress Jayid an' the gang in her efforts t' establish herself as a worthy hero in her own right."

"I… guess I see your point there, but it's not like that's her entire personality. She has her moments of making lighthearted jokes and sharing laughs with the rest of the crew, as well as having self-doubts that she overcomes by her own merit. The most appealing aspect of her character is that she can do so much despite the stigma placed on her for being a half-genie. Is it really her fault that other characters tend to look down on her, making her have to prove herself more often than the rest of the S.U.G.A.R.S.?"

"Yeah… yeah, you got a point there."

"Shakyra's whole background is complex and delicate in areas that the other characters could only understand from the outside looking in. She got where she is because she worked hard for it, even with the odds stacked against her, just like Jayid. Like I said, she's my absolute favorite character in the series because her story so closely resembles my own."

"I understand now… Thanks for clarifyin'. Still, part of what I've come t' like so much about you is that you're growin' an' learnin' at your own pace an' steppin' up to the plate when no one else can. You also acknowledge when you're uncomfortable with a situation, but you still go in an' do your best t' make things right. That takes a lot o' courage. You don't do it t' prove a point or to impress some guy or your friends, either; you do it because it's the right thing t' do, even if it costs you somethin' you might not get some kind o' return for. I also admire that you know how t' keep a positive outlook, even in a time like this, where most people would be stressin' out from what's been goin' on. I know I would've been much worse off had I been tryin' t' stop Risky by myself, for example. I think you're extraordinary just by bein' you."

"Aw, you're just the sweetest, Tay…" she complimented as she smirked at him, bashfully running her fingers through her ponytail. "You're right… Maybe I should give myself some credit. I AM curious, though… Did you find yourself relating to any of the characters in this comic?"

"Hm? Me? Uh… N-not really…" he shrugged. "I wasn't drawin' any comparisons t' myself while we read. Why?"

"Because I think you and Jayid are one in the same," she deduced, making her companion cock an eyebrow.

"How do you figure that?"

"Ignoring the fact that you're human and Jayid is a full-fledged genie, you both charged valiantly into a different world that, despite you having no idea how it works, desperately needs your help. You're both a part of your own organizations dedicated to protecting the rights and prosperity of the general population. You bravely take on the obstacles thrown at you with hardly a second thought, even with the odds stacked against you."

"That right?"

"Mm-hmm. What's more, you and Jayid both demonstrate an alarming level of intelligence; especially when it comes to planning out complicated strategies for accomplishing missions, thinking on the fly, or even in the middle of a fight when you want to catch your opponent off-guard. It makes you both incredibly dangerous; especially if the enemy underestimates you. I've seen that from our sparring matches and during some of our adventures. Plus, you and he have some similarities in your personalities; motivated, intuitive, and passionate, but with a lighthearted, sarcastic side and a penchant for being something of a sweet-talker when it comes to cute girls…" she teased, smirking as she winked and nudged her friend with her elbow.

"Wow… I appreciate the comparison. I mean, I don't think I'm anywhere near as cool or as intelligent as Jayid is, but still… thanks for that. I guess if you put it that way, though, there are some parallels t' draw between me an' this comic, bizarre as that might be. I mean, the S.U.G.A.R.S. kind o' remind me of my faction back home."

"How so?"

"Like them, the organization I enlisted with has an interestin' name, now that I'm reminded of it."

"Is that right? What's the name of your organization?"

"It's called the Governmental Establishment of Nationwide Independence Enforcement Services." At that, Shantae suddenly drew in a dramatic gasp, a bright, giddy smile creeping onto her face. She almost looked like she was ready to explode with joy. She could hardly contain herself.

"No way…!" she uttered in a hushed whisper, causing Tay to shoot her a confused look.

"…What?"

"Your organization is called the G.E.N.I.E.S.? Seriously?" Shantae remarked in a mix of utter astonishment and unshakeable humor, laughing loudly enough at the incredible coincidence that one would swear her walls shook just from the reverberation.

"Huh…?" he uncertainly answered as he thought about the first letter in each word. Once he got it, he gasped. "Oh, wow. Ohh, woooooowwwww…" Tay droned in total shock, feeling a mite silly that he'd forgotten the acronym for his own military organization until this point. "If… that ain't the craziest thing…"

"Do you know what that means, Tay?" the excited young lady asked, evidently figuring something out before her friend did.

"No. What?"

"Technically speaking, you ARE a genie!" At that, Tay couldn't help but scoff in amusement. "You may not have the magic powers of an actual genie… or, maybe that's debatable, but either way, you're part of a group dedicated to keeping your homeland safe! If G.E.N.I.E.S. is the name they go by, then that kinda-sorta makes you a genie!" The two shared a healthy laugh at Shantae's deductive reasoning.

"I… suppose so. Wow, I can't believe I didn't realize the coincidence in the name until now… All things considered, we always just called it the Enforcement Services. I blanked out on the rest o' the name after a while."

"Imagine if you'd told me that sooner," she posed, still smiling ear to ear with enthusiasm. "I'd have probably been convinced you really WERE an alternate version of me."

"The more we find out about each other, the more seriously I'm considerin' that t' be a possibility…" he quipped, scratching his head with his index finger as he wondered by this point how true such a prospect could actually be.

"Same here. Still… it makes me curious, Tayshan. What sorts of things DID you do once you enlisted? I don't think I ever asked you that."

"Well…" Tay began, taking a moment to recollect his memories about his time as a proud member of the coincidentally-named G.E.N.I.E.S. organization. "I'm still in the early days o' my time in service, havin' only served for a little over a year. I'd just gotten promoted t' Corporal maybe a week or so before I came here."

"What was it like? I mean, I've got some ideas as to what it's like being a soldier in a massive army, considering some of the people I've encountered during my past adventures, but… what was it like when you started?"

"I can tell ya one thing, homegirl: It was NOT the easiest transition, goin' from a civilian lookin' for a purpose to a dedicated serviceman with an objective shared by a massive group o' my peers an' superiors."

"How?"

"My first few months were as rough as can be. The first thing they did once I got all my paperwork signed off an' got all my doctors' exams cleared up was throw me in a one-month-long intensive boot camp," the soldier explained. "This boot camp consistently pushed me an' the other guys to our limits. Gettin' yelled at, sun up t' sun down. Goin' t' sleep at midnight, wakin' up t' blarin' trumpets at 6:00 AM sharp every mornin'. The minute you wake up, you're puttin' on layers upon layers of clothin' an' equipment, bein' fed a quick breakfast, an' put through drill after drill after drill with scarcely a break between 'em before you were back t' doin' more drills until it was time t' get ready for bed. Lather, rinse, repeat…"

"Wow… what kinds of drills did you go through?"

"Shoot, I don't even know where t' begin…" he replied with a deep breath, thinking about the grueling horrors of his first few weeks in the military. "T' nutshell it, imagine spendin' every single day bein' made t' carry about forty t' sixty pounds of equipment, consistin' of your clothes in addition to couple o' weapons an' other paraphernalia in a sack on your back."

"Got it."

"Right. So then, imagine runnin'—not walkin', but RUNNING—through the hottest desert in Sequin Land for about two hours with the sixty pounds o' stuff on you. After that, you have t' crawl through a muddy makeshift swamp under a net made o' barbwire, usin' only your elbows an' knees for another hour. With a sixty-pound sack on your back an' all your equipment."

"Wow… Sounds pretty hard. It's hard enough exploring deserts and swamps in just my regular clothes. Carrying a giant bag around and dressed in layers while exploring them? I can't imagine. If the heat exhaustion didn't get me from all the extra effort it'd take to lug all that stuff around, I know I'd probably pass out from fatigue alone. Things were that difficult for you out the gate?"

"Oh no, that was the easy part," Tay corrected, causing Shantae's eyes to widen in shock. "Next, imagine finally gettin' through the mud bog, only to have t' run another… maybe fifteen minutes, where you're avoidin' pitfalls, fake landmines that you can't see, an' occasionally havin' t' do a hurried-up hopscotch routine through another couple o' nets. THEN, you have t' climb a ten-foot wall by shimmyin' up a worn-out rope."

"With sixty pounds of equipment on you?"

"No, thankfully… At least, not till later. They let you put the sack down on the other side o' the wall for the first few tries at this part. Of course, you still gotta pick it back up an' run another thirty minutes while avoidin' more fake landmines an' mock fire from fake guns held by your superiors an' peers. You also gotta switch between runnin', crawlin' through more mud, hoppin' through more barbwire, an' one more mad dash t' the finish line, which would take… about another forty-five minutes if you were movin' too slow. Thirty if you were quick."

"Jeez, Tay! That sounds brutal!"

"Believe me, I know. Now imagine havin' t' go through that nightmarish torture in a mixed bag of unpredictable horrors every day for three weeks, in addition to a cycle o' daily weight trainin' routines that pushed your body an' mind t' their absolute limits, and even further beyond. Also, add in incredibly aggressive, in-your-face, unrelentin' drill instructors that practically BEG you t' talk back, act out, or do anything at all t' step outta line. If you didn't step out o' line, good on you. You're patient. You're well-disciplined. You probably know the mind game they're playin'. If you did let them provoke you, though… well, they'd make you skip meals an' go hungry for a night, go through an extra round of a certain part o' the obstacle course I mentioned, lock you in a box in the ground for an hour while they occasionally dumped buckets o' freezin' water on you, or… worse, they'd punish everybody EXCEPT you, then throw you t' the wolves when everybody finished up the punishment with a fresh, tangible, collective wave o' seethin' anger directed at you. That's just scratchin' the surface."

"You… managed to avoid getting punished, right?" Shantae had to ask, shocked and frightened by the unforgiving cruelty of Tayshan's training.

"Shantae… after all I told you about my past, you should know me by now. That said, no. No, I did not avoid it."

"Oh, no…"

"Oh, yeah. Every other day, I was lettin' my temper flare up when I struggled an' the instructors screamed in my face, or pickin' fights with drill instructors and my squadmates when they laughed at me, or refusin' to obey a direct order from a superior, thinkin' it made me look like this hotshot rebel without a cause. As you might expect, I… developed a bit of a reputation for bein' a glutton for punishment."

"Tay… Wow, just when I thought it might've gotten easier for you once you joined the military…"

"Not immediately, it didn't. Due t' my refusal to cooperate an' my hotheaded antics early on, I was marked as a liability and a 'no-hoper' who would only drag the rest o' the squad down… T' be honest, I was probably one or two more temper tantrums away from bein' discharged for frequent insubordination. I only shaped up after one o' my instructors pulled me aside one day an' had a talk with me when I was especially itchin' for a fight with my squadmate for trash-talkin' me. He told me that if I hoped t' get anywhere near accomplishin' my goals in life, I'd have t' learn to control myself an' not fly off the handle. He said I had a ton o' potential, since I actually managed t' finish that course multiple times within the first week an' showed a ton o' promise with adaptin' to the routine in record time, but that I was gettin' in my own way with bein' so quick to anger."

"I see… So… how'd that conversation change your perspective?"

"I told him about my past… my parents, my life on the streets, my ambitions t' make somethin' out o' myself, tryin' t' mask my anger as passion an' commitment. It's what he told me after I spilled my guts that changed me from that point on, though…"

"What'd he say?"

"He told me… that if I wanted t' prove I wasn't a victim o' circumstance or a product o' my environment, then I'd have t' start makin' changes for myself; not just my parents or my peers. He said I wasn't a bad guy… just misguided an' frustrated with a problem I wasn't even workin' t' solve… with the problem bein' my personal insecurities an' its effect on my idea of inner progress as compared to perceived progress in the eyes of others." At that, Shantae went silent, her gaze fixed on Tayshan as he gazed back at her, his face communicating total solemnity. "That statement floored me. Granted, it took me a couple days of bein' totally silent an' ruminatin' on that, but I got the idea. I thought back t' how I acted since I joined, an' a short time before. The fights, the outbursts, all the way down t' what anger I was holdin' onto… even what kind o' satisfaction I was gettin' out o' the positive things I did up t' that point. Soon enough, I took a mental step back an' spent a whole night cryin' my eyes out about what a failure I'd been t' myself an' questionin' whether I was ready t' make the commitment of joinin' the Enforcement Services… or, the G.E.N.I.E.S., as we pointed out."

"Tayshan…" Shantae spoke up, her eyes wavering with sympathy as she placed a hand on his back. "You're so hard on yourself. I-I mean… I'm sorry you had to go through that… and I'm glad you managed to turn a tough situation into a good one, but I can't even imagine how awful that experience must've been for you."

"I know… an' I'm still workin' on that, as you already know," Tay assured with a somber smirk. "Still, once I got the idea, I pulled yet another 180 an' shaped myself up t' give it my all an' remain calm throughout the rest o' my time in that boot camp. The drill sergeants noticed the change pretty fast an' gave me my props for toughin' it out the right way rather than lettin' my emotions overwhelm me like I was doin' before. Thankfully, I made that change just in time."

"Just in time?"

"Yeah. Those who didn't make the cut at the end o' boot camp were discharged back t' where they came from, or they quit before then because they couldn't handle the pressure. Those who did make it immediately received their first promotion from Recruit to Private, a brand-new, official uniform, shiny new government-issue rifles an' handguns, an' for the last week before transferrin' to a designated base of operations, we got to take a much-deserved break from all the gruelin' trainin' routines. Mind you, it ain't like it was perfect for me. I still had one heck of a reputation t' clean up. Shoot, I STILL DO have a reputation t' clean up. I still never made any new friends, an' I was still more interested in improvin' myself than I was in fraternizin' with my peers. All things considered, I still got messed with for bein' such a short-tempered recluse despite my chosen profession. And, like I told you before, I still needed another wake-up call from my dearly-departed friends back in that cave in the Prickle Stitch Valley t' help me really see what it meant t' take responsibility for myself."

"Well, progress is made in strides," the insightful young woman informed her comrade. "It's never easy, but we all get where we need to be at one point or another; even with a little help! As for friends… I mean hey, I'd like to think we're close friends already, and we've only known each other a week. Like I said yesterday, I consider you one of my best friends. So, there's progress for you right there!" she let him know with a cheerful grin, which he returned.

"Thanks for that, Shantae… I appreciate it greatly."

"Of course! Still, once you made it through, what else did you do?"

"A lot more trainin' routines with one voluntary three-month stationin' trip abroad as a peacekeeper. The routines encompassed much more than just bulkin' up muscle with weights an' buildin' endurance, though. I'm talkin' hand-to-hand combat trainin', run an' gun mock-missions through more obstacle courses, target practice at the shootin' range with all kinds o' guns an' grenades, an' even some technical work with breakin' down an' reconstructin' weapons, as well as some o' the war vehicles we had at the bases, so we know what t' do if a gun jams or a vehicle stops workin'. Oh, an' we also had weekly meetings t' discuss a little bit o' history on battle techniques an' crisis intervention, amongst other educational subjects."

"Whoa…! You did all that in the span of a year?"

"Yep, more or less. There's little t' no time for rest, but once our trainin' expanded past a month-long marathon o' miserable physical torture… I gotta say, it generally got a lot more fun," he stated with a confident smile.

"That just blows my mind! I know you said you had a lot of training under your belt, but to think you had THAT much? Magic influence aside, no wonder you're so strong and smart!" At that, Tay's face heated up as he bashfully chuckled.

"Aw stop, you're makin' me nervous over here," he joked, scratching his head.

"But it's true! Seriously, I finally get why it's so tough fighting you in our sparring matches, for one thing. I also get how you've been such a quick thinker in the middle of our adventures."

"Thanks, but let's not forget: You've still got me beat in sparrin' matches, six to a big, fat zero. Plus, your adaptive ability on these trips an' even durin' our matches far exceeds my thinkin' skills. You're such a natural at it, it's uncanny!" he countered, offering praise to his partner.

"To do as well as you have against me in our sessions, even with you having only a fraction of the amount of magic I have, and without me taking on any handicaps, is already a wonder, Tay. Don't underestimate yourself. It shows us both that you're getting better, just like I said you would. Plus, I've been adventuring for years! I'd better be able to adapt to my surroundings or to a tough situation, or else I'd be in huge trouble every single time I set foot in a new landscape! Your thinking ability helping you as much as it has, is definitely a good sign that you're getting the hang of things."

"That's true…" Tay nodded in agreement.

"In fact, going back to how you and Jayid relate, you both have a knack for gathering an understanding of any situation while you're in the middle of it. Just from our time on Naga Mountain alone, you actually found a method to get past the toughest parts of it without even needing to fight the monsters in your way! I would've never known the Nagas and archers there would stop attacking us and offer to give you your flamethrowers back if we agreed to take down Squid Baron for them. It's just like how Jayid convinced a giant nine-headed Hydra to protect a village from a full-frontal assault by the Shurtat Aldawla by agreeing to talk the villagers into drawing up a peace agreement with it. Like I was saying before we got sidetracked, you and he are a lot alike," she assured with a grin.

"I mean, I-I guess, if you put everything I said int' that kind o' perspective… Buuut, I think you might've missed the mark on 'sweet-talker,' if I'm gonna make any objections," he shot back, mirthfully shaking his head as he thought back to Shantae's previous comparison. "I'm definitely not the kind o' guy who can charm his way out of an unpleasant situation with a woman or win her heart with lines laced with honey. 'Smooth' ain't exactly a word that describes me, as far as you've already witnessed."

"Oh, yeah? So how do you explain the fact that, within your first day here, you managed to get the attention of not one, but two girls just by saying the right things to them?"

"What two girls did I do that to?"

"Don't play dumb, Tay. You know exactly who I'm talking about."

"…You an' Sky?" he guessed, causing Shantae to exhale in disbelief. "I mean, I didn't say two words t' Sky before she started hittin' on me. There was literally zero effort o' my own there. I uh… I wasn't aware you liked me like that, though," he smilingly teased, though his heartbeat increased in intensity. "I wasn't expectin' such a sudden confession from you."

"N-no!" she hastily denied with a furious blush, making Tay snicker. "Not me! I-I meant Twitch! I told you I don't feel that way about you!" she defensively shouted.

"I know, homegirl. Relax," he calmly admitted with a sigh and a chuckle. "I'm just messin' with ya."

"Oh. I-I knew that," she lied, nervously tittering as she brought herself to her feet to put the comic away in a nearby shelf packed to the brim with reading material… which was mostly, if not exclusively comic books and beauty magazines neatly sorted by series and issue. "You're a clever one, Tay. I'll remember that."

"I bet you will… Still, I think it's interesting you compared me t' the main character of that comic. I didn't think anything of it."

"Well, he's the one whose personality is closest to yours. At least, as far as I know about you. You even have the same dry, witty sense of humor, exemplified mainly by making flat, sarcastic remarks about things you find inconvenient or worth criticizing for how absurd you think they are."

"Oh gee, you've figured me out to a 'T,'" he flatly remarked. "Your deductive reasonin' is impeccable."

"Exactly what I mean. Thanks for proving my point," she told him, smiling triumphantly as she chuckled. Tay merely smirked back, conceding to her. "Maybe I'm not the only one who should give myself more credit, hm?"

"Whatever you say, Shakyra," he teased as he rolled his eyes, purposefully calling his friend by the name of her favorite character.

"Another good one, Jayid," she shot back, still smirking. "If only you would realize how right I am…"

"Right, because the next thing you'll tell me is that since we're so much like those two, then we should definitely be-!"

"Don't say it," she warned, not liking the implications of his statement.

"…partners in crime-fightin' for longer than this situation with Risky an' my guns will carry out for, an' eventually build our own team o' justice warriors named after a basic carbohydrate in the name of fightin' corruption, greed, an' government-instigated oppression," he finished, unsure of why she interrupted him. "What, that thought bothers you?"

"Oh. No, I thought you were going to say something else," she admitted, darting her eyes away momentarily. "Still, I wouldn't want you to be stuck here against your will, but I think it'd be cool to finally have a partner to complete at least some of my adventures with. I've never done multiplayer before and so far, teaming up with you has been awesome! A fresh, new experience I feel like I was missing out on."

"Glad ya think so. It's definitely been a real blast goin' explorin' with you. Still, nothin' good lasts forever…" he sighed, ruminating on his current purpose for being in Sequin Land and what it meant for his friendship with Shantae. "However long it takes, once we wrap this up, chances are, that's it for us if it all plays out a certain way…"

"I… I know…" she somberly agreed, looking away in contemplative sadness. "But we can still make the best of the time we have. I'm here with you through thick and thin."

"I appreciate that… No words can justify how thankful I am. That said, you got any idea on when we could head out again t' search for Risky Boots today? The trip to Oasis Town earlier was kind of a bust, what with us seein' Tinkerbats there, but not bein' able t' catch 'em through all the commotion about that giant, fire-breathin' armored mutant horsefly with the grudge against your uncle."

"Yeah, things like that happen often around here. Also, you can blame Uncle for the gross mutant fly. He was messing around with dangerous chemicals in his workshop again and blew something up in his lab. The egg-scented smoke was toxic and wound up causing a normal fly to turn into… that thing we beat up. I don't have a clue where it got the armor from, though. I just hope the same thing doesn't happen to him after what we saw before we left…"

"Wow… A whole side adventure caused by a simple mistake… There's the butterfly effect, an' then there's THAT… My fingers are crossed that he doesn't wind up turnin ' int' some gargantuan abomination we have t' take down."

"Yeah, me too. But, at least we managed to make short work of that fly monster before it burned down the city in its blind, vengeful rage. Seriously, we flew through that whole city AND the boss battle in under an hour, which is another reason it's so great to have a partner to work with. Your discovery of the weak spot in its underbelly saved our bacon. We'd have had a really rough time otherwise. It also helped that you planned our attack patterns to counter it in the middle of the fight to make it that much easier."

"Ah, that was nothin'," he bashfully dismissed. "That giant fly did the same two or three things until we weakened it enough, an' even then, it only switched to doin' a faster version o' the same thing; flyin' around in a figure-eight motion, swoopin' down two or three times t' try catchin' us by surprise, then tryin' t' breathe fire where it thought either of us would be standin', leavin' itself open. That one was almost as easy as that giant red octopus. They'll be cleanin' bug goop off those buildings for weeks, though. I didn't think the boss battle explosions would actually cause it to… well, explode. The mess it made completely trashed that other outfit I had…"

"Don't remind me…" she dismissed, shivering with dread. "And at least you still have your original outfit until we figure out how to get the bug guts off your other one. Just be grateful none of it got in your hair, since you've been growing it out," she joked, calling attention to her friend's hair that had steadily grown from a sharp, short buzz cut to a sizable bush of obsidian black on his head over the course of his time in Sequin Land.

"Ain't like I'm growin' it out on purpose, homegirl," he joked back as he rubbed his also-hairy chin. "It's just comin' in with the longer we go without me findin' a barber."

"Fair enough, but I kinda like the longer hair and the extra stubble on your face," she complimented to his surprise. "The way your sideburns and mustache are starting to connect to your beard… I think it makes you look more… mature, if that makes sense. Plus, I'll admit I am curious to know what your hair looks like when it's grown out. I've never met anyone with such a coarse, curly texture like yours," she further explained, fixating on his hairstyle.

"Oh. Well then… Th-thanks for that," he accepted her praise, though he was somewhat nervous about her observation as he took it into consideration. "I… guess you'll find out what it all looks like as we go along, though I'm gonna start needin' a comb pretty soon."

"Don't sweat it. I've got a couple spares you can use."

"Noted. Thanks. Still, if I'm lucky not t' have gotten any o' that fly gunk in my hair, then what does that make you since you didn't get any in your hair either?"

"More skilled at dodging gross fluids flying at me since Squid Baron, that's what," she humorously concluded. "Anyway, considering it's still early in the day, we could go do some recon work of our own."

"True, but I'm not sure how much recon work we'll be doin' if we plan on payin' a visit t' that Kitschy Quilt Desert place that freaky wizard mentioned…" At that, Shantae pondered on an exact reason to follow the moderately-untrustworthy lead.

"Hmm… Well, he DID say something about a friend of his that could help us with a reversal for the Super Slugger Spell, didn't he?"

"Yeah, though I don't know how deeply we can trust his word. For all we know, he could be sendin' us into a trap."

"True, though we can't rule it out as a point of interest. That's our only lead, so we have no choice but to follow it."

"If you say so. Still, after everything he put us through just for us t' get our own bodies back, I'm still uneasy about him, which makes me not want t' trust his suggestion."

"Hmm…" Shantae paused to think, acknowledging Tay's question. "You've got a good point, Tayshan. Without question, you do. Even so, it's better for us to investigate to rule out or confirm any possibilities with this place. Plus, if we're lucky, it'll be knocking out two birds with one stone if we get clues on both Risky's newest hideout and a Spell Reversal to help Barracuda Joe."

"Makes sense, I guess, but… Are you sure we shouldn't just ask someone else here or, like the trend seems to be, wait for someone to drop a vague, yet paradoxically-obvious hint that points us in the direction of a different place?"

"Honestly, Tay, that's how it's basically always been for my last couple of adventures. As a matter of fact, I'd like it much better it if I could just go wherever I needed to at my own discretion more often. Chances like that come few and far between, unfortunately, and I'm a lot less likely to stumble upon anything significant if there wasn't already a clue that led me to a certain area in the first place. All the same, I think it'd be a nice change of pace to be proactive for once."

"Okay, that's fair. Still, what'd be the point in goin' there if we don't have more than the word o' some shifty sorcerer that lets us know we ain't just wastin' time?"

"Well…" Shantae pondered, realizing that Tay had another point. "Generally speaking, every time I've been given a hint to go somewhere, I've always found something worth note. I mean EVERY time, too. Or at least, 95% of the time. You've already been with me for a while. Have you noticed it yet?"

"Yeah, I noticed. Things tend t' conveniently pop up right when we need them to. Still… what you found on all your other adventures… was it relevant to your main goal in some way every time?"

"Believe it or not… Yup!" Shantae answered with a cheerful smirk. "Well, most of the time, like I said. Although, when I went to Tassel Town last week, it was just to collect some gems to take care of my bills. Yet, out of nowhere, I found you. Think about what would've happened if I didn't wind up going there."

"I'd prefer not to, all things considered about what happened t' lead me there…" Tay replied, understanding the half-genie's point. However, he found himself apprehensive about haphazardly popping up to seemingly-random places with hardly a clue as to why they were going there, as they had been. Up to this point, they'd hardly found anything substantial relating to Risky Boots if one were to make an exception for the Prickle Stitch Valley and what they'd heard about the maniacal pirate woman decimating Hypno Baron's Castle. Nevertheless, as Shantae was the only person he could rely on, in conjunction with their inexplicable strokes of luck finding some significant item or clue that helped them along their way, he had little choice but to trust her. "Alright, I don't suppose I can argue," he conceded with a sigh. "In that case, when do we get rollin', boss?" Tay asked, nodding in agreement as he readied himself.

"We can move out right now, trusty sidekick," she joked, finding amusement and satisfaction in having a partner that followed her lead. "Uncle's technologically-enhanced autopiloting canoe is available to us in Sky's absence, so we might as well take advantage of it. It'll take us a bit longer than flying there, but it's pretty fast, regardless. At least, that's what he tells me."

"Acknowledged," Tay nodded once more. "Let's do it."

"Let's!" With that, the duo set off to Scuttle Town to make the arrangements for their trip to the Kitschy Quilt Desert.

 ** _One long, grueling boat ride later…_**

LOCATION: KITSCHY QUILT DESERT, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 21ST, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1712 HOURS

"Sittin' on that boat for as long as we've been is SUPER uncomfortable… Ugh, I feel like a walkin' pincushion," Tay complained, rubbing his backside as he and Shantae exited their alternative vehicle and set foot on the sandy shore of the Kitschy Quilt Desert.

"Yeah, you said it," Shantae agreed, mirroring her partner's method of pain relief. "Though in his defense, Uncle's inventions are usually meant for utility, not comfort. Anyway, we're here now! Of course, I've never explored this place."

"Another new place for both of us, huh?"

"Yep. That makes three in a row, not counting our unscheduled trip to Oasis Town earlier today."

"Even for how unplanned pretty much every trip has been since I got here, I can definitely say I would never have expected t' go there on the fly…"

"Ah, I see what you did there, Tay…" Shantae pointed out with a smirk that Tay noticed, but playfully pretended not to acknowledge.

"No idea what you're talkin' about," he teased, though he couldn't hide the smirk on his face, though it wasn't there for long before he recognized that they were basically in uncharted territory with hardly a way to safety in the event that anything went wrong. "Still… Even with that invisible map thing, we won't get lost here, will we?"

"No, no. Don't worry. We should be fine. Most of the places I explore are pretty straightforward, with only one or two twists to them," the naïve young woman assured. "Plus, the deserts can be pretty predictable with what they have to offer."

"If you say so, but don't forget I'm still not used t' these spontaneous field trips…"

"Just follow my lead," she instructed with a smile as the two approached the starting point and stood juxtaposed to one another, surveying their surroundings.

"Ma'am, yes, ma'am," he agreed, though he seemed to have something on his mind. "Although, do you think it'd be too much trouble t' suggest we stick together this time?"

"Hm? What do you mean?" Shantae curiously asked back.

"Well… Considerin' the last few times we traveled together, I've been noticin' a trend," Tay began to explain as they briefly paused. "Between the Scuttle Town Forest, Naga Mountain, an' even a little bit o' Genie's Hem an' Oasis Town, you tend t' get through areas so quickly that I wind up trailin' behind you by a noticeable margin almost every time. I… I-I don't wanna make it sound like I'm sayin' we should slow down, but…"

"Ah, I get it," Shantae concluded without hearing the full expression of Tay's concern regarding the discrepancy in the quickness of their travels. "You're saying that we're moving at different speeds during adventures and that you need a little more time to get used to the pace of my trips, right?"

"Uh…" Tay stammered, surprised that the half-genie had misconstrued his point. She wasn't wrong in pointing out that he needed more time to get used to the pace of any one of Shantae's expeditions, but he was more concerned with something else. "W-well, sorta, but I meant-!"

"It's okay that you haven't gotten used to things just yet," she interrupted, certain that she knew what he was going to say. "I haven't had as much time to train you lately because of the hiccups on Prickle Stitch and Genie's Hem, so you've got a point."

"Right, homegirl, but I meant in terms o' figh-!"

"Maybe today's adventure will be the one you'll need in order to really get the hang of things," she cut him off again. "Don't worry, though. I'll make sure we stay close enough to have each other's backs, since this landscape is new to both of us. That way, you can learn by watching what I do instead of having me explain it. It'll be both easier and faster that way. Okay?" Tay, not wanting to be rude, merely nodded at her suggestion, silently trusting her completely. Although, he couldn't shake a debilitating sinking feeling off that he couldn't rightly identify in that moment. Nevertheless, the duo continued their trek. However, they soon picked up on some of the more… ominous aspects of their adventuring place of choice.

"This desert sure looks barren… Not another soul, not a building, not even a cactus in sight for miles… The heavy, dark gray blanket o' clouds ain't doin' much t' make this place look invitin', either." As he made this observation, an immense jarring *CRASH* blasted through the air, accompanied by a momentary flash of white, scaring the living daylights out of both adventurers.

"…and a touch of dry desert thunderstorm to add to the mix. We're in for it now," Shantae observed, taking a deep breath to prepare herself. "But we can't back down."

"…I'm not shocked that you'd say that," he commented with a tinge of apprehension in his voice. "But we'd better move like lightning t' get this one over with."

"Wow, Tay," Shantae started with a small chuckle. "Thunderstorm jokes to lighten the mood. I like it! You're on a roll with the puns today!"

"Huh?" he asked, genuinely uncertain of what she meant this time.

"You've got a point, no less. Let's try to make this one quick, so we can potentially get our hands on that Super Slugger Spell Reversal as soon as possible. Here We Go!" she announced, ignoring her friend's wordy question (while also taking his pun-laden suggestion as a word of advice) as she took off in front of him.

"Hey, hold up!" he shouted after her as the duo commenced their latest adventure. They found themselves running through the uneven, malleable sand dunes of Kitschy Quilt Desert like they'd been running from a stampede, though they immediately found difficulty in the fact that with every step they took, their feet sunk into the sand, slowing their pace nearly to a figurative crawl. "I can already see why this place looks so abandoned!"

"Yeah, it's like this whole island is made of quicksand!" Shantae acknowledged as she began jumping to keep herself from sinking into the sand further. Tay, quick on the uptake, mimicked her movements as he joined her in hopping like a rabbit to keep from being ensnared in the mineral-rich trap that was the miles-wide pit of quicksand. Soon after, a fleet of armor-clad ravens swooped low and dropped off the first of many ambushes of enemies; little spiky green slime balls and reanimated skeletons of long-dead rodents that made themselves known by spitting miniature sapphire blue embers at our heroes. Shantae wasted no time whipping her hair at the spike creatures before they could pose a serious threat to her or Tay. Meanwhile, Tay quickly drew his firearm and fired a couple of shots at the undead rats, disposing of them with ease. Clearing the first wave of foes quickly, the duo hopped their way forward through the alpine dunes of quicksand, their determination undeterred.

The soldier and the half-genie were quickly faced with their next obstacle in the form of their next ambush. Popping out of the sand like tops off of pressure-squeezed water bottles, a group of shiny, dark cobalt scorpions of varying sizes from… well, the size of an actual scorpion to the size of a young elephant, in addition to two emerald green, tower-like cactus creatures emerged and made their intentions known. Shantae quickly rushed forward, whipping three of the smaller blue scorpions out of her way while narrowly dodging the stinger-tipped tail strike of an elephant-sized one, making sure to keep herself above the sand. Immediately after, she whipped away at one of the two cactus monsters, which took multiple hits before one of its pumpkin-shaped appendages flew away from under it, shrinking it in size. The intuitive heroine repeated the process once more, knocking the creature down one more peg before jumping to aim her hair whips at its head. She succeeded in vanquishing the creature, the remainder of whose body collapsed once its head was knocked off. Seeing that the coast was clear, she charged ahead.

Tay had made short work of the other scorpion creatures, taking them out from a distance as he did his best to keep short-hopping to keep from being buried in the hazardous quicksand. He turned to notice the cactus creature wiggling its way toward him and conjuring something up in its spooky orange eyes. Before he could assess further, the cactus monster fired a laser beam at the ground from its eyes, causing him to leap out of the way as the beam's path quickly swept upward toward him. Tay made note of this occurrence and quickly dispatched the creature by aiming a series of calculated gunshots at its head. He turned around to see that Shantae had already gone, hopping a considerable distance ahead and defeating an additional cactus monster and jumping over a second swarm of spike creatures and scorpions.

"We barely started, an' she's already doin' it again…!" Tay complained with a sigh, perturbed that his partner had left him behind once more. "What is up with this…?" he muttered to himself as he advanced to the scattered swarm of bugs and sentient spiky slime balls and cleared them out while trying to keep up. Unfortunately, Tay would find it harder to maintain a quick enough pace to catch Shantae, thanks to the added challenge of having to constantly jump to avoid sinking into the sand. With running not being the best of options, he was forced to improvise, galloping like a two-legged horse to balance moving as swiftly as he could and remaining above ground as he continued along the curvy, absorbent sand dunes. Using this unorthodox method, he pressed on while carefully clearing out enemies in his path.

Unfortunately, he would not get far before he was stopped juat before a piranha-filled water pit rife with slime monster-infested floating stone platforms. However, it wasn't the pit itself that stopped him; instead, he was halted by yet another brigade of giant scorpions, bomb-dropping ravens, and a horde of rat revenants that all dared him to come at them. "Darn it, she's still skippin' enemies, too…!" Tay grumbled, even more upset as he surveyed the dangers ahead before moving to deal with the foreboding foes using his firearm. "Looks like another trip where my hands are gonna be full…"

Meanwhile, Shantae had been making rapid strides across the dunes. She'd been dashing by as quickly as her environment would allow as she skipped past the next barrage of enemy-dropping armored ravens and cactus monsters and crossing over two gigantic piranha-and-starfish-infested lakes; effortlessly at that, as she'd been relying on just her acrobatic agility and graceful coordination. Afterward, she bowled through the next squad of monsters (this time, led by a ruby-red scorpion woman twice the size of the largest blue scorpion the duo had encountered thus far), whipping them all into submission before she was able to finally catch a break by stopping on a solid platform embedded in the sand up ahead.

Immediately, she noticed a series of floating platforms lined up in ascending succession, leading to higher ground barely visible from her current angle. Upon further observation, she noticed a dip in the dunes steep enough to where she wouldn't be able to simply jump across without some form of leverage. The first floating platform was also too high for her to simply transform into a bat and fly horizontally across the gap. She quickly danced her way into her Harpy form to take flight for the floating platform just ahead, only to be met with a lightning bolt that struck with a world-shattering *CRACK* directly in front of her, scaring her out of the transformation.

"Yikes! Looks like flying is a no-go here…" she pondered as her partner finally caught up to her.

"Yo!" Tay called, already drenched in sweat as he galloped toward her. "Where's the fire!? I know I said we should move quick, but you're blowin' right through everything!"

"Hey! I thought you were right behind me. Sorry about that," she apologized, though her attention was divided. "Can you help me out with something?"

"What's up?" he asked, catching his breath as he set foot on the block Shantae had been standing on.

"I need to get up to those floating platforms up there, but I can't seem to use my Harpy dance to get to them."

"You can't? How's that?"

"I'm not sure… I tried it just a second ago and the instant I started flying, a lightning bolt struck out of nowhere. Watch," she instructed as she changed back into her Harpy form and made another attempt to fly. As predicted, another lightning bolt struck right in front of her the second she tried leaving the platform, scaring herself and Tay senseless as she changed back.

"Point taken… Alright. So what's the alternative?"

"I want you to carry me on your shoulders and see if maybe you could give me a boost," she suggested. "It'll be tough because of all the quicksand, but you're pretty tall. I'm hoping the added height will be enough for me to climb onto the first floating platform."

"Okay. It's now or never, so let's do it," Tayshan agreed, crouching and letting Shantae climb onto him and sit on his shoulders. "Tell me when," he prompted as he stood tall with Shantae perched atop him.

"Wow, I knew you were tall, but this view is incredible!" she recognized as she rested her hands on Tay's head. "Not to mention your hair is so soft to the touch! It's so curly and bushy, too. I can't believe I never really noticed before now. I wonder if I should start sharing my shampoo with you to see how it works…"

"You can gush about my height an' my hair texture later, homegirl," he redirected, slightly intimidated by the flashes of lightning emanating from the clouds. "I'd prefer that we didn't become this place's new lightning rod."

"Right! Let's go now," she attentively commanded with a point forward. Tay jumped off the platform to get a running start, only to find out that he sunk faster with Shantae sitting on his shoulders.

"Oh, jeez! No, no no! Nononononono!" he panicked, frantically hopping up and down as though he were walking barefoot into a lake full of piranhas (one of which, ironically enough, was just ahead past this set of levitating platforms), attempting to run forward toward the targeted area.

"Focus, Tay!" Shantae encouraged, crossing her legs tightly around his neck and hunching over to wrap her arms around his forehead to keep from falling off as she bounced in tandem with his rapid, jittery hopping. "Relax!" she further commanded, though she didn't realize the compromising position she put him in.

"Can't breathe…! Guagh…!" he choked out, his voice raspy with pressure as Shantae had placed an inadvertent death grip on his vocal chords. He tried pulling her legs away as he jumped around like his clothes were on fire. He was also trying his hardest not to pay attention to the fact that his partner was hugging the back of his head too tightly for him to focus as he tried fruitlessly to bring himself back under control. Soooo yeah, there's not much more I need to say about that.

"Don't panic! We're just about in the right position where I think I can-! Whoa!" Shantae tried informing him as she noticed her partner slip his hands through her legs to untangle her unwitting chokehold. He took in a sharp gasp of air as he jogged in place, reaching upward and cupping his hands under the young woman's rear before lifting her high into the air. She nearly lost her balance, quickly grasping the soldier's wrists as he held her up. "Hey! What do you think you're doing down there!? This isn't exactly what I had in mind!" she angrily complained as an ominous boom of thunder rumbled in the background, intensifying the urgency of the situation.

"You were chokin' me out!" he shouted back, his nerves already activating the adrenaline he was using to hold her up the way he was. "It was this or pass out from the lack of oxygen an' earn both of us a shallow grave! Anyway, you got any other ideas in mind? I can't keep this up forever!"

"Oh, right! Hmm… Okay, if you can, just stay in this position while I use my Monkey dance! That way, I can easily make the jump."

"How are you gonna dance like this? You're in the air, sittin' on my hands while I'm tap-dancin' for dear life in the quicksand down here!"

"When there's a will, there's a way! Here goes!" she announced as she cautiously stretched her hands out to her sides and began rhythmically wiggling while sitting on the frantic serviceman's hands. Tay, though his attention was primarily focused on the quicksand he was valiantly trying not to drown in, glanced upward to see how Shantae was performing her latest daring feat. Of course, from his angle, all he could see was her butt wiggling into his fingers, immediately causing him to shoot his gaze back downward as his face became hotter than the dry, scorching atmosphere of this desert. After a few heart-pounding seconds, a familiar *POOF* sounded and suddenly, he felt the silky touch of mammal fur gracing his palms. "I did it!" proclaimed the now-simian girl in a tiny, cutesy voice dissimilar from her normal tone.

"Thank goodness…" Tay sighed as he continued his haphazard, desperate tap-dancing, bringing one of his tired arms down as he held the other high to continue giving Monkey-Shantae the leverage she needed to make the jump.

"Okay, here goes!" the little mauve monkey girl announced with vigor as she leapt off the palm of her partner's hand and easily cleared the height and distance necessary to reach the first floating stone platform. She changed back into her humanoid form and waved down to Tay, who'd hopped back to the platform in the sand to catch a much-needed breather. "We did it! Thanks for the help!" The exhausted soldier could only give her a thumbs-up as he lay sprawled on the platform, breathing heavily like an elephant was sitting on his chest. After a minute, he sat up and stretched his arms before climbing back to his feet.

"That was… not the best idea we had," he tiredly informed her, to which she acknowledged.

"I can't argue with that," she plainly remarked, nodding in agreement.

"Still, we did pull it off. If you're takin' the high road, I'll take the low one," he suggested as he readied himself for more action.

"Heard loud and clear! Okay, let's do it!" With that, Tay breathed in his second wind, drew his gun and dashed forward. Shantae hopped from platform to platform, quickly coming into contact with some swooping armored ravens that, rather than drop other enemies on her, attempted to lash out at her with razor-sharp talons. Anticipating this, she deftly jumped over one of the black-feathered birds, subsequently whipping a second one out of commission. One more came as she cleared the gap to continue her ascent up the floating stairwell. As she ascended, however, thunder boomed and rolled as the clouds began flashing like a strobe light. However, on the next platform stood a treasure chest. Just as the half-genie prepared to make her next jump, another lightning bolt struck in front of her, followed by a deafening *CRACK*.

"YEOWCH!" shouted a masculine voice from down below, its owner having been subjected to unfathomable electric torture.

"Tay!" Shantae called, kneeling down and peeking below to see her friend standing on a small, gray, square-shaped stone platform embedded in the quicksand as he frantically shook and blew on his hand, which had been smoking from the impact of the lightning bolt. "You okay down there?"

"Y-yeah, I just… That lightnin' bolt got me just as I was about t' open this treasure chest down here," he replied, surprising his partner.

"There's one down there, too?" she asked, not expecting more than one chest to be available at a time. "Try opening it!" she suggested, prompting the soldier to raise his hand to open the chest, only to be struck by another *CRASH* of lightning.

"WOOA-HOHH!" he yelled again, shaking the same hand that was struck moments earlier. Shantae, seeing the admittedly-comedic display, stifled a giggle at her friend's misfortune. After recovering, Tay glared with disapproval at his partner, having heard her poorly-hidden snickering.

"Sorry, sorry… Okay, maybe we'll come back to that one later," Shantae sheepishly commented with a nervous titter. "There's one over here that I can get! I'll open it now," she announced, hopping over to the platform bearing the shiny red lock box. She attempted to open it, only to be struck herself with an additional *SNAP!*

"WAAHAHOWWCH!" the unsuspecting young woman hollered in a mix of literal shock and unbearable agony as she recovered from the lightning strike. After a moment of being stunned, she shook herself off and peered over the edge of the platform. "I can't… open this one, either," she regretfully informed.

"Welcome to my-! WHOA!" Tay attempted to snidely remark as he inadvertently reached toward the treasure chest. Another lightning bolt nearly struck him again and would've, had he not noticed the clouds above flashing white as he made his statement. As such, he jerked his hand toward his body and flinched as the bolt made contact with the sand, blackening the spot of impact while somehow not even deafening its intended target. "An' they say lightnin' never strikes the same place twice… Clearly they've never been struck two-and-a-half times."

"Two-and-a-half?" the young woman asked, her curiosity about the young man's logic piqued.

"You saw it! I got shocked twice an' then almost lost my hand-!" Tay explained, reaching his hand out toward the treasure chest again, causing yet another bolt of lightning to strike. Realizing his mistake before ACTUALLY losing his hand, he jerked it away as the bolt made another ear-splitting *CRASH* that scared him and his half-genie companion straight. "…just now, as a matter of fact," he finished with a sigh of relief.

"…Sooo, does that technically make it three times you were struck by lightning, or do the two halves stay as halves?" Shantae dared to ask with utmost curiosity, calling into question the serviceman's math. "Because I don't think almost getting struck twice is quite the same as actually being struck once…"

"Hey, so h-here's an idea! L-let's get outta here before we get insta-barbecued like a couple o' shrimp, huh?" he suggested, ignoring his leader's understandable query in the wake of his newfound paralyzing (no pun intended, depending on the context) fear of electricity.

"Great idea!" the reasonably and equally-intimidated young half-genie agreed, jumping down from the platform to join her comrade down below. "We can always come back for these later. Let's get moving!"

"Ain't gotta tell me twice…" Tay murmured as they continued their electrifying trek. "Safe t' say these lightnin' bolts might have some kind o' bone t' pick with us," he added as he and Shantae continued.

"Or, we could just be that lucky, considering how unlikely it's supposed to be to get struck by lightning even once," she theoretically posed as she and Tay wiped out an additional barrage of sizable jewelry-colored scorpions, another crimson woman-scorpion hybrid, and one more cactus monster while doing their best to get around the second enemy-infested lake before they advanced into the next section, where they immediately noticed that the clouds had become especially unfriendly, flashing and crackling above them. As they looked ahead, they noticed an extensive, expansive lake that dipped very, VERY low into a desolate, sandy valley. One could still hear the chattering of piranha teeth below, no less. Shantae and Tayshan also took note of the fragmented, rickety wooden plank bridge that stretched all the way into a densely-foggy, foreboding limbo.

"Wow… this just keeps gettin' more interestin' whether we like it or not…" Tay wisely observed, shaking his head in a mix of dread and wonder.

"Yeah. This desert certainly stands out from the rest, I'll admit…" the half-genie observed with a nod. "Oh well, we won't get anywhere by not going for it. Let's move!" she further proclaimed before commencing her trek across the perilous path without waiting for her comrade. She sprinted onto the bridge, each footstep making the flimsy structure rattle and creak as though it would collapse beneath her. Tayshan was trailing steadily behind her, calculating his every move. Crossing the unstable bridge provided him with a totally-reasonable sense of dread that sent his anxiety into the stratosphere as the bridge continuously shook and jerked with the gravity of their footsteps. The duo was soon met with her first of many obstacles, however; a narrow gap too large to walk across. Just as Shantae was preparing to jump across, another lightning bolt struck directly through the hole in the wooden planks, freezing her stiff.

"More lightnin' bolts!?" Tay rhetorically yelled, clearly having had more than his fill of spontaneous electricity. As he posed his inquiry, another lightning bolt struck in the exact same spot as the last one, giving Shantae a much-needed clue right away.

"From the looks of it, the lightning here will strike in certain patterns. This one… hmm…" she trailed off, studying the perceived pattern. She and Tay quickly noticed that the lightning struck once every three seconds. They each waited for the next strike, anticipating their theory to be correct. Immediately after it happened, Shantae leapt over the gap and onto the next series of planks. Tay also timed his jump with the frequency of the lightning strikes and jumped across after her.

"Alright, that wasn't so horrible…" he began with a sigh of relief. "…but I know that's just the first o' many."

"Correctamundo, Tay," the half-genie confirmed. "Chances are, the patterns will probably be different for the rest of them too, if we come across any more. Let's keep going," she concluded as she and Tay continued their pendulous trek across the bridge. The two began running across, making occasional short hops across lightning-harboring gaps and avoiding small, armored squadrons of garnet-colored finches packed in groups of three swooping down at them to complicate their passage over the bridge. The finches came in patterns entirely independent of the lightning, emphasized by some of the trios being struck by lightning bolts and being knocked out of sight. Neither of the two heroes bothered fighting them or the occasional enemy drops from the previously-encountered armored ravens during their travel. Their attention was focused on keeping their balance and avoiding the lightning strikes, which, in tandem with bridge gaps, became more frequent and haphazard.

Shantae, eager to get this section of the level done as quickly as possible, belly danced to transform into a monkey and dash forward, leaving Tay far behind without warning. Her monkey form provided her with more speed and agility, though it prevented her from attacking; an inconsequential circumstantial sacrifice. She adeptly, yet hastily hopped over gaps that she would've struggled with otherwise, passing over some of them before she even saw lightning. The adorable little simian made clearing the gaps look like playing a game of hopscotch, disregarding the peril of the lightning and the electrified lake below, which crackled with voltage every time it was hit. Eventually, she came to a halt, encountering a much longer gap that presented with six lightning bolts that struck in a pattern not readily identifiable. However, she saw the end of the bridge just beyond the misty coat of fog. Shantae reverted to her humanoid form, knowing that her monkey form's enhanced jumping prowess was not enough to get her across.

"Hmm…" she pondered, intently observing the bolts as they rhythmically rained unforgiving electric desert rage… even without any rain. Before too long, however, Shantae noticed that each bolt struck in its own individual pattern, which complicated her options for approach. She'd had experience with this sort of puzzle, calling back to her time on the Ammo Baron's air fortress, though she was far from a fan of them. Nevertheless, she got the idea and danced to turn into a tiny, purple bat. "Now!" she announced, motivating herself to fly straight and horizontally through, dodging the first two bolts and stopping in the position where the third bolt was set to strike. The fourth lightning bolt struck once, allowing her to advance to its spot as the third bolt struck behind her. However, she was forced to hover backward one space as the fourth, fifth, and sixth bolt struck again. She flapped toward the position of the fourth bolt again when bolts one, two, three, and five struck simultaneously.

She backtracked once more to allow bolts four, five, and six to strike, followed by her advancing forward into the spot of bolt five as bolts one through four, as well as bolt six struck simultaneously. She backtracked even further when bolts six, five, four, three, and two struck rapidly and successively in that order. Immediately following, bolts one, two, three, four, five, and six struck in successive order as the half-genie, half-bat floated desperately through the perilous environment hazard. As she finally cleared the puzzle, all six bolts struck simultaneously before pausing momentarily and beginning the same pattern from scratch.

"Whooh… What a hassle…" the half-genie complained, floating over the final few bridge panels before transforming back, landing on a solid square boulder beyond the end of the bridge and collapsing to rest, her heartbeat racing like a flying carpet from Cape Crustacean (a different location in Sequin Land, in case you were wondering). "I'm just glad I did it…" she further spoke to herself before realizing something. "Oh, no! Tayshan!" she exclaimed with a sharp gasp, realizing she completely left the poor soldier in the dust. Fearing the worst, she climbed to her feet, though she never left the boulder, and cupped her hands around her mouth. "Tay! Hey, are you still out there!? Tayshan! Tayshan?" she boisterously called out, though she got no reply. Her heart sank with dread and guilt that built with the longer she waited for his reply, which she wasn't very sure would come. "Oh, no… I got carried away and totally ditched him on the bridge… I have to go back…!" she affirmed, ignoring the threat of the perils she'd just flown by. Just as she was preparing to transform to make her attempt, she caught sight of an opaque silhouette emerging through the fog and stopping just before the lightning bolt puzzle.

"Shantae! Where are you at!?" the soldier called, having made it past the other obstacles on the bridge, though his tone of voice was far from enthused. If anything, he sounded incredibly annoyed.

"Tayshan! I'm over here!" the half-genie called back, relieved that he was alive and had made it to the lightning bolt puzzle. Hearing her, the young serviceman peered past the rhythmic lightning bolts to see Shantae on the other side, waving at him. "Sorry I left you!"

"Why do you keep dustin' me!?" he shouted, his frustration evident. "I thought we talked about stickin' together!"

"I know, but I'm so used to traveling alone that I got carried away!" she defended, though she understood. "It's a force of habit to speed through every place I explore!"

"Right, but if our last two or three trips were any indication, I can't move as fast as you can! Even with Sky's Falcon Call! It's no substitute for you bein' able t' turn into animals at will! The monsters an' environment hazards we keep rubbin' elbows with don't help this problem, either!"

"I know! I'm sorry, Tay! I'll try to break the habit! I just have to remind myself that I have an active partner this time around! Although, we did talk about skipping past enemies we didn't need to fight, remember!? That's one way to help you keep up with me!" she suggested, based on his concern about the obstacles in their path.

"Hmm…" he sighed through his nose, no less frustrated than he was moments earlier. "We can talk about it more after we're done here, I guess! For now, I gotta figure out how I need t' get past this gap, so we can reconvene!" he concluded, turning his attention to the lightning bolts that appeared to strike too frequently for him to maneuver. "Hey, how'd you get past?"

"I transformed into a bat and figured out the pattern!"

"Of course… Do you maybe remember that pattern?!"

"Um…" Shantae hummed in wonder, scratching her head and thinking back to how the bolts struck. She remembered going through and maybe avoiding the first one, and then the second one, but then the fourth one struck after that… but then she went forward and avoided all but the last two… or did she go back a couple places and avoid the third one? Maybe she had to move forward before she got hit by the fifth one, but then moved back to where she was in the place of the second one, but then had to go forward two, then back one, then forward three, then forward one more, then back two, then forward one, then back another two, and…

Look, clearly you see where this is going. She couldn't remember the absurdly-complicated pattern, alright? She tried explaining this to Tay to the best of her memory, but it came out as incomprehensible, incoherent electro-babble.

"Ugh…" Tay groaned in a mix of trepidation and understandable disappointment. "Enough is too much with this nonsense… Guess I'm wingin' it. Literally," he cleverly and sullenly remarked, utilizing his Falcon Call to summon the familiar birds of transport. As he called them, all six lightning bolts struck simultaneously, which he took as a sign that the coast was clear. Unlike Shantae, of course, Tayshan had zero experience dealing with puzzles of this caliber. As one might predict would happen… he was struck with a voluminous *CRACK* by at least two of the lightning bolts during his ill-fated flight. "DAAAGH! OGH!" he screamed in insurmountable burning agony as he was lit up, the lightning strikes immediately dispersing his avian assistance as he was sent careening to the ground below.

"OH MY GOSH! TAY, NO!" Shantae shrieked with unspeakable horror as she witnessed her friend being electrocuted in midair. The soldier fell onto a dune below, unceremoniously tumbling like a… well, like a tumbleweed into a wide, empty trough that harbored no water. The half-genie, too stunned with grief to even move, merely watched on in absolute devastation as she watched her friend's body collapse into the pit far below the bridge. The distraught young woman's eyes, wider than the moon, welled up with an ocean of sorrowful tears as she fell to her knees, her hands clasped over her mouth as she tried to process the sudden, violent loss of her friend. She wouldn't even be able to recover his body due to the quicksand… or so she thought.

Surprisingly, as he lay sprawled out on the ground smoking like a wintertime chimney, the presumed-dead soldier remained still on top of the sand instead of sinking into it. Shantae, unable to take her eyes off her comrade, prepared to collect his body before she saw him stirring awake. He coughed up additional clouds of smoke and gingerly brought himself to his feet, unknowingly bringing his partner a much-needed sense of relief.

"I-I'm okay!" He called, though he could barely coordinate himself through the intense ringing in his ears, his sudden dizziness, mild numbness in his limbs, and his unfocused, blurry vision. He clasped his head and took a deep breath, kneeling down to recuperate. After a moment, his senses returned to normal, though he found himself confused as to how he wound up in the ditch as he looked up and saw himself under the bridge while Shantae had been kneeling atop a giant boulder, though he couldn't tell what she was doing.

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, are you hurt?" Shantae asked, her tone pressured and frightful.

"No… Not as much as I thought, anyway…" Tay answered as he brought himself back to his feet once more and stretching. "What… what happened? How did I wind up down here?" he asked, evidently unable to recall.

"You got struck by lightning while you were trying to cross the last gap of the bridge," she explained. "You fell into that ditch afterward!"

"Hm… Oh, I kinda remember now…" he replied, his memories slowly returning. "It all happened so fast, I barely remember anything after I used the Falcon Call…"

"Are you sure you're okay, Tay? How many fingers am I holding up?" the worried maiden called to her friend, holding out her hand with three fingers extended.

"Uh… I can't really tell from all the way down here," he remarked. "I didn't bring a telescope!" he further joked, signifying that he'd fully and miraculously recovered.

"Oh, good…" Shantae breathed a heavy sigh, drying her tears and sniffling. "I was so worried… I'm so glad you're okay!"

"Me too," he agreed, though he still wondered how he'd taken so many lightning strikes in such a short span of time and been alive to tell the tale, much less able to walk and talk as though he'd never been struck at all. "Looks like there's solid ground down here, too!" he added, stomping the ground to test its sturdiness. He was greeted with hollow thumps of metal as he stomped, which confused him. "Huh… that's weird…" he contemplatively muttered.

"Yeah, we really lucked out this time… But now we need to figure out how to get you out of there!" Shantae informed Tayshan, though she had little idea as to how they would accomplish this feat. The dunes surrounding the soldier were much too malleable and slippery for him to climb on his own. Worse, none of her transformations were suitable for transporting him out. It certainly didn't help that most of the ground in this desert was quicksand that pervasively threatened to swallow anyone who dared trudge upon its voracious grits.

"Uh… I think I got an idea," he assured her as he walked toward the wall of the ditch closest to the end of the bridge. He jumped, used the Falcon Call to get a small boost, and then attempted to climb the rest of the way out of the ditch, only to have his fingertip graze a nearby ledge at the top as he slowly slid back down. However, as his finger grazed this 'ledge,' a *CLICK* noise was made, alerting both heroes.

"What was that clicking noise?" Shantae asked.

"I'm not sure, but ohmygoodnessnonoNONONONOCOMEONTHISCANNOTTBEHAPPENINGTOMENONONOOO!" Tay babbled as he turned to see the floor he'd previously been standing on opening wide to devour him whole, an ocean of sand pouring into a burgeoning abyss of total blackness.

"Tay!" Shantae called in panic, her fear for her friend's life surging back to the extreme. Thinking quickly, Shantae utilized her Harpy Dance to try and save him, only to be met with a lightning strike that prevented her from leaving the boulder she stood on in her Harpy form. "Darn it! Why can't I fly here unless I'm a bat!?" she cursed as she turned back human, furious that her idea didn't work. "Tay, try to hang on! I'm coming down!" she tried assuring him, leaping off to assist him as he tried his hardest to run, crawl, and claw his way out, only to continue slipping.

"I won't be able t' make it!" he yelled out in panic. "I can't keep this up…!" he further shared, his fatigue rapidly catching up to him as he ran out of room to crawl, succumbing to the embrace of the wide-open void below. "WAAAHH!"

"TAY!" Shantae screamed again, fearing that she'd really lost him. However, after a brief few seconds, she heard a distant *thud*, signifying that the soldier's fall wasn't too steep. "T-Tay?"

"I'm good!" he called from within the hole, though his voice sounded strained as though he'd been trying to shake off the impact of his fall. "Looks like there's some kind o' shelter in here!" Hearing this filled the half-genie with a mix of relief and hope as she jogged in place atop the crest of the nearby dune to keep herself above the sand.

"That's great! I mean, not great that you fell down there, but it's great that you're okay and that this hole isn't a bottomless pit. Do you think maybe we found Risky Boots's hideout?"

"Hm, I'm not sure. Her base was in a cave, but maybe this could link to it. Lemme look around before you come down here," he answered as he snooped around, feeling for something that might give him a clue. The inside of the hole was dimly lit, preventing him from seeing much of anything, even with the barely-helpful sunlight shining in from above. However, he'd heard a sudden *CRUNCH* as he inadvertently stepped on something that crackled and fizzled upon impact. Quickly, the trapdoor began to close, sending another wave of panic through the guts of both the soldier and the half-genie. "Aw, no! Shantae, hurry up! The door's closin'!"

"Shoot! Here I come!" she announced as she jumped into the pit as the door automatically shut. However, she was too late. By the time Shantae got close to the opening in the pit, the doors had closed again with a definitive, reverberating *CLANG*, completely separating the two of them for the first time since their cooperative adventures began. "No! Why is all of this going so wrong all of a sudden!?" she yelled, clearly unhappy with the result of their most recent endeavor. Shantae, in a worried panic, transformed into her Elephant form to try forcing her way down by stomping the door in. She had no luck after multiple attempts of jumping and ground-pounding the metallic structure as hard as she could with her elephant hooves, however. Despite her best efforts (which could possibly be heard miles away, considering how hard she was stomping on the door), she eventually tired out and changed back to her normal self without an ounce of success. "Tay! Can you hear me!?" she called as she knelt down and shouted, though she received no audible reply. Ostensibly, the door was soundproofed, as she could hear absolutely nothing from the other side. She furiously pounded away at the metal barrier with a fist and growled, upset that her friend was trapped in some inconveniently-placed hidden passageway. "Darn it! There's gotta be some way to get this thing open…"

The half-genie peered around, looking for anything that might've been of some assistance to her, but she saw nothing but the sand surrounding her. With no other choice, she transformed into her Monkey form and carefully scaled her way back up from the pit, additionally perching back on top of the boulder on which she'd previously been standing before changing back once more. She worriedly surveyed the vast, mostly-empty, stormy desert for some form of clue that would help her reunite with her lost companion before spotting what looked like a stone structure far in the distance over the sandy, cloudy horizon hidden behind a slew of massive, monumental sand dunes. "There's something over there. No choice now but to investigate," she acknowledged. With no further hesitation, she bravely, yet carefully advanced toward the next obstacle.

"I've got to get through the rest of this desert as fast as I can now. There's no telling what might happen to Tay if I can't get him out of… whatever hole in the ground he fell into," she worriedly murmured as she sized up the next quicksand-bathed section. "I sure hope whatever's out there can give me something that would help me save him…" And with that expression of her rapidly-growing concern for her teammate, she was off to the races.

Shantae began her solo dash toward the mysterious structure shrouded by the sand dunes, hopping and skipping along the endless bed of quicksand as she put forth her best effort to keep from getting stuck. However, she was almost immediately met with a hill the size of three Squid Barons after eating three other Squid Barons… after eating just one more Squid Baron after THAT Squid Baron ate an entire battleship… Alright, what I'm trying to say is that this dune was ridiculously huge. At its base was a lone silver platform in the sand to stand on (and presumably to prepare to climb at one's own risk). Shantae paused as she landed on the platform, pondering how to cross an enormous hill made of quicksand that appeared to endlessly cascade like a melting chocolate bar under a magnifying glass in the sun. She scoured the surrounding area and saw no openings or alternative routes, as though the dune doubled as a nearly-impassible wall that could only be climbed over with considerable effort and the lightest of treads. Seriously, this thing was like, miles wide and, while wavy and somewhat triangular in its appearance, its gigantic, endlessly-shifting form prevented Shantae from going in any other direction but over.

Without a second thought, knowing that she'd be unable to go Harpy to simply fly over the hill in the wake of the still-present lightning storm, Shantae improvised. With her arms raised outward and with a few mesmerizing shakes of her curvy hips, the half-genie switched into her Monkey form again. Hastily, the lavender-furred simian scaled the hazardous sand mountain by clinging to it for brief stints before jumping as high as she could to latch onto a higher portion. However, as she made her first jump, a bed of gleaming silver spikes suddenly shot out the side of the mountain where she was set to land with a *SHING* that nearly startled the young traveler into losing her focus.

Thinking quickly, Monkey-Shantae altered the trajectory of her leap in midair by activating her special ability. She enveloped herself in a light blue aura and instantly changed her direction with a flashing *TSHHHH* by bulleting herself above the spike trap, barely managing to land safely on the hill once more. It was to a point where her tail grazed the tip of the last spike on the trap, causing her to flinch as she hopped forward to make absolutely sure she was out of harm's way. However, as she recoiled and regrouped, another bed of spikes was about to pop out from her current position. Noticing and knowing at this point that stopping was not an option, Monkey-Shantae picked up the pace with scaling the mountain, each of her subsequent jumps and Monkey Bullet air dashes causing more spikes to rise from the side of the hill. As she ascended, however, the spikes became increasingly more unforgiving, shooting out more rapidly to the point where they were just coming out all over the place without warning, each intimidating *SHING* a deadly reminder of what could happen if she screwed up here.

Utilizing her Monkey form's abilities to their fullest, Shantae hopped, leapt, and air-dashed her way up the enormous sand dune, zigzagging her way past the relentless spike beds as swiftly as she could under unyielding spiky pressure. Luckily for her, however, the spikes were the only obstacle in her path at this point, which granted her all the opportunity she needed to make larger bounds and more calculated instant air dashes. She eventually reached the top, where another stone platform awaited her. After landing in the minuscule safe zone at the summit of the mountain, Shantae transformed back to normal and took a moment to breathe.

"Gosh, those was no joke!" she proclaimed, reasonably startled and out of breath as she recovered from her most recent series of brushes with death. "One wrong move, and I'd have been skewered like a half-human shish kebab! What a nightmare… I hope that's the only…" the heroic adventurer trailed off as she looked ahead to see two more sand mountains even bigger than the one she'd just finished scaling; the second one being slightly (by which I mean at least two times) bigger than the first, and the third one being twice the size of the second. Additionally, Shantae noticed that in order to proceed, she would have to climb down the other side of the hill she was standing on, climb up and over the second hill, and then climb up and over the third one.

As if things couldn't get daunting enough, she also noticed that lightning was sporadically striking the sand mountain just ahead while spikes were randomly stabbing through the side of the first formation before almost instantly retracting. One more thing she caught sight of was the lone, unarmed red scorpion-woman hybrid awaiting her at the trough between the first and second sand hills. "…Oh, this is just great…" she complained, clearly very excited to take on such a challenging task. She sighed away her nervousness, nevertheless. "Better make this a quick one…" and with that, she set off once more. Without transforming, Shantae made a series of graceful, yet slightly-panicked leaps and bounds down the side of the first sand hill, where she was faced with the constant threat of being impaled by giant silver spikes that seemed to poke out of nowhere. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, waaaAAAaaaAAaaa!" Shantae oh-so beautifully sang out as she played the world's most life-threatening game of downhill hopscotch. Just as she was finding her rhythm, however, a wayward spike jutted out at just the right angle to clip her foot and… well…

"Waaaah!" she bellowed, face-planting in the sand as she began tumbling the rest of the way down much the same ultra-coordinated way her partner did after he was struck by lightning in midair moments earlier. Along with the very long, very heart-stopping series of unfathomable near-misses with the smorgasbord of protruding spikes, and the barrage of wet *WHAPs* of Shantae's body against the quicksand, one could hear the melodious tune of the unfortunate half-genie grunting in pain as she tumbled down the mountain, and… as you might've guessed, she had a LOOOONG way to fall. How she managed to avoid getting horrifically and tragically impaled (or even grazed) by a single spike as she lost control and careened down the monumental sand dune like a hairy, sandy bowling ball is beyond even me. Eventually, Shantae plopped face-down on a stone platform at the bottom of the hill with a *FLOP* of pure elegance and heroic valor. "Owwww…" she groaned as she slowly picked herself up and dusted (or, sanded?) herself off. It didn't take her long, however, for her ears to be filled with the raucous laughter of the monster that stood before her. Mildly annoyed by someone taking pleasure out of her misfortune, Shantae looked ahead and was greeted by a somewhat-uncommon sight.

Appearing before the Half-Genie Hero was a particularly-small scorpion woman… er, more like scorpion girl, considering she appeared much smaller in stature than others of her kind. She was crimson red from head to… uh, scorpion leg, with an underdeveloped stinger, sleek jet-black hair neatly tied into a bun, golden eyes with dark blue irises, and a triangle bikini top that matched her hair in color and held her… uh, her 'little girls' in place. This creature, appearing to be very young, continuously guffawed as though she were about to suffocate from her laughter, pointing at poor Shantae as she did so. Evidently, she found the half-genie's tumble quite humorous.

"Hey!" Shantae barked, brushing sand out of her hair as she stood on the platform she so luckily landed on. "It isn't nice to laugh at someone's mistakes, you know! I could've been seriously hurt!" The scorpion-girl, hearing Shantae, tried to stop laughing. However, this task proved most daunting, as every time she glanced at her possible enemy's sandy state, she was reminded of just how ridiculous she looked as she rolled unceremoniously down the hill and face-planted on the platform at the bottom.

"Gaaahahahahahahahaaaaaa!" the scorpion girl burst out laughing some more, her shrill, high-pitched voice indicative of her youth. She clutched her abdomen with her human hands, still snickering at Shantae for her loss of coordination. "After all I'd heard about you, you actually turn out to be a total klutz! Hah! Some hero you are when you can't even keep your balance going down a tiny hill!" the insensitive scorpion girl jeered as she continued cracking up. Even more evidently, she watched Shantae's honest mistake from start to very painful, mineral-bathed finish. At that, Shantae huffed in annoyance and slight embarrassment as her cheeks turned just the lightest shade of pink. She set off to skip through the quicksand and move onto the next mountain, sliding past the cackling scorpion girl without so much as a passing glance. The scorpion girl, noticing Shantae's hasty effort to make an exit, stopped herself from laughing long enough to turn around. "N-no, wait! I was expecting you, and I have a request! Hold on!"

"Huh? A request?" Shantae asked, turning while hopping to continue avoiding getting stuck in the quicksand as she dropped some of her previous disdain toward this insensitive creature. "What request? And how'd you know I was coming here?"

"I… can explain later, but I think we could help each other out," the secretive creature proposed as she casually approached the half-genie with no quicksand-related difficulty.

"How so?" Shantae asked, her embarrassment replaced with a sense of wary curiosity.

"First and foremost, it's obvious you're gonna need my assistance scaling these sand dunes," the chimeric maiden suggested as she gestured toward the next giant sand hill as it was being struck by rapid bolts of lightning all over. "A clumsy goofball like you would never survive in the unforgiving, quicksand-covered desert," she observed with a scathing, judgmental insult that immediately rubbed Shantae the wrong way. Rather than argue with the girl right away, Shantae held her tongue and opted to silently scowl at her instead as she listened to her proposition. "In case you didn't notice, I don't sink in quicksand. I have a special ability that allows me to tread over it with no issue, simply put," the scorpion girl added, pressing a hand to her chest to emphasize her boastfulness.

"Oh, well that's something neat," Shantae praised. "So you're going to teach me a Scorpion dance I could use to travel along the terrain? I mean, I already have a Spider dance, but I don't know how well that would work here…"

"What? No, I wouldn't even know how to…" the girl denied in confusion at her prospective partner's estimation. "Never mind. Don't ask weird questions. I was thinking I'd let you ride me over these gigantic dunes so you won't wind up getting swallowed in the quicksand. As for how you could repay me: There's a half-scorpion, half-man hybrid much bigger than me who desperately needs your help. He lives just up ahead, actually."

"Oh! Okay, sure," the young heroine agreed without question. "I was actually headed that way. I've gotta make it quick, though. My friend got stuck in some underground passageway a little while back, and I'm trying to find a way to get him out of there."

"You didn't come here alone? That's unusual… I've heard you always travel by yourself."

"It's a long story, but yeah, I had a partner with me until just recently."

"What, did he get sucked into the quicksand mountain you just stumbled over?"

"No, he fell into some trapdoor hidden in a pit under a rickety old bridge, and the door closed before I had the chance to go in and save him," Shantae explained, which only earned more disrespectful snickering from this irreverent creature. "What's so funny?"

"Wow, you really are hopeless," she teased, further irritating the half-genie as she glowered with building frustration. "Your friend's a goner if he couldn't even get this far without messing up. What kind of loser gets stuck in a random trapdoor in the middle of a desert? Wow, your only help was a bigger klutz than you?"

"Okay, you're not coming across as very ni-!"

"Ha! Maybe I should've met you a bit earlier, in that case. I'm sure I'd have been a ton more useful than he was. I'm surprised you even got this far on your own," she egged on as she kept on laughing.

"I get it, we had a tough time. Tougher than we thought. I admit that," Shantae conceded, trying to avoid getting angry. However, the arachnid girl's continued taunting made such a task increasingly difficult. "Give us a break, though! This is the first time we've been here. It really isn't funny, either. My friend is in serious danger, and I need to find a way to save him."

"I'll bet he is, if he didn't even make it here with you. If you needed a tour guide, that all but confirms I should've been with you from the start. Whoever that guy was, good riddance to him, because it sounds like he was only slowing you down anyway. Don't waste your time on rescue quests. Instead, you should think to pick better company to keep if you're looking for adventuring buddies. Like m-!" the girl was about to suggest, though Shantae had already lost her patience.

"That's enough! You don't know either of us or what we've been through, so lay off, alright!?" Shantae was all but forced to yell in hers and her lost teammate's defense as she briefly lost her temper, startling the scorpion girl silent. This silence carried on for a good five seconds before Shantae realized she was glaring hotly at the chimeric young woman. Realizing she may have let her frustration boil over, she took a deep breath before recomposing herself. "Sorry, I just… I'm worried about him, and I'm trying to get through this place to accomplish a goal we had. I didn't mean to scream at you."

"Uh… it's alright," the mildly-frightened scorpion hybrid excused. "I'm sorry for making you mad."

"No problem," Shantae also forgave before shifting gears. "Anyway, I'll take you up on your offer if it means we can get past these giant quicksand mountains faster," Shantae expressed, accepting the offer of assistance. "Besides, my legs are getting tired," she added as she never stopped hopping for dear life.

"You still want me to help you?" the girl asked, seeming quite surprised (and even somewhat hopeful) that Shantae accepted her offer.

"Yeah, if you're still offering," the lavender-haired adventurer confirmed, bringing an invigorating smile to the scorpion girl's face.

"Then by all means, girl, climb on and let's dig in! We don't have a grain of time to waste! All puns intended," she eagerly urged, making me want to do my best impression of an ostrich and stick my head in the sand with all those horrible puns.

"Haaaa, nice!" Shantae cheered, laughing away some of the remaining awkward tension. as she took the scorpion girl's offer and hopped on over to climb onto her back. "Whew, this is a relief… Thanks for the lift!"

"No problem! The name's Aleaqarab, by the way, but you can call me Ali for short," she finally introduced herself.

"Ali? Wait, isn't that a boys' name?" Shantae asked, caught off-guard by Aleaqarab's name suggestion. Unexpectedly, the scorpion girl flinched in annoyance. "Unless you ARE a-!"

"No! I'm a girl, and 'Ali' is a unisex name!"

"I'm… not so sure about that," the half-genie contested. "In Sequin Land, Ali is definitely a boys' name through and through. Maybe you'd want to go by Allie instead? Or even Alea? Those sound better, if you want my suggestion."

"Yeah, well maybe I'm not FROM Sequin Land, alright?" the disgruntled scorpion girl complained. "Also, who still follows those ancient, bogus gender rules on names in this country, anyway? Why can't people be named whatever they want?"

"Umm… I'd like to guess because of how certain names sound? Like, how you'll never find a girl named 'Hank' or a boy named 'Angelica,' no matter where you live or go," Shantae casually explained. "You wouldn't even find a boy with a name anywhere close to the likes of 'Shantae,' unless he was stuck in a girl's body… or from a different timeline, I guess…?" she hesitantly pondered, remembering a certain series of coincidences regarding a certain person with a certain name… with a certain spelling and pronunciation. "My name's Shantae, by the way."

"Huh…? Who…? What… What are you even talking about, switching bodies or traveling through time to keep a name? Are we having the same conversation? Also, I know who you are, based on your reputation, but… pleasure to meet you…?" Ali uncomfortably greeted. "…Though I'm starting to wonder if it really is a 'pleasure' at all…" she further whispered under her breath. "I wonder if this is what they mean when they say you should never meet your heroes…?" subtly implying that she was (with an emphasis on WAS) a fan of Shantae's before their… rather awkward and mildly-hostile meeting.

"Long story. Still, not to step on your toes, but I think you'd be better off wi-!" Shantae was about to suggest again.

"I'm sticking to Ali, and that's that. Pure and simple," she concluded, turning her head up and away while crossing her arms. "I don't care how many hundreds of people tell me otherwise! I like the name, and I'm keeping it!"

"Oh, okay. Suit yourself…" Shantae acquiesced with a shrug, though Ali's complaint subtly suggested that this was not the first time she'd heard this issue brought up to her. "Anyway, are you ready?"

"I thought you'd never ask!" Ali exclaimed in relief, raring to trek along the perilous mini-mountains of quicksand alongside Shantae. "Let's move nonstop like the sands of time!"

"Alright!" Shantae cheered with a fist pump aimed skyward as she crossed her legs around her new ally's abdomen and rested her other hand on the scorpion girl's shoulder. "Let's go!" And with that, Shantae and Ali were off in a hurry. However, just before they really began their pendulous trip, the newly-formed duo mde it maybe a few yards before running into a particularly smoky red treasure chest sitting all by its lonesome on a convenient stone platform at the base of the second mountain. "Hold on!" Shantae commanded, causing Ali to already have to come to a screeching halt, stopping just before the treasure box.

"What is it?" Ali asked, none the wiser to Shantae's reason for already calling for a break.

"I need to see if this treasure chest has anything in it that might help me…" she explained, climbing off the arachnid maiden to approach the box.

"I don't know if you'll be able to. All the other boxes scattered throughout this desert have been booby-trapped to trigger a lightning strike aimed at anyone who approaches them," Ali warned, causing Shantae to stop just shy of laying a hand on the box.

"That's true, isn't it…?" the half-genie pondered, remembering what happened previously, though that train of thought was cut short by her curiosity about the burn marks surrounding the chest. "But then, why does this one have all these burn marks around it instead of on it or near it where anyone might've tried to grab it?" she asked as she investigated, though she also took note of the fact that she had yet to trigger a lightning strike.

"I'm not sure. It was like that when I got here, and I hadn't been bothered to try it out since I saw it get struck by lightning… and even then, I only saw it out of the corner of my eye from a safe distance. All the other ones will only get you struck if you reach out toward them like you're going to open them, as far as I also saw."

"Interesting… Well, only one way to find out what this is about…" she affirmed with a nod before she reached for the box. As expected, a lightning bolt triggered, beaming downward without Shantae even noticing, though her hand was already on the box.

"Get out of the way, you dummy!" Ali insultingly called out, trying to warn Shantae of the imminent danger she was in, though she was entirely too late. However, just as the bolt was about to strike the unaware half-genie, a transparent, spherical barrier momentarily surrounded her and the box, the *CRACK* of it sending scattered sparks all over that singed the ground around her before the shield disappeared in an instant. "What!?"

"Huh?" Shantae muttered, barely noticing what happened, though she picked up just enough info to get an idea. "A shield out of nowhere that absorbed a lightning bolt? Hmm… There's only one thing I know that could possibly do that…" With that and, in a rather unplanned move, undid the lock on the box with a single touch. Surprisingly, she did not trigger an additional lightning bolt to punish her for her intrigue about it. Instead, a transparent, shiny, teal spherical object emerged from the opened treasure chest. Jumping with excitement, Shantae quickly reached for it, triggering her usual 'picked up an item' jingle as she struck her signature accompanying pose. As it turned out, Shantae got Bubble!

"What… is that?" Ali asked, unfamiliar with such a momentous occasion.

"I just picked up a new spell! Well, new-ish," Shantae clarified as she moved to climb back onto Ali's back. "I learned it at one or more points before, but I always forget about it until it pops up again."

"Uh… Rrrrright…" the understandably-discombobulated young chimera uncertainly acknowledged. "So… what kind of spell is it?"

"It's my Bubble spell! It works as a shield of sorts, so when I activate it, it makes it so that some attacks aimed at me are absorbed without me taking any damage. It also protects me from environmental hazards sometimes. It must've been doing the same thing whenever this treasure chest got struck by lightning!" she happily concluded. "I couldn't explain to you why it was protecting the chest without needing to be activated, though…"

"Oh! Okay! Interesting…" Ali kinda-sorta praised, though she wasn't near as ecstatic as her partner about the discovery. "How… incredibly convenient for that to show up here and now instead of literally any other point in time…" she added, taking the words right out of my mouth.

"I know, right?" Shantae nonchalantly and rhetorically asked. "It does use up magic as a drawback, so I won't be able to keep using it if I don't have a way to refill my magic gauge."

"…I'm… just… going to pretend you're not completely insane and roll with it," Ali commented, for some reason unsettled by Shantae's totally-sensible way of explaining the functions of her power-up.

"You'll see when we get rolling. Now let's step on it!" she valiantly ordered, pointing forward.

"As you wish," Ali agreed, dismissing her curiosity in the wake of carrying on. With that, the two took off (for real this time), with Ali immediately displaying her unprecedented speed and agility with climbing up the second, much taller quicksand mountain. The scorpion girl's eight legs moved as though they were twin conveyor belts, each footstep kicking up small blasts of sand as she focused on navigating the uneven landscape. Shantae, caught by surprise at Ali's agility, clung tightly to her new comrade, wrapping her legs tighter around her waist while clutching her shoulders tightly with her hands. "Don't tell me you're scared, Shantae! You're practically squeezing the life out of me back there!"

"No, not at all!" Shantae reasoned, her voice shaking as she continued holding on while trying to shield her face from the rapid, relentless waves of sand grains pelting her as their trek progressed. "I just didn't expect you to be this fast!"

"Why, thank you!" Ali accepted what she figured was a compliment. "Being part scorpion, it's only natural that I travel this-! WHOA!" she was about to brag before a sudden *CRASH* of lightning struck right in front of her, startling her into jumping backward and beginning an inadvertent backward slide down the slippery hill. Knowing that she needed to retain her grip before she slid all the way back down, Ali made use of her sizable scorpion pincers and, with two sandy *POOMPHs*, she punctured the mountain with them and dug deep to bring her slide to a sudden halt. Poor Shantae, being anything but prepared for such a rocky (or in this case, sandy) ride, was jumbled, jiggled, and jostled all over the place as she tightened her already-intensive grasp on her living, breathing ride by wrapping her arms around Ali's torso. The half-genie's hair, face, and body bathed with hot sand… some of which, she was forced to spit out.

"Ugh, gross! This quicksand tastes like… like burnt toast!" the half-genie complained, still spitting out sand that got in her mouth.

"Sorry, girlie! I wasn't planning on giving you a free sample," Ali laughingly apologized as she steadied herself before beginning yet another reckless mad dash that Shantae had no time to prepare for. "Also, do you mind not squeezing my chest so hard? Your bracelets are digging into me," she added with mild discomfort as she adjusted her bikini top.

"Oh! Sorry, I didn't even notice," Shantae apologized, sliding her arms down to where they were wrapped around Ali's abdomen rather than her upper chest. "It was hard to tell where my hands were."

"And what's that supposed to mean!?" Ali shouted as she came to a screeching halt, highly offended by Shantae's apparently-rude remark.

"What? I didn't say anything to hurt your feelings. At least, I don't think I did…"

"So mine are small. Big deal! I'm a late bloomer, alright!? Not every girl can be as blessed as you are, Shantae. Goodness, what a way to rub it in my face…" Ali continued to complain, though Shantae had to take a second to register exactly what she was so upset about. After a moment, she realized it and gasped.

"Ohh, sorry, sorry…" the 'blessed' young woman apologized again, briefly glimpsing at herself as she became slightly embarrassed. "And it's okay, Ali. I didn't start uh… 'developing' until I was thirteen years old. It'll get to you soon. I pro-!"

"I'm twenty-seven, sweetheart," Ali interrupted with a deadpan expression, catching the half-genie by total surprise. "We scorpion hybrids age slower than humans, but even with that, I'm almost at the end of puberty and there isn't much hope I have for any growth spurts other than my stinger… Also, I don't have a stinger on my tail right now, in case you didn't notice."

"Gosh, Ali… I'm sorry about that," Shantae tried her best to console. "Still, you never know. I don't know much about the anatomy of scorpion people, but as far as puberty goes, no two people are exactly the same. For all I could guess, you could wake up sometime next week and be fully-developed out of nowhere! And hey, even if you stay the same, it's important that you accept yourself for who you are."

"…That's true…" Ali agreed, ruminating on Shantae's insightful words. "Thanks for that. I mean, I know my stinger's almost in and I get taller by the inch every day, so I'm not worried about that. But… um…" she paused, unsure of how to ask her next question as she became just a tad nervous. After a moment of silence, however, Ali decided to just go for it to overcome her hesitation. "Woman to woman, do you think my breasts will get any bigger by the time puberty's done for me?"

"Uh… I… I can't really speak for certain," the rightfully-nervous half-genie hesitantly answered, being placed on the hot seat of a very sensitive issue for her temporary tag partner, whom she barely knew. "Like I said, I… I don't know how much longer you've got because we're not the same species, but anything's possible. I mean, I didn't think mine would grow as much as they have, but they did pretty much out of nowhere. Just keep your fingers crossed. I… would also recommend drinking lots of milk and doing exercise if you're really worried about it."

"Exercise and milk, hm? Good ideas… Why didn't I think about that?" Ali pondered, already seeming to have come up with an idea to promote her physical development. "Thanks, Shantae. You're a much bigger help than I thought you'd be about this. I knew it was a good idea to ask a girl with some experience under her belt… And I'm sorry about throwing that on you. It's a weird thing to talk about with someone you just met, I know…" she further repentantly acknowledged, revealing just a smidgen of her personal insecurity through it all.

"Uh… Glad I could help!" she nervously, yet cheerfully acknowledged. "Also, no worries. No matter what, you'll look fantastic by the time you're fully-grown. Just keep that in mind. Now, are you ready to keep climbing?"

"You don't even have to ask!" Ali excitedly stated as she dashed forward without warning, nearly causing Shantae to fall off of her. Evidently, she'd received something of a motivational boost from their short conversation. "I'll try to get us up and over this dune as quick as can be, just to be safe!"

"G-great, but c-c-could you try to m-move a bit more carefully!?" Shantae requested, doing her best to avoid more sand getting on her while also trying to cling onto Ali like her life depended on it.

"Yeah, sure I—YIKES!" Ali shouted, narrowly sidestepping another three consecutive lightning bolts as she kept her pace going. It wasn't long, however, before the lightning bolts began to increase in the frequency of their strikes. Getting just a tad flustered as she continued her ascent, Ali briefly observed the clouds above to see them sparking and crackling nonstop, the earth-shaking *BOOMs* of thunder doing nothing to ease her nerves. She didn't have to worry about the thunder, of course, because she had a steadily-increasing barrage of lightning bolts to distract her. How auspicious a turn of events this was… NOT.

As Ali and Shantae continued their dangerous high-speed hike, more and more lightning bolts struck on either side of the chimeric young girl, forcing her to frequently sidestep to avoid getting hit. They also rapidly exploded in front of her, which caused her to stop dead or jump back in panic and be forced to dig her aching pincers into the quicksand to maintain her position and avoid backtracking; which, by the way, is not very good for holding passengers steady… in case you didn't know. To make things even more complicated, she'd also hit points where she'd be climbing just fast enough for a bolt to strike with a jarring *CRACK* behind her, forcing her to speed up to avoid being hit as she shrieked in utter terror.

Meanwhile, Shantae had been caught in a continuous, swirling mix of trying to hang onto Ali to avoid falling (and potentially sinking) into the quicksand, getting her attention to stop her from haphazardly and messily leaping and hopping around with little to no sense of coordination, and keeping from eating any more of the sand Ali had been constantly kicking up in her face by complete accident. After a solid five consecutive minutes of Ali frequently stopping, starting, and jumping around to avoid getting fried by wayward electricity…

"Alright, stop! Just stop what you're doing right now!" Shantae yelled, having lost her patience for everything she'd been put through in the last few minutes. Ali, startled once more by Shantae's yell, froze in place, panting heavily as she craned her head back to look at the frustrated half-genie.

"What gives, girl? We were just… we were just getting into the swing of it," Ali breathlessly inquired. "We're almost there, so why are we stopping?"

"Um… Not to be the bearer of bad news, Ali, but… we're not even a quarter of the way there," Shantae pointed out as she took a moment to point forward in the midst of her brushing all the sand off her hair and clothes. Ali looked up to see that Shantae had indeed been right; they barely made any progress at all, maybe only climbing a stone's throw away from the base of the mountain where they started.

"Whaaaaa? But how? I was going full-speed ahead this entire time! How is that possible?" she naively asked, seeming unaware of how much of her light-speed traveling went anywhere but forward for the most part.

"Here, I think now's a great time to use this," Shantae suggested, clasping her hands together and focusing before stretching her arms out, her hands coated in a luminescent light blue aura. "Bubble!" the young adventurer called out as she demonstrated her ability. Within a second, the same teal bubble that she'd collected from the treasure chest earlier had spontaneously formed from seemingly nowhere, surrounding both girls in a protective barrier. Amazed, Ali stared in wonder at the encompassing energy sphere.

"Whoa…!"

"Pretty cool, right?" Shantae gloated while trying not to sound too proud of herself. "We should be safe from the lightning now, but it'd be wise to move quickly. I won't be able to hold this up for all that long before it turns off and I have to channel more magic to use it again."

"Oh! Got it, got it. Here goes!" Ali announced in agreement with Shantae's assertion as she dashed ahead… and only ahead this time. With a vigorous burst of energy, Ali scurried up the mountainside at top speed, keeping in mind the time limit she had to do so before Shantae's bubble shield expired. During the slippery climb, the girls were targeted by a barrage of lightning bolts, the time between each strike shrinking with the higher they were on the perilous, grainy hill. Each frightening *CRACK* and *CRASH* of lightning, accompanied by the white flashes of it in the smog-colored clouds and the deafening *BOOMs* of thunder, made Ali increasingly more nervous as she carried on. It was to the point where she'd nearly lost focus of her current goal in the wake of just getting herself out of harm's way as soon as she could.

"Good job, Ali!" Shantae praised as she continued to maintain her grip, temporarily relieved of any issues regarding lightning or sand splashes thanks to her shield. "You're really blazing a trail up here!" she further complimented, reading the scorpion girl's mostly-silent urgency and desperation as determination. "Now we're more than halfway there!" Just as Shantae spoke, a particularly deafening *CRACKLE* of lightning struck the bubble shield directly. The sheer volume of the lightning's sound as it hit the shield was nerve-wracking, but it had been far beyond proven that the protective spell had worked as advertised. That did very little to ease a certain someone's nerves, however.

"Waaahh!" Ali shouted in panic, jumping out of her skin as she nearly lost her balance. "Whoahwhoawhoa!" she further shouted, being forced to dig her pincers into the sand again to keep from back-sliding. Once she regained control of herself, she breathed the heaviest of relief sighs as she panted nearly to a point of hyperventilation. "Gosh, I didn't know it would be this danger-!" she was about to complain before another *SNAP* of lightning struck the shield again, causing the poor young girl to flinch and quietly whimper.

"Minor setback, but we're almost there, Ali! Let's push it through!" Shantae valiantly cheered, more invigorated by the constant danger of electrocution than she was concerned about… well, you know, possibly getting electrocuted. "Just a bit more, and we can clear the other side in no time! We've gotta punch it, though, because my shield's about to run out!"

"Uh, r-r-right!" the frightened scorpion girl shakily assured as she shook her head to refocus. "Here goes! Haaaaaaaaaaah!" she roared with fear-laced valor as she blasted off once more, her eyes squeezed shut as she did so. By doing the scorpion equivalent of sprinting with all her might, Ali managed to avoid getting struck by any additional lightning bolts (though many of them came close) and had made it up the rest of the way in what would probably be considered record time if anyone was keeping count. However, had she kept her eyes open, she'd have realized she was nearing the top before launching herself off the summit like she was a living motor bike going up a steep ramp; and like said motor bike, she gained some serious air time just as Shantae's shield dissipated, leaving the two girls unprotected (as if it would even matter) as they ascended to the stormy heavens.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, oh my gosh, oh my gosh, no, no, no, no, Ali, do something, please!" Shantae begged, her previous excitement suddenly replaced with blood-chilling dread as she looked down to see just how much of a tumble she and her chimeric comrade were in for. The mere sight of the fall they were headed for made her stomach flip and turn like a hundred simultaneous coin tosses. As expressed earlier in case you didn't remember, Shantae did not really do too well with extensive, high-speed flights she wasn't in control of. It probably didn't help that they were quickly losing altitude on account of neither girl having wings. As such, she went into full-panic death-grip mode, squeezing Ali as tightly as she could. Ali, though panicked beyond belief that she'd launched herself halfway into space, did her best to brace herself for impact as she began to descend at the same speed at which she lifted off as the adrenaline rushed through every part of her body. Spreading her eight scorpion legs and steadying them, she positioned herself to where she would land as safely as she could. However, this did nothing to account for how that landing would play out.

"Hang on! M-maybe not as tight as you're doing right now but hang on!" Ali managed to announce despite Shantae inadvertently putting her in a chokehold by wrapping her arms around the arachnid girl's neck. Nonetheless, Ali braced for impact, nearly freezing with fear as she did so. Before too long (though it felt like an eternity for her), Ali's legs simultaneously hit the surface of the other side of the mountain with a *PWOFF* as she began to inadvertently slide downward like the mountainside was soaked in oil, waves of sand kicking up like water behind her. "Wuwuwuwawaaaah!" Ali shrieked again as she lost partial control of her pace, beginning a nonstop slide to the base of the third and final mountain. This trip downward would not be smooth, however, as there were many, MANY more spike traps almost rhythmically jutting out of the sand mound and retracting into it in the blink of an eye. Even worse, the lightning bolts had still been strkiking all over the place. Even MORE worse (oh yeah, we've gotta break a grammatical rule here just to describe it), there were also seemingly-random, yet thankfully-uncommon bottomless pits to account for. Just the sight of it all petrified the poor scorpion girl as she nearly went catatonic to the point that a sudden jerk of her shoulders to the left by her passenger was the only thing that allowed her to avoid three rows of spike beds and two insanely-accurate lightning strikes.

"Don't worry, Ali! I'll guide us to the bottom!" Shantae assured, locking her hands on Ali's shoulders while relaxing her position to where it was like she were riding a motorcycle. Ali didn't get to say anything before Shantae leaned over and pulled Ali to the right by her shoulders as they skidded down the sand hill. In doing so, Shantae caused them to avoid another lightning strike and three more spontaneous spike beds. However, the real challenge was the first of a few big pit jumps.

"U-um, what do we do here!?" Ali asked in reasonable suspense. "How do we-!?"

"I got it! Hyah!" Shantae assured once more, thrusting Ali's shoulders forward before yanking her backward with all her might and body thrown in, causing Ali to jump with just enough height to clear the extensive gap and narrowly avoid yet another *SNAP* of lightning before hitting the sand on the other side of the pit with another fortunate *PWOFF* as they continued skating downhill.

"How… How did you do that!?" Ali asked in utter shock at her passenger-turned-driver's incredible reflexes.

"Not really sure, but we can make it through with no problem!" Shantae valiantly stated. "At this rate, we can even conserve my bubble for when we hit the last sand hill! Are you Ret-2-Go!?"

"Er, I-I don't know what that means, but sure!?"

"Then here we go!" Shantae declared again, starting to get into the swing of the newfound sport of scorpion-back riding. Almost instantly adapting to the situation, Shantae bobbed, weaved, swerved, and veered all around the sand mountain with Ali. She guided her ally in such a way that she skied past and leapt over numerous spike beds, dipped and dodged rapid, relentless sprays of lighting bolts that struck in bunches, and practically flew over the sporadic pitfalls littered across the impossibly-uneven quicksand mountainside. After one particularly long, adrenaline-pumping jump over a wide, ostensibly-expanding chasm of skull-smoking death, Shantae and Ali made it to the trough between the second and third sand hills, where Ali came to a sandy screeching halt. Understandably worn out by such a perilous venture, she took a moment to catch her breath before sharing her thoughts on such an extravagantly dangerous experience.

"Mercy me, what even WAS all of that just now!?" she emphatically asked, spooked out of her wits.

"Beats me, but we survived," the extra-relieved half-genie answered, remaining seated safely on her ally's back. "We've only got one more to go, and then we're there… right?"

"Yeah, I think so," Ali nodded, surprised by Shantae's dismissal of the crash course behind them. "How are you not freaked out by any of what we just went through, though?"

"What do you mean?"

"Are you kidding!? All the lightning bolts, the spikes, the scorching wind and sand in our faces, the ridiculous pitfalls back there… NONE of that scared you!?"

"Uh… A little, I guess, but that's nothing I haven't dealt with before," she nonchalantly answered, taking the momentary break to shake and brush the excess sand out of her clothes and hair.

"What!? You mean you deal with that kind of nonsense on the regular?"

"Yeah. As a hero, things like that don't usually get to me," she confidently answered. "I fight monsters, pirates, and war machines all the time. That, and I'm always patrolling through way more dangerous landscapes than this, be it a volcano, a haunted castle, other deserts, or even the occasional spooky dungeon labyrinth filled to the brim with the restless, ferocious monsters… amongst many others. So far, this has pretty much been a cakewalk."

"…You're kidding me…!"

"I WILL admit, though, that I do get a bit nervous when I'm way up in the air for any reason other than me getting up there myself. Not gonna lie, you scared me a little when you ran so fast up this last hill that you sent us both flying almost into the storm clouds. I almost thought we'd have gotten smoked in midair…" Shantae explained, hiding nothing from her situational partner. "Oh well. We made it, and that's all that counts."

"Whoa…" Ali murmured as she looked back at Shantae, her breath certifiably taken away by the half-genie's admission. "You're totally hardcore…"

"Oh? Uh, heh, I… I-I don't know if I'd go THAT far…" Shantae sheepishly remarked, nervously pressing her index fingers together.

"No, seriously! I'd only heard stories about you, but I thought people were just spreading exaggerated rumors… on top of what I already believed about you. To have a first-hand experience with you is totally nuts! I mean, I know it wasn't all that long, but it blows those rumors right out of the water! Just a taste of the adventures you go on is enough to prove them!" she gushed, evidently having regained her respect for Sequin Land's greatest defender.

"Oh! I-I don't know what to say… Thanks?" she uneasily accepted Ali's compliments, though she was quickly getting nervous with the attention she was being given.

"No need! I'm just glad I get to actually be in the presence of a living legend!" the scorpion girl gushed some more. "I'm really sorry for how I treated you earlier," she apologized posthaste. "It was uncalled for. I was trying to make myself look cool in front of you, so I understand if I left a bad impression… especially after I badmouthed your sidekick and then chickened out to the point where you had to save me at least a dozen different times in just this last half-hour or so. I genuinely hope he'll be okay when you get to him, and I can't apologize enough for how I acted earlier…"

"Water under the bridge, Ali! I'm not upset!" Shantae reassured, patting the guilty young scorpion hybrid on the back. "I'm just glad we're working together now. Also, if I know my friend by now, he's definitely not the type of guy you want to underestimate. Trust me on that. I'm positive he's holding his own, and I swear I'll bring him back in one piece. You definitely did your part up here, too! I wouldn't have made it this far without you or your unique abilities!"

"Aw, thanks!" Ali graciously accepted Shantae's praise as she tried not to seem too excited to be complimented by her hero. "That means a lot! R-really, it does. Like, so much more than a lot of things would coming from other people, so you can be sure I… uh… S-sorry, I'm… I'm rambling…" she awkwardly cut herself off, suddenly quite nervous. "I-it's not every day something like this happens, y'know, and I was just waiting here on a whim based on something I heard the other day, and to have you helping me even though we just met… um…" she continued to go on before stopping to gulp, her throat suddenly dry as she tried to process that she was talking to Shantae, the living legend herself.

"No problem, it's all good," the hero in question nonchalantly forgave with a friendly smile that brought a much-needed sense of relief to Ali. "Although, I should ask by now… Who is this guy you want me to help? And what does he need help with?" she prodded as the two casually trotted toward their final challenge before they reached their destination.

"He's my dad, though he doesn't know I'm here right now…" Ali admitted, much to Shantae's shock. "Or rather, he doesn't seem to remember who I am…"

"What? Is everything okay?"

"I don't think so…" she started, her concern unmistakable. "I popped in for a visit a couple days ago because I hadn't seen him since before he moved out here, but he wasn't himself… He didn't recognize me, and then he kicked me out after I made one comment about the way he designed his house… I'm not even sure why he got that mad at me, either, but knowing him, he's not usually like that. Granted, he's always been a bit sensitive about his fashion sense, but… something's wrong this time around. I can't figure out what it is, though… Anyway, before I got the chance to leave or think about what happened, this thunderstorm popped up out of nowhere, and I've been stuck on this island ever since."

"Oh… I'm sorry, Ali… What can I do to help?"

"I was hoping you could figure out what's wrong with my dad," she explained. "It sort of has to do with the reason I knew you'd be coming here at some point."

"Oh?"

"While he was yelling at me to get out, he mentioned something about a visitor he had the day before I showed up… I didn't get much, but I remember it being said that he was warned about someone of genie descent with purple hair. I've only ever heard of one person in this whole country matching that super-specific description…"

"That's about as specific as you can get, I guess. I'd probably never draw the conclusion that he and this other person were talking about me," Shantae remarked, shrugging her shoulders as though to come off like she didn't know what Ali was talking about.

"Hah, nice," Ali complimented with a chortle, taking some humor in Shantae's comment. "Still, I'm not sure who that visitor was or what business they had with you to know you were coming here, so I apologize for not having any answers…"

"Don't worry about it," Shantae consoled. "I'm sure your dad will spill the beans when we meet up with him. And whoever else is looking for me, I'll bet he'll point me in their direction once we clear the air."

"Um…" Ali droned, somewhat hesitant as she brought a hand to her chest. "A-about that… I… was wondering if maybe you'd be okay going to see him alone…" she requested, catching Shantae by surprise.

"Alone? Why?"

"I… I don't know how he'll react if he sees me again. He was incredibly nasty to me and made it very clear he didn't want me to set foot near his house again," she explained, disheartened as she came clean.

"Oh… Well in that case, I'll do my best to talk some sense into him," Shantae assured, feeling bad for the young scorpion maiden who'd been ostracized by her own father. "I'll try not to mention that you and I met until he becomes open to the idea of seeing you again. It isn't right for a daughter and father not to be able to have an open, loving relationship," she added, mentally drawing a comparison between this situation and her own background. It stood to reason that a chord had been struck within the half-genie, as she highly valued the idea of a strong, durable family bond. Though she herself struggled with the idea that she may not ever get to meet her own biological father (much less bond with him), she acknowledged that she would make sure someone else got to be with theirs if she had anything to say or do about it. "By the time I'm done, Ali, I can assure you, you and your dad will be able to build an unbreakable connection like no other!"

"You'd really accept the task?" Ali asked, honestly surprised that Shantae would, with little more than a couple of questions, voluntarily step into the middle of a tumultuous family affair with the intent to fix it.

"Of course! I'll help in whatever way I can!" she naively assured, filling to the brim with vigor. "Let's go right now!"

"Wow… Thanks, Shantae… I don't know what to say, but… but I'm glad I even got to meet you. Getting your help with my dad is icing on the cake!"

"No problem! It's what heroes do," she once again naively assured as she got set to take off with Ali once more before noticing yet another red treasure chest sitting on a stone platform just before the final sand hill. "Hold on… Another treasure chest? I wonder what that one could be…" she further added, climbing off Ali and skipping ahead across the quicksand to inspect her next unexpected bounty.

"I know the last one had some kind of protection against the trap set on it, but are you sure you should approach that one?" Ali asked as her travel passenger casually opened the box with no electrical interference whatsoever. "…Huh. What's up with these boxes? I figured that if the other ones I came across were rigged, then they'd all be. Weird…" she murmured to herself. Nevertheless, inside the treasure chest was not one, not two (or three), but FOUR Heart Holders, in addition to a glass vial with an eccentric purple liquid in it, plugged with a cork. Shantae got Four Heart Holders and a Potion, vastly increasing her stamina by a long shot while also restoring her health to full and supplying her with a free recharge in case she grew weary.

"Goodness almighty, I'd NEVER expected THAT generous a power-up!" she cheered, all but fired up by her most beneficial find yet. "My health is double what it was before! This is incredible!"

"…Eh?"

"This one even came with a Potion! Maybe it makes up for me not being able to find any Heart Holders or Potions since Naga Mountain, but who knows? Hmm…"

"I'm a bit lost. What just happened?" Ali asked, stopping Shantae's train of thought.

"Oh! Sorry, it was just me getting another huge power boost," the young heroine explained, though it did little to clarify what Ali had just witnessed. "Anyway, we should get going," she advised, climbing up onto her living, breathing dirt bike's back. "We're in the home stretch, but it looks like this next one's gonna be the most difficult of the bunch."

"No kidding…" Ali agreed with a gulp of pure terror as the two young women eyed up the gargantuan hill they were set to cross. Within the first millisecond, they took note of a plethora of hazards that would serve to make this climb the most death-defying yet. There were spike beds all over the place. Some periodically retracted and extended in and out of the quicksand, though Ali and Shantae knew it'd be just about impossible to account for which spike traps were where; not because they were anticipating the other hazards, however… It was because there were THAT many of them all across the sandy mountainside. Additionally, lightning was rampantly striking down with no quarter, bolts hitting random areas of the hill within as little as two seconds of each other. To add even more, there were flocks of armored birds and living cactus monsters scurrying about as they tried to avoid being hit by the merciless lightning bolts. A couple of these creatures had spotted Shantae and Ali and seemed to angrily stare down at them, daring them to approach at their own peril. As it seemed, our dynamic duet would be in for it this time; no holds barred.

"I sure hope you're ready for the long haul, Ali, because this is what separates the heroes from the humiliation… o-or, something along those lines," Shantae stammered, attempting to make a witty one-liner about the situation to improve her rep.

"…You sure we need to go through all that?" Ali reasonably asked, wanting nothing to do with what unfathomable horrors awaited them ahead. "We could just… y'know, go around this dune. Matter of fact, there's a trail right over there with a literal detour sign marking it," she further suggested, pointing to the far left of the mountainside. Indeed, there appeared to be a much safer, much less insane, much less death trap-infested alternative route to their destination. The large, rectangular wooden sign even read in a sophisticated font, 'This Way Directly to the Kitschy Quilt Library.' Of course, the sign had been vandalized, with someone crudely adding 'for cowards, babies, and idiot losers like a certain meddling half-genie brat,' in what looked like red paint. There was also a very inaccurate drawing of Shantae's face with a goofy expression, a handlebar mustache, and a quote in a speech bubble that incorrectly read 'Im a totl klown, unlyk Pirate Queen Risky Boots, who rulzz lol. PS im dum 2. Soooo dummm.' Need I even mention the stink lines added for most tasteful measure, or the additional message reading 'Risky Boots was Here! Shantae is a Loser!' my dear reader? Suffice it to say, Shantae was not amused.

"…Oh boy, I only wonder who could've done that," she dryly remarked as she rolled her eyes, incredibly annoyed by a certain someone's (presumably Risky Boots's) astonishing immaturity. However, the crude drawing sent a wave of anticipation through her body, as this was the first sign (no pun intended) of her being anywhere close to Risky's trail since the chaotic woman-hunt began. However, she could only wonder what the self-proclaimed Pirate Queen could've been doing here of all places. Whatever it was, Shantae knew at this point to expect nothing but the worst from her diabolical archenemy as she silently became much warier of her surroundings.

"Well at least you know someone really cares about you to go out of their way to insult you so thoroughly," Ali consoled. "I swear none of that was there the last time I passed by that sign. Then again, neither were all these ridiculously-dangerous, oversized sand dunes. Well, at least not as many of them. I don't think they were supposed to be this tall, either. I can say one thing for sure, though: There was nowhere near as much… chaos going on with this last hill last time I saw it…"

"That's not good…" Shantae murmured, a pit forming in her stomach regarding the implications of Ali's observation. That was already another clue that this mess had 'Risky Boots' written all over it…

"Either way, Risky Boots sure did put a lot of detail on that sign there," the young chimera noted. "I don't know too much about your relationship with her other than you two always fighting to the bitter end for the sake of good versus evil, but… Does she really hate you, or does she just have some sort of obsessive fixation on you and she's just terrible at expressing it…?"

"…You could say something like that, sure," the flustered half-genie hesitantly confirmed without actually answering Ali's question, mildly creeped out by the suggestions posed behind it. "I'm honestly starting to wonder if she wrote all that to try and convince me to go through this obstacle course to prove to her I'm brave, because this is as lazy as it is childish. Anyway, I suppose we'll go the 'idiot, baby, loser' route to save time."

"Oh, thank goodness…" the incredibly-relieved scorpion girl exhaled, immensely grateful that Shantae was no glutton for punishment. She didn't even care that she inadvertently confirmed herself as all the things written on the sign marking the path.

"What was that?" Shantae asked, having not heard her partner.

"I said yeah, let's play it safe this time," she corrected. "It makes more sense at this point. Ready?"

"Yep," the young humanoid woman concurred. Without much more hesitation, our couple of 'cowardly idiot baby losers' took the safe route. Thankfully for them, not only did the path circumvent the deadly obstacle course in its entirety (though the entire path was still made of quicksand), it also yielded no enemies, no spike traps, and no haphazard lightning strikes despite the constant rumbling in the dense, thick clouds above. Nevertheless, after a few minutes (as opposed to what very well could've been at least another hour) Shantae and Ali made it to their destination.

"Here we are," Ali declared as she and Shantae stopped in front of a giant igloo… which was made entirely of hardened sand bricks, save for the door.

"This thing is huge!" she observed, astonished by the size of the igloo, which nearly rivaled that of the Sequin Land Palace… Okay, maybe more like one third the size of the Sequin Land Palace. Still, pretty big for an igloo… in the desert of all places… made of stone. Jeez, I don't get paid enough for this job… "I do have to wonder why there's an igloo made of sandy bricks in the middle of an uninhabitable, unseasonably-arid desert that's prone to lightning storms and whose ground is just about all quicksand…" she pondered; rightfully so, as everything about this eccentric building raised enough red flags that one could outline the perimeter of the massive sand igloo with them.

"Yeah, I have no idea why he would, of all things, shape his house like an igloo when he's WAY out in the middle of this desert instead of somewhere more appropriate, like the sub-zero tundras of Frostbite Island," Ali knowingly remarked with a shrug, however ironic her statement. "At least there, it'd make SOME sense."

"True, but I always thought a scorpion would hate sub-zero…" she almost posed before realizing how ridiculous her yet-to-be-asked question would sound. "…never mind," she dismissed with a shrug. "That's not a point I think it's necessary to combat."

"I get what you were about to say, no less. As long as we're mortal, and I'm making a lot of assumptions here, there will probably never be a point in our lives where we get to understand his thinking. Dad always was kooky like that. Anyway, I'm gonna try to collect my things on the other side of this desert and figure out how I'll get out of this endless thunderstorm. I'll be back, but I hope there's something you can do to fix my daddy… please?"

"You can count on me, Aleaqarab," Shantae assured with a fist clutched to her chest as she dismounted the worried scorpion girl for the final time, landing on a stone platform just before the front door of the misplaced structure. "By the time you come back, your dad'll be welcoming you with open arms. I promise."

"Thank you," Ali expressed, pulling Shantae in for a quick surprise hug, which the half-genie returned as best as she could in her astonishment. It wasn't long before the two girls separated and Ali was on her way deeper into the Kitschy Quilt Desert, where her form disappeared into the sandy winds quickly following her departure. It was at this point that Shantae momentarily questioned herself on exactly what she agreed to and if she could really complete such a delicate task as reuniting a distressed young girl with her disgruntled estranged father. She may have been a hero, but she understood that she was no family counselor in any sense of the word. Nonetheless, the half-genie shrugged, silently assuring herself she could do it, and took one final long, pensive look at the igloo, wondering just what the inside of it had in store for her. Afterward, she entered through the metal door of its entrance.

Inside, she found that the floor was solid stone through and through as she noted the rhythmic clacks of her shoes against the compact, sturdy surface. "Hello? Anyone home?" she called as she continued her trek into the enigmatic structure. The half-genie soon found herself in a huge dome-like room fitted with an array of shelves lined from top to bottom with books, save for what looked like a work desk littered with note paper at the other end. The walls were painted with a rather garish plaid pattern consisting of teal, gray, and tickle-me pink. The walls also bore a pattern of wood torches that lit up the room. Shantae further observed to see that she'd been standing on a carpet that spanned the circumference of the dome, though its colors clashed horribly with the already-tacky walls. The carpet bore an aggressive lime green, scarlet red, and sunflower petal yellow diamond pattern that hurt the eyes to simply glance at.

"I guess Ali was right… Jeez, someone could really use some home fashion tips for picking less busy patterns and not overusing clashing colors… The feng shui is totally off in here…" she muttered to herself, definitely unimpressed by the design of the igloo.

"Welcome to the Kitschy Quilt Library!" announced a low, booming voice from seemingly nowhere, causing Shantae to jump and squeak in sudden fear as she turned around to be greeted with the apparent librarian; a half-man, half-scorpion whose torso was human, but whose entire lower body was that of a giant gold scorpion complete with menacing pincers. The man-scorpion hybrid's human half donned a plum purple and sunset orange, horizontally-striped sweater, a long, thick beard of a withered, ashen gray, gold-rimmed sunglasses, and a green turban with a cherry red jewel embedded in the front. "I must say, though, I wasn't expecting any visitors except for… wait…" he pondered, studying his guest's appearance.

"Oh, I-I'm sorry," Shantae apologized, letting her guard down slightly, though she did not approach the scorpion man. "I was just… passing by. I wasn't aware anyone actually lived or worked here."

"Yes, that notion is far from uncommon," the scorpion man affirmed with a solemn nod as he crawled toward the half-genie, who instinctively became tense. "The Kitschy Quilt Desert is far from being known as a tourist attraction… as I'm certain you've come to find out, traveler. I've lived here for ages, and I haven't had but a handful of separate visits since I moved here, though I had to show one of my guests the door recently," he rather nonchalantly admitted, causing Shantae to gulp with pressure. "Although, I WILL say I was expecting someone with a description similar to yours to appear at one point or another."

"Oh?" she perked up, feigning ignorance.

"Yes… A somewhat short, petite young woman with long, shaggy royal violet hair tied into a ponytail… wearing almost exclusively red… and…" he pondered some more, something clicking in his head. "Might you also be at least part genie? Excuse me for being far from polite with such an outrageous inquiry, but I must verify…"

"Yep. I'm half-genie, half-human," she confirmed.

"Ah, so you are the prestigious Shantae I've heard so much about!" he exclaimed with excitement that the young woman couldn't tell was real or fake. Her guard was still up, considering what she'd found out before she arrived.

"Y-yep, that's… That's me," she assured, not even bothering to ask how he knew so much about her or how she would be stopping in. She still had Aleaqarab's warning locked into her mind, but she wanted to play it cool.

"Indeed! Tell me, how did you find yourself here?" he curiously inquired as he stopped in front of Shantae, observing her through the sunglasses he never took off.

"Well, it wasn't easy, I'll say that much," Shantae replied with a deep, shaky breath. "It took lots of hopping to keep from sinking in the quicksand, dodging lightning bolts, and crossing a rickety, old, foggy bridge in the middle of a dry lightning storm to get here. That, and some crazy trap-infested sand dunes…"

"My word, you must be exhausted! Here, might I fetch you a cup of tea?" the scorpion man offered, immediately taking to his work desk without waiting for his apparently-expected guest's reply. "It's far from common that anyone makes it across the Lightning Gap Bridge or the Sand Dunes of Doom. Although I was awaiting your arrival, I believe you'd be the first to cross those hazards and survive in close to a hundred years," he informed as he prepared the beverage.

"Wow…" she remarked in a mix of surprise and understanding, noting the danger associated with the bridge and the dunes. "Has it really been that long?"

"Well… maybe I'm a little far from the truth in terms of how long it's actually been since my last visitor," he admitted with a chuckle that Shantae nervously shared. "Especially given what I'd just told you about the last person I escorted out of my home for her boorish behavior and lack of refinement," he insulted his own daughter (or at least, that's who Shantae presumed he was referring to), which immediately angered her. Although, she held her composure. "Oh, but you're probably wondering how I knew so much about you and your trip here, aren't you?"

"Believe it or not, sir… Not as much as you might think," she cleverly denied, though his surprise was evident. "I'm more curious about who you are. Again, I… I wasn't sure if someone was actually living out here. I was referred here by H-!" she was about to finish her statement.

"Well, here I am to exceed your expectations, dear Shantae," the scorpion man interrupted without warning, seeming to take pride in her interest in him. "My name is Alsumu. Alsumu Alladagha. You may call me 'Al' for short, though. It's far from uncommon for people to mispronounce my full name."

"Pleasure to meet you, Al!" Shantae graciously stated, 'happy' to make the acquaintance of a new face while also wrapping her head around the fact that he had a nearly-identical nickname to Ali. Like father, like daughter, I guess.

"Likewise, Shantae. Did you come all the way here alone?"

"No, actually…" she began, her worry for the absent soldier evident. However, she was uncertain of how to bring up the topic of his disappearance. Likewise, she played it safe. "I uh… I got some help getting here, though the person who helped me decided not to join me in coming in."

"Oh? How peculiar…" he murmured, seeming to be cautious of something as he looked Shantae up and down through his sunglasses.

"Yeah, but they had their reasons…" she dismissed, avoiding any mention of Ali while drumming up an idea of how to mention her original partner. "Anyway, I came here together with someone other than that person, but he fell into a giant ditch just before the end of the Lightning Gap Bridge. The ditch turned out to be a hiding spot for some kind of shelter, I think…? But the door he fell through closed back up before I could help him out, and I was wondering if you knew anything about how I could open the door and rescue him."

"Hmm… I see," Al pondered as he stopped in his tracks before he finished making Shantae that tea he didn't even confirm her desire for. An awkward silence passed over the gaudily-decorated library as neither the scorpion man nor the young woman spoke. Eventually, the human-scorpion hybrid spoke once more. "Your friend… I'm sorry to say, is good as gone," he gravely stated as he turned to face his guest, making her heart sink.

"…Wh-what do you mean by that?"

"Shantae, my dear… That pit he fell into was no shelter," he explained, finally taking of the unnecessary sunglasses, but keeping his eyes shut. "He fell into the Carnivorous Catacombs."

"C-C-CARNIVOROUS Catacombs?" Shantae repeated with a sudden, gripping sense of fright as her blood ran cold.

"Indeed. It's a secret compartment of this desert where those foolish enough to travel to this land without taking precautions are taken if they are found before they leave… dead or alive."

"Oh, no…!"

"I'm afraid so, darling. The vessels of the lost and doomed are collected, stored for preservation, and then eventually consumed to nurture the creatures of this land."

"Oh, gosh…! Tayshan…!" Shantae whispered to herself as her gaze fell to the floor, her eyes welling up with tears as she feared the worst yet again. However, from her experience with traveling alongside the soldier, she at least knew that he was a fighter; there was certainly no way he'd go down so easily as to be ambushed by some man-eating desert monsters. He had to at least be alive. He HAD to be. She shook her head and dried her tears, holding out hope that her friend would survive until she found a way to save him. "Is there maybe a way to open that door so we can get him out of there?"

"No," the scorpion man bluntly remarked. "There is no escape from the Carnivorous Catacombs. It is far from common for anyone to survive in there for longer than a few minutes. By now, I imagine your friend has become a nutritious snack for the scorpions," he callously added, his polite tone gone and replaced with one of malice and sinister intent. Shantae immediately raised her defenses, expecting things to go south very quickly.

"How would you know that, Al? You sound a little too sure that my friend isn't still alive down there," she contested, taking offense to the nonchalance of her host's tone.

"Because…" Al trailed off, opening his eyes to reveal his ink-black sclera and crimson-red irises as he flashed an evil grin. His pupils were shaped like a vertical slit to boot, definitely notifying Shantae that this scorpion man was bad news. "I'm the one who built it! And you, dear, are going to be my appetizer before I consume your friend!"

"What? Why!?" she asked, certifiably blind-sided by this most harrowing turn of events.

"You want to know why? I'll tell you. I've been ridiculed and ostracized by humanity for far too long! For eons, I have tried bestowing upon you ungrateful beasts my unparalleled fashion genius and insight into exuberant home design! Yet, what do I get in return? Insufferable, unjust castigations against my exquisite tastes! 'There are too many busy colors here,' this. 'The patterns don't match' that. 'You have no idea what fashion even is' the third! Well no more! If humans can't learn to appreciate my artistic integrity and genius, even after my self-imposed exile, then they will suffer indiscriminately! Even if it's one miserable peon at a time," he ranted, though it was just a tiny bit (by which I mean entirely) unwarranted and arbitrary. It didn't even make sense for him to reveal his disproportionately-insidious intentions so soon; something I wasn't alone in taking issue with…

"…You're doing this just because people don't like your tacky fashion sense?" Shantae bluntly questioned, bemused and perturbed by Al's ridiculous reason for kidnapping and eating people. Al gasped in a mix of shock and seething ire.

"TACKY!? You of all people should be one to talk about 'tacky!' That dreadful little two-piece dancer travesty you have on is as far from chic as you can get! And who are you kidding with all that fake costume jewelry? Are you TRYING to make me pity you? Your hypocrisy makes me want to vomit! And scarlet red is SO last season, doll. Do not address me about what is 'tacky.'"

"Hey!" Shantae yelled, taking great offense to the fashion police officer. "My outfit is 100% authentic, thank you very much! I'm a dancer as part of my profession as a hero, so this outfit is totally practical!" the half-genie defended, causing Al to raise an eyebrow in wonder at her assertion.

"… So you're an adventurer-slash-hero parading around as a professional dancer…?" Al incredulously questioned, uncertain of the half-genie's angle. "How droll… Your image is just a tad misleading, don't you think? You call yourself a hero, prancing around in that provocative getup? It hardly covers anything, much less suits anyone whose job entails gallivanting through dangerous environments and saving people from monsters like me! What kind of example are you setting, exactly?"

"Look, it may not be the best thing in the world to wear out in public on a regular basis, but I'd like to think it does me a whole lot more justice than… for example, wearing an oversized, stuffy sweater; especially in the middle of a ferociously dry, hot desert, of which there are a ton here in Sequin Land," she calmly and casually commented, unaware of just how that comment would be received by the guy wearing the oversized, stuffy sweater; especially in the middle of a ferociously dry, hot desert.

"Excuse me!?" Al practically screamed, taking all forms of offense to Shantae's example, which hit close to home for him for some mysterious reason.

"It also at least matches in both color scheme and my overall theme of being a magic-wielding half-genie whose powers revolve mainly around dancing," she commented further, unintentionally roasting her new friend-turned-enemy. Appalled, his jaw dropped wide open. "Oh, and I had all my jewelry appraised a long time ago. My earrings, headband, bracelets, and hair tie are all made of reinforced 24-karat gold. They're also enhanced with magic to keep them from breaking or tarnishing. Don't ask how I got them or how I keep them in such good shape other than with magic, but they're definitely not fake."

"Why… You…!"

"I don't mean to be rude, Al. I'm sorry for calling your fashion sense tacky," she apologized. "Maybe we can trade fashion advice after you let my friend out of your creepy sand dungeon. I'm a bit of a fashion buff myself, believe it or not."

"And why, pray tell, would I need fashion advice from you?" he asked, still hostile toward his uninvited, yet-expected house guest.

"Well…" she began, looking at Al and around the room and spotting numerous obvious examples. "I was just thinking I could help you by giving you tips on how to bring a level of consistency to your ensemble."

"And by that, you imply…?"

"Just by looking around this library and at your outfit, I think there are too many loud, busy colors that clash like scimitars going on here. It's kind of—no, very distracting."

"…"

"Plus, the patterns of your walls and flooring don't match. Plaid and Diamond patterns are as far from collaborative as you can get, which makes the color issue more glaring. It's hard to tell exactly the kind of message you want to communicate to visitors when they come here. Is it supposed to be homey, or lively, or… actually, since you're a bad guy, maybe you're going for an intimidating vibe?"

"…!"

"As for your outfit, the stripes and coloring of your sweater don't match your turban or even your lower half at all."

"…!"

"One more thing, sweaters are definitely out this season. Actually, sweaters haven't been hip in Sequin Land for the past six years, actually. The weather around here alone is a huge reason no one wears them anymore. Even on Frostbite Island, they'll wear jackets, trench coats, or even snowsuits before they entertain the thought of a sweater. Have you studied any of the fashion trends that have come and gone in the last few years? I mean, I don't know how long it's been since you moved out here, but still…" she rambled on, pretty much nailing Al on every point he previously brought up about why no one liked his fashion sense.

"…!"

"Maybe-!"

"That is IT!" Al roared in rage as he raised his enormous scorpion stinger and single-handedly tore off his ugly sweater, revealing his incredibly muscular, swollen bare chest and arms, already demonstrating that he was beyond the talking phase. "You come into my home uninvited, disrespect my fashion etiquette, think you can tell ME how to dress and decorate when you can't even pull of a remotely believable hero theme, and worst of all, make me ruin my favorite sweater? YOU MUST DIE!"

"…Well, this escalated quickly…" Shantae muttered as she prepared herself for battle. "I wonder if it was something I said…?" With that, the fight was set to begin. Without hesitation, Al charged at Shantae with vigorous rage, intent on making her pay for her brazen disrespect. Shantae, already prepared for a confrontation at this point, dashed toward him, her trusty Hair Whip (amongst other abilities) at the ready.

 ** _ALSUMU ALLADAGHA ('Al' for short): FURIUOS FASHION FAUX PAS!_**

Now, this is usually the part where we really kick off with the hero-versus-boss showdown of epic, chaotic proportions. However, in case you've forgotten, a certain unfortunate soldier had lost his way long before this point and we've yet to even figure out what happened to him (other than what was previously implied, of course). I'm fairly certain you're asking by now where he is, what he's doing, and if he's even still alive at this point. So, in lieu of carrying on with this most awesome, titanic, catastrophic two-person war for the ages between Shantae and Al (we'll come back to it, trust me), we'll instead take a much-needed 'See You in the Next Episode' sort of break and, when we come back, we will divert our attention elsewhere… Hey, at least I'm giving you a more legit reason for this cliffhanger, so don't bite my head off, alright? Just sit tight till next time!


	11. SNAFU & Rendezvous

Chapter 7, Pt. 2: S.N.A.F.U. and Rendezvous

Aaaaaaand welcome back! Been a long time since we got together like this, and we should really… what was that? You want me to skip the pleasantries and get back into the pulse-pounding, nail-biting, rip-snorting (not even sure what that last one is) tale of two heroes torn away from each other by the cruel hand of fate? Fine, fine, I guess that's fair, considering I left you hanging last time. So, we left off just about to see what our star-crossed fledgling warrior from another world was up to in the wake of his entrapment in a recently-revealed dungeon of danger. Before we begin, I will inform you that Tayshan's travels in the creepy underground labyrinth ran concurrent with Shantae's continued mostly-solo expedition on the surface. So, to catch you up, we'll start at the top from an alternative perspective.

 ** _Earlier…_**

LOCATION: 'CARNIVOROUS CATACOMBS,' KITSCHY QUILT DESERT, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 21ST, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1833 HOURS

"Shoot… I can barely see my hand in front o' my face in here," Tay (still very much alive) muttered to himself as he traversed the cold, creepy dungeon he had yet to learn the name of. "This place gives me the chills in more ways than one, too. I only hope I can at least find a way out o' here…" Since his untimely imprisonment, he had managed to locate a torch and had set off exploring the unnerving bunker for a way out. He trekked slowly, the torch in one hand and his gun in the other, bracing himself for any potential dangers ahead as he kept an eye out for a switch, secret doorway, or tunnel that would lead him back to safety. Soon enough, he heard screeching coming from above. He raised the torch to see a bat swooping down to attempt to bite him. He raised his gun and aimed it, waiting for the bat to get close.

As soon as he saw the membranes on its wings, he pulled the trigger. A voluminous *BOOM* echoed through the room as the barrel of his pistol flickered with a flash of fire. The soldier missed his mark, however, as the enshrouding darkness (coupled with the fact that he was only using one hand to fire his weapon) impeded his ability to aim. He saw the missed round careen past the bat and ricochet off the walls and ceiling of the frigid metal corridor into the distance. Before he could shoot again, however, the aerial assailant flew right into the torch and immediately was sent hurtling off into the darkness before exploding in the distance.

"Huh… So this torch might have more uses than I thought…" the young soldier murmured in wonder as he sheathed the gun. "Also good t' know that I shouldn't shoot haphazardly while I'm in here if my shots are just gonna ricochet like that…" he further observed, noticing the erratic wall-bouncing journey of his bullet. He continued down the corridor, feeling the walls up and down to see if he could find something… ANYTHING, that would lead him in the right direction. As he anticipated, however, more creepy crawlies made themselves apparent in the form of tiny blue scorpions identical to the ones he encountered aboveground, in addition to a host of bats and unidentifiable oily black blob creatures that, from afar, appeared as random oil puddles on the floor. However, when approached, they grew rapidly into hideous goopy ogres with glowing yellow eyes that swiped and slashed at the soldier with unrelenting malice.

Tay at first tried shooting at them, but he immediately found his bullets ineffective. The creatures absorbed his rounds and disintegrated them as they slowly, but steadily advanced upon him, causing him to back up. Meanwhile, scorpions scurried their way toward him on the ground while a swarm of bats challenged him from the air. His hand forced, he focused fire on the bats and scorpions while thinking of a method of dealing with the creature in front of him. With some luck on his side, he managed to deal with the scorpions by kicking them away while shooting the bats down as accurately as he could. The ricochet effect this corridor had on his bullets helped a little, as one or two of his missed shots wound up bouncing off the ceiling and striking their targets before they could pose a serious threat to him. That, however, left only the oil blob monster he'd been facing, as it was unfazed by bullets. Its approach unhindered, it slithered and shambled its way toward him with unprecedented speed that nearly startled him out of his wits as he retreated to create some distance. Unfortunately, there wasn't much room to work with in the dank, narrow, cramped hallway.

"I'm already bein' pinned down in here…!" the unsettled serviceman muttered in anticipation. "If bullets won't work… I wonder how this thing will respond t' brute force." With that, he attempted to charge at the beast and kick it out of his way. He found that effort futile, as his foot was caught in the slimy tunnel dweller's thick, gelatinous body. Panicked, the soldier next tried to yank his leg away, only for the ominous being to strike him in the chest with a giant, dripping appendage.

"Ohuagh!" Tay shouted in pain as he was thrown back, landing with an echoing *THUD* on the cold metal floor, dropping his torch. Thinking quickly, however, he rose to his feet, picked his light source up before it burned out, and stepped back to create some distance as he recuperated from the burning, stinging sensation in his chest. After regaining his breath, he thought of what to do next. "Hm… So brute force won't work an' neither will bullets… I could try a grenade, but…" he pondered. "I feel like it'd be too much power for just one monster. Plus, I wonder if the shrapnel from the explosion would bounce off the walls like the bullets did. Hmm…" Tay brainstormed his options for dealing with this threat before remembering how a bat had earlier flown into his torch and had immediately been knocked out without him doing anything. It was then that he formed his next plan of attack.

"Let's see how this blob likes playin' with fire…! Only hope it doesn't blow up in my face in case this thing's made of oil," the soldier remarked with a morbid grin that stopped the creature in its tracks. He briefly thought about using a Thermite Grenade, though he quickly decided to go the more convenient route. As such, he silently rushed forward, torch in hand, seeing how the blob monster would react. Before it could recognize what he was doing, however, Tay forcefully jabbed the creature with the flame-end of his light source, causing it to sizzle and bubble like grease on a frying pan as it shrieked in presumable agony and melted into nothing.

"Haha!" Tay cheered in celebration. "That was a sear-ious problem. Good thing I didn't burn up all my options there. Score-ch one for me," Tay joked with the humor of a nerdy pyromaniac uncle (not Mimic) to ease the incredible tension and crushing anxiety he'd been feeling. Suffice it to say, it didn't work. I swear with all these miserable puns… I said it once, and I'll say it again: **They don't pay me enough for this job.** Anyway, he sighed after a momentary awkward silence as a thought crossed his mind. "Shantae would've cracked up at those… I hope she's alright up there…" he wondered as he looked to the ground and spotted something.

"Huh…?" Tay observed the spot where the creature disintegrated to see that it left behind a small, cork-sealed bottle of an eccentric glowing neon blue liquid. Wasting no time to investigate his discovery, he picked it up to see that it bore a label that read 'Antidote.' Confused, he eyed the liquid up and down, though he couldn't make out the writing on the back in the dark of the dungeon. However, it wasn't long before he drew a conclusion.

"I get the strangest feelin' this might come in handy if I get stung by a scorpion or poisoned by one o' these gross slime blobs. Those are the only things I'm aware can poison me here. At least, unless oil blobs like that last one can do somethin' other than stick on me, absorb gunshots, an' shapeshift, provided there are more of 'em in here… Not that I intend t' test any o' that out, but… Better t' have an' not need than need an' not have, as they say." With that most convenient idiom, Tay got Venom Antidote and placed it in his pocket before carrying on. As he continued traversing the extensive corridor, Tay found himself relying heavily on his torch, waving the flame at other underground abominations that blocked his path as he hastened his pace. He occasionally drew his gun and fired at enemies too high to reach with the torch, but he kept his bursts short and sporadic. He did not want to risk harming himself due to the ricochet effect the walls, floor, and ceiling had on his pistol's rounds in conjunction with his hindered accuracy due to him using one hand to steady it as he fired.

At multiple points, he thought to utilize the Thermite Grenades he'd previously obtained (or rather, Shantae obtained them while she was in his body the other day), though he found it nearly impossible to gather enough time to pull one out and try to yank the pin on it when it required two hands (of which he had just one when we consider the torch he was holding), and then cook it long enough that any enemies he would've aimed it at would be hit. It didn't take long for him to abandon that strategy entirely in favor of the one he'd already developed using the torch.

Anyway, he found that the corridor took much longer than he'd anticipated to navigate, having to frequently stop to fight off hordes of cave-dwelling monsters and keep his pace in mind so that he didn't suffer unnecessary consequences of wandering around an unfamiliar landscape in the dark. Eventually, he reached the end of the narrow corridor, which presented with an automatic door that opened up as he approached. His breath heavy with fatigue and his chest still stinging from the damage he sustained, the fledgling warrior stopped to momentarily recuperate before proceeding to the next section.

"Finally, some progress… I only hope that-! Uh…" he trailed off in utter shock as his eyes and mouth opened wide. Unfortunately, the corridor only marked the beginning of his search for an escape route, as he was presented with what seemed to be a central foyer lined up with a total of eight doorways, including the one from which he emerged to enter the nexus of this labyrinth. He took note of the doorway directly across being locked behind a set of bars with a padlock. A lone chandelier loaded with lit red candles, hanging from the center of the ceiling, illuminated the room, giving Tay enough light to see just how much more exploring he needed to do.

"Ohhohoh, no-ho-ho!" Tay enthusiastically shouted, his happiness for discovering that he had a LONG way to go reverberating through the room as he threw his hands up in celebration… or, was that exasperation? "You can NOT be serious with this, man!" he further complained before taking a heavy, frustration-riddled breath. "Well, I ain't gettin' nowhere fast if I don't get t' steppin'…" At this observation, Tay carefully surveyed the seven available path entrances to take note of any clues that might tip him off to what they might have contained. Unfortunately, the entrances bore only symbols that, unless someone was familiar with the maze's layout, told him nothing. From the looks of it, each door had a picture of an animal on the crest of the frame. "I guess I'll start with… this one," he spoke after a moment of thought, selecting the entrance directly to the left of where he entered, whose frame pictured a monkey. "Better landmark as I go along, too… but how…?" The soldier pondered a way to mark his progress to keep from getting lost.

Tay thought long and hard, again surveying the room before looking up at the chandelier and conjuring up an idea. With his idea in mind, he drew his pistol and carefully aimed it at one of the candles, focusing keenly to lock on to his intended target. With much mental and physical preparation (and maybe a little bit of magic), he fired a shot. He hit the mark, snapping one of the chandelier's candles in half as his round ricochet off the ceiling and wall a few times, thankfully not coming back to harm him, before it disappeared inexplicably. The broken stick of wax fell to the floor, where Tay picked it up and blew out the flame before putting his plan into action.

"There… they ain't gonna terribly good marks, but I'll know 'em when I see 'em," he murmured after scraping some of the candle's wax on the frames of the door he entered and the one he intended to explore next. "Now, let's go…" he steeled himself as he entered his next corridor. Suffice to say, he had his work cut out for him. At this point, I'm sure you're probably wondering how Shantae was faring against a certain belligerent, inconsolably-angry scorpion monster, because we'd previously left off with her having just begun her battle with him. Well, wait no longer! Apologies for those wanting to see right away what Tay's first dungeon experience was like, but you won't be coming out of this empty-handed. I promise. It's just… REALLY hard to give you the deets on two separate adventures happening at the exact same time. Alas, for you, I will certainly try. Onwards, then!

 ** _Rejoining Shantae in her battle against Al a bit later…_**

Sequin Land's favorite/only half-genie had been holding her own against the walking chimeric crime against sensible fashion tastes. The battle had consisted of Alsumu attempting to strike Shantae with his stinger and pincers while either rushing toward her like a bull, crawling onto the ceiling like a spider, or leaping high into the air like a grasshopper to catch her off-guard as he attempted repeatedly to sting her. Al wasn't the only one who knew how to utilize the abilities of multiple animals at once, however. He was the only one, however, who could only pretend to be other bugs. Shantae, trusting in her acrobatic agility, gracefully danced and dodged his strikes and charges, occasionally transforming into either a monkey, harpy, or mouse to avoid his attacks. She countered when she found opportunities by turning back human and punishing him with barrages of ponytail whips and the occasional fire blast when he was too high to reach. Shantae, ever the rushdown type of fighter, kept the pressure on as she made sure Al got as little breathing time as possible as she relentlessly chased him around the soon-to-be-trashed library and delivered crushing blow after crushing blow.

Realizing that his method of attack was failing him, Al switched things up by channeling magic into the gem in his turban, levitating high into the air, and firing a volley of prismatic energy balls at the young heroine. He had hoped to strike her down with a decisive hit, but her speed and ingenuity proved more formidable than he'd expected. Shantae countered this measure by temporarily summoning her bubble shield to absorb any of the energy spheres she otherwise would've been hit by while expertly dancing out of harm's way to slide past the rest of them. To make things worse for the dastardly Al, his half-genie adversary still found opportunities to fight back by shooting fireballs from her index fingers from across the library as though she were aiming two pistols at him. In an attempt to accommodate for Shantae learning and adapting to his attack pattern, Al touched a finger to the gem, which flashed and rapidly blinked white. In an instant, he disappeared in a cloud of rainbow-themed smoke, reappearing behind Shantae as she let loose fireballs that wound up making direct contact with the book cases and wall that were behind him. Al's library collection suffered heavy damage as the half-genie's fireballs razed entire shelves of texts in a shocking flash of flames. To add insult to injury, Shantae had also damaged his decorative walls with giant black singe splotches that smoked like chimneys.

"My library!" Al hollered in shock and horror as he stopped his assault, finally catching a glimpse of the damage he and Shantae were doing. Books all over the floor, some of them reduced to piles of smoldering dust while others were heavily singed. The carpet was spotted with the same irremovable burn marks he noticed on the walls. The walls and ceiling themselves, being made primarily of condensed sand, had begun falling apart from the intensity of the fight, made evident by the scattered array of holes in the structure. "This igloo cost me a fortune! The indemnity for the damages to my home will fall squarely on your shoulders, girl!"

"Me?" Shantae remarked in surprise as she turned to face him and backed up to create some space. "You're the one who started this! If anyone's to blame for the mess in here, it's you! Besides, I don't have nearly enough money to cover any of this! I'm a teenage girl with little more than basically a part-time job! One that has a super inconsistent income, no less!"

"Ugh, you and all the other impulsive, bratty, self-entitled teenagers out there…"

"What's that supposed to mean?" the adolescent woman questioned, not taking her enemy's comment lightly.

"Your generation thinks they're all grown and that you are owed the entire world despite doing nothing to contribute to society, all the while having hardworking adults giving you everything you think you own. You also think making excuses about the damage you do to the property of others will earn you passes from taking responsibility for your heinous actions… Repulsive, I say!" Al lamented with a shake of his head in a rather discriminatory rant against the young.

"Hey, I work hard for the things I have!" Shantae rebutted, none too fond of Al's generalized perception of individuals stuck in the emotionally-overwhelming existential purgatorial epoch between childhood and adulthood known as adolescence. Say that in a single breath without twisting your tongue into a roller coaster ride. I dare you. "I might be a teen, but I've got adult responsibilities! I live by myself in a house that I pay all the bills for!"

"Oh, that's rich… unlike you, apparently," Al scoffed. "Even if you DO live alone in a house on a part-time income in an unstable economy like Sequin Land's, I'd bet you're far from independent. I'd even go as far as to say you've got someone; a parent or guardian who works much harder than you, paying all but the tiny fraction of the regular financial charges that you call 'paying all the bills,' while they let you bask in the residential safety net you so foolishly call 'your house.'"

"Well… M-my uncle helps me a little bit…" she admitted, pouting and looking away, reluctant to concede as she pressed her index fingers together.

"Just as I suspected," he declared, smirking in triumph.

"Even so, you can't just assume I don't work hard because someone helps me get by!" she quickly defended, making a fair point of her own as she regained her composure and pointed at him. "I still earn an honest wage and buy everything I have without my uncle's help! Plus, my job can be super demanding despite the unpredictable income! You should walk a mile in my shoes!"

"No need," he dismissed. "I already have an idea as to how you'll repay me. After I dispose of you, I'll take possession of all that enchanted golden jewelry of yours! I'm far from uncertain that so much gold will net me a sizable bounty…" Al suggested with a sinister chuckle. At that, the mortified half-genie gasped in shock, pulling her arms close to her chest.

"You fiend! Leave my jewelry out of it, Al! Every bit of it is sentimental!"

"Everything in here was sentimental!" Al indignantly shouted back, growing steadily more enraged as this heated argument continued. "I spent years building my home into the mid-desert oasis it is, and you've thoroughly sullied it! Prepare to meet your end!" he threatened as he levitated once more and channeled another surge of energy into his gem. Shantae braced herself for the next wave of energy balls Al had in store for her. However, the next volley barreled toward the half-genie in an almost haphazard sequence of slow, very wide arcs that ranged from floor to ceiling while crackling with electricity. Shantae was quick to adapt to this, jumping as the electro-balls swooped in low, crouching like a cat about to pounce when they came in high, and activating her bubble shield for brief periods when they came barreling toward her with the speed of a gunshot. Al, at this point anticipating that his enemy would adapt to his latest plan of attack, teleported to the other side of the library and fired another barrage of wavy, lightning-charged energy balls.

"Whoa!" Shantae remarked as she narrowly dodged the incoming fire from the second wave as the first wave ended. Again, the agile teenaged super heroine proved her skills by hopping over, crawling under, and magically blocking Al's energy blasts, even charging at him and whipping him with her hair as he levitated and left himself open. Al, though he'd taken heavy damage throughout the course of the fight, was determined to win. He teleported once more to the opposing side of the arena and fired a rapid spray of the original, non-electric energy balls at Shantae. The half-genie moved to jump over them, avoiding the barrage entirely. However, Al spotted an opportunity and took full advantage of it. The malicious scorpion-man thrust his venom-tipped tail forward and struck.

"Gotcha!" Al cheered as his stinger made contact with its intended target with a sickening *SKSH*.

"Oww!" Shantae yelled in sharp, searing pain as Al stung Shantae square in her lower lip while she was airborne, causing her to land on one knee, clutching her mouth as she recoiled from the nefarious cheap shot. She practically squeezed her mouth shut from the horrible, unending burning sensation she suffered, her eyes welling up with tears as her breathing quickly became labored.

"My venom is quite potent, you know…" Al started, bringing himself to the ground and triumphantly approaching his adversary. "As it's already taking effect, I'll enlighten you on the symptoms. The instant you're stung, you'll feel an unbearable, scalding agony the likes of which you've never known. That agony will not subside, though it may dull as the effects linger. That isn't even the worst part. Within the next five minutes, your vision will blur and you'll start losing coordination as you break out into a terribly hot, feverish sweat. By minute ten, you'll get nauseous and you'll lose your ability to move your limbs, which will convulse with the same agony you feel right now. By thirty, the rest of your body will begin slowly losing its ability to function, starting with your lungs and ending with your brain and heart. This process will be far from quick or painless. Of course, no one has ever made it past minute twenty before I devoured them," Al remarked with a vicious sneer, chuckling at the thought of Shantae's undeserved suffering.

"You...!" Shantae muttered, still clutching her lip in unfathomable torment with one hand. With the other, she charged up a particularly wrathful fireball the size of two basketballs, ready to at least defeat Al before she succumbed to his venom. "I'll make you PAY for that!" She roared as she, in a sudden motion, leaped up toward Al and shot a blast of incendiary fury at Al's face. Stunned by Shantae's resolve, Al froze as he tried to teleport out of the way. Alas, he was too late. The bulleting fireball struck Al in the face with a hot, sizzling *PWISHHH*, knocking him backward as his jewel, also caught in the explosive blast, shattered with a voluminous *POP* into a thousand pieces that scattered across the smoldering library floor.

"No!" Al shrieked in astonishment yet again. "The majority of my power was in that gem! How-!?" Before Al could finish his question, Shantae lunged forward with a vengeance, whipping the now-powerless chimera with her hair. Al attempted to take evasive measures, though it proved fruitless in the wake of his half-genie enemy's vindictive rage. He attempted to crawl onto the ceiling to save himself from her weaponized hair, but it proved useless when she transformed into a harpy and fired a rain of talons at him to knock him to the ground. He attempted dashing at her and ensnaring her in his pincers to hinder her onslaught, though his adversary was far too quick on her feet to be caught as she continued to brutally punish him from a safe distance with fireballs aimed at his chest and face. He also tried keeping her at bay with his stinger, but he only made himself more vulnerable as she transformed into a mouse to cause him to lose track of her. She then turned back human behind him and let loose a merciless rushing barrage of fireballs and hair whips that connected all across his body as he futilely attempted to retreat.

Every *SMACK*, *THWAP*, and *KRISHH* of her belligerent assault sent waves of agony throughout the scorpion man's sizable form as he grew increasingly weary. He'd certainly be feeling his injuries for days, given just how infuriated Shantae was as she held next to nothing back. His final attempt at escape was hopping over her when she charged him next and attempting to scurry out of the igloo in one piece. Even this proved ineffective, as Shantae shot him down with a fireball and whipped him into oblivion. As expected, Al eventually caught a sudden, nasty case of Boss Battle Explosions, as his body was enveloped in a swarm of blasts that paralyzed him in place before a final, enormous *KABOOM* of a detonation rendered him defeated. He hurtled through the library as though he were launched from a catapult, eventually meeting the wall with an awful ground-shaking *THOOMP* before hitting the ground with another terrible *THUD*. Barely conscious on the ground, he writhed in unbearable genie-inflicted agony.

"D-darn… I lost…" he lamented in terrible pain. "This wasn't… what I was told…" he added, hinting that he wasn't working alone. However, as he recovered, he opened his eyes to reveal normal white sclera and hazel-hued irises. "This… was far from what I was promised…"

"Oooogh, my head…" Shantae droned as her vision, as predicted, became blurry and a wave of splitting aches coursed through her head. The unfortunate young adventurer stumbled backward onto a nearby wall, barely able to pick herself up or regain her coordination. She used what little fleeting sense of coordination she had at that moment to pull out the potion she picked up earlier and attempt to drink it. However, she lost her balance as her head began to pound like a drum, causing her to drop the healing liquid onto the floor, its container shattering with a *crash* upon impact with the library floor. "No…!"

"I… I sincerely apologize, Shantae… Are… are you feeling alright?" Al asked with an unexpected sense of remorse as he brought himself to stand, though he winced with pain, finding out that some of his legs were sprained from the battle.

"No, I'm not… My head hurts… I can't see… and I'm getting dizzy…" she painstakingly answered as she began desperately searching through Al's drawers and bookcases for something that might help her. She got a sudden case of chills throughout her body as her head felt as though someone had stuffed her into an oven. "Don't… don't you have some kind of antidote… or something?"

"I did…" Al weakly replied, his injuries still stinging and pulsating with residual agony. "…but there were only two bottles of it left. One of them was taken by someone else who passed through here, though I cannot seem to recall whom…" Were Shantae in a more coherent state, she may have thought Ali might've been the one to take the antidote, as she was the only other person to have seen Al recently… as far as we knew.

"Then… where's the other one…?" she hastily and desperately asked.

"I lost it in my storm bunker ages ago… Sad to say, young lady, but… unless we have a back-up plan or incredible luck… I'm… I'm afraid you may not make it. I was serious when I said my venom was lethal, but I swear to you, if I was in my right mind, we would never have fought, and I most certainly would never have even thought to subject you to this unforgivable torture. I deeply apologize… I deeply apologize from the bottom of my heart…"

"No…!" Shantae rebutted as the venom's impact gradually worsened. She was still unceremoniously ransacking Al's library for a possible antidote. He just admitted himself that there was one, but barely gave a hint as to where it might be. "That can't be true… You have to have more somewhere…!"

"I wish there were, dear girl… but I told you already, someone else pilfered the one bottle I had in this library, and making more requires weeks of harvesting and priming the necessary ingredients, as well as hours of mixing the concoction."

"Then where is this other person…?" she asked as she momentarily paused. "Or, WHO was it? Was it Ali?"

"Ali?" Al asked in utter shock, though it was tempered by the situation at hand. "You don't mean…?"

"Your… Y-your daughter, yes," Shantae wearily confirmed, sending yet another wave of shock and unspeakable guilt through Al's aching abdomen. "Did she take it…?"

"…My dearest Aleaqarab," Al muttered to himself, his throat welling up as he flashed back to a very recent point in time where he kicked the younger scorpion-human hybrid out of his home. "Oh dear, I've… I've made a series of horrendous mistakes…" he remorsefully pondered.

"Did she…?" Shantae prodded, needing to hear his answer.

"…No, she was not the one who took my other antidote," Al answered, still wracked with sorrow at what he'd done to Shantae and Aleaqarab on separate occasions. "If anything, I injected her with a different kind of venom when I last saw her… an emotional venom… As for who took the antidote, it was… someone who, if I recall correctly, appeared here at least two days prior to my precious Alea's arrival…" he revealed, narrowing things down, though Shantae couldn't be certain of who else could've stolen the antidote she so desperately needed. However fleeting, she took some sense of comfort knowing she wasn't led on or betrayed by the young scorpion girl. The question was, however, who took the antidote.

"Then… then who did? And where are they…?" the suffering half-genie croaked out in unfathomable pain as the library began to rock back and forth through her eyes and her pain grew steadily more intense across nearly every inch of her body.

"I… I don't recall who, exactly, but she's long gone now…" Al hesitantly and regretfully spoke as his heart began to pound like a battering ram against his sternum as he wracked his brain for options on keeping Shantae alive. "It's far from likely that you'd find her out there in the time it takes… for my venom to take full effect; especially in your worsening condition. Your only option… is to wait. I can… at least tend to you until I figure out a more useful way to help you. I owe you an explanation for my incorrigible actions, but… but I can at least slow the process of the venom with this…" Al assured as he limped toward his work desk and perused through one of the drawers. At that, Shantae's condition worsened as she fell back against another wall, sliding down to a seated position as she became dizzier with fatigue and pain. Soon after, the poor girl fell into a spell of pain-riddled tears as she clutched her aching head with her hands.

"No… No, no, it… it can't be… not… like this…!" she choked out as she cried in unbearable anguish, barely audible as she hoped to the high heavens that this wasn't the end for her. Her breaths became short and heavy as she tried not to make any sudden moves in her steadily-worsening condition. Even breathing burned her throat and lungs like someone had poured scalding hot oil directly into her mouth.

"Here, drink this," Al offered as he rushed to his former enemy's aid with a miniature vial of a deep red liquid. Shantae, though at a deficit for awareness, noticed Al attempting to feed her the strange liquid and shoved him away.

"Get that away from me!" she yelled through her splitting headache as she clutched her head, distrustful of the scorpion man after what he'd done to her.

"I assure you, Shantae, this is no poison," Al reasoned, his tone calm, yet reflective of his urgency. "It is a fast-acting deterrent. It is no cure, but it will lessen the severity of your symptoms and delay the process of the venom's effects for the time being. You must drink it quickly. I will explain myself in due time, but I need you to trust me, please." Hearing this, she weighed her options as best as she could as she took in the realization that he was trying to help her out of guilt for his misdeed. She went mostly silent, save for her suffering-addled weeping as she tried to think about what to do. The immediate symptoms of her poisoning were almost too severe to bear, however. "Shantae, I cannot apologize enough for doing this to you…" Al choked out as he watched on, his own eyes welling up with his growing remorse. "I assure you with every fiber of my being that I will not cause you any more harm. Please forgive me… Please… and please let me help you in whatever way I can," he pleaded as his breath caught in his throat. Shantae, listening to Al's plea, did her best to dry her tears and reorient herself as much as she could before she spoke again.

"…Okay, but if you do anything else to-!"

"I promise you, I will not. Please, drink this," Al insisted. Shantae hesitantly and warily complied, allowing Al to administer the eccentric medicine to her. Within seconds, the results showed.

"I… I feel a little better. I'm still cold, though. My head feels hot and everything still hurts, too." Almost instantly, she regained some of her health, with all but her fever-like symptoms calming down for the moment. Al, without another word, moved to collect a box of tissues to hand to Shantae, who wordlessly thanked him by nodding before using a few to blow her nose and wipe her eyes. She was still curious, however, about Al's sudden change of heart. "Why… Why are you suddenly helping me after you just poisoned me?"

"It is… a long, dreadful story. My memory is returning to me, so I may be able to shed some light as I explain how things led to this point," Al guiltily began as he sifted through his disheveled library, picking up scraps as he looked for something. "It started roughly four or five days prior to this predicament…"

And would you look at the time? Yeah, it's that time… Time for yet another inconveniently-timed focus switch. Probably a bad time to switch, but you must understand. Please don't hate me! It'll all come together soon! Scout's honor! So, while the sickly Shantae was getting to the bottom of the sudden mystery revolving around Al's change of heart…

 ** _In the Catacombs…_**

"I see y'all sleepin' on the job! You're about t' get fired!" Tay shouted as he charged fearlessly down one of the passageways toward a horde of goop creatures. As he rushed toward the monsters, he drew his gun and fired diagonally at the ceiling to distract them. As expected, the bullet ricocheted off the ceiling and floor all the way into the distance of the hall. The monsters looked toward the bullet, distracted by the *plinks* it made when it collided with the metallic surfaces and the fact that it was flashing red, white, and blue. This distraction provided the soldier with opportunity to strike one of the creatures with his torch, causing it to fizzle and screech as it disintegrated into thin air. The three other monsters immediately became aggressive, surrounding him to block his path. Tay, already desperate to escape, swung his torch at one of the monsters, only for it to shift its gelatinous form downward to dodge his attack and trapped him in place by sticking his feet to the ground he stood on.

The second of the three clung to his back with thick, oily tendrils that stung Tay's back upon contact. The monster used this advantage to glue itself to Tay, inflicting a scathing burn on him. He was quick to react, however, as he stuck his torch into the monster as it latched onto him, causing it to disintegrate almost instantaneously. The remaining creature morphed into a gross, bubbly mass and lunged at the soldier while he was stuck, crashing into his chest with a high-impact, goopy *PLOP* that resonated throughout the corridor. The young man was flung backward once more, dropping his gun as he fell with another metallic *THUD*. Gingerly, he picked himself up, clutching his chest with the hand he was previously holding his gun with.

"Man, these things hit like gooey little trucks…" Tay remarked with labored breaths. The gross-textured monsters, intent on destroying the invader, charged forward together. Tay stepped forward himself instead of backing up, swiping one of the creatures across the face with the torch and vanquishing it. The other narrowly dodged his counterattack and found itself behind him. As if it noticed the numbers, the monster began to vibrate rapidly as Tay turned around and picked up his dropped weapon, uncertain of what it would do. After a moment, the creature split into two, creating a whole new slime creature to fight.

"I better get out o' here… I'mma have t' come back t' finish this later. Sorry, Hakeem, but we never did talk about pickin' which battles t' fight or when t' fight 'em," he acknowledged as he thought back to his time in the Grotto of Judgment. "I only hope this doesn't count as breakin' my promise if I plan on takin' these things down later on…" Tay, while unwilling to disengage, was certainly terrified of the prospect of fighting potentially-limitless slime abominations. He immediately took off running, as he found no further point in engaging the goo monsters at this time; especially if it was able to clone itself. While drumming up a strategy on what to do when he inevitably had to fight the goo monster again, he managed to run far enough down the corridor that it eventually stopped chasing him. Of course, the young serviceman was soon met with what seemed to be the end of the path; a dead end with an unusually-long bottomless pit stretching into the distance, where he could see a ledge on the other side.

He also took note of the series of floating one-eyed spiders whose eyes glowed like flashlights. In addition to this discovery were what looked like cages strung up from an elevated ceiling with chain links. Curious, he drew his pistol once more and fired at one of the floating spiders. He hit the mark with a startling, echoed *CLACK*, causing the spider to close its eye. In that same instant, a cage suspended by a series of chain links that reached VERY hight into the darkness beyond view in the otherwise pitch-black corridor, drew itself toward him. At this, he made a quick, educated estimate of what was to come.

"I wonder… if these glowin'-eyed spiders are actually switches…?" he murmured. He climbed into the cage platform and fired another shot at the spider-like device. Its eye reopened, carrying Tay a significant distance over the bottomless pit and toward another dangling cage. "So that's how they work? I got it… even though jumpin' from cage t' cage over this pit makes me shiver like a furless sheep in a snowstorm…" he observed with noticeable fright, noting that the next cage was a lengthy leap of faith away. Having little other choice but to explore, however, the soldier jumped over the gap between the two cages and landed in the second one. He took a deep, shaky breath, thanking the high heavens that he made it. Soon after, he noticed a second spider switch near his current cage and shot at it, causing the same thing to happen again.

"Looks like the pattern here is t' shoot the switches an' board the cages. Not terribly tough… if I don't look down at all, ever…" he realized, taking note of the familiar skull-and-crossbones clouds puffing upward from the abyss. Nonetheless, Tayshan repeated the cycle for one more jump before it got complicated. The next jump presented him with a series of metal walls surrounding the next switch. "How am I supposed t' do this now?" he asked himself, studying the structure of the floating walls surrounding the switch. "I wonder if the Falcon Call will work down here… Haven't needed t' use that since I got down here, so maybe that'll make things easier…?" With that hypothesis, Tay whistled to summon the falcons. However, after a few seconds, none showed up. Just to be certain, he tried once more as loud as he could, only for the same result to present itself. "Darn it…! I had a feelin' it wouldn't work down here, what with bein' underground an' all… Alright, what else can I do here?"

After several minutes of staring at the bizarrely-placed structure, he noted that he could potentially use the bullet ricochets to his advantage. He carefully aimed his firearm at the wall at such an angle that maybe… just MAYBE, he could hit the switch. He took a deep breath, steadied his aim, and fired. Tay could hear the rapid *plink* sounds the bullet made upon contact with each wall and the ceiling. To his surprise, he hit his mark, bringing an empty cage close enough to him that he could jump over to it.

"Yes! Thank goodness…" he praised, his heart racing with adrenaline. "From the looks of it, I still got just a bit more to go, though…" he remarked. The final two jumps required more nerve-wracking bullet-bouncing puzzle platform jumps before reaching the other side. There, he discovered a lone treasure chest protected by a group of scorpions and bats, in addition to one more slime monster. Tay, though injured and fatigued, made short work of the group, shooting the scorpions and bats and torching the slime monster. He opened the treasure chest, which provided him with a key and two extravagant red heart-shaped trophies with gold outlines around their perimeters.

"Huh… about time I found somethin'…" Tay got Key and placed it in his inventory. He also collected the Heart Holders, though he quickly realized they did not replenish his health like they did for his half-genie partner. Perplexed, he tried figuring out a way to make one of the Heart Holders work. He tried pushing it into his chest, squeezing it, and even eating it to make it work. His efforts provided no fruitful result, however, as it remained stationary in his hand. "I guess only Shantae can get these. That's pretty unfair," he complained, his hopes of having his health replenished dashed. "I haven't even found any food t' scavenge off these things, so this kinda sucks. Oh well… I'll give 'em to her if an' when I see her. Maybe she can figure it out. For now, let's see what this key is for…" With that, Tay pocketed the Heart Holders and climbed aboard the cage, firing a shot at the spider switch to make a return trip to the entrance. Tay found getting back much easier than the initial trip, though it still unnerved him greatly to be jumping into and out of moving cages suspended in the air over a deep, dark death pit. As soon as he reached his destination, he charged forward, dashing by the goop monsters he ran from previously and striking them with his torch as he ran to finish them off before they got the chance to attack him again. Eventually, he made it back to the nexus.

"These rooms ain't givin' me much for clues on how t' get out… Other than this last room, there's GOT t' be more than dead ends an' monster ambushes in here…! I can't even explore some o' the other rooms all the way t' even know what they hide… other than all the enemies I wiped out in 'em despite it costin' me all five o' my Thermites…" Tayshan remarked to himself with labored breaths, his clothes soaked in splatters of runny midnight-purple goop. Tay had fully explored four of the seven available passageways in the dungeon at this point, though one of the remaining three doors was sealed behind bars. It seemed, however, like he'd found limited success accessing every corridor beyond certain points due to some limitation he encountered; not that it mattered too much to him, as he'd already been focusing much more of his attention on finding out why the door behind bars was so much more heavily-guarded than the others. "I don't know how much longer this torch is gonna last if I have t' keep swingin' an' stabbin' at goo monsters with it, either," he further expressed his worry as his light source had grown dim, its fire dwindling nearly to dying embers dancing slowly on the burnt wooden stake. "And just like that, I never thought in my life I'd have t' utter those words an' be completely serious…" he pondered, apparently just realizing the odd situation he was in. "Anyway, I wonder if this key I found goes t' that door." Eagerly, he attempted to use the key to unlock the door behind the metal bars. Unfortunately, the key did not fit.

"Shoot. No dice…" he complained in a mix of frustration and dejection. "Although… there was a door with bars an' a padlock on the end o' the first room I tried…" he pondered, realizing he still had options. "There's gotta be another key or somethin' useful behind there. This key must be to that door, if I'm startin' t' figure this out right…"

With that thought, the serviceman delved back into the first room, which presented with a now-empty corridor as he'd already survived and conquered the monster ambush that awaited him previously. Quickly, he rushed to the other end of the narrow room and tried the key. It worked, as the key and lock disappeared with a sparkly flash, raising the bars and making the door accessible.

"Yes!" he cheered. "Now let's see what's behind here…" Tay treaded carefully as he entered, bracing himself for what other unscrupulous dangers may have greeted him in this forsaken underground labyrinth. As he approached, however, he began to hear a mechanical humming sound that grew louder with the deeper he explored the long, empty tunnel. Eventually, he reached the end to be greeted with five Tinkerbats wielding scimitars, who appeared to be guarding some strange, colossally-sized contraption. The logo on the device read 'Tinker-Stormer.'

"I already know this must mean trouble…" Tay remarked as he approached. "I'd elect t' guess that anything with the word 'Tinker' in it must be related t' Risky Boots… and therefore, must be destroyed," he surmised, reaching into his utility belt and pulling out his pistol. "Freeze!" He called to the Tinkerbats as they guarded the machine. The serviceman pointed his weapon at the mischievous minions, intent on clearing them out of his path. "Stand down or taste hot steel!" he commanded, giving Risky's subordinates a chance to walk away.

The Tinkerbats, immediately on high-alert due to the intrusion of the ethereal soldier, charged at him at once. Tay, acknowledging the wondrous advantage of bringing a gun to a sword fight, fired a round, which immediately sent a Tinkerbat barreling away in the air as the others approached undeterred. His hand forced, Tay fired two more shots, vanquishing two more Tinkerbats. One of them dropped a peculiar item upon its defeat. The remaining two pirate partners stopped in their tracks, seeming to question whether it was worth it to approach a man with a gun firing from a safe distance while armed with only swords.

"Last warnin'. Y'all two gonna give up an' leave or do y'all need another persuasive hint?" Tay asked, ready to shoot if the need persisted. The humanoid rodent minions shared a brief trade of looks with one another before simultaneously turning their gaze back to their enemy. "…Well?" Tay prodded, waiting for an answer. The Tinkerbats, in an alarming show of surrender, callously tossed their scimitars aside, shocking the soldier almost as greatly as when he was struck by lightning. One of the Tinkerbats shrugged its shoulders as though to communicate that it no longer cared what happened to the machine. It emphasized this by gesturing toward it, communicating that Tay could go ahead and do whatever he wanted to the mysterious mechanism. The other Tinkerbat looked at the device and gave a dismissive flick of its hand toward it, after which both disgruntled (presumably former) minions shook their heads and walked past Tay without further acknowledging him.

"Hm?" Understandably confused, he looked around to see if maybe there was a trap or something that would help him figure out why the Tinkerbats just quit their jobs instead of fighting to the bitter, albeit one-sided end. He took a glance behind himself to see that the Tinkerbats were long gone. "Huh… Morale must be pretty low if they just gave up like that. I wonder how Risky Boots treats her soldiers…" he pondered, picturing what would happen to those Tinkerbats if Risky recognized them (provided, they all looked the same) and found out they quit doing what she told them to. Tay drummed up a wide range of possibilities as to Risky's methods of punishment for crimes like desertion… and most of his ideas were too gruesome and appallingly vicious to describe here. Use your imagination. In other news, he noticed the item one of the Tinkerbats dropped upon its defeat. Tay inspected it to see that it was a bright, chalky red pistol.

"A Flare Gun?" Tay muttered in wonder, astonished that a Tinkerbat would have one. "No doubt a part o' the collection of equipment she stole… Didn't think she got into the safety an' survival supplies, too… More reason t' get that stuff back," he further contemplated as he got Flare Gun and noted that it was pre-loaded with a single flare. "This might come in handy should I get separated like this again. Better let Shantae know as soon as we regroup," he asserted, though the mere mention of his partner's name sent a sudden, enormous wave of dread through his very core. "What…? Why do I feel… like I really need t' hurry up an' get over t' her…?" he asked himself as he clutched his stomach with a hand. He took a moment to try and understand this sudden sense of incredible anxiety he'd been feeling, though he couldn't rightly put his finger on why he was suddenly so worried about her. The ominous sensation in his gut twisted and flipped his stomach like a breaded pastry as he grew tenser by the moment. "Huh… It's one thing bein' stuck in this maze, but I feel like she's in a lot o' trouble… More than I am… I hope she's alright," he further pondered, though the enigmatic pressure was on. With that, Tayshan hurriedly put the Flare Gun away and turned his attention toward his next target.

"That just leaves me with this…" Tay trailed off, forgetting the name of the machine. He inspected it closer to remember that it was branded as the 'Tinker-Stormer.' "…horribly-named device," he finished as he sheathed his pistol and pulled out a grenade. "Just a matter o' where t' jam this grenade t' make sure this machine gets blown t' scrap. Hmm…" Tay studied the structure of the machine. It was huge in size and seemed to have few openings bearing a shape similar to a giant gray metal jelly jar with goat horns sticking up and away from one another. He took note of the fact that it was hooked up through the ceiling, possibly poking through to the surface. He walked around the device to find out if there were any openings anywhere. Eventually, he came across what appeared to be an air vent in the back of the device. However, the vent was gated, preventing anything but air from coming through.

"No-go on the air vent," he muttered, continuing his study of the Tinker-Stormer. He looked the contraption up and down, circling it several times before stopping, uncertain of where to place the grenade. "Hm. I could try blowin' it up by leavin' a grenade or two out near it, but I'd be puttin' myself at risk if I couldn't get away fast enough. Plus, two grenades would equal double the chance I'd swiss cheese myself with hot shrapnel. Definitely don't want that," Tay pondered, taking a few steps back to further examine the shape of the mechanism before noticing what looked like a funnel-shaped opening at the top in between the horn-vents. "Up there." Tay, uncertain of whether this could be the option he was looking for, decided to test the opening by effortlessly lobbing the piece of candle he'd previously used to mark the doorways into it. The broken candle piece found its way in through the top of the machine, where it could be faintly heard tapping against the inner walls of the machine as it landed deep inside.

"Made it on the first try. Neat. That was a lucky throw, but that's all the confirmation I need," Tay nodded with confidence as he readied the grenade. "I've only got one shot at this thing with zero room for error, though…" The soldier took a deep breath to calm his nerves, understanding that missing his mark could potentially spell his end if the grenade landed anywhere outside the machine with him near it. The room he was standing in was wide and open, providing no coverage or protection options. It certainly didn't help that there was a possibility of the grenade's debris bouncing off the walls like his bullets, which would put the underprepared serviceman in more imminent danger if he missed. Simply put, if he did not land the soon-to-be-live grenade where he needed it to be, Tay could kiss his butt goodbye unless he ran away with the speed of an anthropomorphic, chili dog-loving, mach speed-traveling needle mouse with an attitude.

Tay steadied his left index finger on the pin as he clutched the explosive device with his right hand, his fingers wrapping around it for dear life as he held it close to his chest. He took a moment to focus, taking deep, coordinated breaths as he locked his eyes on his target. "Here goes… One… Two… THREE!" With that three-count, Tay put his plan into action. He ripped the pin out of the grenade with a *tink*, but he squeezed the lever to keep the explosive from activating right away. He steadied himself as his heart began pounding like a rock band drummer in his chest. His palms became sweaty as he took another deep breath and assumed a position where he was standing upright, his left arm extended outward toward the Tinker-Stormer as his throwing arm was cocked behind him.

After another moment of hesitation, things seemed to freeze once again as he felt that same familiar tingling sensation coursing through his body once more. In that moment, Tay grew to realize that his body must've been channeling some of the magic inside him to aid him. While not exactly knowing how to control this sensation or how to activate it at will, he took the opportunity as it came. As he stared intently at the top of the Tinker-Stormer, he swore he could see a faint, transparent curved yellow line that arched starting at the current position of the grenade and ended somewhere behind the machine.

Instinctively, he adjusted his aim, repositioning himself until eventually, he found just the trajectory he needed to sink his miracle shot. Panic just about ready to set in and with no time to consider what was happening, Tay trusted his judgment. "Now or never… Frag out!" And with a burst of nervous energy, he lobbed the grenade. The instant the explosive left his hand, he clenched both his fists, hoping for dear life that it made its mark. To the anxious young adventurer-in-training, watching the tiny green pineapple-shaped weapon soar through the air felt like watching a game-changing, buzzer-beating basketball shot from half-court in slow motion. Could you tell I studied up on my sports a little bit since last time I made such a comparison? Because I did. Anyway, seconds passed like hours, with each one being a cruel, tantalizing reminder of what might happen if that grenade did not make it into that hole.

Thankfully, Tay's luck kicked in (or his under-explored magic, in this case), as the grenade collided with the inner wall of the Tinker-Stormer's top funnel with a *CLANK* before sinking in. Needing to see no more and well… also needing to clear out of there as fast as he could before that machine exploded with him right in front of it, Tay made a desperate mad dash back through the tunnel, holding his ears for fear that the impending victory noise would rupture his eardrums. Before he could get all the way through, however, a deafening *KABOOOOOOOOOOOOM* ripped through the entirety of the dungeon, forcing Tay to dive to the ground, squeezing his eyes and ears shut as bits and pieces of the machine ricocheted down the hallway.

Shards of metal narrowly missed the soldier as he lay prone on the corridor's floor and continued covering himself, though he could barely hear a thing. His hands proved ineffective as earmuffs, as the blast was still loud enough that it caused his ears to ring like clocktower bells. The intense rumbling coursing through the labyrinth further disoriented him, though he was too frightened by the explosion itself to pay full attention to it. Even after the rumble had subsided, the ringing in his ears continued to be the only sound he could hear as he remained on the ground. This unfortunate side effect of blowing up a giant machine in an enclosed space lasted for several minutes before his hearing slowly, but surely returned. Deeming this as a sign that the coast was clear, he brought himself to his feet and uncovered his ears.

"Whew…" he let loose a much-deserved sigh of relief, thanking the high heavens that the deed was done. "I wouldn't be surprised if all o' Sequin Land heard that… I'm also glad this cooridor's so narrow," he added, looking around to notice the bits of shrapnel scattered throughout the hallway before looking at himself to see that he'd indeed made it out unscathed. "That might just be the only reason I ain't a pile o' bones an' metal right about now, though it does a real number on the ears… That sounded like it did the trick, no less, but I better go back an' confirm." With that thought, Tay carefully treaded back to the room harboring the Tinker-Stormer to see that, in place of the machine was a fiery pit of burnt, twisted metal with smoke billowing profusely from it. He nodded in satisfaction as he covered his mouth and nose to keep from breathing in the noxious fumes. He took one quick look around and noticed another key floating near the wreckage. Quickly, Tay rushed in while ducking low to grab the key before the smoke and rising heat incapacitated him. He dashed out of the room once the key item (no pun intended) was procured, bulleting down the tunnel and eventually reaching the nexus once more.

"Finally! I hope to whatever supernatural force brought me here that this key is the one that gets me out o' this ice-cold underground prison. PLEASE be it!" Tay cheered in a mix of desperation and excitement as he approached the lone locked nexus door to try the key.

Now then, as promised, we change focus just one more time…

 ** _Just a TAD earlier, back on the surface…_**

"Whoa, you've gotta be kidding!" Shantae remarked in surprise, though her voice was rather weak and raspy. "So over the course of the last few days, Risky Boots tricked you into taking a Dark Magic-infused blood ruby to turn you evil while also manipulating you into allowing her to build a lightning storm generator in your bunker?" she further summarized after hearing Al's plight as she sat with a bright yellow-and-turquoise, polka-dotted blanket wrapped around her and a sunset orange-colored mug filled with hot tea in her hands. She had still been suffering from the effects of Al's venom, but as he promised her, the deterrent he administered did its job of temporarily lessening the intensity of its effects.

"To put it succinctly, yes," Al confirmed the sickly girl's summary. "She told me that the gem was the only one of its kind; a priceless Relic that I could use to expand the horizons of my knowledge and magical ability while also making a boisterous fashion statement. The instant I wove the gem into my turban, I completely lost control of myself. I only remember vague glimpses, though… I remember trying to sting her in a fit of rage… her army of little bandana-wearing stick figure creatures overwhelming me… her forcing me to give her the antidote despite her not needing it… and then her running off without another word… after that, it all gets so foggy between Alea's visit, your arrival, our battle, and the moment I came to after the fight was over… Again, I simply cannot apologize enough for this…"

"It's fine, Al, really. It wasn't your fault. You had no way to know Risky would use you the way she typically uses people for her own gain. Speaking of which, that gem corrupted you, from the sound of it. It's a good thing I destroyed it. Do you remember anything about your daughter, in that case? Other than the last time you saw her?"

"I… remember enough to know she deserves a most heartfelt apology," he solemnly admitted. "Why do you ask?"

"She's part of the reason I'm here," Shantae explained. "She told me about the falling out you two had where you kicked her out while she was visiting you, but from the sound of it, that gem was the reason you lashed out at her. She wanted me to see if you'd be open to talking to her again. She's worried about you," she informed him, much to his dismay.

"Oh, dear me! My beloved daughter Aleaqarab!" Al cried out in guilt. "I can't even fathom ever doing anything to harm my own flesh and blood, and yet here we are… All thanks to that accursed ruby…! Oh dear, is she okay? Is she upset with me?"

"No, no, she wasn't mad. She said you weren't yourself when she visited and that she wanted to see you again if I could help you two reconnect. She just chose not to come with me because she was afraid of how you'd react to seeing her again. She said she'd be back here pretty soon, though. I'm not sure when, but she wants to see you, Al."

"By the stars, thank you for stepping in, Shantae!" he cheered, though he was still wracked with remorse for everything he'd done while under the gem's control. "I must make it a point to see my little girl again and clear up this whole mess… I've much atoning to do for my reprehensible behavior…"

"I'm sure she'll understand, Al. She's a nice girl, and I can tell she still loves you despite what happened."

"Oh, how much that means to me, dear… Thank you for your kind words…" he praised, clutching his chest with his hands as he sighed with regret.

"Of course," Shantae acknowledged, though the scorpion man's worry about his child almost mirrored her own regarding her protégé. Once she was reminded, a pit formed in her stomach regarding her missing comrade as she filled with dread. "N-not to be so sudden with the subject change, but… about your bunker… or, the Carnivorous Catacombs… Is what you said about it really true?" she asked, still very much concerned for Tay's safety.

"Carnivorous…?" he pondered before remembering what she meant. "Oh! Right… Amongst other things, that despicable gem made me suffer a great litany of delusions about my home, my bunker, and even my intentions for travelers had they lost their way and found themselves here. I assure you, I have never eaten a human being. I am a vegetarian, the farthest thing from a cannibal. That storm bunker is strictly for emergencies like the sandstorms and lightning storms that used to only occasionally strike the Kitschy Quilt Desert… or, it was," he revealed, prompting Shantae to breathe a heavy, HEAVY sigh of pure relief as some of her pervading nervousness washed away.

"That's good to hear… Seriously, thank the stars that those statements you made weren't true…" she remarked, doing nothing to hide her happiness at the idea that her partner wasn't in danger.

"There are no prisoners, refugees, or hostages down there, though I have been struggling with a serious monster infestation the likes of which I couldn't even fathom… Plus, that troublesome pirate remodeled it into an abysmal labyrinth full of complicated puzzles and deathtraps, which was far from part of the agreement she struck with me. Unfortunately, it's for those very reasons that I would not rejoice your friend's safety just yet. If it weren't for our current situation, I'd have gone down there to fetch him myself."

"Oh…" she moaned with worry, her reprieve turned right back into near-debilitating anxiety as she tried her hardest to fathom the danger Tay was really in.

"Alas, I didn't find out what that pirate did to my basement until just before she 'paid' me for my cooperation with that ruby. I was so perturbed by her constant alterations to our agreement, and I should've stood my ground when I had the chance, but she spun her web of deceit so well…"

"What exactly was it that she told you she'd do to even gain access to your bunker?"

"Hmm…" Al took a few seconds to ponder before he spoke. "I… I remember casually mentioning I had a bunker during a conversation about nothing in particular… I gave her a quick tour of it, after which she… she offered to 'take care of my monster problem' in exchange for being allowed to make a few minor adjustments to improve its quality and stability. And… and when I asked what she meant, she threatened to separate my scorpion half from my human half if I ever doubted her word… After her remodeling job, she showed me her 'work.' I objected to it, of course, since she not only refused to get rid of the monsters, she also completely sullied my storm bunker beyond recognition and snuck in that horrible storm generator. She assured me that the problems would 'take care of themselves,' to which I eventually agreed, based on how she worded her statement. That… that was when she handed me that faulty jewel. Suffice to say, she is one incredibly intimidating and manipulative woman…"

"Yeah, she is… I'm so sorry she roped you into this mess, Al…"

"There will never be a need for you to apologize on her behalf, I assure you," he firmly stated, never wanting Shantae to be the one to blame. "However, what's done is done… Now, I can't even use my bunker for its intended purposes anymore," he lamented with a sigh.

"I can't imagine what she'd do all that for… Though, that sounds like it'd be right up my alley if I went down there," she theorized, making the connection that maybe the Siren of Suffering herself had set up an elaborate series of traps across the Kitschy Quilt Desert specifically designed for her… even going as far as to dispose of Al's antidote to bank on her getting stung and infected with no way to recover. Risky certainly was a truly incorrigible individual to the rotten core, that's for sure.

"As an adventurer, I suppose it would indeed be part of your job to explore," Al surmised, though he did not make the same connection Shantae did. "Still, since that pirate came and installed that weather contraption in my bunker, the weather here has been a days-long, nonstop sandstorm mixed with perilous dry lightning that never stops striking. The sand on the ground out there isn't even the right texture! There certainly should not be quicksand over almost every square inch of this land, nor should there be those atrocious dunes just outside my library, excluding the ones I crafted the detour around. It's utter pandemonium out there! I haven't been able to leave this library without fear of getting caught in the thunderstorm out there… I mean, my species has the ability to tread along quicksand without fear of sinking, but the thunderstorms… I am far from capable of handling thunderstorms when they almost never naturally happen here."

"Wow… Risky really swindled you out of your peaceful lifestyle inside and out. I'm sorry, Al."

"As I stated earlier, it isn't your fault, Shantae. It was that marauding pirate woman, spinning her lies like silk and-!" as Al attributed his recent misfortunes to a certain trouble-making deranged pirate woman, a distant *BOOOOOM* echoed through the atmosphere, causing an unexpected series of quakes and rumbles that, while mild and lasting just a few seconds, alarmed both Shantae and Al. "My word… That was a colossal tremor…"

"What was that?" Shantae asked, unclear on what could've caused such a ruckus. "Was that another lightning strike?"

"It couldn't be… A lightning strike is far from capable of causing the very earth beneath us to vibrate in such a manner. That was more like a prelude to an earthquake," Al theorized.

"Earthquake?" Shantae nearly jumped in shock, causing a jolt of sharp pain to shoot through her entire body. "Oww…"

"Careful, Shantae… You shouldn't move too suddenly in your condition."

"Tayshan…" she muttered in concern, letting her blanket fall off of her shoulders as she set the tea mug down and began wringing her aching hands.

"Oh dear… It appears your condition has worsened to a point where you can't even remember your own name," Al worriedly assumed.

"No, no… Tayshan is my friend; the one I was telling you about that got stuck in your storm shelter earlier. If there's an earthquake coming, I'm afraid he might get hurt while he's underground…"

"Oh, my… Maybe I should go and locate him, then. My storm bunker isn't prepared to handle the intense rumbles of an earthquake in the least. Though, it would be far from wise to leave your side while you're sick…"

"It's… it's okay, Al. I'll be okay for now," Shantae assured her host with a wan smile and delirious nod of her head as she leaned back against the wall she'd been sitting near. "Tay needs your help much more than I do right now, if what you told me about the monsters and traps in your bunker is right… Plus, if an earthquake is coming, I'd want him to be aboveground for it."

"I know, but I feel just awful having done this to you… It would pain me more to leave you and come back with you possibly getting sicker or worse due to the deterrent wearing off… There isn't much time left before that happens…"

"It's okay, Al. I'll…" Shantae trailed off, wincing in pain as her head started to pound like a sledgehammer on concrete. "I can take care of myself while you're gone. Just be quick with finding him… please. I'm worried about him…"

"…You have my word," Al assured as he picked himself up to limp toward one of his emptied-out bookcases when it suddenly split in half and opened on its own, revealing a secret entrance. Standing in said entrance was a young, ragged man wearing camouflage pants who was matted with a mix of sweat and spatters of a thick, oily, very dark purple liquid all over his clothes and arms.

"Whew, what a nightmare…" the seemingly-lost young man stated through a relieved sigh as he entered the library. "If I never had t' sweep through another horrifyin' sewer maze full o' monsters again, it'd still be too soon…" he complained as he surveyed his surroundings to figure out where he ended up.

"Tay! You're… you're alive!" Shantae called over, her voice still scratchy and weak. Tay immediately recognized his partner's voice and directed his attention toward her to see that she'd looked pale, disoriented, and in severe pain.

"Shantae!" He yelled in horror, fearing the worst as it appeared his premonition had come true. "Aw, I knew somethin' was wrong…!" he murmured as he prepared to rush over to her. Before he could ask what happened to her however, he finally caught sight of the shirtless scorpion-man hybrid and, upon further inspection of the disheveled library and the scratches all over the aforementioned hybrid, drew a conclusion… as well as his gun as he approached with vicious hostility in his every move. "Get away from her! Now!" he ordered with a furious roar as he practically stomped his way to his ailing comrade. Al, immediately alarmed by Tay's vitriolic approach, backed away and put his hands up.

"Please, sir, don't shoot!" Al pleaded, understanding right away that Tay recognized the situation as dangerous. "I-I was merely trying to help this poor girl here, and-!"

"An' that's where you made your first an' last mistake!" Tay interrupted as he kept his gun pointed at Al, though he kept his distance. Al, uncertain of how to quell this young gunslinger's anger, pacifically backed away, giving him space to tend to the sick young woman. "Unless you're sayin' you didn't do this to her?"

"W-well… I-I wasn't in the right state of mind…" Al admitted, the dejection in his tone evident. His admission of guilt did nothing to soothe his newest enemy's rage, as Tay cocked his pistol, ready to neutralize his target at a moment's glance.

"Then you better hope you're fast enough t' dodge me from where you are…!" he growled, his vindictive wrath burning like the remains of that contraption he destroyed as he aimed squarely at Al's head. It was certain that the infuriated serviceman meant business. "…'Cuz I got you in my sights, an' I don't plan on missin'! Ya hear me!? You're de-!"

"Tay, stop…!" Shantae called out, gaining her sidekick's attention. "He was tricked into poisoning me," she hurriedly explained through the thresholds of physical agony that plagued her with gradually-increasing severity. "Risky Boots… put a mind-controlling gem on him. Al and I fought already and, even though I got stung, I destroyed the blood ruby that made him evil. He's not going to hurt us…"

"She speaks the truth, sir," Al corroborated as he kept his hands high. "I was not in control of my actions and I apologize profusely for all the inconvenience I caused you both. I assure you that after she defeated me, I was assisting her by slowing down the symptoms of the poison and tending to her while she is ill." Hearing this was enough to make Tay momentarily consider the situation as he saw it and contemplate the ailing young woman's words in conjunction with the injured scorpion man's. Eventually, Tay lowered his weapon and took a deep breath to collect himself.

"How… did all that happen?" he queried, looking at both Al and Shantae for answers.

"It is… a long story that I'm certain you will be informed on once we figure out what to do for Shantae here. She is in a great deal of pain, and I don't have an antidote for the venom I infected her with… At this point, we are uncertain of what to do other than scour the bunker you just emerged from in hopes of finding the one and only vial of antivenom lost down there."

"Antivenom that was left down in the…?" Tay murmured, seeming to remember something from when he was spelunking in the bunker. "Oh! I found somethin' labeled 'antidote,' as a matter of fact," he realized, hastily pulling out the Venom Antidote he found in the bunker formerly known as the Carnivorous Catacombs. "Is this it?"

"Yes!" Al cheered in a mix of relief and excitement that Shantae shared as she breathed a sigh of hope. "That is the exact portion of antidote I lost in the storm bunker! Tell me, young man, where did you find that?"

"It was on one o' the many monsters I wiped out when I was down there. It dropped it as soon as I beat it," he answered as he knelt before Shantae and studied the instructions on the back of the bottle. "Is it too late t' use it, though? She looks like she's been sick for hours…"

"No, you actually showed up at the perfect time," Al assured. "It's just… we do not have much more time to work with before her symptoms worsen, and that antidote is incredibly sensitive in how it's administered. Before you open that vial, please allow me to explain," Al requested, stopping Tay just as his fingers touched the cork he was about to pull.

"What's the catch on usin' this?" he asked as he froze.

"The antidote cannot be exposed to open air at all; not even for a full second, or else the active ingredient in it will be nullified by the raw oxygen in the atmosphere." This was enough to scare Tay into removing his hand from the cork in realization that he almost made an apparent fatal mistake.

"That's good t' know…" he remarked with a pressured exhale. "What else?"

"The antidote must be applied directly to the victim's wound orally, and for no less than thirty seconds to allow its contents to enter the wound and chase down the metabolic toxins in the venom and eradicate them." Tay nodded with perplexity, though Shantae's reaction to this news was less enthusiastic. Her eyes widened like camera lenses and her heart skipped a beat at the instruction. "Additionally, at least ninety percent of the antidote must be administered in one sitting for it to completely cure her of my venom."

"Oh, no…!" she murmured in a whisper, instantly remembering a certain piece of a certain conversation she and Tay took part in just the day before. "Applied directly… Orally…?" The flustered maiden nervously repeated in a hushed mumble, suddenly filled with extreme apprehension.

"This is awfully specific, not t' mention unusual for an antidote. How come it can't be injected as a shot instead? Most naturally-occurin' venoms I'm aware of have t' have a specialized cure injected into the bloodstream within, at most, a half-hour for the effects t' kick in."

"That, my friend, depends on the type of venom a person was infected with, as well as the severity of an individual's exposure to it. That and other contributing factors," Al countered. "Some require intravenous shots, some do not. I would not use this antidote to treat venom from a snake bite or wasp sting, for example."

"True…"

"My venom works very differently from a normal scorpion's. It's much more dangerous to humans, but it's at least significantly easier to treat immediately in a multitude of ways. However little it matters, I can actually use my own venom as a cure for its effects, so long as I have access to the multiple other rare ingredients. In case you were wondering, my venom is generally only harmful when it's injected directly into the bloodstream. It is perfectly safe to be ingested, which is why I concocted this antidote in the unlikely case that a situation like this would arise; despite the caveats to it, of course. It may also do you wonders to know that, once someone is infected and cured, they become immune to venom from anyone of my species, no matter who delivers a subsequent sting. As far as my research has shown me, they also become immune to regular scorpion venom."

"Wow…" Shantae droned in awe, gaining at least a little bit of hope in learning that she'd be kinda-sorta gaining a new ability in the form of becoming immune to scorpion stings, though the conditions of her obtaining this 'power-up' haunted her to no end.

"Goodness, there's a lot t' gain an' t' lose from all this, ain't there…?" Tay asked, equally as amazed as his poisoned team leader.

"Absolutely. Enough prattle, though. Shantae needs our help."

"Right, got it, got it…" Tay nodded in understanding as he turned his attention to the bottle to read the instructions. "So it says right here…" he began aloud. "Step One: Remove the cork and pour directly into mouth immediately, with a footnote next to it. Step Two: With mouth tightly closed, swish antidote for fifteen seconds or until the antidote begins to fizzle like a carbonated beverage. Step Three: Apply directly from the mouth to the victim's wound and hold position for at least thirty seconds. Antidote will ostensibly dissolve upon contact with the venom's entry point. There's a footnote on that one, too. Step Four: Inspect victim's condition for improvement. If none is seen within ten seconds, repeat steps one through three… Huh… and the first footnote says don't let the antidote come into extended contact with open air at any time. The second one says don't stop applying the antidote until it has completely dissolved. Alright…"

"As I warned, this antidote is very sensitive, and that vial is the only one I have left. Please be careful if you are the one to administer it, sir."

"You got it. It's basically like an extended version o' kissin' a boo-boo as a medical treatment," he acknowledged, thought the very notion sent a disturbing rush of dread through his stomach, considering what happened the last time he kissed someone's boo-boo. "Not too hard t' understand," he naively assured with a thumbs-up before turning to Shantae, who'd been frozen in contemplative shock. "Okay, where's the wound?" Tay asked his ailing partner, who was shaken out of an apparent trance as her widened eyes met his.

"U-um…" she stammered, hesitating to deliver very important information.

"Well? Do you know where you got stung?"

"I uh… I-I… Hey, Al?" the unusually-timid half-genie addressed the resident librarian, unintentionally ignoring her partner. "Is it… is it possible for a person to um… to use the antidote on themselves?"

"No, sadly. Someone else's saliva must be the catalyst that activates the reaction necessary for the antidote to work. It's a very strange condition, I will admit, but after numerous tests, that is the only way I was ever able to get it to work. It could have something to do with the venom itself immediately becoming familiar with your DNA and as such, becoming resistant to your immune response and any self-administered treatment using this antidote," he theorized. "It begs the question, but the fact is, the antidote will only be effective if someone else treats you with it."

"O-oh…" she despondently acknowledged, her gaze falling toward the ground as she nervously stroked her arm. "Super…"

"What's the matter?" Tay asked, unsettled by her sudden apprehension. "Is there somethin' you feel uncomfortable with? We can work through it, so long as you get fixed up," he assured, gently laying a hand on her shoulder to emphasize his statement. She looked into his eyes to see that he meant it. "No matter what, the most important thing is that you're taken care of. If you don't trust me t' give you this antidote, then please say so."

"Well… I do trust you, Tay," she nervously began, though the agonizing, pulsating pain coursing through her body became harder to ignore. "I trust you… It's just… the wound is… It's in… um…" she stammered again, unable to share what was beginning to sound like a secret kept in a diary.

"Oh, I get it. The wound's in a weird place, right?" Tay surmised, understanding her discomfort without further need for her to confirm it. Nonetheless, she merely nodded. "Got it. Hey, uh… Al, was it?" he addressed the antidote's creator.

"Yes?"

"Do you remember where you might have stung Shantae when y'all fought?"

"I… I do not, unfortunately," he confessed. "My memory of the whole battle is quite foggy. I hardly even remember how I inflicted the sting. I only remember having done it." At this, Shantae lowered her head in disappointment and embarrassment.

"Copy that," Tay acknowledged, focusing on Shantae once more. "If he can't tell me, Shantae, then you'll have to. We don't have time for guessin' games, either. Just let me know where it is so we can get this done. I promise I won't overreact, no matter where it is. I'll still give you the antidote without question, okay?"

"O-okay…" Shantae sheepishly agreed, shooting her partner a worried, blushing look. Slowly, but surely, Shantae lifted a finger to touch the spot where Al had stung her; directly in the middle of her lower lip. Tay's eyebrows instinctively shot upward into his hairline as his face became hot with the same embarrassment Shantae had been exhibiting. His stomach erupted with insurmountable angst as he processed just what he signed up for.

"…Of course…" Tay heavily sighed with closed eyes as he threw his head upward, already at risk for losing his nerve. He tried his hardest not to expect Shantae's lip to be the very-unusual-yet-very-obvious afflicted area, thereby exemplifying his unbelievable naïvete as he continued hanging his head back while his eyes were closed. A staggering silence washed over the library that lasted for many intense, awkward seconds before anyone gathered up the courage to say anything on the matter.

"I… I know how you feel, Tay…" Shantae tried to console, feeling every bit as uncomfortable as he did. Although, he did not immediately give a reply. "Uh… It's… a little bit inconvenient, right…?" she added. Just as she made her comment, however, Tay momentarily turned toward Al, his embarrassment shining through his blank facial expression.

"All the places for you t' sting her, an' you chose THERE, Al? Really? You could've at least tried t' aim for an arm or a leg."

"Err…" Al stumbled, having no words for the situation at hand following Tay's brash remark.

"Tayshan!" Shantae chided, finding no humor in his remark.

"Alright, alright, I get it. Not funny," he hurriedly acknowledged, understanding the poor timing of his comment. "That said, I now wonder if I should've made that comparison about this bein' like kissin' another boo-boo…" he added, dreading it even more as he prepared himself both mentally and physically; a process that included a LOT of internal panicking, to say the least.

"Well… It still isn't far from that," Al affirmed with a pensive nod. "After all, it's love that brings and sustains life, is it not?" At this, both Shantae and Tayshan cocked their eyebrows as they simultaneously stared at him.

"Uhh…" Tay droned, at an utter loss for words at the implication.

"Let's just do this before I pass out from the awkwardness alone, please," Shantae ordered, her patience wearing thin as her nervousness, in conjunction with the aches all across her body, grew.

"You ain't gotta tell me twice," Tayshan agreed, ready to try and at least make the procedure as quick and painless as possible. With that, Tay took one more breath to prepare himself as he lifted the bottle near his mouth, his right thumb and index finger resting on the cork. After yet another deep breath and a mental three-count, Tay swiftly removed the cork with a *pop* and wrapped his lips around the neck of the bottle, hastily dumping the glowing blue liquid into his mouth. He nearly gagged as his cheeks puffed out, the antidote evidently having a pretty foul taste to it. Nonetheless, the soldier valiantly swished the liquid, keeping his lips tightly shut like they were bound by rubber bands. As described on the container, the antidote eventually began crackling and bubbling in the serviceman's mouth, almost making him gag once more.

"Whatever you do, do not spit the antidote out," Al warned as he watched on in suspense, gnawing on his knuckle as he held his arms close to his chest.

"Mm-hmm," Tay affirmed with a muffled grunt and a nod. He took one more deep breath through his nose (or at least, he tried before realizing that, for multiple reasons, he basically had no room to breathe) as his heart pumped like bowling balls being thrown at his chest. He very slowly (read: hastily) leaned over toward Shantae, who instinctively craned her head backward, the back of her head pressing against the wall as Tayshan attempted to close the distance before he lost his breath. She hadn't been prepared for anything like this. It was one thing that she'd been poisoned. It was another thing that the very person who poisoned her had a change of heart at the drop of a hat and yet, almost didn't have an antidote with which to cure her. Having to KISS someone; especially her newest friend, to receive the cure? There wasn't an ice cream cone's chance in a hungry child's hands on a scorching summer day that she could've anticipated this.

She'd read about this sort of situation before, as similar events occurred in some of her comics. It always seemed so romantic, so passionate, so… spur-of-the-moment, no matter the circumstance when one hero has to either perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on or simply kiss a love interest or another hero to revive them. Sadly, this was no comic. This was really happening. And it was really awkward. Like, pants-falling-down-in-the-middle-of-Scuttle-Town awkward. Or, like ultra-belching-in-the-middle-of-a-public-speech awkward. Super awkward. All of the awkward. There was no romance here to speak of, so far as she saw it. It was two platonic friends who'd met through random chance and had only been around each other a notably short time, being forced to kiss each other because of a series of unfortunate events involving a deadly combination of desert shenanigans, inclement weather, scorpion venom, and Risky Boots. Shantae's thoughts raced as quickly as her heart as she squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for impact.

However, instead of feeling her friend's lips touching hers, she felt fingers gently pressing to her cheek, causing her to reopen her eyes to see her friend shooting her an incredibly-worried look. As her eyes locked with his, he hummed a despondent "Hmm-hmm," communicating that he was aware of her sheer discomfort as he hesitated, his own nerves getting the better of him as he slowly moved back to create space between them. Shantae stared into his eyes and saw something… something that helped her calm down… even if only a little. Through simply reading his face, she became aware that he was willing to make a huge sacrifice to save her, just like he'd mentioned previously. She understood that he certainly didn't want to do this either, but that he pretty much had no choice; he simply wanted—no, NEEDED to help her.

She realized that, so long as they were willing to work together, then… then maybe it was kind of silly to freak out over a simple kiss that, when she thought about it, technically wasn't even a kiss. It was a… a medical procedure that needed to be done. Like getting a shot from the doctor; it's not the most welcome experience, but once it's over, it's done with, and one would be that much healthier after the fact. She sighed away some of her nervousness, momentarily looking away in thought before looking back at him.

"Look, it's not like you… like WE wanted this to happen. Neither of us could've expected this at all. This isn't your fault, Tay, and I know you're trying to help," she reasoned, knowing that this was not going according to plan, but that something had to give. A series of sudden muscle spasms caused her to wince in horrible agony as the deterrent she drank earlier finally wore off. "…I need this much more than I need to be worrying about it being my… first… kiss…" she mutedly admitted, blushing with a contemplative frown. The nervous half-genie gulped and rubbed the back of her neck as the air became thick with suspense. "…So… no more stalling… come here…" she quietly requested, reaching her hand toward Tay and resting it on the back of his head as she leaned forward through waves of physical torment. She found herself almost nose-to-nose with her sidekick, her heartbeat quickening to the pace of a thousand rabbits scurrying through an open field as her eyes remained locked on his.

Being this close to a boy, no matter the circumstance, threw poor Shantae for more loops than a circus act. She had no real-life experience with this sort of thing. Every intake of air caught in her throat like she'd been breathing into an over-inflated balloon. Her stomach was doing flips like a hundred pancakes being tossed in one giant skillet. As her eyes remained fixed on Tay's, the thought of her having to… touch lips with him became the only thought in her mind; that thought froze her in place almost entirely, as she found herself completely unable to move forward. She mentally screamed at herself to get it over with, but her body refused to obey. She was petrified. From there, she began to rationalize in an attempt to make the overwhelming suspense bearable.

She had to admit, he WAS what she considered 'attractive' in terms of her largely-unexplored taste in boys, which made the moment a little less awkward for her. Granted, she'd never thought about kissing him, but he had a special sort of… charming appeal that helped her feel slightly less terrified. Plus, he was determined to help her, which she grew to respect about her sidekick. It also helped that by this point, they were very, VERY familiar with each other as people, having literally walked a mile in each other's shoes at one point. In addition, their conversations and hang-outs, as well as their cooperation in their quests up to this point broke down many of the walls between them, so to speak. The unnerved maiden found some comfort in having a trusted friend help her in a time of dire need, but… she just wasn't certain of what to think about engaging in such a racy, intimate act as kissing her friend, no matter how she tried looking at it. She'd almost been distracted by the butterflies in her stomach resultant of her and Tay being so close together in conjunction with her rampant thoughts, were it not for her starting to lose her coordination as the venom began taking its toll once more.

Tay, sharing his friend's nervousness, found himself practically frozen like he'd been submerged in an arctic lake as his eyes went wide with shock being this close to a girl he'd only known for about a week. He knew the circumstances of this emergency. He knew that he had to do it to save his friend from certain doom. He knew that there was no turning back, as the very substance that would save his friend was fizzing in his mouth like pop rocks and spitting it out (or, as far as he knew, even breathing wrong) would ruin everything. However, he was not prepared in the least to have to perform mouth-to-mouth on his friend to save her.

This wasn't some ridiculous fairytale where a knight in shining armor kisses a sleeping princess after rescuing her from a monster. It was real life… or, as real as life could conceivably get for him at this point. They'd already been over how they shared no romantic feelings toward one another, but being so close to someone he'd already admitted was so pretty and to whom he had become such aa close, invaluable friend… It blurred the boundary line, to say the least. He'd never done this before in his life, and this was far from the best time to start; provided there ever WAS a good time to start. He, too, flashed back to what he'd said about going as far as kissing his allies if it meant saving them. Whether he meant it or not, he never thought he'd live to see the day (a LITERAL DAY LATER, no less) he'd have to make good on his promise. His thoughts raced about how they would come away from this. Would something change about their friendship? Would it possibly mean they couldn't hang out anymore? Would it affect how they worked together in the long run?

His train of thought, of course, was stopped dead in its tracks by the fact that he had to cure her poisoning and that this was necessary for survival, not personal interests. He noticed the poor girl beginning to fade as her eyes glazed over. She began to slouch as though she were losing consciousness, her eyelids flittering as though she were trying to stay awake. In that moment, a harrowing memory of one of the soldier's dearly-departed friends arose in his head…

 _"Make sure that no matter what, you cherish your friendship with that Shantae girl like you cherish ours. Don't you ever let her slip away from you like we slipped away from each other."_

The sight of Shantae fading away, in conjunction to one of the many promises he'd previously made, sent Tay's anxiety into overdrive as his worries about her were amplified a thousandfold. He knew he couldn't allow himself to get flustered about how the procedure had to be done; it HAD to be done. Otherwise, Shantae would potentially die. No ifs, ands, or buts. Tay swallowed his pride (but not the antidote), leaned in, and pressed his lips against Shantae's to begin administering the antidote.

If this were a fairytale, it would've been over right then and there, with Shantae having been instantly cured, everyone cheering, and the two skipping happily into the sunset like the couple they'd have instantly become. However, this was not. Case in point, Tay tried dribbling some of the antidote onto Shantae's wound, but quickly encountered a problem. Trickles of the antidote dribbled between their lips, running down Tay's chin as some of it soaked the bottom portion of his frizzy goatee. Realizing this right away, the serviceman nearly panicked. In a rather uncoordinated move, he placed a hand behind his partner's head as he leaned closer, locking his lips on hers and intensifying the procedure by total accident.

"Hmm?" Shantae mumbled in utter shock as her eyes flew wide open once more. She found herself suddenly hot with rage, thinking that Tay had pulled a fast one on her with his impulsive move. "HRMM!" She let out a muffled yell as she raised her hands to push him off.

"Mm-mm, mm-mm, mm-mm!" Tay denied in alarm as he kept himself in position, waving his free hand near his face for Shantae to see. He communicated to her that he did not at all mean to get frisky with her. He quickly swiped his hand under his beard and displayed two antidote-soaked fingers to her to communicate further that he had only pushed closer to keep the antidote from leaking out.

"Hum…" Shantae breathed a sigh of relief, her trust in her partner remaining strong. However, she breathed said sigh through her mouth, accidentally letting slip even MORE of the antidote. Panicked herself, she impulsively clasped her hands around Tayshan's face, squeezed her eyes shut, and pushed her lips deeper into his, creating an airtight seal that would ascertain that no more antidote slipped out.

"Oh, dear… This is much more suspenseful than I could've ever imagined…" Al muttered, still gnawing on his knuckles in anticipation as he watched on. At this point, he wondered just how effective the cure would be with the two of them making such huge mistakes already. He held his hopes out for them, no less.

"MMM!" Tay screamed through the lip-lock at this most… uh, unexpected turn of events. It was his turn to be alarmed as waves of butterflies coursed through his stomach, though the trickles of healing liquid dripping from his chin made him realize she'd made the same move to correct the same mistake he'd made. "Hmm…" he groaned in vexation before cupping his partner's cheeks and chin with his hands to secure their position. Slowly, he parted his lips ever so slightly and began carefully sharing the antidote with Shantae.

He closed his eyes to focus as he began periodically moving his lower lip up and down to allow small, calculated dabs of the antidote to pass onto her lip. Unbeknownst to him, however, was that his lip movements made the situation ever tenser, as the closeness of the encounter made its adverse side effects apparent very quickly. His breathing became slow, heavy, and hot with startling pressure as he continued giving his friend the unlikely mouth-to-mouth medicine. He moved one of his hands to rest on Shantae's shoulder as the other one stayed gently pressed to her cheek to adjust himself while keeping their position secure. The burden was on his shoulders like a stack of wet logs, and he knew it all too well. If this procedure suffered any more goof-ups like the ones the two made previously, their one chance at curing the half-genie would be as good as squandered. There was no more room for error. His heartbeat slowed to a crawl, though he felt every pump with the force of a wrecking ball against his chest as he concentrated on carrying out the emergency procedure. There were, of course, other factors that served to unnerve the soldier about saving his friend.

Certainly, this was not the most predictable situation he'd have ever imagined himself in; up close and personal with an attractive girl, his lips pressed against hers for dear life as though they'd hungered for it. This was definitely not how a medical rescue procedure should've gone. Not in the slightest. Though he rationalized it as basically giving CPR to his friend to save her, the overwhelming warmth in conjunction with his pounding heart and the indescribable feel of the half-genie's wet lips on his own as they remained connected quickly took their toll on him. Making things more complicated was that he could barely breathe as he continued dispensing the antivenom to Shantae.

Fighting to keep himself focused, he tried opening his eyes to monitor his companion's condition. However, he was unprepared to behold the tantalizing sight before him; the image of a beautiful young woman willfully receiving his embrace with the charm of a vivacious blushing bride. The instant he laid eyes on her in this confusing entanglement, a rush of adrenaline coursed through his abdomen as though he were on the most thrilling roller coaster ride of his life. Accentuating the conflict-causing hypnotic view was the presence of Shantae's hands on his cheeks while her own eyes were shut. He almost couldn't take his eyes off her, he found himself so mesmerized.

He had to question if this was really happening. Was he really doing this? Basically kissing a girl to save her life? It felt… strange to him. Even stranger, he felt as though he was losing control of his body… like the whole experience put the two of them on a cloud high in the sky that rocked them both into a trance-like state from which he dared not attempt to escape. He felt the tickles of the air from her nose brushing his face, which further enticed him. Before long, however, he realized that his rampant thoughts were having a significant negative effect on his ability to concentrate. He mentally disciplined himself stay focused on the real purpose of the encounter, emptying his mind as he closed his eyes and continued diligently treating his friend's wound. Above all else, Shantae needed his help. This was no time to be distracted by such frivolous impurity. As far as he was concerned, Shantae's life hung in the balance, and he would do whatever was necessary to protect her. He owed it to her after all she'd done for him.

On the other end, Shantae began to feel the tingling sensation of the antidote through her total loss of awareness at the suddenness and surprising intensity of the lifesaving procedure. The antidote, warm and thick in texture and tart in taste, fizzed like cider as it entered her mouth. As previously established, the droplets of antidote dissolved like cotton candy mere seconds after coming into contact with the slightly-swollen puncture wound on her lip. With each tiny gush of the medicinal substance into her wound, the ailing young woman felt a rush of comforting prickles akin to magic course through her body as her pain, fatigue, and disorientation slowly melted away.

However, what replaced the effects of the poison may very well have been more overwhelming for her without fail. As the afflicted heroine instinctively mirrored her partner's lip movements to increase the flow of antidote to the wound, she opened her eyes to catch a half-lidded glimpse of Tay and was met with another inexplicable rush of stomach butterflies as the air grew thicker like there was glue in her lungs. Her breaths had become slow and heavy as her heart knocked on her chest like a hammer on a particularly stubborn nail. The sight and feeling of an admittedly good-looking guy—one she had come to personally know very well, no less—holding her cheek firmly and resting his other hand on her shoulder, his eyes closed as his lips clung to and danced with hers as though to never be allowed to part… It captivated her, to put it lightly. The undeniable rush of emotional tension brought on by this close-quarters emergency procedure made her cheeks tingle like she'd been tickled with a hundred feathers.

She uttered an inadvertent hum as she continued cooperating with her partner, breathing heavily through her nose to accommodate for the effects of their procedure. She found herself oddly enchanted in such a mystifying fashion that she intuitively strengthened her grip on her sidekick's cheeks as she, without much thought, pulled away slightly to separate their lips with a quiet *pop*, taking in a breath of air. Reading this, Tay clasped his lips shut to keep the remaining portion of the ostensibly-carbonated antidote active as he opened his eyes and took in a series of slow, very careful breaths through his nose. In that moment, he wondered why she had halted.

"Was… that enough?" Shantae asked in a hushed whisper, though she fought through a swirling torrent of disorientation and breathlessness to utter her question. Her hands remained on Tay's face as she stared blankly at him, studying the seemingly-confused expression he shot her. As she locked her dazed, yet hyper-focused gaze on his eyes, she noticed that the library around them seemed to be rocking back and forth and that she found it extraordinarily difficult to catch her breath. She deliriously noted her voluminous heartbeat in conjunction with the nigh-scorching heat in her face, all of which she attributed to still feeling sick. "No… I still… need more… Tay…" she whispered again as she closed her eyes—and the distance between them—once more. She readjusted herself to receive more antidote, sitting up and gently pushing her lips to his like she'd harbored a hidden desire for it. The moment they reconnected, another world-shaking surge of butterflies erupted in the young girl's abdomen as she hummed once more.

She subconsciously knew this wasn't supposed to feel like a kiss in the slightest. It was supposed to be an emergency medical technique that in no way should've yielded any feelings like what she was experiencing in the heat of this moment. However, the intimacy and collective tension brought on by the exchange caused her mind to suddenly go fuzzy. It felt… strangely euphoric, though Shantae couldn't figure out why. Her body tingled more with an arcane sense of relaxation the likes of which she'd never felt before.

In a fluid motion, she pulled away once more to take in another short breath before locking her lips with his again, humming as she exhaled through her nose. As expected, another ecstatic rush shook her to the core as the antidote worked its magic. She couldn't put a finger on the nature of this enrapturing sensation, but she knew one thing; that it felt incredible. After several repeats of readjusting hers and Tay's positions, Shantae eventually found a rhythm of pressing her lips to his and breaking contact for air, though its effects on her became evident; the more often she would experience the exhilarating abdominal tingles that made her feel as though she were on top of the world. She repeated this pattern a few more times before she realized something.

Her need for periodic intakes of air did everything to make the procedure feel exactly like a kiss; a passionate and tantalizing one, at that. She barely recognized that she still had her hands tightly cupped around Tay's face as he held her to secure their position. She briefly thought about removing her hands, but she found herself unwilling to. It was like they were stuck to him. It additionally assured her that there'd be no more mistakes with spilling the lifesaving liquid.

With the longer she and Tay had their lips connected and with the more frequently they pressed them together between her subsequent breaks for breaths of air, the more difficult she found it to resist drawing something else from this puzzling procedure; the more it seemed like they were actually kissing. Her whole body began to feel as though she were sitting next to a cozy fireplace, the radiant heat of the wood-fueled blaze inside enshrouding her in an all-encompassing, hugging warmth that could very well lull her into a comfortable slumber.

In a way, it sort of WAS like the situations in her comics… at least, as she imagined it to feel. The joyous heat enveloping her from head to toe, the mutual nonverbal vow of trust and understanding between her and her comrade, all the way down to how his lips were moving in tandem with hers to ensure that the antidote made its mark… not to mention how the two had been holding each other as though neither one of them wanted to let the other go. It suddenly didn't feel so awkward anymore. It felt… unexpectedly inviting and uplifting. Upon further moment-driven thought, she concluded that it was almost exactly how she'd imagined the situations in her comics to feel in real life. But was it supposed to feel so… disorienting? So hypnotizing? So… dare she say, good?

The alluring intimacy of the supposedly-nonromantic exchange caused the sickly maiden's mind to seemingly turn off as the tingling in her stomach intensified like she was soaring through the sunny skies of Sequin Land on the coziest carpet in the world. Her focus was directed entirely toward her partner as they continued their embrace, everything else around her seemingly melting out of existence. As though her body had disconnected from her already-blank mind, she gently and slowly wrapped her arms behind her partner's neck. She pulled him closer without thought as she pressed her lips further onto his, absorbing the irresistible, beguiling waves of sensual heat that came with sharing her first kiss with her friend. Neither she nor Tay took immediate notice that the fizzing of the antidote had finally begun to slow to a crawl like soda going flat. The sudden increase in the strength of Shantae's embrace overwhelmed them both, momentarily distracting them from the very reason they were doing this.

The two heroes held their position, their lips entangled in a bond of pure necessity, holding each other close as they each focused on dispensing as much antidote as humanly possible into the wound. All of the liquid had dissolved by this point, completing the process. The two had not immediately separated, however, as their lips remained tightly pressed together as though they were uncertain that the antidote had worked. After a moment, Shantae pulled away one more time to take in another breath. Tay, reading this as the end of the procedure, took a much-needed breath through his own disorientation and dizziness before he motioned to remove his hands from Shantae's cheek and shoulder. However, rather than release the serviceman from her grasp and allow him to stand, the still-dazed heroine pulled him in again before he could get up, engulfing her partner's lips with her own and letting loose an additional hum of elation.

"Mm…?" Tay's eyes went wide with astonishment at the unanticipated gesture as he raised his hands to his sides, making evident that he was not expecting it. One could not deny that he also felt the overwhelming pressure of the situation at hand as he froze, his eyes fixed on the half-genie as her lips remained interlocked with his while her eyes remained closed. He initially hypothesized that she was maybe making sure she got every drop of antidote that she could. That much, he could totally understand; even with her earlier reluctance to even engage in this mind-numbing procedure. This was new to both of them, so how would either one of them really have known for certain that she was okay? In this situation, being safe was thousands of leagues better than being sorry.

However, as he processed the feeling of her lips enveloping his with unprecedented strength, moving as though she were drinking from a bottle… the cool, metallic sensation of her golden bracelets firmly pressing into his neck as she held him… the definite absence of antidote at this point… the furious blush on her face… and an additional momentary pause by the half-genie for a breath of air before reconnecting their lips again… The soldier found himself befuddled as to what was happening, but had, for some reason, hesitated to end the engagement. Safety precautions as the explanation was certifiably out the window now.

Now… Now, he couldn't even fathom what was going on. Why was she still trying to take in more antidote? For that matter, WAS she even trying to do so? She had to know there was none left at this point. What was she doing? Was it a side-effect of the poison? Of the antidote? Or… was it possible that she let the nature of the situation get the better of her, causing her to suddenly think their procedure was a declaration of romantic affection toward one another? The chaotic eruption of racing thoughts in the panicked soldier's mind nearly drove him into a catatonic stupor. Nonetheless, he gained just enough sense to place one hand on Shantae's shoulder, gently tapping her cheek with the other to get her attention.

The mesmerized maiden opened her eyes halfway to meet the serviceman's while their lips were still pressed together, only serving to further astonish her teammate out of his wits as he froze once more. After an extensive pause, they eventually separated with an audible *pop* as they each kept their hands on one another, panting slightly as she blushingly stared into his eyes, her face seemingly devoid of any emotion except for… a very particular, very unnerving sense of curiosity, to put it lightly. The sight of her in this state both intrigued and alarmed Tayshan, whose eyes remained wide open, though he couldn't immediately bring himself to say anything to her. One might say the two looked almost… spellbound by one another. After a moment, the duo completely regained their senses and simultaneously darted their eyes elsewhere, swiftly recoiling their hands. Shantae suddenly began nibbling on her finger while Tay rubbed the back of his head, drawing in a shaky rush of air and blowing it upward. Eventually, he found the courage to look back at her.

"S-so, uh… Do you… feel any better?" he nervously asked, wanting to know if the antidote worked, but still totally clueless on how to handle himself in the aftermath of what was supposed to be a simple medical procedure. To say he felt like a caffeine-addicted squirrel in a room full of coffee-flavored acorns would've been a huge understatement. His heart pounded like mallets on raw Gator Steaks as he found himself unable to fully focus on the situation at hand.

"Yeah… A-a lot better, actually… Th-thanks… Tayshan…" Shantae expressed her gratitude, though her situation was no better. Her head still bowed, she could only look up at him with such innocent embarrassment written all over her face that her cheeks arguably matched her outfit. She offered a slight, almost-inconspicuous smile as she disarmingly, nervously pushed her index fingers together. Her heart, too, had been pumping harder than a thousand pistons combined. The air still seemed thick like she'd been breathing in steam. She clutched at the middle of her chest with both hands as she took a deep, rattled breath of her own to calm herself down. She and Tay both rose to their feet as they regained their composure, though she felt unsteady. "Wow, it's still hard to breathe…" she observed, her voice clear and devoid of strain. "I still feel lightheaded, too…"

"Uh-oh… Did the antidote not work?" Tay questioned, though he felt similarly to Shantae with lightheadedness, lack of coordination, and poverty of breath.

"The antidote worked like a charm," Al assured, though he couldn't hide the clownish, giddy, toothy grin on his face. Al had watched silently from the sidelines and had been thoroughly thrilled about what he'd witnessed. "Though, it's far from inaccurate to say that something else was in play, too~!"

"What do you mean?" the half-genie queried, uncertain of Al's insinuation.

"Oh, don't be so coy, my girl! The intensity, the passion, that unmistakable aura of hidden desire from both of you that meshed so seamlessly like the patterns in this room… Clearly, that was love's first kiss!" At that, both heroes' eyes widened to the sizes of snow globes as they froze in place.

"…What?" the both of them rhetorically asked in unison, momentarily glancing at one another before they looked back at the chimera with mortified looks on their faces.

"Oh, it was splendid! I've never seen such a wondrous, beautiful display of young love blossoming right before my very own eyes," Al gushed, apparently a fan of the idea of shipping his guests together over a single, isolated encounter that had little to no context in the way he spun his idea. "I'm almost envious of you two! Your indomitable commitment to one another has shone through even the most perilous and daunting of predicaments and has assisted you in prevailing over all the challenges presented to you!"

"Yo, what are you even ON about right now?" Tay indignantly asked, less than appreciative of the scorpion-man's fanatical monologue. His face was hotter than a kettle of boiling water as he took another deep breath to try and rid himself of the embarrassment. "That was supposed t' be me helpin' her cure the poison; especially since you said that's how it was supposed to be done! What's all this about love an' first kisses?"

"Hrmmph…" Shantae groaned in equal embarrassment, looking away and wringing her hair at the thought.

"Aww, you're so fabulously cute with how modest you are!" Al continued to praise, not realizing that he was embarrassing the two teens more than an overbearing parent on prom night. Although, he said the magic word that Tay loved so much to hear.

"Ah! Don't call me that!" Tay warned with a point of his finger, once again vocalizing his distaste for being called the thing men are not supposed to be. "I've heard enough of that word bein' used on me. I am a grown man! 'Cute' ain't a word that fits me. You wanna know cute? Teddy bears an' litters o' newborn kittens. Those things are cute. Matter of fact, perfect example standin' right next t' me," he argued with a snap of his fingers, referring to his half-genie team leader, who raised an eyebrow at his tangent. "Shantae is cute. See that gorgeous hair? Those vibrant ocean blue eyes? That ice-meltin' blush on her face right now? She's cute. I am anything but," he rambled as he tried desperately to change the subject to something much less embarrassing than 'love's first kiss,' not realizing he'd both mortified and flattered his partner in his outraged tirade about adjectives to describe him.

"…Tay, you have the strangest way with words out of anyone I've ever met," Shantae flatly commented with a pouty sigh and just the SLIGHTEST bit of irritation, her hand clasped over her forehead to hide her visible embarrassment. He'd blurted out a series of praises toward her while simultaneously humiliating her in his effort to deflect Al's compliment. "I don't know whether to thank you or to hit you right now…"

"Uh…" he droned as he got hotter under the collar, understanding his most recent blunder. "I'm sorry? I just… I can't stand bein' called cute, y'know? B-but you know it's true what I said, right?"

"That's no excuse to use me as an example, you jerk!" she yelled back, her flustered disapproval evident as she lashed at him with a powerful *SNAP* of her ponytail against his side.

"Owww!" The hapless soldier hollered in pain as her ponytail stung him like a scorpion's tail (oh good, another pun). "I said I was sorry, woman! Jeez!"

"Now, now, no need for fuss, you two, I apologize," Al laughingly offered with a pacifistic raise of his hands to break up the apparent lovers' quarrel. "It's certainly a good thing to see you're back at full strength again, Shantae. Though I must say, I just admire how adorable you two are as a couple!"

"WE ARE NOT A COUPLE! WE'RE JUST FRIENDS!" they both shouted together, their embarrassment mutually shared.

"Oh? I got an impression that your relationship was far from platonic because of the-!"

"That was because you STUNG ME IN THE LIP, remember!?" Shantae interrupted, knowing what Al was going to finish his statement with. "We only had to kiss because of that! If you'd stung me anywhere else instead, he could've kissed me there with the antidote and I would've been cured all the same!" she explained, though Tay eyeballed her, disagreeing with her notion.

"What kind o' phrasin' is that for usin' an antidote on you, homegirl?" he asked, dismayed by the wording of her statement.

"The kind that explains that our kiss was all Al's fault," the mildly mortified maiden explained, though it did nothing to ease her partner's confusion.

"What? Our kiss? Is that what we're callin' it now?"

"You're not helping, Tay!"

"But you're the one who called it a kiss! I thought I was just treatin' your wound!" he shot back in a reasonably-confused panic.

"Well, y-yeah, but like… I dunno…" she faltered, uncertain of how to further clarify the situation, as her own feelings about the encounter in its entirety were in a state of tempestuous flux. "It was… It didn't feel like just treating my wound in the moment, I guess…" she bashfully admitted, stunning the serviceman once again. "Sorry, I'm… still pretty confused about it…"

"…Yeah, that makes two of us…" Tay reluctantly agreed, crossing his arms and looking elsewhere as he became flustered once more. His own thoughts, like Shantae's were all over the place regarding what to take out of their close-quarters encounter.

"Whichever way you lovebirds look at it, it was quite a passionate kiss for two mere friends to share…" At Al's honest observation, Shantae face-palmed while her friend deadpanned as he stared at the scorpion-man.

"…Honestly, I don't know what made me more nervous… This situation here, or when I had t' mow through all those underground monsters an' blow up that weather machine in that maze down there," Tay pondered aloud as he shook his head, sighing away his discomfort while also piquing the interests of Shantae and especially Al. "It's a PRETTY close comparison, too."

"Weather machine and monsters, you say?" Al asked, intrigued about the soldier's claim.

"Yeah," Tay answered with utmost certainty as his nervousness faded. "There was some machine down there called a 'Tinker-Stormer' bein' guarded by a group o' Tinkerbats. Oh, and I had t' play exterminator to a bunch o' monsters in that labyrinth that tried t' kill me."

"Indeed… and you said you did what with that weather machine?"

"Blew it up after I wiped out all the monsters. I figured if it had anything t' do with Tinkerbats, it meant trouble."

"That explains the tiny earthquake we felt up here," Shantae interjected as she regained her composure. "That must've been one big explosion."

"You're tellin' me," Tay confirmed. "It was loud enough that I couldn't hear anything but ringin' in my ears for the next few minutes that followed."

"I'm still surprised you managed to destroy that cumbersome contraption. It was enormous. Plus, that infestation was quite problematic. I'm doubly intrigued as to how you cleaned the whole bunker out on your own."

"Yeah, Tay, how'd you do it?" Shantae asked, alarmed at his feat.

"The monsters were NOT easy… They tore me up down there, but I figured out that the strongest ones were weak t' fire. Thankfully, I found a torch t' burn those with while the rest, I picked off with my gun despite the thick metal walls that made my bullets ricochet like flashing golf balls."

"Yes, the interior is quite resilient. Specialized steel made from the factories of Embroidery City."

"Good t' know now, I guess. Anyway, as for the machine, I threw a grenade into it from the top," Tay explained. "…then ran like I was bein' chased by rabid werewolves all over again until the whole thing went up in a glorious ball of fire, shrapnel, and pirate girl's inevitable failure."

"Well then… while I am not certain what a 'grenade' is, I am certain that the Kitschy Quilt Desert's weather patterns have finally returned to normal," Al hypothesized with a smile, evidently relieved that Tay demolished the device. "I haven't heard a single lightning bolt since the explosion, which is a good sign. Additionally, I extend my sincerest gratitude for cleaning up the mess down there… I wasn't sure what to do about it, as there are no exterminators in the area. I'll be certain to send for you if another infestation manifests."

"No problem, though you don't have to be so generous as t' invite me back for another clean-up job," he quipped, though he was dead serious. "Just… keep that place clean, man."

"You needn't tell me twice, sir," Al affirmed before he realized something. "Although I am still curious as to how you even accessed the outside entrance to my bunker without the remote that controls the trapdoor."

"We're not sure, either, now that you mentioned it," Shantae agreed, pondering exactly what caused the doors below the lightning bridge to open.

"I… faintly remember hittin' some button in the sand when I tried t' climb out o' the pit I fell into after I got struck by one o' the lightnin' bolts…"

"Dear me!" Al remarked in shock (no pun intended). "Are you alright?"

"As good as I'll get, so long as I don't get struck by lightnin' again…" he flatly assured before he continued his explanation. "Also, I think I hit a button on somethin' an' after I fell in, because I heard some click noise right as I tried climbin t' the top o' the pit. After I fell in, I wandered around an' I stepped on somethin' else that broke under my foot, which I think made the doors close… I couldn't tell what it was because it was so dark, but I never thought t' go back an' check what it was."

"Hmm… Sounds to me like you may have found and inadvertently broken the remote control…" Al surmised.

"Really now?" Shantae asked, taken aback by the news.

"Yes, indeed. I had misplaced that remote near that area after I'd invited that deplorable Risky Boots into my bunker and it must've gotten buried in the sand during the storm. It appears I'll have to make a new one, no less…"

"Sorry about that, Al," Tayshan apologized. "If I knew that was the remote, it'd have been in my hand t' give back t' you right now."

"I'd even go on and add that if we both went into the bunker, we'd have probably been more prepared to help you come back to your senses once we met each other," Shantae elaborated. "Which is also true of if we both managed to skip going down there altogether."

"No worries, my friends. Something much more important happened as a result of your perilous trek through a storm-plagued Kitschy Quilt Desert," he countered, referring to the events of their journey leading up to his encounter with them. "If it weren't for one of you going down into it, my bunker would still be infested with monsters, and that incorrigible weather machine would still be running without anyone there to get rid of it."

"True," Tay agreed without question as he nodded.

"Additionally, if it weren't for one of you staying aboveground to meet with my daughter, I'm not sure I'd have ever been granted an opportunity to apologize to her…"

"No sweat, Al! Ali's a nice girl, like I said before, so wherever she is right now, I'm sure she can't wait to see you again," Shantae assured, though Tay had no clue what she was referring to.

"Of course, and I relish the opportunity when she comes back. Although, in terms of how well everything played out, we should be even more thankful that Mr. Tayshan here found and brought that antidote to heal you, Shantae. Elsewise, you would have been a goner by now…"

"Don't remind us," Shantae complained, her heart skipping a beat at the fact that she nearly lost her life over a single sting on her lip.

"Couldn't have said that better myself," Tay agreed wholeheartedly with his teammate. "Although…" he began, turning his attention to Al. "You said that Tinker-Stormer thing had total control of the weather in this whole desert?" he asked, not yet filled in on the origin story of the Tinker-Stormer.

"Yes," Al confirmed as he limped his way toward his front door. "Why don't we behold it for ourselves?" he offered, opening the door and letting in a ray of sunlight. Shantae and Tayshan briefly glanced at one another before following Al outside of his library to note the change in weather brought on by the destruction of the Tinker-Stormer.

"Wow…" Shantae whispered in total amazement as she, Tay, and Al took in the sight of the Kitschy Quilt Desert. The cloudless sky was a clear, amber yellow that nearly camouflaged the setting sun. The air was crisp and temperate like a normal, chilly, windy autumn afternoon. There were no signs of the previous lightning storm that plagued the traveling adventurers since their arrival to the island, though the monstrous sand dunes were still present. What struck the duo as most noteworthy, however, was that the sand was no longer swallowing them up as they stood firm on it. Additionally, instead of the plain, mountainous tan that sand is usually colored, the entire landscape was rife with mismatched patterns far and wide.

Gigantic patches of sand across the land sported some form of discoloration to it. Some spots were white with blue polka dots. Others had bore red, yellow, and blue stripes. Even more others had some form of paisley pattern, six-pointed star, or other kind of eye-drawing design and color scheme that made the whole desert look like it was designed by an expansive team of schoolchildren and seasoned cubist/post-impressionist artists. Every grain of sand in the desert appeared to be a part of a series of composite, gaudy patterns that made it seem as though someone had lain a series of giant blankets across the whole island. Every bit of it looked like they were standing in the middle of an enormous kaleidoscope.

"Why does the sand look like this…?" Tay wondered as he knelt down to scoop a handful of the earthy material into his hands. It felt just as grainy as any old sand, though it bore a blue and white polka dot pattern. He observed the area from which he picked up the sample to see that its pattern was undisturbed. Curious, he cast the sand toward a nearby patch, which housed a green, pink, and red zigzag design. The sand he threw instantly shifted color to seamlessly match the hue and design of the patch it landed on. "What in the world…?"

"Have you figured out why this place is called the Kitschy Quilt Desert yet, friends?" Al smilingly and knowingly questioned.

"This place is… just… wow…" Shantae stammered, totally astonished by the sheer overabundance of clashing designs, colors, and patterns abound.

"Yes indeed. This entire island is a cornucopia of clashing colors and idiosyncratic patterns that simply scream 'phantasmagoria.' Many would say this place is far from aesthetically pleasing… some have even branded the Kitschy Quilt Desert as the 'Tacky Capital of Sequin Land,' and with them, I would not argue. However, I am a firm believer in the idea that all colors and patterns can be meshed into a melting pot of acceptance and mutually-beneficial coexistence… All the way down to how the sand you threw instantly blended into the design of that neighboring patch, young man," Al poetically monologued, calling attention to Tay's experiment.

"Interesting…" the soldier commented, mildly impressed, though mostly distracted by the sensory overload of the desert's atmosphere.

"I guess that explains your uh… unique style of dress, then, huh?" Shantae asked as she finally managed to tear her eyes away from the garish desert sands.

"Absolutely, dear girl! This wonderful oasis of prismatic beauty accentuates the diversity in both my keen tastes and my… dare I say, colorful personality," Al conceitedly quipped with a hearty laugh, though his guests did not join him. Instead, the half-genie cringed while the soldier shot him a contemptuous side-eyed frown. "It speaks volumes to me about how I can live in peace and bask in a world of expressive, exuberant, and extraordinary naturally-occurring art! This place is perfect for me! It's far from the only reason I moved out here, though… In fact, yadda yadda yadda, yap yap, blah blah, dribble, dribble, dribble, blah yap…" he continued to ramble, no longer paying heed to the fact that Shantae and Tayshan had stopped listening to him. He didn't actually say the 'yadda, yap, blah, dribble' bit, in case you were wondering. I just didn't care enough to actually figure out what he was talking about. My bad… not.

"Um… So, are we done here, or…?" Tayshan whispered to Shantae, cupping a hand over his mouth to emphasize that he didn't want Al to hear him or read his lips.

"I… I think so. He was the boss of this place. I beat him before you found your way up, but I didn't see a Stage Clear platform anywhere in his house. Unless you fought someone else while you were in the Carnivorous Catacombs…?"

"The what?"

"I-I mean uh… Al's Storm Bunker," Shantae corrected, remembering that the 'dungeon' in question was actually just an emergency shelter for inclement weather… or at least, it was supposed to be.

"Hmm… No, just a bunch o' gross goo monsters, bats, an' scorpions. Also, some Tinkerbats an' the weather machine. There was a room or two I missed down there, but I highly doubt there was a boss in any of 'em."

"Probably collectibles we'll need to come back for… Other than that, if we conquered the dungeon and defeated the boss, then yeah, we're all wrapped up here for now. Unless he knows something about a Super Slugger Spell reversal, considering the biggest reason we came here…"

"Cool," Tay nodded. "Hey, Al?"

"Yes, young man?"

"You wouldn't happen t' be a magician or a sorcerer of any kind, would you?"

"I… cannot say that I am," Al answered, stroking his beard in curiosity. "At least, not recently. I've been out of practice for quite some time now. Why do you ask?"

"We were just wondering if you knew anything about how to reverse magic spells, since you helped us out with the antidote and such…" Shantae explained, hopeful that the scorpion man might know something. "Maybe you know how to make potions that nullify the effects of magic spells?"

"Ah, I understand. That is far from an uncommon misconception," Al answered, acknowledging his guests' inquiries. "Unfortunately, my potions are only medicinal. They only work to cure poisons or stabilize people who suffer from invasive illnesses. Is there something you needed help with?"

"Yeah, but it's alright," Tay dismissed, nodding in understanding.

"Have you at least ever heard of the Prickle Stitch Valley?" Shantae added, again hopeful that he would have some form of information for them.

"That place… doesn't ring a bell, no," Al regretfully informed. "My apologies. I've been living here so long, I've nearly forgotten where most of Sequin Land's many notable places are located unless I were to look at a globe or a map."

"Do you have either of those things in your library?"

"It will certainly disappoint you that I do not," Al answered, slightly embarrassed to admit the glaring fault. "My 'library' is only a library in name. In actuality, this is simply my house. My entire book collection consists of textbooks about potion recipes, cookbooks, outdated magazines full of fashion tips, a few outdated magic texts, and guides on home improvement. I don't own a globe or map, either."

"Oh…" Shantae plainly commented, disappointed that Al couldn't help them.

"Understood," Tay acknowledged with a tilt of his head. "So I guess it'd serve no point to ask if you knew a guy named Hypno Baron, then?"

"Oh! My old colleague!" he perked up, knowing who the sorcerer was. "Yes, he and I go way back. Once upon a time, we used to practice sorcery together, but I'd lost my passion for it after a while. I was more interested in fashion, as you may have surmised by now, while he was more interested in get-rich-quick schemes and leading a life of crime as a part of some silly club… Ah, what was the name of it now?"

"Barons of Sequin Land?" Shantae concluded, knowing where he was going.

"Yes, yes, that was it! Yes, we still got along after we revealed our different interests to one another, but… as with most things I sacrificed since I moved here, I haven't spoken to him in ages. Talk about a blast from the past… Why? Did he want you to send me his regards?"

"In a sense, yes," she uneasily confirmed. "He also referred us to you to see if you knew anything about how to undo a spell that turns people into giant slugs. And… you're sure your spell books don't have anything of the sort in them?" Shantae asked for confirmation.

"Positive, dear," Al admitted with a nod. "The spells in those books mainly pertain to housekeeping, scientific experimentation, and parlor tricks. Those are far from desirable for a genie as powerful as yourself."

"Hm…" the disappointed half-genie sullenly hummed. "Back to the drawing board on that one, then…"

"My apologies, my friends," Al offered, feeling bad for being unable to help his guests on their travels.

"No problem, Al," Shantae forgave. "Anyway, we're gonna head out now. When Ali comes back, tell her I said thanks for everything."

"Are you certain?" Al asked, disappointed that his newest friends were about to leave him so soon. "You can come in and rest for awhile. I could brew us some tea and we can trade stories about what an eventful day this has been. I'm certain Alea would love to hang out with such wonderful people as you two."

"M-maybe another time," Shantae nervously declined, unenthused by the idea of spending any more quality time in the Kitschy Quilt Desert with a former enemy who'd almost killed her. "Tayshan and I have got pretty busy schedules protecting Sequin Land from here on, so we still need to keep pushing on until we defeat Risky Boots and stop her from trying to destroy Sequin Land again."

"Ah, right, duty calls for the young adventurers in their tireless quest to protect the land from evil."

"Yes! Uh, that exactly!" Tay uncertainly, yet boisterously agreed. "We're a pretty busy couple, with great powers an' greater responsibilities an' all that jive, so we'll catch ya later, alright?" he bade, paying little heed to his phrasing as he and his mentor began walking away from Al. Although, Al chuckled, evidently finding some humor in Tay's farewell bid.

"Ohhh, I see…" he accepted, nodding and grinning at the two adventurers. "Very well, then. I was considering at least offering you two a ride, but in that case, I will not hold you up or interfere. Feel free to stop by anytime, no less! I'll even leave my storm bunker open, as we no longer need to worry about the thunderstorms or the monsters you so graciously cleared out of it! It can be a sort of hangout spot for us!" Al offered with a friendly wave.

"Okay, thanks! I'm sure this'll be far from our last encounter!" Shantae bade with a wave, though she turned and mentally kicked herself for mimicking Al's catch phrase.

"Yes! Also, good luck with your relationship, you adorable little love puppies!" he called as the distance between him and the duo grew, causing both of them to simultaneously sigh in frustration. With their mission more-or-less complete and with no teleportation platform in sight, the couple—er, TEAM headed back in the direction of their entry point, doing their best to climb over the pacified sand dunes. Just as the two disappeared over the horizon, however, a voice called out to Al from a distance in the opposite direction.

"Daddy!" called the voice as its owner sprinted toward the kinda-sorta librarian, dropping a series of suitcases into the sand as she did so. He turned to see a very familiar-looking young scorpion girl sprinting toward him, arms wide open with nothing but affection.

"Sweetheart!" Al called back as he rushed over toward her, where the two wrapped each other in their arms. "Oh, my darling Aleaqarab, I've missed you dearly! It's such a pleasure to see you again! So much time has gone by… How have you been!?"

"I've been great!" Aleaqarab excitedly answered as the two scorpion hybrids continued to embrace each other. "I missed you too, daddy! I hope you're not still mad at me about the other day, though…"

"Other day…?" Al briefly pondered before recalling what she meant. "Oh, dear me, I can't apologize enough for how I treated you! I was far from myself at that time… Just the opposite, come to think of it. I owe you a most sincere explanation. Sweetie, I am so, so, SO sorry about that… You know I would never normally treat you so callously, no?"

"Aw, it's okay! I had a feeling something was up last time that was making you act differently. I'm glad to see you're back to being yourself again, no less…" Aleaquarab lovingly and forgivingly shared. "…although, you look like you got hit by a stampede of wild animals," she added, noting the scratches, scuffs, and bruises all along her father's face and body. "Yet, you're a lot more… muscular than I remember. Have you been working out? Also, what happened to you?" she asked as they separated. "And what happened to this place?" she asked just one more time as she scanned the environment. "It was all stormy, windy, and… quicksand-y one second, and in the next, it's all sunshine, there's no more wind, everything's calm, and the sand feels like regular sand, but it's got all these crazy, mixed-up patterns in it!"

"I assure you, many of your questions will be answered in the explanation I have for you. It is… a long, arduous, and somewhat-romantic story, my little cupcake," Al wearily, yet humorously hinted. "Also, yes, I have been trying to keep in shape. In my old age, I simply cannot afford to get sloppy. Although I must say, Alea, you've gotten so tall since I last laid eyes upon you! You haven't changed a bit otherwise. You're still the adorable little sand shark I adored back in the days of your infancy…" he gushed, though 'Alea' took some level of offense to his affectionate observation. "Why, your stinger still hasn't even grown from your tail!"

"I go by 'Ali' now, daddy," she matter-of-factly corrected. "Also, I know I haven't changed much at all…" she blushingly pouted, momentarily shifting her eyes elsewhere as she crossed her arms over her chest and lowered her stinger-less tail. It appeared she was ashamed of something, if I had to guess. "No need to remind me…"

"Aw, sweetums…" Al began with a chuckle as he patted his daughter on the head. "You are simply a late bloomer, like your mother. You are far from done growing up, though I am in no hurry to see you become the fully-flourished, beautiful young scorpion woman you are destined to be. Although, if… you do not mind me asking, why do you prefer to go by a male moniker? Is this part one of those rebellious identity-search phases I hear young people are going through these days? Is that a new trend offshore?"

"It's not just a boy's name, dad! Come on!" she complained, pouting even harder as she brought her attention back to Al. "And no, it's not a phase. What a 'dad' thing to say… I picked it because it sounds like your nickname!" she revealed, drawing a most veritable conclusion to the mystery of the eerily-similar monikers.

"Oh! Why, darling, I'm positively flattered!" Al proclaimed, elated that his only child took after him in some respect. "And here I was, thinking you and your mother had long since moved on from me."

"Whaaaat? Daddy, I've been missing you since the day we separated! You wouldn't believe what I had to go through to find out where you lived after so much time went by. It was like trying to find a blade of grass in the middle of a desert! And you know how accurate that is, you elusive grass blade, you…"

"I… suppose I did sort of move myself far off the radar, so to speak," he acknowledged with a pensive nod, a mirthful chuckle, and a stroke of his beard. "That is fair, Ali. That is fair. How is your mother, anyway?"

"Fine, though she was the biggest reason I came out to find you. She and some Naga lady went on some worldwide field trip for… 'self-discovery' or something, and after she and I did our research to find out where you were, she pretty much left me to my own devices to come find you. I'm pretty sure she's just going on yet another one of her crazy motivational crusades of persuading monsters across the land to unite with humans to create a new generation of peace, love, and tranquility and all that jazz like she usually does, though…" At that, Al sighed in disappointment as he rubbed his forehead. "You'd think a full-fledged human would get the hint by now that she got lucky with you and that not all monsters are willing to just mix in with each other, much less with humans…" she added, inadvertently introducing the absolute most baffling mystery in this entire chapter; how a full-human woman and a half-scorpion, half-man hybrid managed to produce offspring.

"My luminescent stars, that woman always was such an impulsive one…" he mumbled before he directed his attention back to Ali. "One day, she hears a rumor that Monster Milk is made from raven bones, and suddenly, she's staging citywide protests to boycott every food market in a metropolitan area to ban the sale of all dairy products she finds even remotely suspicious… You know, I did enjoy living in Genie's Hem before she pulled that convoluted stunt and earned us all a lifetime ban from the city. I must admit, though, she certainly is brave, if not a tad brash. That's what I loved about her, so I am at least glad her passion is intact."

"Yeah, try spending your entire life watching her totally flip her lid the second she's told squirrels are bullying children into forking over beauty products to their alligator overlord as a means to destroy the planet by saturating it with harmful chemicals that would wipe out humanity as we know it," Ali sarcastically remarked.

"Still a crackpot conspiracy theorist, too? Goodness, forget I said anything…" he lamented, thinking about what sort of domestic trouble his presumable ex-lover was brewing in her time away. "Anywho, I presume you are here simply to visit?"

"Nope! I'm moving in!" she cheerfully remarked, much to Al's surprise. "That's why I have all my stuff with me!"

"Oh, splendid!" Al cheered, having no issue with the fact that someone else was barging into his home; this time with the intent to stick around. "I would love nothing more than to have my little girl accompany me in my nigh-total seclusion from the outside world!"

"You bet! I feel the same, daddy. Although, maybe we could work on getting you out more. You're still doing that obnoxious thing where you're randomly plastering patterns and colors together and calling it 'art.' I'm gonna have to take you on a couple trips and give you a few long, serious lessons about fashion," she challenged, causing Al to gulp as he momentarily darted his eyes around. "We also need to have a serious discussion about the fact that your house is, of all things it could be in the desert, a giant igloo. You DO know we're not in the arctic, right?"

"Er… Uh, o-of course, sweetheart…" he passively remarked with a tinge of nervousness, knowing just what he'd been signed up for. "…You're so much like your mother, it hurts…" he murmured.

"I remember that look, dad… We're gonna have to talk for real," Ali expertly guessed, reading Al's suddenly-uncomfortable facial expression. "That can wait till later, though. I want to know what happened to you that has you looking so beat-up."

"Right, of course. Do you have time, dear?"

"All the time in the world, since we'll be living together again!" she assured with a thumbs-up.

"Alrighty, then. Prepare to be astounded, my beloved. Let us get settled in as I regale you," Al acknowledged with a nod as the two moved to gather up Ali's belongings and head into the disheveled 'library' to recap what happened.

 ** _A long, eventful recap later…_**

"Whoa! So you're seriously telling me that you got to meet the infamous Risky Boots, too!? And she was the whole reason you were so bitter and angry when I saw you last time!? Shantae beat you up and destroyed an evil gem in your turban that made you grumpy and rotten!? You POISONED her!? She has a boyfriend!? And the boyfriend is the guy who she said fell into a hole in the ground that turned out to be your secret storm bunker that Risky Boots turned into a scary, trap-laden, monster-infested doom labyrinth!? And she made out with her boyfriend while using your antidote to cure the venom!? And I just missed all of this!?" Ali asked in rapid-fire format as she sat with her father in the heavily-damaged foyer of his sand igloo that previously served as the arena of his battle against Shantae.

"That is just about every major point of that story, yes," Al confirmed while trying to piece together his library after having set his daughter's suitcases down in a nearby corner.

"That… is… awesome!" she cheered, full of wonder about how her father got to have the experiences he did with Sequin Land's most famous women. "You actually got to breathe the same air as Risky Boots AND Shantae in the span of a week, and you got to live to tell the tale! No way! Daddy, even for what a revolting, irredeemable eyesore you made this place to be with all these clashing colors and patterns, not to mention it's an igloo in the desert, you're the coolest father anybody could ask for!" the young scorpion girl kinda-sorta complimented, though Al flinched in slight irritation that she'd so openly castigated his fashion sense as he momentarily froze. After a few seconds of silence (and a deep breath to temper his frustration), he spoke.

"R… R-right, honey," he uneasily commented as he committed to picking up a series of textbooks and putting them back on the scorched wooden shelves they fell from. "Although, I would rate meeting that marauding pirate woman far from high among the top 1000 things I would recommend doing in life. She is much, much more menacing and intimidating than she appears."

"I'll bet she is. I guess we both owe it to Shantae though, since I asked her to see if she could find out what was wrong with you… I knew she wouldn't let me down," Ali modestly cheered, relieved and honored to have been able to enlist the world-famous half-genie's services on behalf of her father. "I wish I could see her again to properly thank her. And while it's incredible to hear you actually got the chance to see more of her powers than I did, I'm sorry you had to get beat up to come to your senses. I still think it's pretty great you got to also spend time as a Boss Monster, as weird as that sounds. I'm proud!"

"Oh, it is far from an issue now, I assure you," Al acknowledged Ali's offer of condolences for his recent loss. "And… so long as such a harrowing story puts a smile on that adorable face of yours, I have no regrets about the events that transpired here. Although, I am surprised you managed to climb those enormous sand dunes with Shantae's assistance to make it this far, considering the nature of the Kitschy Quilt Desert before her significant other destroyed Risky Boots's weather-manipulation mechanism. Nevertheless, there may be a chance she'll come back to visit someday."

"Really?" Ali excitedly asked, nearly jumping out of her scorpion side's exoskeleton at the prospect of meeting her hero once more.

"Indeed, once she deals with that cumbersome Risky Boots," he assured as he grabbed a broom and began sweeping the floor of his home, though he was mindful not to move too suddenly. His injuries still plagued him as he tried to salvage his library.

"True… I can't believe it, though! I'm so excited, I can barely contain myself! Although, I am curious about some… other details," she hinted, getting up to stop her father from continuing to strain himself with cleaning up in his condition.

"What's on your mind, Ali?"

"Well… It kinda-sorta has to do with… with um…" she paused, nervous beyond belief at what she was about to ask. "It… has to do… with that ki… with…"

"Are you… perhaps inquiring me about what I witnessed regarding Shantae and her adventuring partner?"

"Yes! I don't want to sound like that's all I care about, but the curiosity is killing me!"

"Well in that case, my shining light, what questions might you have?"

"All kinds, dad! Who did what? How'd they react? Was it long? Short? Awkward? Comfortable? Spicy?"

"All questions shall be answered accordingly, my beloved daughter," Al informed his one and only audience member. "This is far from a short tale, Ali, so I hope you're prepared."

"Of course, daddy! I'm all ears!" Ali asserted, failing to hide her excitement and anticipation. "I also want to catch up with you about everything we missed of each other while we were apart."

"Very well, then," Al concurred as he guided Ali to a couple of luxurious red cushioned couches, where they took their seats. "If you can tolerate the tired ramblings of an old fogey like myself, then we may spend as much time as possible bonding with one another as we trade stories. That sound good, pumpkin?"

"Yeah!" Ali cheered. "Mind if we get something to eat, though? I'm starving…"

"Oh, absolutely! I shall prepare us a feast fit for royalty posthaste," he exclaimed as immediately dropped his cleaning supplies and fetched a singed cook book off the floor and headed toward his kitchen near the back of the library. "Care to join me in cooking, darling?"

"Of course!" the young arachnid-human hybrid agreed, hopping up and following her father into the kitchen. "We can talk as we cook!"

"Excellent! So, as for that story, it happened like this…" Al continued on with reestablishing his relationship with his one and only daughter while also spreading rumors about Shantae and Tayshan regarding the nature of their relationship. It's certainly good to see a family come together, I'll say. So concludes the side story of a man-scorpion fusion reuniting with his only child and… in a sense, being given something of a much-deserved out from the perils, trials, and tribulations that come with getting involved in anything having to do with the neverending battle between Sequin Land's most famous opposing forces. Speaking of, Shantae and company weren't quite out of the thick just yet…

 ** _Back outside…_**

"So… I'm sure a lot o' that could've been avoided," Tay remarked as he and Shantae safely crossed the gaudy, patchy, poorly-designed desert dunes of the now appropriately-named Kitschy Quilt Desert.

"Yeah, I know," Shantae agreed, the fatigue in her voice evident. "A lot of what we've been through in the last week could've been avoided, but we keep running into it anyway. That's how it usually goes when you're nonstop hunting for clues on how to keep Sequin Land's biggest headache from making things completely unbearable for everyone…"

"Heh, that's pretty good," he complimented. "Still, tell me about it…"

"Why tell you when you're already a part of the investigation?" she sardonically asked. "You see it for yourself, right?"

"Ooh, another bullseye," the serviceman complimented once more. "Nice," he added with an approving thumbs-up that elicited a grin from his teammate.

"Thanks, Tay…" she offered her gratitude as she wondered about his time away from her. "So, how was it down there in that storm bunker?"

"Pretty awful, if I'm gonna be blunt," he informed her, which surprised her by approximately zero percent. "It was super dark, so I had t' carry a torch around the whole time, like I said earlier. There were scorpions, mouse skeletons, bats, an' these disgustin' goop things galore… obnoxious traps an' puzzles in a giant maze that played out like a scavenger hunt for keys to unlock the right doors… an' of course, the Tinker-Stormer that I almost killed myself blowin' t' smithereens. It… was an unkind experience. Like I said before, though, I couldn't even explore all the rooms in there despite bein' able t' knock out all the monsters in every one of 'em. I was at least able t' use the Thermite grenades an' the bulletproof walls t' get rid o' the monsters in the rooms I couldn't explore all the way through. Those ones looked like they were designed specifically for you t' navigate, no less."

"That much stuff down there? Wow, that sounds exactly like a regular dungeon quest that I would usually take on. Al told me a bit about it himself, but what a confirmation that is. If what you're saying is true, then we may need to come back here so I can take a look at the rooms you couldn't get to."

"I'm not surprised… Though, that reminds me…" he trailed off, reaching into his tank top and pulling out the Heart Holders he was unable to use.

"Oh! You found two more Heart Holders?" she queried as the two stopped just short of the busted lightning bridge they'd crossed earlier.

"Yeah, but it looks like they don't work for me," he glumly answered. "I tried everything t' get 'em t' work. Pushin' them int' my chest, openin' 'em… EATIN' 'em… Nothin' worked."

"Well, you're not supposed to EAT them. Here, I'll show you," she offered as Tay handed her one of the restorative power-ups. Shantae got Heart Holder as she posed, holding it high while a congratulatory fanfare blared from absolutely nowhere. Then, the item disappeared in her hand, granting her more health. "You're supposed to hold it high, like it was a trophy. The rest takes care of itself. Try it!"

"That's just… odd," he scoffed as he examined her up and down. "Here goes nothin'…" With that, he tried posing exactly the same as how she did. However, no fanfare played, and the Heart Holder remained stationary in his hand. "See, nothin'. No matter what I try, these things will not work for me."

"Hmm…" the young woman studied as her sidekick handed her the other Heart Holder, which she got without a problem, as she was rewarded with even more health. "If I had to guess, then I'd say I'm the only one who can collect them; which is weird, because they only ever came one-by-one before. If they're coming in multiples, there HAS to be some way for you to gain more Hit Points… I mean, I found four of them jammed into a single box earlier. In a single day, I went from having four hearts of health to TEN. However tired I am, I still feel like I could do an entire Boss Rush challenge with no healing items and come out on top. There's gotta be something out there for you, though. You haven't gotten a single health boost since we started. As far as I've seen, you've only ever gotten weapon upgrades, and up to this point, some were only temporary…"

"I… guess?" he shrugged, uncertain of what she was saying, though he understood to some degree what she meant. "Oh well, I DID pick up somethin' I could use," he assured her as they trekked around the rickety bridge. He reached into his shirt once more and pulled out the Flare Gun he obtained from the storm bunker.

"Awesome! You found another one of your world's weapons!"

"Yeah, but this one ain't a weapon; it's an emergency signal," he explained.

"Emergency signal?"

"Yes. Say, if I ever found myself alone with no way t' defend myself for whatever reason, or stranded somewhere with no way out… I would shoot this straight into the air t' signal for help. From a distance, it looks like a bright, sparklin' red light shootin' high int' the sky that you can even see in broad daylight. Granted, the light fizzles out pretty quickly, but it shoots high enough and shines bright enough that somebody who knows what it means can identify it an' track the source down, thanks to the smoke trail it also leaves."

"Ohhh… can you maybe demonstrate it so I know what to look for in case we get separated again?"

"I wish I could, but I can't," he explained with a frown. "It only came with the one flare that was loaded into it. If I shot it now, it would make the Flare Gun useless. Unless we come across another one, you'll have t' trust my word on it."

"Got it…" she understandingly nodded as they neared their destination.

"Yeah… How was the boss fight, by the way?" he asked as they neared their destination.

"It came much sooner than boss fights usually do," she informed him, still wondering how unconventionally this adventure played out from start to finish. "Usually, I'd be exploring a dungeon or fighting my way through a tough level before I faced off against a boss. I mean, not to say that the sandy lightning storm and the busted bridge weren't tough, but… after you fell into the bunker, I really only had to deal with a couple of booby-trapped sand dunes before I got to Al in his sand igloo."

"There's a question there about why his house is designed like an igloo in a desert, but I think I'll let the discrepancy slide this time," he commented with a smirk. "Still, did you really not have any trouble gettin' through the storm t' get into his house?"

"Well… I won't say everything went smoothly. You saw it for yourself how monstrously huge the sand dunes were. Just imagine if they were made entirely of quicksand and had teeming hordes of monsters, as well as all these insane spike traps on them where they were just popping out of the ground and then immediately sinking back in like they were never there."

"That sounds… like a ton o' fun."

"Trust me, it was," Shantae sarcastically assured with a smirk. "Thankfully, Al's daughter came to the rescue and got me through the dunes a lot faster than if I were to try climbing them all myself…"

"Al has a daughter?"

"Yep! Her name's Aleaqarab, though she goes by 'Ali.'"

"Ali? That's weird… Did she choose t' go by a boy's name on purpose?"

"That's what I asked her! No way!" Shantae remarked in utter surprise. "Don't tell me that's a thing in your world, too?"

"It is," he confirmed, astounding his half-genie friend in the process. "Yet another strange coincidence t' consider about this place, however minor… Anyway, so Al's got a kid. That's interesting… I mean, I'm sure he'd make a much better father than that obnoxious octopus, all things considered, but yeah… Interesting…"

"Yep," Shantae affirmed, recovering from her surprise at the coincidence. "She helped me skate right over and past the sand dune mountains. As it turns out, their species isn't affected by quicksand."

"Wow, you lucked out then, huh?"

"You could say that, though it wasn't without its series of hiccups. Still, once we made it across, all that was left was the boss fight itself. Al was pretty intense, I won't lie."

"Ya don't say…"

"Yeah, he was tougher than how he was carrying himself when you showed up."

"Oh?"

"I can tell you can't believe it, but I'm not joking, Tay. He was all ominous and intimidating… I mean, he was also wearing this awful sweater and these cheap sunglasses, but man did he give me a bad vibe at first. He started off all nice, offering me tea and inviting me in, but as soon as I asked about how to open the storm bunker to save you, he flipped and pulled a total heel turn. He told me that the storm bunker was a dungeon of shallow graves, called the Carnivorous Catacombs, that housed a ton of lost refugees that he planned on eating and/or feeding to his legion of pet scorpions and that you weren't going to escape because falling in there meant certain doom…"

"All that comin' from him? Wow, I get that he looks scary because he's part scorpion an' he had all those muscles on his human half, but that dude came across like he wouldn't hurt a fly otherwise…"

"Trust me, I'm not making this up," Shantae assured, aware that the entire scenario sounded bizarre. "Anyway, he threatened to turn me into his next meal and before I knew it, we were fighting. He was all over the place with energy balls, stinger strikes, pincer grabs, and even teleporting around his house to try and confuse me while I used my animal dances, fire balls, bubble shield, and hair attack to wear him down."

"Just hearin' about it sounds like y'all really went t' war. Although, if I just heard you right, you said you got another new power-up?"

"Yep! I picked up my Bubble spell!" she informed him, much to his surprise. "It's a force field that mainly absorbs projectile attacks to protect me. It's part of how Ali and I got over the sand dunes without getting struck by lightning seventeen times per dune."

"Wow… You never cease to amaze me. I only wonder what that power must look like."

"You won't have to wonder for long. I'll show you when we get home. Anyway, as for Al… I let my guard down at one point, though, and then he got me with his stinger and poisoned me before I could dodge it. The sting itself hurt like a bullet to the mouth…" she compared, instinctively rubbing her lip.

"Wow… So how'd you manage t' beat him while you were poisoned?"

"He let HIS guard down when he started taunting me. He gave me just the opening I needed to destroy this Dark Magic-corrupted gem that was embedded in his turban. He got most, if not all of his magic powers and his evil personality from that. After I got the gem out of his turban, it was a matter of chasing him around his house and beating him down."

"Yikes… That sounds like such a horrible experience. Yet, you pulled through…" Tay commended, surprised that Shantae handled such a perilous threat on her own; even after being infected with a life-threatening venom that could have very well taken her out if things didn't play out the way they did. He considered both himself and her incredibly lucky. "I only wonder what would've happened had I been there t' help you…"

"It'd certainly have been easier, no doubt," she asserted with a nod. "That gun of yours would've worked wonders for doing damage from a safe distance."

"No doubt about that. Now that I think of it, though… if either of us would've got stung if I was there, we'd be stuck…" he theorized. "If I ain't mistaken, he said the antidote I found was the only one he had, right?"

"Yeah… I guess in that case, it's a good thing in the end that you fell into the bunker. That antidote was a real lifesaver…" she agreed, nodding once more.

"Yeah…" he also nodded as the two went silent. As they drew ever closer to the starting point of their adventure, the elephant in the room made itself very apparent. They each let their eyes wander around the distracting landscape, occasionally casting quick, nervous glances toward one another. They each had something on their minds that they knew needed to be addressed, but neither of them could summon the courage to speak up.

In particular, Shantae found herself reflecting on the pivotal moment during their time with Al… The insufferable symptoms of her illness… the urgency of the situation as she remembered almost losing her awareness of her surroundings… the awkwardness that came with finding out how the cure for her poisoning was properly applied… There was so much suspense and heartrending tension. So much doubt and reservation… and yet… something else made itself more evident than her trepidation. She thought about the so-called 'kiss' between her and Tayshan that rid her of the scorpion venom's haunting effects.

It started off so clumsy, with neither of them having the experience or the knowledge necessary to do it right… if there ever WAS a 'right' way. The mutually-shared fear of one another that grew as the distance between them shrunk… that uncertain bubble-cheeked look he gave her through the mouthful of antidote that let her know he was just as nervous as she was… the comfort she inexplicably felt just by noting his insecurity that matched hers… and then the moment their lips met in the most… unceremonious way possible. The immediate slippage of the antidote definitely did nothing to calm her down in the heat of the moment. For that matter, neither did Tay's sudden move to turn the tiny peck into a full-blown lip-lock that she would've pounded him into the quicksand for, were it not for his frantic, muffled explanation that he harbored no ill intentions.

After that, though… it all seemed to be a blur. A blur that, while mysterious in how it seemed to make everything around her ostensibly melt into nothing throughout that moment, filled her with a mixture of feelings she'd never quite experienced before. She could only describe the feelings as warm… fulfilling… inviting… and intensely mesmerizing. She remembered what she did in response and had to take a second to consider…

Did she REALLY react the way she did? Grabbing the man by his face, holding him in place… and even kissing him deeper as it carried on, to the point where she slung her arms around his neck and pulled him in… and kept kissing him after the antidote had completely dissolved…? Granted, that's how most situations like this played out in her comics. Maybe it wasn't as big a deal as she was making of it… He read comics, too, so he should have had some idea himself of how she felt. But then again, what if it was a big deal? Comic or no comic, she'd have never done such a scandalous thing in a million years if she were in her normal state of mind; no matter how good it felt.

The whole experience was new to her in too many ways for her to comprehend. It was her first time being poisoned, her first time being caught completely off-guard by a boss that wasn't her archenemy, her first time having to rely on someone other than her usual gang of best friends or uncle to bail her out of a nasty predicament, and her first time being tended to by a boss after being poisoned by him… and it all culminated with none other than her first kiss, shared with her first friend from a parallel timeline/planet/universe. It was also the first time she felt so… conflicted about any situation she'd ever been in. Memorable in all the weirdest ways as the scenario may have been, it must've been the effects of the poison being wiped out of her system by the antidote that made her act so uncharacteristically bold in the heat of the moment… right?

 ** _Elsewhere…_**

"Hurry it up or I'll clap you all in irons and make you walk the plank!" barked the world's most infamously bodacious swashbuckler as she commanded her Tinkerbats to pack up her ship. The sycophantic pirate mates were hastily carrying large, metallic, rectangular olive-green crates full of contraband artillery through the now-clear, non-threatening, gaudy sands of the Kitschy Quilt Desert. "We should've been out of here the minute the thunderstorm stopped," Risky murmured with concern in her tone, evidently having anticipated her Tinker-Stormer being compromised. "We got so carried away testing all these weapons that we totally overshot the margin of time we had scheduled! At this rate, it's only a matter of seconds before-!" she yelled, though she was cut off mid-sentence.

"Risky Boots!" a youthful, yet accusatory voice called out from behind her as its owner pointed toward the menacing maiden of madness. The pirate mastermind momentarily bowed her head and let out a frustrated sigh as she pinched the bridge of her nose. Afterward, she turned her head to look over her shoulder and was immediately unsurprised by the sight she beheld. Upon this unpleasant (un)surprise, Risky turned all the way around to approach her arch-nemesis, who was accompanied by another familiar individual.

"Right on cue… Well, if it isn't everyone's favorite goody-goody little genie twerp," Risky rudely commented, clearly very happy to see Shantae once again. "We meet again. What an unexpected and totally unpleasant coincidence that you're here. I knew it wouldn't be long before you started nosing around in my business again like the mole you are. Although…" she trailed off as she observed the young man standing beside Shantae and immediately recognized him. She smirked in a mix of satisfaction and contempt as the rumors she'd heard about his survival had turned out to be true. "I had a hunch you wouldn't stay dead for long. Of course, now that I'm seeing it for myself, a certain Tinkerbat's now got a date with some cannonballs, the plank and my foot… Anyway, color me impressed, kid."

"Yeah, it's a real treat bein' hogtied an' left for dead in an abandoned tower in the middle o' nowhere. Thanks for that," Tay shot back with an indignant sneer, his grudge against his former captor holding strong. "Regardless, that's what you get for underestimatin' me!"

"Is that a fact?" Risky rhetorically asked, her confident smirk never faltering. "I do actually wonder how you managed to fight off a whole battalion of my Tinkerbats and escape certain death without a weapon… but that wonder is curbed by the disappointing revelation that, of all people, you hooked up with the very same meddlesome brat that always throws a wrench in my schemes."

"And I always will, so long as you keep terrorizing the people of Sequin Land! And other timelines… or universes, o-or planets or wherever you went!" Shantae spoke up, oozing with determination to stop Risky Boots once again.

"Ugh, spare me the saccharine heroics…" the pirate mistress dismissed with a roll of her eyes, not listening to her sworn enemy's valiant proclamation.

"Only if you spare us the trouble of having to take back those weapons you stole from the other dimension by force," Shantae attempted to compromise, though she finally did catch Risky's attention. "We saw for ourselves the havoc you've been causing, and we're gonna put a stop to it right now, Risky!"

"Hmph. Of course, you'd know about that by now. There goes my element of surprise…" Risky sighed in frustration again, glaring at Tay. "You loudmouthed little birdie… You just had to blab the whole deal with these weapons to her, didn't you?"

"Even if I didn't, your senseless rampages would've tipped us off!" Tay shot back, unappreciative of her accusation.

"Exactly!" Shantae agreed, equally as disgusted with Risky's wanton destruction. "Do we even need to mention what you did to the Prickle Stitch Valley? Or Hypno Baron's Castle?"

"Mere examples of what's gonna happen to the rest of this cosmic dirt ball when I'm done training my men on how to properly use my new equipment," she callously remarked. "The fact that you two hopeless morons are even still alive after I put the hit out on you through Hypno Baron clearly means he was as miserable a failure as I predicted… if not more. Nevertheless, he learned the hard way why you don't try to cross me without expecting to be bowled over. These weapons are definitely proving their worth," she coldheartedly added, caring much more about the efficiency of 'her' guns than about the wellbeing of the people and places she was aiming (and firing) them at.

"Speakin' of, what are you doin' with these guns?" Tayshan asked, ignoring Risky's condescending remarks in the wake of the potential harm she was causing with them. "It's one thing t' steal 'em, an' it's a whole other issue that you're out here destroyin' people's lives with 'em already!"

"Hmph," she curtly replied with a heartless shrug and a menacing smirk.

"Just the reaction I thought we'd get from you… Disgusting…!" the soldier scoffed. "I also notice you're tamperin' with 'em, too? Most of 'em are shootin' these flashin' marbles!"

"Yes, I replaced their ammo with my own limitless, magic-infused supply, of course," she proudly confessed. "Powerful as my new arsenal is, the ammunition supply is sadly limited to where there isn't nearly enough of it to make full use of it. I figured it'd be a bit of a problem to have all these wonderful guns hampered by such a strict and glaring constraint, considering I only got my hands on so much."

"That explains why my gun is so much weaker than usual," Tay murmured, frustrated further that the pirate captain had been desecrating weapons that didn't belong to her.

"While my custom-made ammunition is far less lethal than many of these weapons would call for, it's universal in that it works for any gun, no matter the size, shape, or classification. The best part is that my ammo automatically adapts to the strength, firing rate, and even range of whatever gun it's put into by a healthy margin, though it's no substitute for the real stuff… In fact, that includes the one in your holster there," she explained, noticing the soldier's firearm and recognizing it right away.

"What about it?" Tay asked, caught by surprise as he glanced at his weapon before looking back at Risky.

"That was the first weapon I experimented with, and the only one of its kind out of the whole collection. With good reason, I might add. It was especially powerful, but so unwieldly and unnecessarily loud that I handed it off to one of my men to test out in the forest near Scuttle Town instead of keeping it. Now that I remember, though, I did wind up equipping it with one of my rare, special bottomless magazines because I intended to use that one myself. To see you got your hands on it means…"

"That we took it back," Tay finished for her, clenching his fists. "Unlimited ammo an' all."

"The rest will follow suit. You can be sure of that," Shantae chimed in, learning more about the pervasive threat Risky Boots posed. "If this is all true what I'm hearing, then we've got no choice but to put an end to your schemes here and now! When will you learn your lesson!?"

"The day you get me to stop working toward my ultimate goal of world domination, brat, is the day you cut that ridiculous, irritating ponytail off your head! You could use a trim either way, and I'd be happy to oblige…" she threatened while tapping the scimitar tucked into her belt, though Shantae was unfazed. Even if, in some bizarre, absurdly-unlikely circumstance, it DID mean Risky would stop being an evil pirate mastermind, Shantae knew that her ponytail wasn't going anywhere.

"One way or another, your pirating days will come to an end…" the half-genie remarked, though more to herself than her enemy as though she were making a promise to herself.

"As for that gun, it changes nothing about how I've got just the advantage I need to destroy you both and take Sequin Land by storm," Risky commented with an unintentional pun, bringing the argument back into focus. "Speaking of which…" she paused, observing the weather and the garish sand. "…I'm guessing you two are to blame for my Tinker-Stormer being disabled."

"Ehh, less 'disabled' and more 'blasted into a scattered, flamin' mass of twisted metal,'" Tay bragged.

"Just like I predicted…" Risky confidently shrugged as though she knew what would happen to her machine, taking the proverbial wind out of Tay's also-proverbial sails.

"…Wait, what?" he questioned, understandably perplexed by Risky's reaction.

"I'm always three steps ahead, kid. You're new to this, so it's reasonable that you wouldn't know that I'm superior in every way to you and your new mistress over there."

"If that were true, then how is it you've never beaten me?" Shantae casually questioned, poking a glaring hole in Risky's logic.

"Can it, brat!" Risky bellowed, immediately enraged by Shantae's observation. "Those were all flukes! All of them!"

"Sorry. Anyway, you should give up now since we found you and your secret hideout already. You know how this will end," she warned as she prepared herself for a fight like no other.

"Secret hideout?" Risky echoed in amusement before cackling like a crazy cat lady. "You insult me, Shantae. You seriously think I'd stoop as low as using THIS hideous, discolored pimple of an island as a stronghold? This abominable wasteland sticks out like a sore thumb on a hand with no other fingers. I wouldn't even use this as my regular tanning spot!"

"So… what are you doing here? We heard you had an encounter with a guy who calls this place his home."

"If you MUST know, I was using this forsaken desert as a testing ground for my brand-new arsenal. I duped that gullible motor-mouthed buffoon in the sand igloo into letting me build my Tinker-Stormer in his basement."

"What benefit could you possibly get from the entire landscape being turned to quicksand and the weather being an aggressive, neverending lightning storm where you're constantly at risk for being struck?"

"To slow you down in the case you sniffed your way over here, of course. I just didn't account for you getting through it all so quickly. I also picked a designated spot where there was no quicksand to test these guns out. Oh, and I also turned that fool's basement into a diabolical, inescapable puzzle-laden labyrinth that was designed specifically to trap and stump anyone foolhardy enough to wander into it; especially adventure-happy little snots like you."

"Well, it wasn't inescapable," Shantae reasoned. "Tay managed to find his way out just fine, and he went down there by himself."

"Really now?" Risky remarked in total surprise, seeming not to expect such an outcome. "Huh… I didn't calculate for that to happen… No wonder you two got here so fast…"

"Yeah, but you tricked poor Al and gave him a tainted jewel that made him go totally berserk. He even poisoned me and then told me you stole the antidote before you left. That's pretty mean, Risky. I could've died!"

"He served his purpose as a distraction for you two irritating crusaders. His poisoning you was but a small bonus. I took the antidote in case anybody got any funny ideas about curing you. Of course, there IS the question of how you're even standing here right now if you were infected, as you say… I heard that his venom was so lethal that even a droplet of it in the bloodstream could take down ten grown hippopotami. There's also the fact that, again, I took the only antidote he had…"

"Uh, th-that isn't important!" Shantae hurriedly dismissed, far from ready to explain her miraculous recovery remedy to her archenemy as her face reddened with embarrassment. "All that matters is that your dastardly scheme didn't work!"

"Whatever," Risky dismissed with a callous shrug. "Anyway, I figured it'd be time to move on once the sand went back to being ugly and the thunderstorms stopped. A pity that fool was too weak to do a half-decent job of keeping you busy. I was hoping to make a clean getaway, but these things happen. Nonetheless, I hope you don't seriously expect to stop me here, pipsqueak. I'm far more prepared to take you on than I've ever been," she threatened, striking a battle pose without drawing a weapon. "…and if I can eliminate you as a threat to my plan this early on, I WELCOME the opportunity."

"Bring it on, Risky!" Shantae challenged, courageously readying herself for battle as well. "I beat you the last time you tried to attack me while I was unprepared, so you really shouldn't expect anything different here! I'll take you down as many times as it takes until you give up your evil ways," she added as the two long-standing rivals glared at one another with a competitive intensity that burned hotter than an exploding star. The atmosphere went silent, save for the gentle swirling winds blowing across the desert landscape, kicking up sand as Shantae and Risky Boots prepared to go toe-to-toe against each other in another titanic clash for the ages. The mutually-shared enmity between the two women was almost tangible. Risky burned with determination to finally rid herself of the lavender-ponytailed halfling menace that always foiled her otherwise-flawless plans. Shantae was charged up with vigor and fortitude, eager to thwart yet another of her nemesis's ridiculous world-domination plans. This battle would certainly be one to remember. Or, y'know, it would've. Buuuuut…

"Wait… I'm still stuck on 'tanning spot.' How does tannin' work for you when you have blue skin? Do you, like… turn purple instead? Or is that what happens when you get sunburn? Maybe you just turn dark blue like a blueberry? I dunno, I'm curious," Tay dared to question, immediately infuriating Risky as she glared hot, unforgiving rage at the soldier. Shantae, flabbergasted by Tay's ridiculous questions, had to struggle to stifle her laughter as she lost her focus. She turned away, covering her face with her hand as she tried to keep from snickering at Risky Boots.

"Oh, a comedian, eh? I'll give you something to laugh at…" She commented, so angry that one might have seen a blood vessel protruding through her extravagant pirate hat. She leapt toward Tay with the speed of a hundred cheetahs. "Knock, knock…" she whispered to him and, before he could even open his mouth to answer or move a hand to defend himself, Risky hammered him in the stomach with a horryfing, voluminous *THRASH* of her fist for his smart remark.

"OWAHHOHGH!" he choked out as he clasped his gut in debilitating pain. Her unforgiving sucker punch landed square in his stomach with the force of a rocket explosion, causing Tay to double over as he resisted falling to his knees.

"Tayshan!" Shantae called out in alarm, bearing witness to another example of her sworn enemy's vicious cruelty. "That was a cheap shot, Risky! He wasn't even ready to defend himself!" she further criticized as she prepared to defend Tay from further harm. Anticipating Shantae's interference, Risky drew a pistol that appeared to be from the other dimension and pointed it directly at the defenseless soldier's face, cocking it to cue Shantae to stop in her tracks.

"Make one wrong move, genie girl, and our alien friend will find out what piping hot DEATH tastes like… and quickly," she threatened with a serious sneer. "He could use it to wash down that enormous knuckle sandwich he just ate, if you ask me. I don't have any objections."

"Don't do it!" Shantae angrily urged, simultaneously angry at Risky for her underhanded tricks and scared to death for Tayshan's safety. "You're totally overreacting to a simple joke!"

"Got any more wisecracks, kiddo?" Risky asked as she triumphantly stood over him, patiently awaiting a reply as she nudged his head with the cold, ridged barrel of the pistol. Tay, still feeling the aftereffects of the gut punch, took a moment to form his rebuttal.

"No… but you didn't answer my question… nor did you even let me ask 'who's there…' Your joke delivery needs work… Also… don't you think you're goin' overboard just a little bit, pullin' that gun on me?" he choked out, still struggling to recuperate from Risky's awful sneak attack.

"It's all giggles and laughs until someone gets a bullet in their skull. Suffice to say, I don't tolerate jokes at my expense. From anyone; especially not disrespectful little punks like you…!"

"Relax! It isn't that serious," Shantae reasoned from the side, holding her breath as she watched, thinking of a way to save her friend from certain death. "There's no need to be so violent! Get away from him right now, or I'll-!"

"I'd suggest you stay out of it," Risky demanded, directing her attention and the pistol to Shantae, freezing her in her tracks once more. "The grown-ups are talking right now." Tay, seeing this as just the opening he needed, made his move without a moment's hesitation. He lunged forward like a pouncing tiger and tackled Risky to the ground while her guard was down. Caught by surprise, the pirate mistress found herself flat on her back with her ethereal adversary positioning himself on top of her to keep his advantage going.

"Gimme that gun!" he demanded, immediately grabbing for it as he and Risky tangled with each other.

"Not on your life, you sneaky little rat! I'll tear you apart for this!" she refused as she engaged Tay in an on-the-ground power struggle for control of Risky's stolen pistol. The two of them rolled around in the kaleidoscopic sand like two children fighting on a playground as they tussled over the firearm. Shantae attempted to step in and help her friend, but she found her path immediately blocked by a sizable group of Tinkerbats with scimitars that forced her to retreat to a safe distance.

"You're in my way!" she yelled as she whipped one of them with her ponytail. To her surprise, the creature remained in her path instead of being vanquished in one attack. The entire brigade approached her with malicious intent, keen on stopping her from getting anywhere near their boss. "I need to get past these guys ASAP…!" Shantae murmured as she came up with an idea. She backed away and created enough distance between her and the attackers and began performing one of her trademark belly dance sequences. With utmost urgency, the magic-wielding woman struck her signature completion pose. "Obliterate!" she loudly announced, causing a series of explosions to trigger around her immediate surroundings that engulfed and wiped out the brigade of Tinkerbats in an instant.

Were things so simple, she would have been able to intervene in the scuffle between her friend and archenemy immediately following this. However, in the place of the last group of Tinkerbats appeared another, larger, more menacing squad. Some were armed with scimitars while others were armed with flintlock pistols that appeared similar to the one Risky normally used. As with the last group, their approach was laced full of hateful vigor as they set to engage their sworn enemy in a 30-to-1 battle of chaotic proportions.

"If you guys wanna do it the hard way, then be my guests!" Shantae challenged, charging forward to clear the incoming wave of Risky Boots's men by force, knowing she'd already burnt up most of her remaining magic with her last technique. Without a potion to help her, she was forced to eliminate the Tinkerbats the old-fashioned way. This did nothing to intimidate our greatest hero, however. Even if she had to vanquish the foul creatures one by one, she was going to plow through all of them to protect her friend. Without another word, Shantae charged forward, immediately whipping a Tinkerbat in the face twice after it swung its sword at her. With two heavy *PLOCKs* of her ponytail, she defeated the creature as it was sent flying off into into oblivion. In that moment, three of them fired rounds from their pistols from different angles, the simultaneous *POPs* alerting the half-genie to their presence. Shantae narrowly dodged the flying, flashing marbles as they whizzed past her. Just as she recovered, however, two other Tinkerbats tried to simultaneously slash at her with their swords. While she managed to expertly dodge the calculated dual assault and whack one of her assailants with her ponytail to stun it, another one managed to lightly graze the end of her ponytail, slicing off a couple strands with a quiet *shick* heard 'round the world.

"My hair!" Shantae yelled as she watched the tiny, now-disembodied locks of her gorgeous hair fall slowly to the ground. It wasn't long before she turned her intensely-angered, growling glare at the Tinkerbat responsible for such a heinous crime. Knowing just what they'd done, the rest of the attack squad braced themselves for a most daunting storm of hair whips and animal transformations the likes of which they could never hope to be prepared for. "That does it! You guys are ALL gonna pay for that!" Shantae roared as she danced and turned into her elephant form. With an energetic Elephant Charge that could very well have broken the sound barrier if she wanted it to, Elephant-Shantae ripped through and flattened three of the Tinkerbats blocking her path before she transformed back, charging in again to begin the most bizarre rendition of a one-sided clash anyone could ever witness as she hair-whipped, kicked, and punched every Tinkerbat in her way as they redoubled their drastic efforts to contain her fist, feet, and follicles of ferocious fury.

It was to a point where even the Tinkerbats who'd been torn between helping Risky out against Tayshan were forced to help stop Shantae while the rest continued packing the ship with weapons crates. Some of them even pulled out semiautomatic rifles from their supply and charged in, ready to put a very quick stop to the half-genie's rampage. If this wasn't any indication of how seriously these creatures took Shantae as a threat not only to their boss, but also to themselves that they opted against jumping in to help Risky contain Tayshan, I don't know what to tell you. It might also have been to our heroes' collective benefit that Risky had been shown to be capable of handling the soldier on her own anyway, which set the bar pretty low on how they viewed him as a threat, buuuut… I digress.

With an ear-splitting, rapid onslaught of *TAPs*, *POPs* and *BANGs* ringing out from all over, the Tinkerbats fired their weapons with extreme prejudice, aiming to gun the half-genie down while she was distracted. Were it so easy, however, both our heroes would be done for in an instant. Rest assured, of course, as Shantae caught a glimpse of the unfamiliar firearms being aimed at her before they unloaded their rounds and, with what little magic she had in her at this point, summoned another Bubble barrier just in time to block a terrifying barrage of glowing marbles from multiple angles. With little time to work with before the barrier dissipated, she focused her wrath on any Tinkerbats with guns as she continued to challenge them.

At this point, this battle became more about protecting herself than it was about protecting anyone else. With another series of hair whips and roundhouse kicks, she'd wiped out a few more of the aggressive creatures, some of whom dropped tiny green smiley-faced vials of magic-restoring liquid; just the break she needed. If more of her foes dropped these vials upon their defeat, she had a considerable shot at keeping her barrier up long enough to take them down before they got any inkling of a chance to seriously hurt her or her endangered friend. Though dividing her attention the way she was forced to caused her to take damage she would normally have avoided, Shantae valiantly defied her circumstances with full intent to make it out of this fracas in one piece.

Meanwhile, Tay and Risky continued wrestling each other in the sand, neither one able to best the other right away. The latest round of their vitriolic brawl saw the two enemies vehemently grappling for the weapon, left totally alone by Risky's men as they continued either loading up her ship in a hurry or attempting to stop Shantae from interfering. At some point during the brawl, Risky lost possession of the gun as it landed in a diamond-pattered patch of sand nearby. This only served to intensify the ferocious grappling match between the two as they scratched, clawed, and struggled for an advantage large enough to grap the weapon.

Tay, much more aware of Risky's unnatural physical strength and uncertain of what would happen if Risky overpowered him, turned it up a notch, giving it his all to end the encounter safely and quickly. He briefly thought about pulling his own gun on her, but he found himself unwilling to do so for fear that she would grab the one they were fighting over in the time it took him to draw it; or worse, she could find some way to snatch his own gun from his hands. The last thing he needed to enter was another disadvantaged stalemate with her, calling back to how he'd first met her. Having no time to weigh his options, Tay focused his attention on finding a method to subdue the ornery Pirate Queen. Taken by surprise yet again, Risky exerted more of her energy to either kick the soldier off her or incapacitate him with a decisive strike. She found this extraordinarily difficult, however, as Tay dodged, grappled, and pressured his way into some form of an advantageous position. Eventually, Tay gained the upper hand, as he pinned Risky face-up on the ground, his hands on her shoulders as he sat on top of her.

"Gotcha this time, pirate girl!" he breathlessly boasted as Risky found herself unwilling to believe that such a pathetic amateur could get the drop on her. She scowled unforgiving, seething rage at him.

"You think this means anything, kid?" she taunted, her breath also heavy with fatigue. "You took me by surprise. There's nothing skillful about that. Let's see you try this when we're both on equal footing."

"Excuses, excuses…" he dismissed. "You just punched me in the stomach without warnin', but now I'm the one bein' called cheap when I pin you down? Also, my name is Tayshan, so you can stop with the 'kid' spiel. I'm not a little boy."

"Don't act all high and mighty now, you impudent peon! As soon as I break free, I am going to rip your world asunder," she threatened, wriggling furiously to escape the soldier's grasp. "Your name repulses me to no end, by the way! Just when I think you couldn't get more irritating, it turns out you have almost the exact same name as that brat, too? Disgraceful…!"

"Glad you disapprove," he remarked, at this point glad to have drawn some form of perturbance from her. "My point still stands, though. You can't seriously get mad at me for seein' an opportunity an' takin' it. You wanna lecture me about a fair fight? Practice what you preach first!"

"An interesting suggestion, but I'm more of a play-by-play kind of girl!" she shot back as she gripped a mound of sand and, with an explosive pull of her shoulder, slipped free of Tay's grasp and attempted to throw the sand in his face to blind him. Seeing this, Tay immediately grabbed Risky's wrist and pinned it down above her head before she could throw it at him. In just that moment, one of Risky's subordinates rushed toward him and swiped at him with its sword. Tay, thinking quickly, narrowly dodged the sneak attack and countered with a heavy punch that sent the offending Tinkerbat hurtling away. However, he inadvertently let go of Risky's other shoulder, allowing her the opportunity to reach for the gun, grab it, and immediately clock him in the face with the handle of it. With an extremely loud, disturbing, jarring *CLACK* of metal against his vulnerable eye socket, the soldier recoiled as he fell off of her, his head pulsing with excruciating pistol-whipping pain.

"Agh! Awgh! Oww!" He yelled in a mix of anger and despair as he sat, clutching his face where Risky struck him. The underhanded Pirate Queen capitalized on her advantage by getting up to thrust kicking him in the chest that hit with another terrible *THUMP*, forcing him onto his back. Following this, the self-proclaimed Queen found a comfortable seat on the soldier's lap, straddling him as she intended to bring this sandy duel to a most violent end. Noticing right away, Tay attempted to get up, firmly grasping Risky by her hips as he attempted to get up and throw her off.

"Watch those hands, cowboy~!" Risky salaciously taunted as she maneuvered to counter him. She was quick to stop any additional foolish attempts at defiance by planting a hand on his chest while triumphantly pointing the gun in his face, grinning with glorious amusement.

"You won't-!" Tay spouted, pausing as soon as he realized the imminent danger he was in. Tay, though he found his vision impaired in the form of one eye swelling up profusely, saw clearly enough out of his good eye to notice the barrel of the gun in his face. As such, he stopped in his tracks. Risky forced him back to the ground with a powerful shove, keeping her hand on his chest as Tay raised one hand to cover his aching eye. She had him stuck between a rock and a hard place, though he found himself more-so furious with the method in which he wound up in this situation.

"Flat on your back with me on top of you. Again. Who didn't see that coming?" Risky sarcastically pondered with a chuckle, enraging her opponent to no end.

"Are you serious!? You hit me in the EYE! With a gun! While I was distracted! You feel proud o' yourself with that cheap shot!?" Tay indignantly complained, still holding his swollen eye as his anger at his opponent boiled over.

"Hmph. I seem to recall you saying something just a couple minutes ago about seizing an opportunity when it presents itself. Do I hear hypocrisy in your whining simply because you were made to eat your foolish words, hmm?" she teasingly asked, her grin widening as she enjoyed humiliating her opponent; a hobby she'd scarcely partaken in since her rivalry with a certain genie pipsqueak began. Bullying the new guy was something of a refresher for her, and she took full advantage of it.

"Don't you sit here an' try t' flip this on me after you… uh, you already kinda literally flipped this on me! You're nothin' but a dirty cheater an' you know it!" At this remark, Risky almost found it in her to strike him again for his insolence. However, she suddenly began snickering as she watched the young man writhe in horrible pain from the raw power of her brutal sneak attack, genuinely pleased by the agony she caused him.

"Heh, I'd hate to admit it, but you're actually kinda cute, kid. Contemptible, but cute. Y'know that?" she confessed, still laughing at him.

"An' there it is again with that word! I can't stand it!" he complained, further angered by Risky's 'compliment' for certain reasons. Risky, of course, found his anger amusing as she laughed at him some more. "I am a grown man! Don't you dare look down on me!" he added, unaware of the irony of his statement as Risky looked down on (and at) him.

"Aw, but it's true. You're so cute when you get all pouty and frustrated, stupidly thinking you had anything close to chance of beating me," she further mocked, laughing some more. At this, Tay realized she was deliberately antagonizing him. "It's adorable, really. Hearing you whining like a wittle baby makes it that much sweeter," she added, tracing a finger up his chest and neck before resting it on his nose and pressing down slightly. Tay merely sighed as he kept his hand firmly placed over his eye.

"To top it all off, you think this is funny… You're despicable," he spat, his distaste for her stronger than the blackest coffee as his enemy's finger remained pressed to his nose.

"I know." Taking this as another small win for her, she tauntingly ran her fingers over Tay's head before cupping her hand around his forehead and leaning in close to force him to look her in the eye. "Don't think I forgot about all the trouble you put me through when you first got here, either. This is just a taste of what you're in for, since you're such a glutton for punishment. You should've been a good boy and perished where I left you, but since you're so disobedient, I guess I need to teach the dog a new trick. I owe you another beating for your insufferable insolence anyway, but now isn't a good time to cash that ticket in," she taunted him some more, though he realized something from her most recent insult as he momentarily reflected on this entire encounter. He soon realized that, even for someone as powerful as she was, Risky Boots had (at least) one glaring weakness in her character; her unbelievable intolerance for back-sass. At that epiphany, he got an idea, though he understood it might cost him the rest of his face… if not his life.

"That right? Agh… That's why…" Tay began to speak through the surges of pain in his eye. "That's why I can't wait t' see what that ridiculous outfit o' yours looks like with mine and Shantae's footprints on your butt. So far as I hear, you're used t' that sort o' thing," he taunted back, shooting a teasing smirk of his own back at her. Risky, staying true to her inability to take a joke, instantly became hot with unbridled, unmitigated wrath.

"Oh, you smart-mouthed little punk!" Risky spat, her rage exploding as she quickly sat upright and moved to aim the handgun at the sharp-tongued young man's head; just the opportunity Tayshan needed to even the odds. As soon as she made the motion, Tay swiftly grasped the gun by the barrel with both hands and pulled to one side before suddenly and violently jerking to the other as he remained on his back, tearing the weapon from Risky's hands. However, such a quick, barely-coordinated action caused him to fling the weapon a fair distance away from them. While not the result for which he had hoped, he was at least glad to have disarmed his adversary once again. "Another of your dirty tricks, you conniving weasel!? You won't live to regret that!" Risky roared, cocking a fist back to utterly decimate his face as she used her other hand to grasp him by the throat to hold him still before he tried to get up.

"You won't get the chance t' make me!" Tay shouted back, cocking his hands back to shove the irate pirate woman off him before she cleaned his clock. Before he released, however, he briefly remembered being in an identical situation when he sparred against Shantae and, by extension, the result of his shove from last time. Making another quick point of judgment, he decided to actually coordinate this time and aim low, forcing Risky off by applying a burst of unbridled pressure to her diaphragm. With nothing to lose but his consciousness if he did not act, he used all the strength he could muster from such a disadvantageous position and lunged forward.

Risky, noticing his attempt at escape and anticipating his maneuver, adjusted by letting go of his neck and leaning back to catch him off-guard. Her plan was to have him miss so that, as he recoiled from his counterattack, he would not have enough time to protect his face from the devastating pounding she was ready to give it. Buuuuut, as far as a certain soldier's luck had been with drumming up last-second countermeasures to escape from compromising situations… Well, you make an educated guess on how you thought this would turn out. Anyway…

"Gah…!" Risky grunted in utter surprise, her ruby red eyes wider than satellites as she froze on top of her enemy. Needing to process what happened in the last 1.576 seconds, she observed what was immediately in front of her; that hopeless alien clown, with a blank, slack-jawed, flabbergasted stare aimed back at her. Once that much was established, Risky's eyes shot downward to notice two large, filthy, sandy, chocolate-colored hands pressed firmly and squarely onto her breasts under her skull-shaped breastplate. On the other side of this most… mortifying experience in the otherwise-deadly desert melee…

"Uh…!" Tay grunted in utter horror, his eyes about ready to burst out of his head as he found himself sitting up, nearly nose to nose with the equally-dumbfounded Pirate Queen. His hands were frozen in a most… disconcerting position, to say the least. As it turned out, Tay initiated his power shove exactly as he planned to. However, he expected Risky to retain her grip on his neck. While her chokehold would've limited his mobility, he would've had a wide enough opening that her abdomen was vulnerable due to her having to stretch forward to grab his neck. He judged the situation to where he would've had enough space to force his palms directly into her solar plexus, which he hoped would've winded her enough for him to push her off as she gasped for air.

Instead, what basically happened was… When he shot his arms forward, Risky reacted by letting go and leaning back to force him to miss, completely throwing off the trajectory of his defensive maneuver. He sprang forward off the sand with unexpected momentum granted by Risky's sudden retreat, his hands gliding up the evil pirate mistress's sleek, sweaty abdomen before stopping at a very… VERY certain point. He stopped all movement when he firmly grasped something big, round, squishy, surprisingly heavy, and soft… in each hand… and… uh… well, you can fill in the embarrassing blanks from there.

Nevertheless, Tay and Risky paused their brawl, neither one of them certain of how to address this incredible malfunction in technique. The two stared into each other's faces, both combatants exuding speechless surprise as the serviceman's hands remained planted on the blue-skinned buccaneer's breasts. Before too long, however, Risky's shock instantly flashed into a furious, all-consuming, burning, blushing anger as her cheeks flushed redder than strawberries. Her face contorted into a murderous, toothy death glare that was immediately read loud and clear by the wretched, handsy cur that would DARE lay his repugnant paws on her in such an impure and distasteful manner. She growled with such bloodthirsty ferocity that a full-grown leopard would be put to shame. Tay swiftly removed his hands from the thoroughly-peeved pirate captain, wisely keeping them up near his face to keep his guard up.

"H-hey, hey. Now Risky," he frightfully stammered, finally addressing his enemy by name. "That… that was NOT my intention. I am not a dirty fighter, I swear, I-!" he tried to explain, though Risky would hear none of it. By the time he could think to speak, she was already locked and loaded, her fist cocked ALL the way back and glowing with an ominous swirling aura of black and indigo. Doesn't exactly take a seasoned physicist to figure out that she was ready to end his entire existence with a single Dark Magic-infused blow.

"YOU'RE DEAD MEAT!" Risky roared with the intensity of ten thousand lions as she launched her devastating magic-infused haymaker. With no choice but to defend himself or die, Tay braced for impact. Though Risky's vengeful punch came barreling toward him faster than a speeding train, the soldier had just enough time to react. With a thundering *SMACK* loud enough that it could probably be heard from the shores of Scuttle Town, Risky's charged-up fist connected with Tay's open hand with unprecedented blistering force, narrowly missing his face as he moved to block her attack.

"Ouch…! So THIS is the kind o' power you're packin'…?" he murmured, his hand burning intensely and tingling as he gripped her fist. He'd barely managed to stop her attack before she obliterated his already-damaged face, though the raw power behind the impact sent shockwaves through his arm that nearly made it go numb. Alarmed beyond belief at such a frightening phenomenon, Tay resolved to get himself out of this life-threatening predicament before it got worse. Clutching Risky's fist to gain an advantage, he attempted to use his free hand to make his next move. However, the infuriated Risky Boots grabbed his wrist before he could get the chance. In the next instant, she wrested Tay's arms to either side, pulled her head back, and, without warning, thrust herself forward.

"HRAH!" Risky shouted as she unleashed her next vindictive attack. The Pirate Queen's forehead made an earth-shattering direct *THUNK* of an impact with the defenseless soldier's already-swollen eye, flooring him as he wound up on his back again.

"DWAGH! AAAAGH!" Tay yelled in debilitating pain, clutching his badly-damaged eye with the hand he'd previously used to block his enemy's magic-charged death punch. Risky, quick on the draw, grabbed both of the young man's wrists while he was distracted by the surges of physical agony coursing through his skull, pinning them down on either side of his head. Tay struggled to break free posthaste, realizing through his pain that she had him in her clutches. Try as he might, however, he couldn't find the leverage necessary to break the malicious woman's unyielding grip on him. During his attempt to escape, he caught sight of her facial expression and was further shocked by what his remaining eye beheld; an intense, menacing scowl that was contrasted by a furious, admittedly-captivating blush of insurmountable embarrassment. The surprise of it alone was enough to mostly stop his futile attempts at escaping, though he continued to try and twist his way out of her grasp.

"You…! You filthy, lecherous pig!" Risky contemptuously spat. "You think you can get frisky with ME and expect to stay alive, much less get away with it!?"

"No! You got it wrong! I wasn't aimin' for there, darn it!" Tay shouted back, none too pleased with Risky's accusation. "I'm not that kind o' guy!"

"You expect me to believe such a pathetic lie!? You get one chance to justify laying your disgusting mits on me before I tear you to pieces, you dirty beast!"

"Listen t' me! I was tryin' t' push you off by aimin' at your solar plexus t' knock the wind out o' you, then throw you off me," he continued explaining his intended strategy as Risky held him in place.

"Solar plexus?" she questioned, her rage calming slightly as the captive 'beast' came clean with his intentions. "Elaborate. Now!"

"The area right below your sternum, the bone in the middle of your chest. Takin' a hit there knocks the wind out of anybody who isn't prepared for it. I was tryin' to hit you there t' catch you off-guard while you were chokin' me! Now get off!"

"…Interesting…" she muttered, evidently having learned something new, though it wasn't nearly enough to convince her not to destroy the soldier where he lay. "If that's true, then for what reason would you miscalculate so badly that you wound up groping me?"

"You moved back at the last possible second, an' I completely missed my mark! If I have to apologize for touchin' you the wrong way, then I will! Even t' you of all people! But don't you dare go accusin' me of bein' a dirty fighter like you!" Tay defended, still trying to wring himself free. He was astonished and a bit embarrassed to see he was having no such luck as Risky's grip held extremely firm.

"…Is that so?" Risky asked, ignoring his brazen insult and actually curbing her wrath to spare a second to think about the incident. Her embarrassed blush disappeared completely as she contemplated the event. Once that second was up, she took a deep breath, though she kept her hold on the soldier strong. "Hm… You know what? I can actually bring myself to believe that, though it angers me to admit it."

"You… you can?" he asked, so genuinely shocked that she listened to him that he stopped struggling for just a moment.

"Yes. I'm a reasonable, rational person, and I see your point. I'm getting used to your shifty spur-of-the-moment counterattacks, though you might not think it. Plus, I can tell you're too much of a chicken to ever be THAT brave with a woman on purpose," she teased with a mean-spirited snicker.

"You got some nerve," he protested, immensely angered by her judgment. "Not that I should explain anything t' someone who willfully kicked me below the belt an' threw sand in my face before, Risky, but I'm above such pitiful moves as touchin' people in sensitive spots in the middle of a fight."

"I'm sure you are, Mr. Chivalry, and I suppose it's as relieving as it is vomit-inducing to know that you're so considerate. Doesn't mean I'm not still going to make you suffer for touching me in such a disgusting way, though…" she threatened, that wonderfully diabolical bloodthirsty grin returning once more as she leaned in close, glaring directly into his eye. "As far as I'm concerned, you just made our little feud MUCH more personal."

"You can't be serious… It was an accident!"

"Oh, there's no talking your way out of it now, baby. You crossed a line no man has ever crossed with me and lived to talk about… or basically, even thought about crossing, for fear of what unspeakable horrors they know I might bring upon them. You're the first, which makes this so much more fun," she warned, leaning closer to the point where her nose was nearly pressing against his. The ensnared soldier could feel the flow of Risky's breath brushing against his lips and cheeks as she got right up in his face. "Now I get to turn you into an example of what happens to naughty boys who can't keep their filthy mits off my wonderful, curvy, irresistible body~!" she teased, resuming her efforts to humiliate him.

"…You are so conceited, it honestly astounds me how you ever peel yourself away from your own mirror in the mornin'," he snidely remarked, repulsed by Risky's inconceivable vanity. At this brash, unrefined attack on her character, Risky Boots… smirked as she moved back a bit while continuing to hold him in place.

"A comedian to the bitter end, hm? You just never learn… That one was good, though. I'll give you that. Still, I sure hope your sword-tongued sense of humor stays intact, because I'm gonna take my sweet time breaking you like my favorite toy… Tayshan~," she further threatened, her tone low and chill-inducing, indicative that she planned on following through without a thought for mercy. Though surprised and a bit unsettled that Risky finally addressed him by name for the sole purpose of threatening to do horrible, unfathomable things to him, Tay maintained his resolve.

"That supposed t' intimidate me?" Tay defiantly posed, mostly unaffected by Risky's threats.

"Still not scared yet, hm? Oh, you'll wish I was joking, boy…!" she growled, practically trembling with anticipation and rage like she was ready to devour him. "You keep up this adorable tough-guy act, though. It only makes me more eager to put you in your rightful place at my feet like the dog you are. I can see the leash and collar around your neck already…"

"You don't scare me, Risky Boots," he shot back, returning her enmity-laced glare with one of his own as his anger grew immensely. "You must be this world's biggest hypocrite, tellin' me what lines I trespassed over when you invaded my world an' stole a whole armory's worth o' weapons from me, then tried t' have me killed when I tried t' stop you. If anything, you'd better hope you can keep your grip on me, because when you slip up, I'm gonna make you pay!"

"Ever the feisty one, even in the face of your impending destruction. Just how I like 'em~," she flirtatiously taunted in a sultry tone, chuckling as her menacing grin widened. "Maybe I was wrong about you not being my type…" She relished the challenge as she laughed in his face, though the nature of her remark greatly threw him off. Just how she likes 'em? What exactly did she mean there? And… what exactly did she have planned for him if she had her way?

"Wh-what?" he remarked, wanting nothing to do with whatever Risky was planning. "What are you playin' at?"

"Hm, yeah, that's it," she confirmed without prompt, ignoring her captive's pressing question. It appeared from the wide, ominous, toothy grin on her face that she'd developed an idea. "I let you off too easy last time, thinking just a few of my Tinkerbats would take care of you. If I recapture you here and now, I can make you bend to my will. You're exactly the kind of guy I know would crack like an egg under enough pressure, too. I can tell. This time, you're… all… mine…~" she taunted some more, inching her face closer to his to the point where her breath brushed stronger against his lips, really driving up that intimidation factor. Tay's thoughts raced about what she had planned for him as she stared holes into his face, her intensely-menacing smirk unfaltering. Upon discovering that one of her new goals was to take him prisoner (on purpose this time), he knew he'd made her special list of enemies.

"Wow, you are one seriously sick, twisted woman…" Tay expertly deduced, for some unfathomable reason creeped out by Risky's lascivious threats of torture.

"As you're about to find out," she confidently countered, brushing the insult aside like salt off a dining table. "As for your little promise, I'd love to see you try, sweetie. I always enjoy it when they try to resist the inevitable. And believe me when I say this: You don't even know the half of what I'm gonna do to you when we get back to my base," she warned as she let out a sinister chuckle, propping herself up as she kept Tayshan in place by his hands while remaining seated on top of him to restrict his movements.

"…Okay, now THIS is disturbin'…" he murmured, making evident that Risky may have finally found a crack in the shield that was his supposedly-impenetrable resolve. Just as she was about to make good on her threats, however…

"That's enough! Get off him!" Shantae roared with altruistic fury, lashing out at Risky with a well-placed rushing roundhouse kick to the Pirate Queen's back. With a definitive *THWACK*, the kick forced the buccaneer off the injured soldier as she flew forward, plopping unceremoniously into a plaid-themed patch of sand a fair distance away. Shantae had made a considerable effort disposing of the brigades of Tinkerbats and made it an utmost priority to save her friend when she saw him in danger. Noticing Risky's stolen gun lying in the sand off to the side, the half-genie rushed forward to claim it before tending to her injured friend.

"Thanks for the save," Tay verbalized his appreciation, clutching his eye as he sat up.

"Are you okay?" Shantae breathlessly asked, noticing right away that her friend was badly injured. "Sorry I took so long…"

"It's fine. Other than my eye, I'm good," he assured as his partner helped him to his feet.

"You're both in for a world of pain the next time we cross paths," Risky threatened as she recovered from Shantae's emergency roundhouse kick, brushing the tackily-patterned sand off her face and clothes. After a moment, she leapt over the duo. She gracefully landed near her ship, which had been fully loaded with contraband cargo and Tinkerbats. As it turned out, Shantae had defeated enough of Risky's minions to break through and save Tayshan before Risky did further harm, though it allowed the remaining Tinkerbats enough time to gather up any and all otherworldly weapons dropped by fallen comrades and beat a hasty retreat. "Till next time, fools! I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got bigger fish to fry. I've got just the equipment to fry 'em with, too…" Risky smirked once more, referring to her stolen weapons as she turned toward her ship to see that her Tinkerbats were ready and waiting to set sail. "Shove off, men! We've finished what we came here for." With that, her ship's crew opened the sea craft's sails and took off… without Risky Boots actually being on-board. Risky, who always enjoyed it when her men incompetently misread her directions, became irate.

"Ugh, not without YOUR CAPTAIN, YOU BUMBLING IDIOTS!" she shouted, though it was far too late. The ship had already made it far enough out that her men could no longer hear her. She looked around and almost immediately spotted a canoe wading in the water nearby. "Beggars can't be choosers…" Without much in terms of alternatives, she hopped aboard the auto-piloting canoe that Shantae and Tayshan used to travel to the Kitschy Quilt Desert in the first place.

"Hey!" Shantae yelled, evidently unhappy with Risky's latest caper as she and Tay ran toward her to try and catch her. "That's our boat! You can't take that! We'll be stuck here!"

"Sounds like your problem, kid," Risky uncaringly shrugged as she played around with the coordinates of the canoe's destination. "I'm sure you can use one of your fancy little animal dances to turn into a fish or something. Of course, what'll you do about getting off this miserable dust bowl, Mr. Shiner?" she further mocked, referring to Tay's swollen eye.

"Get off the boat, an' get your own, pirate girl!" Tay shouted, drawing his gun, though he found it difficult to aim with his eye swollen nearly shut.

"I had my own, and it's already miles out at sea, genius. That's why I'm 'borrowing' this one," Risky shot back before giving the technologically-enhanced sea craft a once-over. Afterward, she took note of the now one-eyed soldier aiming his gun at her. "Ah-ah-ah~! I wouldn't dare shoot if I were you. One misplaced bullet, and you lose this precious canoe that much faster," she graciously informed him. "All things considered, your aim is probably going to suffer when you can't see out of one eye. Don't you worry, I'll take good care of it… now that it belongs to me, that is."

"I could still shoot it an' strand all three of us here. Then what'll you do?"

"Try it and I'll make you both regret the thought," she dared.

"Tay, don't shoot," Shantae reasoned as she held a hand out to halt him, much to his surprise as he was about to pull the trigger.

"What? Why not?"

"It's… probably better for us if you didn't sink Uncle's boat trying to stop her."

"But we pretty much have her right where we want her," he countered. "Granted, it could be better, but still."

"That isn't a gamble I'm willing to make," she replied with worry. "Please reconsider shooting that boat. Aside from it being Uncle's only one, shooting it would probably make things that much worse for all of us than they are right now. I just have a hunch we'd all suffer for it."

"Suffer how?"

"I'll explain it later, but please, put your gun down…" At the young lady's request, Tay paused for a moment to take contemplative looks at Shantae standing beside him, then at Risky Boots sitting in the canoe ahead of him, her arms crossed as she impatiently waited for his decision. He took one more look at Shantae and read the pleading look on her face before he made his decision.

"…Darn it…!" he grumbled as he lowered his gun, aware that he did not want to act rashly and cause damage to one of Mimic's prized inventions or make a bad situation worse.

"It certainly doesn't help that the Stage Clear platform hasn't appeared…" Shantae further mulled before turning her attention toward the boat thief. "Now Risky, we really need that boat," Shantae addressed her rival, hopeful that she could talk the pirate menace into letting them have it. "Get off of it and we can-!"

"Cram it, brat, I'm not interested in hearing your diplomatic prattling," Risky rudely interrupted, having no intention of surrendering the vessel that wasn't even hers. "Anyway, give that doddering old coot my regards. Oh, and I hope you and your boyfriend have fun swimming back to that rat's nest you call a home! Enjoy it while you're still alive to do so." With that death threat, Risky cackled in triumph as she took off in the canoe before Tay or Shantae could do anything about it.

"Risky, wait!" Shantae called out, though her efforts were futile. She watched helplessly as her arch-nemesis absconded with her only means of transport back to her home. "He's not my boyfriend!" Shantae found it necessary to add. At that, Tay shot an incredulous look at his not-girlfriend.

"Homegirl, our relationship status is the least of our worries right now. That connivin', thievin' little cacklin' assault on our nerves just hijacked our only means o' gettin' off this island."

"Yeah… yeah, she did…" Shantae admitted with a defeated sigh. "I guess we'll have to head back to Al's place to see if…" she trailed off before noticing a familiar sparkling structure rising from the ground nearby. "Oh, thank goodness!" she praised as she caught sight of the Stage Clear platform.

"Talk about convenient…" Tay agreed, sighing with relief of his own. "Why did it take so long for it t' show up?"

"I guess the adventure didn't end at defeating Al; it ended here, with Risky stealing our canoe."

"So what would've happened if I shot it down an' trapped her here with us that you were so sure was so bad for us?"

"Um… I'm not sure, but I doubt a Stage Clear platform would've shown up in that case… if that makes sense."

"Only as much as it usually does…" Tay flatly remarked.

"Chances are, we probably would've had to call Sky to pick us up if we lost the auto-canoe by sinking it, but… as you know, calling her to take us home without completing the adventure counts as us forfeiting, which would make us have to redo everything from top to bottom."

"Yeah, I'm still curious about that. How does that work? It's not like time reverses itself or somethin' like that… right?"

"Not necessarily, but… W-well, kinda. Time doesn't reverse itself so much as things being totally undone if we don't actually see an adventure through to the end. Don't ask why or how; it's just what happens if ever I have to retreat to Scuttle Town before I finish a quest. I can't really explain it, but that's how it's always been. That said, I think you would've caused a soft-lock if you shot the boat." At the half-genie's reasoning, Tay's eyes went wider than full moons.

"A SOFT-LOCK?" Tay repeated, utterly astounded by his partner's explanation. "Now, I'm no expert on games in any respect, but I thought that only happened when you got stuck somewhere in a level with no escape except t' reset! Like, gettin' stuck in a wall, or runnin' into a glitch that winds up keepin' you from movin' forward! O-or movin', period! How could that have happened here? Actually, how does that even make sense here?"

"Simply put: No Stage Clear platform because Risky would be stuck here, which would prevent our adventure from progressing."

"But what about her ship? They would've just came an' got her anyway… right?"

"Even if her Tinkerbats eventually came back to pick her up in the event that you sunk the canoe, there'd be no way off this desert for us other than Sky and Wrench, AKA our Reset Button, and nowhere else to go but back to Al. That would've forced us to restart anyway, since Al probably doesn't have any seafaring transportation…"

"So we could've… maybe boarded the canoe an' tried to throw her off?"

"Maybe, but knowing her, she'd do whatever it took to slow us down and keep us off her trail; which is to say, she'd have sunk it herself before thinking to surrender it back to us. I know her in and out by now, for the most part."

"Oh, for goodness sake…" Tay mumbled, rubbing his swollen eye in confusion and annoyance.

"It's possible our trip here didn't account for anything to happen to the canoe other than it getting stolen by Risky. This is all just speculation, but you get what I mean, right?"

"This bizarre game logic, I tell ya…" Tay complained with a sigh, somehow understanding the nonsensical explanation of their limited options for completing their adventures. "I get it, but then I don't…"

"Yeah, I don't get it much, either… There are definitely many different ways my past journeys could've gone much easier for me in hindsight had I done something different like skip a boss fight here or exploit a sequence-breaking glitch to circumvent an entire level there… but you gotta admit, that would spoil the fun just a bit."

"Uh… I-I guess, unless you're real fond o' speedruns. Based on how these trips have gone, though, I get the feel that your adventures are very open t' you blastin' through 'em in as little time as possible."

"You're not wrong there. It's why I encourage you to move as fast as possible every time," she confirmed, though she realized they were way off-topic. "Anyway, I found this after I kicked Risky off of you," the half-genie added, handing Tay the pistol Risky used as a melee weapon. Tay got Pistol and inspected it, though he found himself less than excited about it.

"A worn-out standard issue M9," he commented, unloading the magazine to further examine the gun's ammunition. He peered inside the ammo container to see that it harbored white pellets instead of bullets. He additionally noted that there were only five pellets in the magazine as he reloaded it and stowed it away. "Just what I might've needed, but this one looks like it's seen its fair share of tamperin' an' overuse. Only wonder who's responsible for that… She didn't even modify it the way she did my gun. Shoot, looks like I'm still dry on luck there… Thanks for gettin' this off her hands, Shantae. One more gun down, the rest o' the arsenal to go."

"Of course! Even if it's a step at a time, we'll make her give it all back before she hurts anyone else."

"Indeed. Still, the fact that she's already out here, trainin' her Tinkerbats on how t' use the guns is NOT a good sign… Especially after everything else we witnessed…"

"Yeah… We have to stop her as soon as possible. It's approaching crunch time now, and we've gotten distracted enough as it is."

"Got that right… I can only hope that, at the very least, it's takin' them a while to even learn how to HOLD the guns, much less learn' how t' fire 'em right…"

"Don't worry, Tay. We've got this. If we found her this soon, there's no doubt we'll find her again before she figures out any more of your weapons. Are they easy to use?"

"Not really, no. Even handguns like this one take someone without prior experience at least a couple months t' fully control. They're all actually pretty complicated pieces of equipment, t' put it lightly."

"So maybe Risky and her army haven't figured them out yet and this is the first-slash-only time they've come out to test them? If that's the case, then we've still got time to work with."

"I can only hope, Shantae… Anyway, what'll we tell Mimic? I can't imagine he's gonna be too happy t' know we got his prized technologically-enhanced, yet-to-be-patented prototype auto-canoe jacked by Risky Boots."

"Yeah… Well, she steals things from him all the time," she naively and nonchalantly dismissed. "If we're careful, we can get that boat back in one piece by the time this is all over."

"So what, he's gonna just say 'Okay, I understand' the 57th time he gets ganked by her?"

"Ganked?" she questioned, not understanding the word.

"Robbed," he clarified.

"Oh. Hmm… Yeah, basically."

"Y'know, you're awfully calm about this. My uncle would wear my behind t' the bone if I got a valuable vehicle o' his stolen… Mind you, I don't have an uncle, but you get the gist," he commented with a sense of fright, though he piqued Shantae's curiosity.

"How do you not have an uncle? Everybody's got aunts and uncles, right?"

"Common misconception. Spoiler Alert: My parents were both only children."

"Oh. But you said you had a cousin, didn't you? The guy you saw on Prickle Stitch? He could only be your cousin if one of your parents had a sibling."

"Another common misconception. He was my first cousin once-removed."

"…and the difference is…?"

"He was born from one o' my grandparents' siblings rather than from a sibling of either o' my parents."

"Ohh, I see," she realized. "In that case, you just had a great aunt or uncle instead of a regular one."

"Not that I even knew who they were, but… I guess that's true," he concurred, scratching his head. "I never did understand how that worked…"

"Family trees are odd. Still, you learn something new every day."

"Yep," he agreed with a nod before refocusing. "Anyway, if this is how it's gonna go with us comin' back without Mimic's boat…" he further commented with a vexed shrug.

"Yeah, you'd be surprised how often this happens. Anyway, let's get home. We should probably take care of that eye of yours," she suggested. "From the looks of it, she hit you PRETTY hard. I think I can see it pulsing…"

"Ugh, don't remind me…" he complained as he covered his injured eye with a hand. Without much more dawdling, Tay and Shantae hopped onto the platform.

"All Clear!" she announced as the familiar congratulatory fanfare blared out once again, with both her and Tay striking poses to emphasize their marginal success. Although, Tay realized something despite not shifting from his victory pose.

"Jeez, my face feels like a used punchin' bag right now…" Tay remarked before he and Shantae were teleported out of the Kitschy Quilt Desert, completing yet another wild, wacky adventure that neither of them would soon forget…

Oh MAN, what a load to unpack. Things are finally starting to pick up now (if previous events hadn't already been dramatic enough as they were), and they're picking up fast. Now that the main opposing sides of the impending war had finally crossed paths, it can only mean one thing; that the future can only get even more chaotic from here before it's all over. Neither side being intimidated by the other (except MAYBE one occurrence of someone trapping and then threatening to mercilessly torture someone else if she captured him again), you can bet your last clean pair of pants that that's probably gonna be the case. Of course, I only hope our heroes can get it together in time to stave off Risky's impending invasion before it's too late. They've got a hefty load of their own to unpack, as far as we got to see. Either way, stick around and I'll see ya next time! Hugs and kisses! Not like that kiss we witnessed our heroes go through, though. I only like you as a friend, reader. Anyway, see ya in the next episode!


	12. Aftermath: A Real Eye-Opener

Aftermath: A Real Eye-Opener

LOCATION: OUT AT SEA, ?, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 21ST, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 2000 HOURS

"Minus a couple of unfortunate variables, things are going mostly according to plan," Risky Boots mused to herself as she sat in her fresh new (stolen) Auto-Canoe, manually steering it with the oar it thankfully came with. She'd been sailing solo through the calm Sequin Land waves in the ambient, cloudy autumn dusk, paddling her way toward her base. "The Tinker-Portal's still in shambles at this point and needs much more work before I can try to start it up again. I'd like to get my hands on more of those guns if possible. Our take was plentiful, sure, but I didn't take near as much as I wanted, which really cuts down on the amount of time I have to train my Tinkerbats with the weapons we took. I have to save at least SOME of the real ammo for the inevitable battle with those ne'er-do-well, meddling interlopers. Although, I am starting to wonder if it's even worth going back at all if I don't factor in the explosives and rocket launchers… While I'm not terribly enthused with using weaker ammo for what we have, it isn't like it's that huge a setback. Plus, that portal's been proving harder to fix than I thought it'd be…" she soliloquized as she paddled on, slowly but surely drawing nearer to her currently-undisclosed base of operations.

"If there were a little more time, I could've at least swiped a few extra crates. Come to think of it, I could've possibly made off with a tank or one of those other strange war vehicles I saw in the other dimension… We were lucky to take what we did, all things considered about my Tinker-Portal, though. If we'd spent too long in the other dimension, we'd have been trapped there with no way back, considering it overheated and fried itself from extended use. Still, since the weapons we DID claim pack such a powerful punch as they do, there's no telling what the vehicles from that other world are capable of. But, we ARE making a little progress on learning how to wield what we have. In case I don't manage to fix that contraption of mine, maybe I can hold off on using any of the heavy artillery until things really get moving. That, or maybe find some alternative ammunition that could work in place of the shells normally used for the explosives, at least. Only a matter of time and patience, though we could stand to move faster…"

It had been an eventful day for Sequin Land's most infamous repeat offender. She had been hard at work training her loyal soldiers with her ill-gotten equipment and had spent much of her time preparing herself for the conquest she so desired that she could taste it. Her time alone in the canoe left her to her thoughts, as she pondered the most recent phase of her nefarious plot and her run-in with Shantae and that wayward soldier from the other world.

"I have to be more tactful from here on, no less. That nosy halfling found me much too soon, even without my usual tactic of catching her by surprise. Much too close for comfort, too. From this point, I'd be wise to at least keep closer tabs on her before things get out of hand like they usually do. It certainly doesn't help that the fool from the other side of my Tinker-Portal managed to escape certain doom and shack up with her," Risky lamented, mulling over the cost of her mistake. "It's of course no surprise he's already warned her and most likely her friends about me and my plan, and that hapless, idiotic wizard failed to keep them under wraps long enough to actually buy me a decent amount of time. I was really counting on the element of surprise this time, too…" she further commented with a sigh as she set the oar down inside the canoe and laid back to take a break, staring into the burnt orange, cloud-patched sky.

"I only wonder how much of a difference it'll make in the long run that they're so hot on my tail now rather than later. From what little I saw, Shantae's already been beefing herself up to accommodate for my bolstered firearms. The fact that so many of my Tinkerbats fell at her hand when at least half of them were armed with weapons from the other world is as concerning as it always gets…" she pondered, thinking back to the brief glimpses she saw of droves of her soldiers getting clobbered by Shantae alone. "And yet, she gets off almost scot-free once again. Merciless gun ambushes, moronic sorcerers, traps littered across the land, hazardous desert storms, hidden dungeons, supposedly-lethal poison… Darn it…! What'll it take to get rid of her!? If we've struggled this much to contain her, then we've still got lots of strategizing to do before anything significant gets done…"

"I also can't help but contemplate how much of a nuisance that boy could be with his hand in the mix. There's no way he's as strong as me, and he's still an inexperienced, impulsive little pup, but… much as it pains me to admit, the boy could very well pose a serious threat to my plans if I'm not careful to watch him and eliminate him if the chance comes up again; especially considering his infuriating penchant for catching me off-guard with those insufferable sneak attacks," she grumbled, reminiscing about her most recent encounter with her newest enemy; everything from him tackling her to the ground when she wasn't looking, managing to overwhelm her and pin her down, and even after she socked him in the face with the gun she lost, he still found a ridiculous, yet-effective way to disarm her.

Of course, there was also that OTHER moment where he apparently tried to knock the wind out of her, only to wind up fumbling and grabbing her in the PERFECTLY wrong place. The mere thought of that clumsy dog's filthy hands on her body infuriated Risky to no end, her face getting hot with embarrassment as she brought a hand to her chest.

"I can't let him get away with THAT, either. I'm going to make him suffer nice and slow, that cheeky punk! No one defiles MY perfect body and lives to tell the tale! Simply killing him would be a mercy much too generous for me to grant him. Although…" she trailed off, remembering just a bit more. "The way he blocked one of my strongest punches…" she pondered, thinking back to the point at which she tried to obliterate his face with a single Dark Magic-charged haymaker, only for him to catch her fist, stopping her attack in its tracks before it landed. The only person who should've been capable of doing so at this point in time was that revolting half-genie rugrat, whom Risky was certain didn't have more than maybe a lick of hand-to-hand combat prowess. She, too, was an inexperienced, impulsive little pup. Either the boy was stronger than she thought, or she was losing her touch since it'd been ages since she last fought hand-to-hand, Risky surmised.

"There's something off about him, that's for sure. He's proven to be craftier, stronger, and more resilient than I care to give him credit for, if I have to outright say it," she further contemplated with a sigh of vexation. "It's already tough enough trying to defeat Shantae alone; slightly tougher when all her annoying friends get caught up in the chaos. That boy's interference further hurts my chances; especially since he's tagging along with little miss Goody-Goody… There's also the strong possibility that he knows a great deal of incredibly valuable info about these weapons, considering what's been reported to me so far… Not to mention what other sorts of info he might be holding… Hmm…" Risky continued riding her train of thought on what to do, considering every possibility imaginable within the context of besting her lousy do-gooder enemies. "If my men were able to distract that brat long enough, I'd have possibly had enough time to drag him onto the ship before she got the chance to step in and ruin it… Maybe…" she contemplated just a little more, when suddenly…

"That's it!" She proclaimed as she popped up to her feet, nearly capsizing the canoe in the process. "I should've thought of it sooner! If I hope to get my long-awaited revenge on that meddling whelp, it'll start with taking out her friends. From there, it'll be a simple game of cat and mouse, backing her into a corner with no one to save her! It's just a matter of finding each of her little lackeys and picking them off! Or at least taking them hostage. Even if it's one… by… one…" she thought aloud, emphasizing her malevolence with a sinister grin.

"I'll have to halt progress on my master plan by at least a couple more days, but the extra game of divide and conquer will be WELL worth it. It's about time everybody's favorite little belly dancing girl scout learned that she can't rely on dumb luck and friendship forever. Only thing is how I'd separate Shantae from that fool Tayshan. There's no doubt in my mind that she's stringing him along like they were chained together because of what he knows. Hmm…" she trailed off as she resumed paddling in the direction of her base of operations.

"If I could find some way to isolate and recapture him as soon as possible, I bet I could use my persuasive skills to get him to bend to my will and teach my men how to truly utilize our equipment. It'd save me time and resources while I focused on more important pieces of my plan. That, or do it the fun way and make that insolent cur submit to me by force. I'd bet he'd cough up what he knows to my benefit then. After that, it'd be a choice of whether to dispose of him or put a collar and leash on him and put him in his place for what he did to me. Honestly, that sounds like the better option by far for such a naughty little doggy~… Either way, it seems there's much more use in snatching him up than I thought. Buuuut, If I don't find a way to immediately separate him from Shantae, I can at least capture all the others. Once my men find and subdue her other friends in that scenario, they'll both come looking. I'll lure them in, let them think they've figured me out. And then… THAT'S when I'll strike and take both of them down in one fell swoop! Now let's see…" she trailed off as she pondered who she needed to capture.

"Of all the filthy peasants she associates herself with, the usual few are… the ditzy blonde one with the ugly bird… that gullible, brain-dead, coffee-addicted zombie… the senile old fogey has-been Relic Hunter… and… uh… Shoot, I always forget whether she has one more or not… Oh, well. I'll capture them all with extreme prejudice. And then, I'll make sure they never even DREAM of standing in my way again! Ah, it's great to be a genius," Risky bragged as she finished thinking about the next phase of her plan. She mentally patted herself on the back as she let out her trademark witch cackle and quickened her pace canoeing toward her secret base, which had finally entered her line of sight…

Before you ask, reader: No, I don't even know where the base is at this point. Or rather, I do, because, y'know, Narrator's Omnipotence and all, but I'm not obliged to share that info. Stop looking at me like that. Carrying on!

 ** _Elsewhere, a short time later…_**

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN LIGHTHOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 21ST, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 2038 HOURS

"How's your eye, Tay?" Shantae asked her comrade as he sat, laid up against a wall in the lower deck of her lighthouse. She and Tayshan had spent the remainder of their afternoon recuperating from their latest crusade across the Kitschy Quilt Desert. Tay, still feeling every bit of excruciating agony that typically came with being bashed in the face with a heavy, dense, blunt metal object and subsequently pounded by a deranged, egomaniacal pirate woman, was holding a makeshift ice pack formed from ice cubes and a rag to his face.

"Still hurts like somebody was diggin' their knuckles into it at this very moment," he remarked as he applied pressure to his wound.

"Still? Ohh…" Shantae moaned in worry as she searched around for any form of first-aid equipment she may have had lying around in her home. After a few minutes of ransacking her drawers, jars, and cabinets, she could find none. "I don't have a thing in here that could help you, either…" she confessed with a defeated sigh as she walked toward him and sat next to him. "What exactly happened that led to her giving you that black eye?"

"You didn't see it yourself?"

"No," she replied. "I got tied up fighting off a huge group of Tinkerbats right after you tackled Risky Boots. The next time I saw you, she was on top of you, pinning your hands to the ground."

"Oh…" he remarked, clearly unhappy with the events his friend recollected. "Well, allow me t' regale you, dearest friend," he further proclaimed as Shantae lent an ear. "So, there Risky Boots an' I were, tangled up in an intense, sandy kerfuffle o' limbs, rage, and a stolen gun…"

"Kerfuffle?" Shantae had to ask, chuckling slightly at the unusual adjective.

"The best word t' describe the encounter, believe me. Anyway, we're strugglin' for control o' the gun, rollin' around in the tacky-patterned sand like wolves fightin' over territory. Rememberin' how strong she was from the last time we fought, I gave it my all right out the gate. After a few minutes, I managed t' pin Pirate Girl down."

"Wow, you did? That's pretty epic…" she commended, genuinely alarmed that her friend had such luck against Sequin Land's most dangerous criminal. "Once again, you never cease to surprise me."

"Glad you approve, boss. So, I get her on the ground face-up an' pin her by the shoulders. We had a heated little verbal exchange before she tried grabbin' a mound o' sand an' throwin' it in my face. Mind you, I saw this comin' a mile away. Matter o' fact, she pulled the same dirty trick when we first fought. I caught her wrist just before she threw it an' pinned her arm down above her head."

"Sounds like you had her in a pretty good spot for you to have an advantage. How'd you wind up losing it?"

"That's just what I'm gettin' at," Tay assured as his partner listened intently. "So get this: One o' her little bat soldiers decides it's feelin' particularly slice-y today with its sword, just itchin' t' cut somebody up. It just couldn't help itself. It ran up t' me while I had Risky pinned an' basically tried t' slash my face off like it was slicin' an orange in half." At that, Shantae couldn't help but let out another chortle at Tay's blunt, hyperbolic explanation.

"Well I'm at least glad to see your face doesn't look like a peeled orange," she joked.

"Yeah. Instead, it looks like a bruised strawberry," he joked back, joining Shantae in the laughter at his misfortune. "Speakin' of, I barely had enough time t' dodge the Tinkerbat's swing. I did, nevertheless, an' reacted by punchin' it in the face. Of course, this is where my oh-so-heroic story takes a dreadful turn for the cheap an' dirty."

"Oh boy…"

"Yeah. So in the time it took for me t' punch that Tinkerbat an' recover t' keep my hold on Risky, SHE decided she wanted t' bludgeon somebody with a blunt metal object today. So in that moment, she grabs the gun off the ground, cocks her arm as far back as she could, an' just HAMMERS me in the face with it," he informed her, emphasizing his statement by gesticulating the exact motion the Queen of the Seas used to turn the tide of the skirmish. Shantae gasped in shock, cringing at the thought of being hit in the face with a gun.

"Oh my gosh!" Shantae exclaimed. "Wow, I can't believe she would do something so unfair… or, maybe I can, considering who we're talking about."

"Heh, at this point, I wouldn't put it past her. Anyway, she hit me hard enough t' knock me off of her. As I'm sittin' in the sand, recoilin' from the sudden burst o' pain an' rapid swellin' in my eye, Risky kicks me in the chest, climbs on top o' me, sits on me, points the gun in my face, an' basically spends the rest o' the so-called 'fight' laughin' at me about it."

"Of course… Because why not add a ridiculous amount of insult to injury, right? Just throw a ton of literal and figurative sand in your wounds."

"See, you already know. But, you wanna know what I said to her, even in that spot?"

"What's that?"

"I told her that I couldn't wait t' see her outfit after our footprints were marked on her butt. Then I added that, based on what you told me, she must've been used to gettin' her butt kicked. You can guess that she was NOT happy t' hear that."

"Wow, you go, Tay! Sticking it to her even when she has you pinned down!" Shantae lauded. "I definitely wouldn't have dared to say that if she had me trapped like that. That's as awesome as it is clever!"

"You give me too much credit, homegirl," Tay laughingly replied, appreciative of her praise. "Alas, it gets worse…"

"Uh-oh…"

"Yep. So, she points the gun right in my face, ready t' blow me away, but, believe it or not, that was what I wanted her t' do."

"You… you WANTED her to shoot you?"

"What? No, Shantae! I meant I wanted her t' point the gun close enough t' where I could grab it out o' her hands! I can't say I trust my point-blank bullet-catchin' skills enough t' test them in a situation like that."

"Ohh… Gosh, Tay, that sounded like a really chancy move on your part, no matter how I imagine it."

"I know, but what can I say? As you already know, I like t' improvise. Maybe a little bit too much, in hindsight…"

"It has its ups and downs. Trust me, I do it a bunch myself. Anyway, what happened next?"

"She points the gun in my face, givin' me a perfect chance t' wring it out o' her hands. I grab the barrel, twist one way, then twist the other way while pullin' the gun toward me at an angle that made sure it wasn't aimed at me. I got the gun off her, but I flung it away into the spot where you found it."

"Oh, I see…"

"Yeah. So, she wasn't thrilled about that, either. She grabbed me by the neck an' tried t' cave my face in with her bare fist. I wasn't gonna sit there an' let it happen though, so I thought back to what happened in our sparrin' match when you were on top o' me…" he admitted, though Shantae gasped in shock, wrapping her arms across her chest as she tensed up.

"You did…! Y-you did THAT again!?" she asked in a mix of disappointment, surprise, and indignation, being the farthest thing from happy to hear about a repeat of Tay's clumsy move.

"No! Goodness, no!" At that, the young lady breathed a sigh of relief as she relaxed.

"Oh, alright. I was about to give you an earful…"

"Well… I-I didn't do it on purpose…" he further confessed as his face got hot, befuddling and irritating his friend again. She took a moment to eye him up and down before sighing away some tension.

"…Okay, so what happened this time?"

"I know that tone… You don't believe me. I already told you, I've never lied about that, I'm not lyin' now, an' I never will lie t' you, homegirl. Trust an' believe. Anyway, I tried pushin' her off me, but THIS time, I actually tried aimin' for her stomach. Specifically, I was aimin' at a weak spot right below the sternum."

"The solar plexus?"

"Yeah! How'd you know?"

"It's a central area of focus for when I meditate, use my powers, or belly dance. Though, according to Bolo, it's also a very vulnerable spot to be hit in because it totally knocks the wind out of you if you aren't prepared. I'll tell you more a bit later, but please, continue."

"The more I learn about you… But yeah, I was tryin' t' aim my push there while she had me down, but… I guess she read me an' let me go t' try an' get me t' slip up so she could punish me. Of course, I literally slipped up in the worst way possible. My hands slid up her sweat-bathed stomach as she tried leanin' as far back as she thought necessary, an'… well… uh… I…" he trailed off, incredibly embarrassed to admit his slip-up.

"You grabbed her in a way you shouldn't have, I'm going to guess?"

"Guilty…" he despondently and shamefully confirmed. Shantae sighed and shook her head, unable to fathom the soldier's incredibly terrible luck with girls.

"Yet, you got away with just a black eye."

"Yeah, I know…"

"Tayshan… Honestly, you find the most interesting ways to get yourself in trouble with girls here. If it isn't one thing, it's another. I can only imagine Risky tried to kill you on the spot."

"No doubt," he affirmed, breathing to recollect himself before he continued. "She tried t' take my head off with a nasty haymaker at what I could guess was her full strength, but her fist was glowin' with this… creepy black an' purple energy when she threw the punch. I caught her fist in my hand just before she could land it, though," he informed her, looking at the hand he used to block Risky's punch and flexing his fingers. "Though, my whole arm was burnin' an' tinglin' like she zapped me with a mix of fire an' lightning… It was a hundred times worse than the lightnin' strikes I took on that desert. I've never felt anything like it before, excludin' when I was in your body. But even then, it's a pretty distant comparison."

"She attacked you with a Dark Magic-infused full-power punch? And… you… you blocked it with one hand!?" Shantae uttered in total surprise, her eyes going wide at her friend's incredible feat, though he didn't know the gravity of it.

"If that's what that ominous glow around her fist was… then yes. But then she headbutted me right in the eye an' forced me back down, where she pinned me by my hands. From there, she told me that from that point on, the battle between me an' her is personal. Shoot, she even addressed me by name as she threatened to do all these horrible things t' me… I can tell I'm gonna be in for it next time we fight."

"I believe that wholeheartedly…" the half-genie affirmed, her tone laced with worry. "When Risky Boots has a grudge, you'd better believe she's gonna hold it for a LONG time; especially if she bothers to remember your name because of it. Trust me, I know. Still… I can't believe you managed to block a Dark Magic punch from her! That's… that's incredible!"

"Is… is that a big deal or somethin'? Not t' sound ignorant, but I'm still not as familiar on how magic works here as I should be."

"Only the biggest for a full-blooded human! Dark Magic is incredibly powerful, and it's rivaled only by Light Magic. Dark Magic is also absolutely harmful to normal humans. Like, to the point that taking a punch from a Tinkerbat would hurt far more than a punch from a regular person ever would… well, other than you, maybe. You're good with your fists. Then again, you have a lot of things going for you other than magic, and then there's the fact that there's some magic in you, so you're anything but regular. Still, taking a punch from a monstrously ticked-off Risky Boots while her fist was glowing the way you saw it? I couldn't even take a hit like that without it leaving an awful, aching bruise! I don't think I'm strong enough to block it the way you did, either."

"Huh… Wow…" he stammered, trying to conceptualize the experience of blocking a punch from Risky Boots laced with her true power.

"Hm? You seem like you're lost in thought. What's up?"

"I… I'm gonna have t' give it everything I've got an' then some next time, if what you're tellin' me is true. I could barely hold a candle t' her the first time we fought. I'm not so sure about this time, either. If I don't step it up, or if she overwhelms me… well, she said it herself, she's gonna make me suffer… and, now that I think back to it, she was PRETTY strong about makin' that point."

"Strong how?"

"Like… Imagine Sky or Twitch flirtin' with me, but instead, it's Risky an' she's tellin' me things about how she's gonna take her time breakin' me down an' puttin' me in my place like 'the dog I am'… an' sayin' when she captures me, she's gonna put a collar an' leash on me… And then even goin' as far as sayin' that I'm basically 'her type' when it comes t' the men she likes t' torture for her personal pleasure."

"…Oh. Well then…" Shantae quietly commented, greatly unsettled by the implications of such a statement. "That's definitely creepy. Super creepy… All of the creepy…"

"Believe me, I know. I was there. I just gotta be extra prepared next time, simply put," he concluded as he let out another pressurized breath to relieve some of his anticipation for things to come.

"Are you scared of her after that? I don't blame you if you are."

"Not in the slightest. She's gonna have t' do a lot more than make creepy threats t' shake me up. I WILL admit that now I'm gettin' a chill up my spine, though. Anyway, I would've wound up with two black eyes or worse had you not come flyin' in t' kick her off me. Again, you bailed me out. Thanks for that."

"No problem, Tay! I'm just glad I got there when I did. Still, sorry about your eye. If that situation would've played out a little differently, you probably wouldn't have gotten hurt…"

"Don't sweat it, Shantae," Tay acknowledged with a nod as he kept his eye covered. "It is what it is… Maybe if I eat somethin', it'll heal up like when you gave me that Gator Steak?"

"Hmm, you're not gonna like what I'm about to say about that…" At that, Tay groaned.

"What, that the stuff we find only works t' replenish stamina, but does nothin' for visible injuries like black eyes an' such?"

"No. I was going to say that I don't have any healing items on me and that the Bathhouse is closed for the night. That'd be totally inconvenient if the food items we found didn't actually do their job of healing you," she plainly answered. Tay let out a small, incredulous chuckle.

"Just when I thought I had it all figured out by now…" he mused, wondering just how many other surprises were headed his way, whether big or small. After a brief period of silence, however, Tay thought it an appropriate time to address an elephant in the room. Though somewhat hesitant, he spoke up. "So, hey… er… On another note?"

"Yeah?"

"All that good stuff aside, Shantae, I've been thinkin'… I've got… some concerns about our teamwork up t' this point."

"Hm? What's up?"

"So… I feel like we've been doin' pretty well so far with gettin' things done, but… I think we need some serious coordination to start happenin' so we don't wind up havin' half the stuff that happened to us happen again, if I'm gonna be blunt."

"Really?" she remarked with surprise, hardly thinking there was any issue with their cooperation thus far. "I mean, I won't lie and say things have been the smoothest, but I thought we did pretty decent this time around. I know we got separated once, but we came back together and finished pretty strong."

"We got separated more than once," Tay countered. "It happened a couple times before I fell into that bunker."

"When?" she asked, none the wiser to his implications.

"Other than the sand pit I fell into, it happened with us fightin' monsters as we hopped through the quicksand first, an' then when we hit that rickety bridge. You blew past everything without givin' me a chance t' figure things out, much less catch up or keep up."

"Oh… Right, I almost forgot about that…"

"Forgot?" he echoed as he reeled back in mild shock. "Interesting… Anyway, I'm pickin' up a pattern at this point."

"What pattern?"

"One where we start together, we get into the swing o' things, but then almost immediately after that happens, we desynchronize."

"Desynchronize? I'm… not sure I follow."

"I'm talkin' about how distance starts t' form between us in the middle of any trip we're on."

"Ohh, okay, I see what you mean now," she realized after some thought. "I'm guessing you mean we start moving at different paces?"

"Yeah. I know I'm new at this an' I'm tryin' t' learn how t' do things as quickly as you do, but… is it possible for you t' hang back a bit in the future? At least until I can really get the hang o' zippin' through everything like you can?"

"I… suppose, if that's what works for you. I can't make any promises, though."

"How? I'm only askin' if you can slow down a little bit so we don't keep gettin' split up."

"Right, and I get where you're coming from, but remember; we can't spend too much time worrying about enemies or watching out for potential traps. When things get tight or if you don't need to fight, you don't have to stick around in any specific area. Your best option is to skip past and make it to the next section. We almost always have the option of passing over groups of enemies rather than staying back and fighting them off."

"I… I understand," he hesitantly acknowledged, though it didn't seem like they were on the same page to him. Not wanting to offend his team leader or step out of line due to his inexperience, however, Tay felt as though he had little ground to stand on to defend his point. As such, he lost his nerve. "Uh… I certainly don't want t' make your adventures harder on you simply by taggin' along…"

"No, no, you've actually made things a little easier! You DO make a good point, though. Thinking about it, maybe we haven't been working as well as we could've. I was so sure we were such a well-oiled machine that we were sweeping through our adventures like wind through a tunnel. Like I said, though, they've certainly been easier since we became partners."

"I would hope I'm contributin' in some way. An' who's t' say we haven't been workin' well? We definitely covered a lot o' ground in the past few days. I'm just… concerned that maybe we could—and don't misunderstand… do better?"

"Mm, yeah, we could. Buuuut that's the beauty of it. However long it takes us to defeat Risky Boots, we'll work together, keep each other safe, and coordinate. Right?" she assured, a tad naively so.

"Yes! A hundred percent!"

"Awesome! Although, I don't think the rest of our adventures will go nearly as… haphazardly as the Kitschy Quilt Desert did, if you're worried about what happened there. Still, if you ask me, I think our trip to Genie's Hem was the worst one thus far. We weren't even ourselves for that one, and it was a total bust other than us being given directions to find the Kitschy Quilt Desert."

"Heh, I wouldn't wish that experience on our worst enemy… other than Risky," he joked as he shook his head in mirth, though he winced as his swollen, blackened eye was hit with a surge of acute pain. "Ow…! You would not believe how much this hurts…."

"Oh! Here, let me have a look," Shantae offered as she climbed onto her knees next to her injured friend. Tay, without contest, removed the ice rag as the half-genie cupped her hands around his face. She was careful to avoid actually touching the wounded area as she examined him. She took note of the deep, off-putting purple discoloration that enveloped his eyelid and the perimeter of his eye socket. "Hmm…" she hummed in wonder as she continued studying the wound, leaning in closer to get a better view. She also noted the swelling in his eye that appeared to make it hard for Tay to keep his eye open. Shantae moved a hand to very lightly press two fingers to his lower eyelid. The soldier's eye instinctively squeezed shut as he winced once more. "It kinda looks like the swelling went down… just a little…" she observed, placing her hand back onto her friend's cheek as she continued her examination.

"I would hope it did, all the time I was holdin' this ice to it," Tay remarked, his position shifting slightly to where he moved closer to his host to allow her a better viewpoint. Both of them went silent as Shantae spent a little more time examining the shiner. However, as the young woman continued holding him by his face and encroaching upon his personal space to look at his eye, Tay suddenly found himself short of breath. He briefly flashed back to the last time they were this physically close to each other and gulped in tangible discomfort when an unstoppable rush of nervousness coursed through his stomach. Though he tried fighting it, he couldn't help but let his gaze fall from Shantae's eyes down to her lips. Mentally panicking, he darted his eyes back to meeting hers as his breath became shaky with an inexplicable anxiety.

"Hm?" Shantae hummed again with a curious tilt of her head, initially unaware of the distress felt by her comrade. However, as she noticed that he'd just looked at her lips for just a split second, she also began to feel a wave of nervousness overtake her. In that moment, she finally acknowledged that she and Tay were almost nose-to-nose… similarly to that particular situation they found themselves in during their most recent trip. She took a momentary, involuntary glance at Tay's lips, her heart nearly jumping into her throat the instant she let her gaze falter from his black eye. To make things even more unnerving for her, she realized almost immediately after shifting her gaze from Tay's lips back to the rest of his face that she was still cupping his cheeks the same way she had done when he administered the antivenom to her. It was inevitable that the two of them flashed back to that critical moment in their adventure… that life-altering encounter that neither of the two were certain of how to address.

With that, Shantae swiftly withdrew her hands from Tayshan's face and inched herself backward as her own face became hot with a furious blush. Tay, faring no better in handling the moment, turned away, stroking his chin with a hand as he let out a heavy, shaky breath. The duo went silent as they averted each other's gazes, uncertain of how to move past this second, blimp-sized elephant in the room that made itself apparent.

"S-sorry…" the half-genie apologized, flustered as she nibbled on one of her index fingers and held her arms close to her body.

"No, no… Er… It's cool… You were just tryin' t' see the damage…"

"Yeah, but… I mean… um… Well, I'm sorry about that, too, but… uh… I-I'm also sorry about… what happened back there… y'know…" she explained herself, though she couldn't bring herself to mention what she was referring to.

"Back there…? I'm not sure what you mean…"

"You know… The… the k-kiss…"

"Oh!" Tay exclaimed in pulse-pounding realization, knowing exactly what she was referring to as he turned his attention back to her. "Wh-what are you apologizin' for that for? That was nothin' but us gettin' you healed up, right? I mean, it wasn't even a kiss. It was basically mouth-to-mouth but with… with… uh… antidote… and er… a lot more… lip contact… If anything, I should be apologizin' for messin' it up so bad that I made it look like I was forcin' a kiss on you. I understand if you hate me or if you feel uncomfortable around me because o' how it went down, but you know I'd never intentionally do anything like that t' you or anyone else in a hundred million years, right?"

"Yeah, of course I know that," she nodded. "I trust you on that."

"Good. Still, I can't help but feel so horrible, lookin' back at how it played out…"

"Tay…"

"Nothin' about that situation is your fault at all. The blame is all mine for makin' you uncomfortable. I'm sorry, Shantae. I really am," he pleaded, expecting his friend to be cross with him.

"Tay, it's okay. I don't feel uncomfortable around you. I mean, that… situation happened because of Al and indirectly because of Risky Boots. It isn't your fault, either," she explained to try and ease Tay's apprehension. "Still, I suppose… we SHOULD talk about it… so we can clear the air… shouldn't we?"

"Yeah, you're right… but… I don't even know what t' say, much less where t' begin with addressin' it…" he confessed, scratching his head.

"Neither do I…" she uneasily agreed as they went silent. After an overwhelmingly tense moment however, Tay sighed away some of his anxiety.

"I… guess we can start with this: Was it really a… a 'kiss?'" he asked, calling attention to the name of the procedure. "I mean, we both know it had t' be done t' get rid o' the poison in you an' that it was the only way, but… Like I said, it was more like mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, so far as I can rationalize it… But then, you said somethin' about it bein' your first kiss, now that I remember… An' then I… I guess it got a little confusin' while we were doin' it…" he further explained, conveying his moderate uncertainty about the encounter as succinctly as he could manage.

"Yeah… Well, you're definitely right about it being an emergency procedure," Shantae began, considering her words as she took her turn to speak. "We wouldn't have had to do it otherwise. As far as what I said, I was just… really uncomfortable with the idea of kissing you to get the antidote to work. N-not to say I wouldn't kiss you whether or not a poison cure was in the question, of course…"

"Wh-what?" he asked, baffled by her phrasing.

"Oh! I-I mean… I meant to say that… that I wasn't comfortable with the idea of kissing anyone to be cured of the venom from a scorpion sting," she reiterated, saving herself some embarrassment. "It was just… a very awkward moment…"

"You ain't gotta tell me twice. Still, you keep usin' the word 'kiss' t' describe it," Tay observed, tilting his head. "So… is it safe t' say your answer t' my question is 'yes'?"

"Well… yeah," she admitted with slight hesitation. "If I'm going to be totally honest with you, Tayshan… I don't think there's any other way to put it. I know what mouth-to-mouth resuscitation looks like. What we had to do… was very different from that."

"Okay… that's fair, I guess."

"I want to say it was anything else, too, but…" she paused, her face growing hotter as she took a few seconds to process what she was about to say. "…We were pressing our lips together, moving them back and forth, holding each other by the face, breathing heavily as I kinda lost awareness of my surroundings… and then we had to keep breaking for air between kisses…"

"Jeez, when you put it THAT way…" Tay remarked, exhaling a breath hot enough to incinerate a plank of wood.

"Sorry. I'm just… rambling. Still, I don't know about you, but in the middle of it, I started to feel… I-I don't know, but the only way I can think to describe it is… weird."

"Weird because o' the antidote workin' on you…?"

"Partly… There was tingling in my whole body from the symptoms of the poison wearing off, but… I felt something else… I don't know what, but it made me feel… warm. Like, a really good wrapped-in-a-snugly-blanket kind of warm. And… you know that feeling you get when, say, your best friend surprises you with a really cool gift on your birthday or when your favorite comic finally releases a new issue after a long wait and you're the first in line to get a copy?"

"You mean the 'butterflies in the stomach' feelin'?"

"Yes! That exactly. I kept getting that feeling while we were kissing…"

"Goodness…" Tay gulped, the very mention of their encounter hitting him with the same feeling she just described. "The more you keep sayin' that, the more nervous it makes me about talkin' about this."

"I-I know, and I can't apologize enough," she acknowledged as she began wringing her ponytail. "I don't really know why that 'butterflies' thing kept happening, though… It was so confusing, and I feel so bad for it, but… it… it felt kinda… good, too…" she admitted, her blush deepening as she broke eye contact momentarily. "I get it if you hate me for it, but… I… I pulled you closer and wrapped my arms around you at some point…"

"Yeah, I… I remember your grip gettin' tighter after a bit."

"Mm-hmm. I also… wound up pushing myself closer to you. It was like I got so lost in the moment that my body started acting totally on its own. Looking back, I feel like I was the one who took advantage of you… I'm really sorry. Tayshan… I don't really know what came over me, but I know what I did was… well, wrong…"

"Wow… Well, hey, you definitely didn't take advantage of me," he explained, though a harrowing sense of sudden, unshakable doubt crept into his mind once Shantae put it into words. That very feeling rocked him to the core, though he did his best to avoid letting it show. "If you did, I… I probably would've noticed an' pulled away or said somethin' after we were done… but… but you're not alone with the butterflies feelin' durin' the ordeal."

"Yeah?"

"Y-yeah… I kept tryin' t' remind myself that it wasn't supposed t' be a kiss, that it was you gettin' a much-needed cure, that… that you'd be in real bad shape if I didn't do it… but, I know what you mean. At some point, I kinda fell into a daze… Thick, hot air, my mind drawin' extensive blanks, our lips pushed up against each other… which was made more, uh… compromisin' with our hands bein' on each other's faces… I guess the whole thing just made me real nervous, above all else. There was so much pressure t' get it done…"

"That's exactly how I felt," she confessed. "Dazed, confused, hot, and totally blank… like I was completely outside of myself… but… it felt so good, too… Ohh, I feel so wrong admitting this…" she worriedly droned, momentarily planting her face into her hands as she nearly lost her resolve to continue clearing the air between herself and her friend.

"Good, huh? Wow… Talkin' about this is just about the most nerve-wrackin' thing I think I've had t' do since… actually doin' the thing we're talkin' about," Tay confessed, his discomfort getting the better of him.

"Should… we stop talking about it, then? Just put it behind us and pretend it never happened? That seems much easier than this…" Shantae suggested, feeling equally as uncertain on how to address their feelings on their encounter.

"Easier, sure, but it'll be left untouched like holiday leftovers."

"That's true," she agreed with a nod.

"Hey, we gotta be as honest with each other as we are with ourselves, right?" he suggested, though he wasn't sure just how honest the two could be at this point before one of them exploded with discomfort.

"Right. That makes sense," the nervous half-genie agreed.

"Good. So, go for it. No matter how nervous it makes us feel… just… say what's on your mind. I'll try t' do the same, if that works," the flustered serviceman suggested, understanding that some conflicts were best resolved as soon as they arose.

"You're right," Shantae agreed once more, taking a deep breath and nodding to dispel some of her tension. "So… yeah, even with all the things that came into play, it felt… like nothing I could ever imagine. It was awkward at first, but then I almost thought you tried turning it into a kiss on purpose…"

"I will go on the record an' say that there will never be a time in my life beyond when I first got here where I'd even DREAM of takin' advantage of you or anybody else; especially not like that. Trust me."

"I know, Tay. I appreciate your honesty. But then… after I grabbed you and pushed my lips to yours to keep the antidote from dripping out… our lips pretty much started moving on their own, I think. And… and the longer it went on, the harder it was to breathe… until I started having to pull back to take in some air before I pushed my lips on yours again. And then I remember doing that again, and again, and again… and… I think I got carried away…"

"Carried away how?"

"Well… um, don't laugh when I tell you this…"

"Ain't nothin' that could make me crack a smile right now. Please, tell me."

"Okay… well, I… kinda started to think about how similar situations played out in my comics," she built up the courage to admit.

"Is that right?" he asked with a mild sense of alarm. "What about it reminded you of your comics?"

"In a bunch of them, there's a point where one character is either poisoned, put under a sleeping spell, or rendered unconscious because they were choking on something. Just when things seem hopeless, another character swoops in and either does mouth-to-mouth resuscitation or has to… to kiss the character in danger to save them."

"Hardly sounds different from any old fairytale."

"I know… but… the way the comics make that scenario look… two characters who may or may not have feelings for each other, pressing their lips together in the state of emergency, holding each other for dear life as they embrace… It's like… I don't know what words to put it in, but it's…"

"…a very desirable romantic situation you kinda imagine yourself bein' in, where someone is savin' you by kissin' you? Or the other way around, where someone needs you t' press your lips against theirs t' rescue them?" he expertly deduced, figuring that she was using the comics as her best/only point of reference.

"Yeah! Exactly, in both ways," she confirmed, though her blush remained strong as she realized just what she just agreed with. "I-I mean… Not that I ever imagined giving someone a nice, deep, passionate kiss to save them from certain doom that would lead to a series of charming, comedically-awkward romantic exchanges or anything…" the flustered half-genie added, though she was aware that her comment did not help her case.

"Hmm, I didn't expect you t' be that interested in romance at all," he observed, changing the topic.

"What? Why not?" Shantae asked, rather caught off-guard by the remark.

"If our last couple talks about this sort o' thing was any indication, you said… somethin' about not bein' ready for that sort o' thing, no?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I don't like the idea of it. I think… it's a great concept… y'know, love that extends beyond friendship and such… I just… don't have the time… or the confidence to find it on my own just yet. My comics have given me a good idea of what it's like to… well, have those feelings, at least."

"Hmm…" he pondered, unsure of how to respond to the half-genie's admission that the vast majority of her ideas on love and romance were based on idealized fictional scenarios that yielded very little chance of actually playing out like she described. Nonetheless, he tried his hand. "You… do understand the comics are fictional, right? As in, they're not entirely accurate about how love works?"

"Like I don't know that, Tay," she remarked with a sudden sense of defensive irritation. "You say that like you were talking to a child."

"Alright, relax," he responded, raising his hands to communicate that he meant no harm. "I ain't tryin' t' come off as condescendin'. My bad. Still, scenarios you see in comics…" he trailed off, losing faith in his ability to make his statement without further offending his friend.

"Of course they're not real," she finished for him, rolling her eyes. "Even so, the way we kissed played out exactly like one of those scenes."

"Your point being?" he prodded with a vexed sigh, finding himself a tad impatient with her frequent referrals to the procedure as a kiss, in conjunction with her comparison that he found inaccurate and the unexpected crossness in her tone.

"My point is that situations like that could really change the nature of the relationship between two people. In every scenario, characters either fall in love with each other, or go through a rough patch where their feelings spiral into total confusion until they reconcile and understand each other. In some instances, at least one character will admit that it was their first kiss," Shantae anxiously explained, using every bit of her expertise to get Tayshan to see things from her perspective.

"Which you did…" he added, though in a contemplative murmur as though he meant to say it to himself rather than her.

"Yeah… I-I did, didn't I?" she acknowledged, her face heating up to the point where one might have been able to roast marshmallows on her.

"Mm-hmm. I mean, uh… I… I honestly don't know what t' say t' that…" he nervously stammered, feeling a building pressure he wasn't certain he could deal with. "As far as I'm understandin' up t' this point, you classify this as your first kiss an' you believe it t' be strikingly similar to a situation or two in your comics?"

"In a few words… yes."

"Which one? Certainly not the S.U.G.A.R.S. one… Not that it matters which, but-!"

"Actually…"

"Aw, no… Wh-which characters?"

"Jayid… with… Shakyra…" Shantae sheepishly admitted, causing her partner to sigh in utter disbelief at the awkward direction this awkward conversation was taking. "I-if it makes you feel better, Shakyra saved Jayid by kissing him when he was poisoned… So there's some difference there… Oh, and it was HIS first." At that, Tay shook his head to clear his thoughts and focus on the urgent topic at hand.

"Okay. So, what does all this have t' do with… what we did? As in, what's your general opinion on it?"

"I guess you could say it gave me a real-life view of the 'lifesaving kiss' scenario."

"A real-life view, you say? I'm… not sure how t' interpret that."

"What's there not to be sure of, Tay? I'm not hiding anything at this point."

"Yeah, but with the way you're explainin' it, I'm startin' t' feel like you're implyin' somethin', if what you said about your comics is t' be considered, in addition t' how you said it all made you feel. Are you tryin' t' say that you're fallin' in love with me?" he asked, his heart pounding harder than battering rams on bolted doors. He had very little clue as to what point Shantae was trying to make, and what information she gave him did nothing to clarify her feelings. The tension in the room was almost tangible as the air became hot and thick despite the crisp, cool evening breeze wafting in through the windows of the lighthouse.

"No!" she fervently denied, though her heart inexplicably sank at the possibility that she may have misspoken and as such, may have given Tay the wrong idea. "That isn't what I'm getting at. Not at all."

"Okay, so what ARE you gettin' at?"

"I… I guess what I'm trying to say is… um… is that…" the dismayed maiden faltered, uncertain of how to convey her point. Noticing her pressured pause, Tay read it as an opportunity to lighten the mood to help her convey her point.

"What, you LIKED our so-called 'kiss' or somethin'?" Tay recklessly guessed with an involuntary smirk, though he felt just as much insurmountable tension as Shantae did and found it appropriate to laugh some of the pressure off. "If you ain't in love with me, then that can't be it either, right?" he added. However, he didn't notice that his friend went silent with shock. The silence carried on for what felt like an eternity before he spoke again. "Heh, how absurd does that sound? I know you're not one for jokes like that, but still… With how uncoordinated it was, an' with the fact that it had t' be done t' save you from a highly-toxic scorpion sting, there ain't much room for likin' anything about that little 'procedure.' You gotta admit though, that's a funny thought, ain't it?" Tay nonchalantly commented with a quick pat to Shantae's shoulder as he looked away, chuckling.

However, he found himself alone in his mirthful enjoyment of his humorous observation. This became evident as soon as he realized Shantae wasn't laughing with him. Slightly concerned, he turned back to her to see that she clasped her hands close to her chest, shooting him a forlorn, guilty stare. Upon seeing Shantae's nonverbal confession, his smile dropped faster than a sack of bricks thrown from the top of a skyscraper. Little did he know until he gazed upon her crestfallen face once more, that he'd hit the nail on the head.

"Oh. O-oh, I… uh…" he stammered, freezing in place as he found himself at a loss for words.

"It's not a joke to me. I liked the feeling of it. That's all," she clarified, looking away in embarrassment as her eyes became glassy with regret. "It has nothing to do with you." Her statement came across as cold like the ice used to reduce the swelling in Tay's eye. Hearing this struck a chord with him; a chord that he didn't know could he had within himself that filled him with a sudden mix of uncertainty and a slight to moderate sense of hurt.

"Look, I… I didn't mean t' laugh," he started in an attempt to repair the damage. "I… it's just… That's the last thing I expected you t' admit. I honestly didn't know you took it that seriously. B-but we can-!"

"No matter how we try to look at it, or how you try to make it into a joke… That… that was my first kiss… and first kisses are supposed to be special…" she lamented, her sadness growing. "…I guess it was just a wasted experience for me. Now I feel like such a dummy for even thinking that it was anything other than an elaborate mistake… In fact, what was I even talking about, liking the feeling? That IS pretty dumb, huh…?" she dismally remarked with a self-deprecating chuckle that hit Tay with a tidal wave of guilt.

"Shantae, please. I didn't mean t' say that," Tay pleaded, regretting ever making the joke. "I was wrong t' even think this could be a laughin' matter. A-and we can definitely clarify it as a ki-!"

"I'm sorry for making it seem like anything more than you helping me out of a bind. I at least appreciate that you were willing to go that far to save me. Thank you."

"Listen t' me, I'm beggin' you. I-!"

"No, I get it. It's wrong of me to make it seem like that big of a deal in any other way than you saving me. If you don't see it that way, what's the point of me trying to make it seem like such a special thing? I should be more focused on how you helped me than whether it was meaningful in some other way… I can't believe I let myself get so worked up over nothing…"

"Shantae, come on… It wasn't 'nothing.' I'm serious, if it meant somethin' t' you, then we can-!"

"Tayshan…" Shantae interrupted, hugging her knees close to her as she hid her face. "I… I don't want to talk about this anymore…" she further commented, her voice wavering with moroseness that hit the soldier like he'd just watched his best friend get her heart broken.

"…Got it," he nodded before sighing out a rush of tension. The two went silent once more, uncertain of where to go from the awkward moment. Tay had nothing else he could think of to carry the conversation along and had already noticed he'd hurt Shantae's feelings with his comments. On the other end, Shantae was nothing short of mortified. She'd just opened her heart to someone she shared an intimate moment with, and his response was to laugh it off like she'd told a funny story. Her mind also went into a crushing poverty of things to say to clear the air between them. Eventually, Tay got up, leaving his ice rag on the floor.

"Um… I-I'm sorry… about that. I uh… I'm just gonna go… for a walk, okay? I'll give you some space… I'll be back. Maybe… maybe we can talk about this later," he offered, though Shantae had not responded. Instead, she began to weep, her tears concealed by the fact that she was hugging her knees. Tayshan, wracked with guilt by the mere sound of her crying, shook his head. "I'll… be…" he trailed off, unable to finish his statement as he walked toward the door and opened it, revealing a cloudy, yet calm evening atmosphere outside.

He took a moment to glance at his friend once more before hanging his head in remorse. Without another word, he stepped outside and closed the door to the lighthouse. He palmed his face with his hand, ignoring the tidal wave of pain that came when he planted his hand directly on his injured eye. He walked toward Scuttle Town with no particular destination in mind, as his thoughts were consumed by how he would rectify the harm he caused his half-genie friend.

 ** _Elsewhere, later that night…_**

"Whew… We were out all day and didn't come back with a lick of useful information or even a sighting to report other than maybe another point of interest…" Sky mumbled in dejection. She and her trusted giant avian partner Wrench had just returned from another aerial expedition through the skies of Sequin Land, landing just outside of her home before the creature magically shrank to the size of the average parrot… or, whatever this bird was. Anyway, she'd opened the door to her home to let Wrench fly in and was about to enter herself when something caught her attention from the corner of her eye. "Hm?" she hummed in wonder as she turned to examine what looked like a wayward shadow trudging through the empty, quiet streets of late-night Scuttle Town. "Hey!" she called. "You seem lost. Is everything okay?"

"Huh?" the mysterious shadow, startled out of an apparent sullen stupor, stopped in its tracks and turned its attention toward the bird tamer that addressed him. "Oh, hey Sky…" the shadow spoke.

"…Tayshan?" Sky expertly guessed, leaping from the second story balcony of her home and approaching the shadow she soon recognized as her newest friend. "Hey, what are you doing out here so late?"

"Well, y'know… just takin' a stroll along the streets o' the city t' clear my head," he answered, though his reply came across as disengaged and devoid of energy.

"You sound upset," Sky pointed out, concerned for the soldier's mood. "Did you and Shantae not have such a good day today?"

"Not really…"

"What's the issue? You guys not find anything on Risky or the Super Slugger Spell either?"

"Oh, no. We found Risky."

"You did?" she reacted with such shock that one might've thought she was told Tay had won the lottery.

"Yeah, but she got away from us an' stole Mr. Mimic's Auto-Canoe. Of course, she left me this black eye as a partin' gift…" Tay explained as he pointed toward his face, though Sky couldn't see what he was referring to in the opaque, shadowy atmosphere of the night.

"I… can't really see what you're pointing to. Here, why don't you come inside and explain it to me?" Sky offered.

"Alright," Tay agreed. With that, the two made their way into Sky's house, where she immediately lit a torch to hang on the wall. She turned to offer Tay a seat, but she was immediately taken aback by the condition of his face.

"Oh my gosh! Tay! Your eye!" Sky practically shouted in shock, noting the giant, plum-purple bruise that surrounded the soldier's eye like a ring around a planet. "Come here, please! Sit, make yourself at home! I'll take care of that shiner for you!" she offered, pointing toward a wooden chair as she rushed into another area to gather first-aid supplies. Tay, still forlorn about his most recent conversation with Shantae, was slow and rather dejected in dragging the chair from the corner and plopping onto it, sighing in a mix of frustration and self-doubt.

"You don't need t' do anything about my eye, Sky. I'll be fine," Tay tried to deny Sky's medical support.

"Nonsense," the young blonde woman insisted as she returned, holding a standard ice pack and a roll of sports tape. "You shouldn't be walking around looking like a donkey kicked you in the face."

"Gee, just the picker-upper I needed today…" Tay flatly remarked, not appreciative of Sky's description of his face. "Thanks, Sky."

"I know, that was kind of harsh," she acknowledged as she set forth to dressing her guest's wound. "If it means anything, you're still as handsome as ever," she teased with a nudge and a smile.

"And you're still as straightforward as ever," he matched her comment with a smart remark, though he did not return her smile. "Thanks, though."

"You've gotta appreciate my honesty," she shot back. "Still, I can't believe Risky did this to you!"

"I can. I've only met her twice, an' both times, she's proven t' be quite the dirty fighter."

"To that, I think we can all attest. She won't get away with this, I'll tell you right now."

"I believe it. I'll make sure she gets every bit o' payback she earned for this."

"Of course. No one hurts my man and gets away with it… except my parents, of course," Sky attempted to affirm, though it only made Tay shuffle in his seat as Sky continued wrapping the sports tape around his head to hold the ice pack in place.

"With a strong, intelligent, capable woman like yourself, I'll bet almost no one would try messin' with you," Tay quipped in an attempt to lighten his mood a little.

"Ahh, there you go, flattering me again~!" she further gushed, evidently receptive to the compliments the soldier paid her. "But before we get too far off topic, you wanna give me the rundown on what happened today?" Sky inquired, pulling up a chair and sitting down in front of Tay to hear his story.

"Right, right. So, in no better words, what happened was…" he began detailing the events of the calamity in the Kitschy Quilt Desert and how exactly he and Shantae managed to pull through and make it out alive…

 ** _One more extensive recap later…_**

"…So basically, you had to make out with her to save her?" Sky asked in the middle of his explanation, just a bit unsettled by his explanation.

"I… wouldn't call it that," he denied with a conflicted tone, readjusting himself in his chair to account for his discomfort. "I mean… It was supposed t' be like mouth-to-mouth, but…" he trailed off, uncertain of how to choose his next words.

"Mouth-to-mouth doesn't involve that much lip contact. Also, the person receiving it would need to be unconscious or choking. You said she was awake, but a little woozy, right?"

"Yeah, but… I'm gonna be totally honest, Sky. I didn't think entirely too much of it, even though it made things super awkward between us."

"Awkward how?"

"Well… it's part o' the reason I was takin' a walk through the city t' clear my head."

"Oh? I guess maybe you and she saw it differently?"

"Yes. Way differently. I'll get t' that, though. I should probably explain what happened when we saw Risky first."

"Alright, but I trust you'll really tell me what happened between you and Shantae," she requested, concerned for her best friend. "She's pretty sensitive about this sort of thing, believe it or not. I hope everything's alright."

"Got it. I'll get to it. Still, uh… Risky. Once we were done with Al, we walked back t' the shore, where we ran int' Risky packin' her ship full o' weapons she took from my home world. We had a back-and-forth verbal battle that led t' me wrestlin' with her in the sand for control of a gun she had pointed at me."

"She pointed a gun at you?"

"Yep. This, comin' right after she punched me in the stomach for askin' her a question about how she gets suntans with her blue skin." To that, Sky burst into a healthy laugh.

"Wow, Tay… Not even I would dare make fun of Risky Boots of all people to her face. You can already tell she's got a hair-trigger temper."

"I know, but at this point, I think I like gettin' on her nerves. She needs t' be taken down a peg or two, one way or another. Not that I'm sayin' the black eye was worth it, but yeah."

"Oookay, but don't say I didn't warn you," Sky smilingly acknowledged. "So what happened next?"

"Shantae tried t' step in, but Risky pulled the gun on me t' stop her. I only got the drop on her when she got distracted."

"Yikes… That sounds awful! I'm so glad she didn't hurt you worse."

"I guess I should be glad too, but… well, y'know."

"Right. So how'd she give you the black eye?"

"To put it succinctly, I wrestled her t' the ground, she tried throwin' sand in my face, a Tinkerbat interfered, and then she cracked me in the face… with the gun she pointed at me."

"Ouch!" Sky sympathetically cringed. "That couldn't have been pretty…"

"Believe me, I know. I was there. It was only made worse when, after yet another lengthy, mildly-inappropriate heated exchange, she hit me with a nasty headbutt right in the same eye an' threatened t' relentlessly torture me an' turn me int' her pet because now our 'feud' is personal," he further explained, omitting some very intimate details in the process.

"Man, oh man… it sounds like you and Risky really got into it this time, too… How'd you wind up getting out of that situation alive?"

"Shantae kicked her off me, thank goodness. After that, Risky tried escapin' on her pirate ship, but her minions left her in the dust by accident. Then she stole our canoe an' ditched us on the island. We thought about callin' you t' pick us up, but then the Stage Clear podium-thing showed up."

"Wow, what a hassle of a trip that was… Seems like just about everything that could've gone wrong… just about did."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Tay agreed. "It was such a nightmare…"

"I'll bet. Just hearing about it makes me never want to set foot in that place if my life depended on it."

"Right? So awful…"

"Yeah, I'm sure. So, how does that lead into your disagreement with Shantae?"

"Good question… Well… it's pretty much because of… what happened with the resuscitation method," he hesitantly began. "Like you said, I saw it one way, she saw it another…"

"Which is to say…?" Sky prodded.

"She interpreted it as an emergency measure-turned-passionate-kiss, while I interpreted it as simple, but extremely-awkward cure delivery. If the fashion-challenged scorpion-man didn't sting her in the first place, our talk about it wouldn't have needed t' happen…"

"Ah, so you already tried talking about it?"

"Yeah… of course, you can imagine how well that went."

"Yeah. You, saying something irrevocably insensitive that you shouldn't have, hurting her feelings, and making her so upset that she kicked you out of her house," Sky deduced with frightening accuracy.

"Well dang!" he exclaimed in alarm. "It wasn't THAT horrible! Sheesh!"

"I know, I know, I'm just kidding," she teased, patting Tay on the knee as she snickered at his reaction. Tay, though still mildly alarmed at Sky's precise guess, managed to find it in him to laugh with her.

"That's a good one, I'll admit. Though, I… don't suppose you're too far off the dartboard on that. If anything, you're just a few inches away from the bullseye…"

"Oh? So you did make her upset by saying something insensitive?"

"T' be honest… Y-yeah…" he sheepishly admitted, frowning with regret as he lowered his head. "But she didn't kick me out. I left on my own accord because I felt like it'd be best t' give her some space."

"What happened?" she asked, her tone suddenly quite stern as she began to develop her own ideas about how the conversation between her guest and her best friend went.

"We got t' talkin' about what happened in the desert an' our teamwork up t' that point… uh, and then we started specifically talkin' about… the uh…"

"The not-kiss?"

"Er, yes. Um… We started talkin' about it t' clear the air. Like I said, things got awkward between us after it happened an' we agreed t' talk about it to address it for what it was and what it meant for us workin' together. We both talked about how it happened, what we felt, how weird it was, all that… an' then I popped the question of whether it could really be considered a legit kiss or just a rescue move."

"Uh-huh…"

"I let her go first. She said that it felt like a kiss, that she drew somethin' from it, an' that it kinda reminded her of some o' the books she read…" At this bit of information, the hooded woman scoffed.

"Figures she'd say that. I told her those comics were no good for her. They're full of inaccurate accounts of how real-life romance works. You can't just kiss somebody and have it automatically mean you're in love with each other, I told her. I wonder how much of a factor that played in her thinking…"

"A big one, I guess… I asked her what her books had t' do with what happened between us… I guess that's where things went south…"

"Uh-oh."

"She started describin' how it made her feel… what she was experiencin'… what she got out of it other than a cure for the scorpion venom… and… she even admitted she got 'carried away…'"

"Carried away?" Sky asked, raising an eyebrow and tilting her head.

"I'm… not clear on that, either," he confessed, shrugging in confusion. "I think she was referrin' to some point toward the end o' the procedure, where she wrapped her hands around the back o' my neck an' pulled me in… a-an' started really pushin' her lips on mine. Thinkin' back, I remember gettin' the idea that she wasn't sure the antidote worked at first. But then, at that point, there was no antidote left, if I remember right. Then…" Tay paused, feeling a chill go up his spine as he flashed back to the world-breaking moment in question. He hesitated to elaborate, his breath catching in his chest as his worry grew.

"Then… what, Tay?" Sky prodded, sensing the soldier's nervousness as her curiosity turned into concern for her friends.

"…She… she kept goin'," he admitted, causing Sky's eyes to widen with shock. "She pulled away an' took in a breath of air, an' then… an' then kept… kissin' me, I-I guess… It got to a point where I had t' tap her on the cheek t' figure out what she was doin'… She opened her eyes while her lips were still on mine, an' then after a second, she finally stopped. We stared at each other for what felt like an eternity before we snapped out of… whatever it was that pushed the situation in that direction…"

"…Oh," the impromptu counselor barely managed to remark with a furrowed brow, caught off-guard and mildly upset by the racy details she'd received. She struggled to imagine Shantae of all people in such a situation. "And when she mentioned that, how'd you respond?"

"I asked her what she was gettin' at… Uh, she said somethin' about gettin' a real-life experience with lifesavin' kisses, and… m-my reply was t' make a joke about the possibility of her actually LIKING the so-called kiss, tellin' her how funny an' absurd a thought that would be, an' laughin' about it… I… I messed up…" he somberly revealed.

"Oh, Tay… Even for someone as smart as you are, I see you're not immune to making the typical 'clueless guy' move."

"Excuse me?" Tay remarked, taking offense to Sky's bold statement.

"You don't laugh at a girl who pours her heart out to you like that, honey," Sky gently scolded.

"Yeah, yeah, I know… At least, now I do…"

"She was probably embarrassed that you reacted that way."

"Embarrassed, huh?"

"Of course. I mean, if I had to kiss you just to save your life, and you thought it was something more… special, only for me to laugh and tell you the thought was silly or outrageous when you presented it to me, how would you react?"

"…I'd be angry… ashamed… and devastated, I guess…" he admitted with a cognizant sigh.

"Yes. That said, how did she take your response?"

"Not well. She… she curled up, said she basically regretted ever sayin' anything, an' then said she didn't wanna talk about it anymore. After that, she… she started cryin'…"

"Ohh, no… You made her cry, too? Tay, that's not good…"

"I'm well aware of that, thanks," Tay bluntly commented, taking no consolation in Sky's observation. "I feel so guilty… But I don't know what else t' say or what t' do t' make it up to her."

"Shantae's generally understanding, though it takes her time to fully get over situations that personally affect her. You were at least right to give her some space immediately after. She tends to recover faster when the source of her anger isn't right in front of her."

"That's relievin' t' hear, I guess," he acknowledged, though he still felt the sting of the realization that he made Shantae upset with him again.

"Yeah, although… I'm pretty sure in all the time I've known her, she's never had to deal with being upset over anything as serious as kissing a guy… I'm fairly certain this is a first for her," she pondered, though her implication about it being Shantae's first kiss irritated Tay greatly.

"Oh, my-! It was NOT a kiss! At least, it wasn't supposed t' be," Tay complained, throwing his head upward in a mix of ire and embarrassment. Suffice to say, he didn't believe his encounter with Shantae could be classified as romantic in the least.

"To you, it may not have been. Clearly, it was to her. You have to see things from her perspective if you hope to understand why she got upset with you."

"That's true. I can't argue with that… Still, why is it that I have t' take all the responsibility for it? Now that I think of it, it's a little bit unfair that I'm supposed t' just bend an' comply with her idea o' the event when she said herself that she might've taken it too far when it happened."

"I'm not saying you have to admit that it was a kiss, don't get me wrong. I'm only saying that it's a good idea to look at it how she sees it. You already understand that she might be upset because she possibly feels embarrassed about having talked about it with you."

"Right, but what about how I see it? I'm not tryin' t' delegitimize her point o' view, but come on… It was to save her life! Who knows what would've happened if the venom was let t' run its course? I figured THAT would be way more important than if anybody thought it was romantic or not…" he professed, rubbing his forehead as he wracked his brain over the situation.

"You're absolutely right, Tay, and I'd bet there'd be little to no argument there. I do have to say myself that I commend you for standing up and going through with it to cure her. I'll bet it took a lot of courage and resolve to go through with something that put so much pressure on your shoulders that one slip-up could've meant the end for her."

"Thank you," he gratefully accepted her approval. "It took everything in me t' do it. I… I couldn't stand watchin' her fade in an' out o' consciousness like that… I'm still uneasy just thinkin' about it."

"I'll bet, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart for being there for her when she needed you," the sympathetic young lady nodded with a smile. "It says a lot about your character, Tay. I do have to say, though, that, considering how you described it, I do still get why she's mad at you right now."

"Wh-what?" Tay asked in astonishment. He evidently did not expect Sky to still disagree with him after he explained to her that he saved Shantae's life. "How?"

"Well… The act itself, as you described it, is so… packed with endlessly swirling emotion, such… wild, spontaneous passion, and so many… SO many deep, heavy, soul-binding smooches on the lips that seemed to get deeper and more… dare I say, consuming… not to mention the way you said you were holding each other…" Sky hesitantly explained, though the thought of her prospective boyfriend doing anything so romantic with another girl—especially her best friend—bothered her to no end. It almost angered her, though she was at least grateful to know the context behind it. Her heart sank just imagining the event, nonetheless. She couldn't help but feel at least somewhat… jealous, if she were to put it bluntly. Granted, she was aware that a situation with such dire circumstances should hardly be one worthy of anyone's envy or desire.

Still, she couldn't fathom Shantae of all people having such an intimate moment, what with the half-genie's usual aversion of the topic to the point where she'd normally never even HINT at wanting to talk about such a thing as kissing, much less participate in it. It was nothing short of totally uncharacteristic of Shantae to do anything like make out with a boy, so far as Sky was aware. To hear that Shantae actually had such a spicy, passionate experience at all was astonishing enough. Hearing it from Tayshan of all people that HE was the one Shantae shared the experience with? By kissing him? No, by MAKING OUT with him? It both irritated and confused her.

She was painfully aware of the context by this point, but the knowledge did surprisingly little to soothe her frustration in the face of the details she was given about the encounter. As far as her mind could identify it, Shantae got herself into yet another sticky situation, and Tayshan did his part as her friend to help her out of it. That was good. Great, even. Incredibly relieving, too. However, as far as Sky's heart would allow her to see it at face value, her best friend made out with her boyfriend-to-be. She took a deep, heavy breath to keep herself in check, reminding herself that neither of them did this of their own volition and that it was indeed to cure Shantae of a deadly venom. The perplexed bird tamer took a moment to put things into perspective as to how to address the confession and its context as her gaze fell to the floor of the apartment. After an extended silence, Tay spoke.

"Hey… y-you okay? You seem… angry," he fearfully acknowledged, reading the sudden tension evident on Sky's face as intense displeasure. At that, the young lady snapped out of her trance, shaking her head to orient herself and fixing her face.

"Sorry, I… I was just thiking about what else to say about this. No matter how I look at it, Tayshan… this is one HEAVY situation. Like I was saying, though, a big piece of why she's mad at you is probably because of how… intimate the act itself was," she pointed out, taking another deep breath after making her observation.

"I… yeah, I guess, if you look at it outside the context of why it had t' happen…" Tay reluctantly concurred, his face heating up with embarrassment. "Though I assure you, I… I don't think that's how it went down. I-I mean, neither of us should've drawn anything that… lewd out of it…" he pondered, his dissonance growing as he was made to think harder about the incident.

"Well… evidently, she did. Speaking of, the bigger problem lies in that you basically laughed at her when she told you how she felt about it. Whichever way you look at that, turning a girl's spoken feelings into a punchline is like putting her heart on a table and slamming a boulder on it. It's a total betrayal of trust."

"I… shoot, that's true…" Tay realized, almost instantly regretting his mistake as his heart sank like an anchor in the ocean. He clasped a hand to his face and breathed a heavy sigh that made his remorse almost tangible. "What have I done…?"

"It's going to be okay," Sky consoled, placing her hand on the serviceman's knee to bring his attention back to her. "I can try talking to her to get her to come around to having another discussion with you, if you'd like."

"…Thanks, but no," Tay denied, regaining his composure as he straightened himself up in his seat. "I'll talk to her again. It's only right that this gets resolved between me and her."

"Taking sole responsibility for your actions, hm? That's quite mature of you, Tay!" Sky observed, impressed by her potential love interest's willingness to correct his own mistake.

"Thanks. Matter of fact, I'll go right now an' see if she'll let me in."

"At this hour and so soon after that all just happened?"

"Uh… yes?" he answered with uncertainty. "I know it's late an' all, but why not strike while the iron's hot?"

"Tay, Tay, Tay… Your 'guy-ness' is showing again," Sky remarked, shaking her head in disapproval.

"And what exactly is that supposed t' mean?" he asked in offense yet again, cocking an eyebrow at his host.

"You think you can just fix something the minute you get the tools necessary to do it, but you don't understand how to use the tools you're given. Give her space AND time, Tayshan. Don't rush it. Be patient. Your opportunity will come in due time. Knowing Shantae, she'll need more than a couple of hours to herself."

"Y'know, I get what you're sayin', but I'm not appreciatin' these anti-male remarks you're makin' here. It's just a bit condescendin', don't ya think?" he asked, mildly put-off by his host's tone. At that, Sky saw the crossness in Tay's unswollen eye and regretted her remark, knowing that it would win her no points with him.

"Sorry… I'm so used to having these talks with Bolo about girls he wants to attract, but he does very… irrational things that wind up backfiring on him. I've watched other guys make the same mistakes, too," Sky admitted, acknowledging the impact of her inflammatory remarks.

"Well, I'm not him, an' not all guys are alike. Even if we were alike, you still gotta understand that we're capable of learnin' from our mistakes. Besides, it ain't like girls are totally exempt from ever makin' bad decisions," he reasoned. In that same vein, however, he briefly flashed back to a previous conversation he'd had with Shantae about gender-based expectations and realized exactly what she meant.

"I know, babe, I know… That's a mistake on my part, and I'll discipline myself to keep from doing it in the future," Sky apologetically offered with an understanding nod.

"So long as you underst-! Wait, 'babe?'"

"Yes?" she responded as though he were calling her.

"Ah, nevermind…" he conceded with a shrug and sigh, unwilling to fight as his fatigue set in. "Anyway, I guess I'll follow your advice an' stay away from Shantae; at least, for the night. There any hotels or room rental services I could use out here in Scuttle Town? I managed t' save up a decent amount o' them little gem things y'all use for currency while we went out on some of our trips. A heapin' ton of 'em, I collected while I was in that dungeon back in the Kitschy Quilt Desert, but I still ain't sure I have enough at this point t' make a reservation…"

"Hotel? Don't be silly, hon! You can just stay here for the night! Free of charge!"

"I can't do that," he politely refused. "That'd be rude o' me t' just plop myself in your house like a stray animal without its master. I'm okay findin' somewhere else t' sleep for the night. Besides, I did that enough already with Shantae lettin' me sleep at her house the entire time I've been here. This 'aimless vagabond lookin' for a roof over his head' stuff ain't a good look for me."

"Well, you're certainly no stray animal or aimless vagabond," the humored young lady commented with a giggle at Tay's comparisons. "…but what kind of person would I be to let you wander off this late at night with nowhere to go? You're my… uh, I guess the safest word to use is 'friend' for right now?"

"Oh, so NOW you don't wanna make it seem like we're datin'."

"Well, I don't want to pressure you. It's a matter of me helping you out while things are tough. I'd do the same for anyone I was familiar enough with."

"You… You're right," he nodded, agreeing with her assertion. "That makes sense. Sorry about that."

"You've nothing to apologize for. I just hope it isn't too unusual for you. As for you and me, though…" she began, pausing to consider her next statement before she made it. Her hesitation caused her guest to raise an unbandaged eyebrow in curiosity. "Now that you mention it, I know I've been a bit forward with you since we met, but I at least want to make sure you enjoy spending time with me before we... consider possibly moving forward..." she confessed, sending shockwaves of… uh, shock through the weary soldier.

"Wh… What do you mean by that?" he cautiously asked, having little to no idea where she was going with her statement.

"What I mean, Tay, is that…" she began before pausing to think back to the advice she received from her ex-boyfriend on Naga Mountain. She also briefly flashed to the instances of her interactions with a certain Ammonian Army affiliate who'd been just as enamored with Tay as she was. Hearing this news about an event between him and her best friend nearly stopped her from even making her confession… with an indisputably enormous emphasis on NEARLY. Though Sky realized that this was an immeasurably inopportune time to do it, she was still determined to at least make sure that the object of her affections knew how she felt. As such, she trusted her instincts (and Barracuda Joe's word), opting to continue. "…well, I really like you. A lot," she confessed, her heartbeat quickening as her face became hot with anticipation. "…if that wasn't painfully obvious already. It isn't like I've tried to hide it."

"I've noticed," he remarked with a smirk, though it was a thin veil for his rapidly-growing apprehension as he instinctively and involuntarily gulped. "Your hints were about as subtle as a rampagin' bull in a crowded library."

"Oh, stop~!" Sky laughingly rebutted, her blush growing deeper as she leaned forward and lightly tapped the comedic young man on his knee again. "I'll remember that one. You've got quite a sharp tongue, Tay!"

"Hey, I'm only callin' it as I see it," he shot back, laughing with her, though his heartbeat quickened as he focused on her. "No disrespect, though, Sky. I… I had a feelin' you were bein' totally serious about the things you've said."

"Yeah, of course… and… in the same vein, I have reason to believe the feeling's mutual, based on how you've responded to me in the past."

"Oh?" Tay questioned in utter surprise, his smile disappearing faster than water droplets on a hot frying pan as he froze in place. His uninjured eye went wider than a satellite as he locked his gaze on the blushing blonde in front of him.

"Well… yeah. I'd like to think that maybe… you have a bit of a thing for me, too," she pointed out as she let down her hood and undid her scarf. She shook her head after removing her turquoise hair wrap to reveal her long, gorgeous golden locks that draped neatly down past her shoulders like a beautiful curtain of goldenrod. The defining two long, spiky bangs that accentuated the bird trainer's youthful beauty hung perpendicularly forward from her hairline, almost independent from the rest of her luxurious locks of sunset yellow. "Sorry, it's a bit hot in here all of a sudden," she nonchalantly informed him as she ran her fingers through her hair to straighten it out, at which point her ends flared out as though there were a breeze continuously blowing through her golden locks. One may have almost been able to draw a comparison between her hair and a raven's flared wings stretched downward at this point.

"Whoa…" The awestruck man murmured, totally taken aback by the beguiling appearance of his host. He found himself gawking at her as though she'd performed a Shantae-styled transformation right before his eyes… er, eye. Sky, hearing her guest, adjusted her hair and turned her attention back to him. The love-struck maiden noticed that he was practically petrified with his mouth slightly ajar and his eye agape with a mix of surprise and… dare she say, unspoken intrigue.

"Not that it's a surprise to you by now, but… don't think I haven't caught you staring at least once," she slyly remarked, shooting him a lovey-dovey half-lidded grin as she leaned forward once more, almost daring him to challenge her observation. She was a bit surprised herself that she garnered such a reaction from him, but it gave her the affirmation she needed. Tay, shaken out of his stupor, gasped and, finding no discernible way to deny this audacious claim, struggled to drum up a reply as he found himself indisputably charmed by her.

"I… uh, I… S-sorry…"

"Don't worry, I'm not mad. If anything, I'm happy about it," she countered, further alarming him as he sat, speechless. "It lets me know that you're… interested in… or, at least, curious about me. Plus, don't hate me for saying this, but… it's so adorable when you get flustered. Just… like I presume you are right now…" she explained, her grin widening as she touched a finger to his chest. In that moment, she swore she could feel his heart bouncing like it was doing somersaults on the world's strongest trampoline. She also felt the sheer pressure of his slow, heavy breathing that further emphasized her amorous effect on him. At that, she couldn't help but giggle.

"H-hey… I… Aw, man…" he stammered as his breath caught in his chest, realizing that she wasn't wrong about him being flustered. His mind was blank for ideas otherwise.

"Not to mention, you've managed to say the most wonderful things about me almost every time I flirt with you."

"Uh… I… exercise my right t' remain silent?" At this, Sky giggled in a mix of elation and amusement.

"Ah, you're as funny as you are cute. I like that most about you," she complimented once more, though a certain word instantly made the soldier pout, crossing his arms and darting his eyes elsewhere momentarily. Of course, he realized he'd been placed in the hottest of hot seats with Sky's relentless advances and, as such, shook his head to refocus himself before he offered a rebuttal.

"Hey, look. Th-thanks for your praise, really. But um… This is… a bit sudden for me."

"That's… true, I'd bet," the certifiably nervous, blushing blonde agreed as she cleared her throat to recollect her thoughts, sitting up in her chair. "All the pillow talk aside, I… I think we… I think we should consider addressing things for what they are, so to speak… Maybe at some point soon, we could take some time to… explore things together?" she coyly suggested as she instinctively drew circles around her upper chest with an index finger, shooting the awestruck soldier a cutely curious facial expression that threw him for more loops than a sideways number "8". There seemed to be no end to the romantic tension between himself and Sky.

"Hold on… w-we don't even really know each other," he uneasily countered, though he did not deny Sky's point. "Ain't we movin' just a bit too quick here? What could you possibly see in me that has you so interested that you'd ask me out before we talked about it?"

"I see a lot, believe it or not. Just from the few chats we've had, I can tell you're earnest, kind, mature, motivated, intelligent, charming, funny, and determined to accomplish your goals. Not to mention, you stuck your neck out to save my best friend's life today and were totally honest with me about how it happened… If that isn't a true sign of heroism, loyalty, and commitment, I don't know what is…"

"Uh… I-I… uh… wow… Y-you're givin' me way too much credit here…"

"Oh, and I just love how modest you are about it all!" she gushed, making Tay's body temperature soar into the stratosphere.

"Sky, please… I… um…" he stammered, frozen in total shock.

"This is a lot all at once, I know…" she admitted, her blush deepening as she folded her arms in response to her growing anticipation. She never took her eyes off the soldier as she let her feelings be known. "…but I'm completely serious. I… I know you'd be a wonderful boyfriend. And I'd… well, I'd like you to be mine." Hearing this made the soldier's heart skip a beat as he sat, dumbfounded by his host's rather assertive confession. He reeled back as he focused his attention on the young woman, clutching a hand to his chest as he took a deep, quaky breath to process her profession of love.

"W-wait, I… I don't think I heard you right… because if I ain't mistaken, you…"

"I just asked you to be my boyfriend, yes," Sky reiterated with a nervous grin, finding some humor in Tayshan's discombobulation. On the young man's end however, hearing her confirm her question sent another shockwave throughout his entire body as he gripped his chest harder and almost lost himself in the burgeoning pressure that mounted like the atmosphere of a fully-submerged submarine.

"That's what I thought… Th-that certain? An' so soon? How could you be so sure I'm right for you?"

"Woman's intuition, for one. Plus, I'm a keen judge of character, and I can tell you've got quite a lot to offer, Tay. Other than that, you can't be totally sure if it's going to work unless you try, right?"

"Huh… Well, that's true. Also, er, thanks? Still, you already know I'm not from this planet, no? Who's t' say I don't suddenly find my way back t' my world as soon as tomorrow? I'm not sure how long I'm gonna even be here for, but I don't think it'll be that long, all things considered. Plus, my main purpose here is t' get back what belongs t' the armed forces back home. I wouldn't want you t' invest so much time an' effort in me when I'm just an ambiguous invader with a mission t' complete," he rambled, very unclear on how to answer Sky's most world-shaking question in a way that didn't come across as awkward and unprepared.

"I'm aware, yes, but while you're here, why not take SOME time to unwind, get to know a girl, maybe even… I dunno, stick around a bit longer if fate should so permit it? Unless you're saying you don't feel the same way for me that I do for you?"

"Uh… Y-you're REALLY puttin' me in a tough spot, Sky…"

"I know, and I apologize for that… and I'll make it up to you, but if you really are against the idea of dating me, just say so and I'll stop."

"Um…" Tay froze as he pondered. He certainly didn't want to hurt the young woman's feelings at all. He understood her to a degree. She certainly had a few good points about making his time in Sequin Land worth more than just an extended search and retrieve mission. However, such an understanding in contrast to his insurmountable bewilderment at his current situation baffled him. He was undeniably aware Sky harbored very vocal and very strong feelings for him. He was also aware that, though he hated to admit it… she had indeed caught some of his attention in that specific light. But then again, so did certain other individuals. That knowledge only made his situation even more unbearable as he found himself trapped. He knew, however, that even if it was Sky alone that he undoubtedly considered as potentially becoming more than a friend to him, he could not allow himself to openly return her feelings the way she wanted him to, for the simple fact that he was not native to this world and as such, would not reside here forever; at least, so long as there existed the possibility of the portal responsible for bringing him here being rebuilt.

There'd certainly be no point in attaching himself too strongly to any of the residents of this parallel universe… was there? Even if he did return Sky's affection the way she'd desired, Tay was also not certain of how Shantae would react to such a prospect as him becoming romantically involved with her best friend; especially after what just happened between the soldier and the half-genie. He barely even understood at all how Shantae felt at this point, but he was cognizant enough to know she was significantly affected by their so-called 'kiss.' He paused, rubbing his head in intense thought as he flashed back to his conversation with Shantae days earlier about this very possibility. However, as Sky waited for his answer, she became worried as her eyes wavered like sunlit ocean waves.

"Look, I… I understand if you don't feel that way for me," Sky spoke up, frowning as her heart sank because of Tay's hesitation. "I shouldn't have even said that. That was unfair of me to put you on the hot seat."

"No, please…" he finally responded, catching the bird tamer's attention. He sighed away a bit of his anxiety before formulating his response. "I-It ain't that I don't at least understand your feelings; I hear you loud an' clear, but I know I'm not doin' you much good by stayin' silent. So… I'll just say what's on my mind: Just from what I've seen o' you since we met, Sky… you're a wonderful woman who works hard an' is always there for her friends. You're insanely beautiful, you're super talented, I can just FEEL the commitment an' loyalty in your energy, you're incredibly smart beyond comparison, and you've… even saved my life without the thought of makin' me return the favor," the soldier confessed through his nigh-tangible apprehension. "You're… amazing, simply put. Words can't put int' real perspective the amount o' respect an' admiration you earned from me since the day we crossed paths. Honestly, it'd be harder for me NOT t' at least think about you in 'that' way…"

"Aww, Tay~!" Sky happily commented, her heart fluttering like a hummingbird's wings as she clutched her hands to her chest. Her chestnut-hued eyes glimmered with jubilation as she focused her enamored gaze directly on the reasonably-flustered soldier sitting before her. "I didn't know you felt that way about me! Wow…"

"There's no doubt you deserve nothin' but the absolute best out of a guy lucky enough t' have your heart, but… There's been a lot goin' on from my end, an' I really wouldn't wanna burden you like I've already burdened Shantae. I just… All the other factors aside, I don't know if I'm worth all the attention you're payin' t' me."

"Tayshan, if there's one thing you should know about me, it's that when I've got my eye on something or someone, the matter of 'worth' is meaningless."

"Hm. I get that, I guess. You're the 'I see it, I want it, it's mine,' type, huh?"

"Absolutely! I approach every situation with utmost certainty. That said, I'm certain we'd make a really good couple, if you're willing to give it a shot. I'm not even upset at you for kissing Shantae."

"Wha-!? Hey! That ain't funny!" Tay complained, offended that Sky would make light of such a dire situation.

"No jokes here," Sky fervently shot back. "I know it sounds twisted right now, but kissing another girl is something I'd normally find unacceptable and inexcusable for anyone I consider as... potentially more than a friend. But, you did it to save Shantae's life. You basically had no choice in that matter, and, for lack of better words, I'm glad you went through with it. I seriously cannot even fathom how grateful I am that you would go that far to protect her… and, while it isn't my place to speak on her behalf, I'm positive that deep down, she appreciates you for it, too."

"…I guess so…" the perplexed young man mused, unable to figure out exactly how he felt about any of what was happening at this point.

"I… I've got to be sure though, Tayshan…" she continued, her tone becoming progressively more hesitant as she pressed on. "…You wouldn't have done that if the urgent need wasn't there… right? As in, you wouldn't just… kiss her out of nowhere simply because you wanted to in a scenario where there was no poison or life-threatening emergency involved? Especially in a scenario where you and I are… together?" she asked, inadvertently letting slip some of her suppressed resentment toward the situation at hand between Shantae and Tayshan.

"I… I guess not, when you put it that way…" he answered, thinking carefully as he did so. "Mind you, she's told me herself she wasn't interested in me when it came t' romance anyway, an' I completely agreed with her. So… I suppose you could count on us never havin' t' repeat what happened on our last trip unless she gets hurt in a similar way t' how she did an' there was no other way t' help…" he reasoned, though finding the right words to him was like trying to find gold in an abandoned mine shaft full of grenade traps. Additionally, he acknowledged in this moment that his feelings toward his mentor-slash-team-leader were in a sort of rapidly-swirling limbo, making the conversation with Sky far more difficult to engage in than he could've ever anticipated. Nonetheless, he wanted to at least come to some form of consensus with her. "T' be fair, though, I'm not even close t' sure about how she feels after what happened. I'm… even less sure of how I feel, when I think about it…" at that, Sky gasped, unable to hold in her nigh-overwhelming suspense as her heart pounded hard enough that the force alone could potentially make her involuntarily shift in her seat.

"Are you… saying that… you might have a crush on her?" she dared to ask, though the insurmountable pressure brought on by the inquiry made the air so hot and thick for both of them that they might've sworn they were sitting in Sequin Land's hottest sauna.

"N-no, no…" Tay pensively replied, though he was still considerably dissonant about the poison incident and its implications, as well as every other situation up this point as his partnership/friendship with Shantae developed. He briefly flashed back through a flurry of memories regarding his and Shantae's first conversation, the conversations that followed, their previous adventures, the time they spent constantly in each other's company, and especially the time where they literally walked at least fifteen miles in each other's shoes. To say that something couldn't have possibly been there between himself and his magic-wielding mentor, would've been nothing short of absolutely ignorant. Although, his vocalized denial did him no favors. However, if Shantae flat-out told him she only saw him as just another best friend, then what was the point in even drumming up such consideration in the first place? As his pondering proved inconclusive, Tay continued to speak. "I'm just sayin' that… after what happened, I think we should try t' get a solid idea of what that situation was an' how it affects us."

"Oh," Sky remarked, mentally breathing a sigh of fleeting relief. "That's understandable. It'd be crazy to imagine either of you just brushing that whole ordeal aside like it was a simple matter of you two sharing a straw for the first time or something…"

"Couldn't agree more with that. Still, it ain't fair t' hold that situation against me."

"I'm not holding it against you. You did it to save her; just like you said you would the other day, now that I'm reminded of it," she realized, though the realization brought on even more of her interest in the serviceman sitting before her. "That's the most important part by far. I know that took a LOT of courage to do. I'm not even sure _I_ would've gone through with it if I were in your position."

"I… can't imagine," he rebutted with a cocked eyebrow as he tried not to let his mind wander too far in the direction of what it would look like for Sky to kiss Shantae to save her in his stead… especially in the same racy manner that he had to do so.

"I don't want to imagine it," Sky added, instinctively shuddering at the thought as she very quickly brushed it out of her head. "Anyway, I know that incident must still be fresh in your mind, so… the best thing I can do for you is help you process it… that is, if you're still feeling conflicted about it."

"I… am, t' be honest," he confessed, though as he was made to think further about the influx of connections that he established with some of his allies in this world, one other giant conundrum was brought to the forefront of his mind. "Mind you, this is all comin' forth about Shantae an' how you, her, an' I feel about it," he continued. "I haven't even mentioned Twitch yet…" The mere utterance of the Ammonian acolyte's name shocked Sky like she'd grabbed a live, unwrapped electrical wire. Never in a billion years would she think he'd bring her up in a conversation like the one they were having. Nevertheless, she kept her composure as best as she could.

"Twitch?" she remarked, trying to hide her astonishment. "What does she have to do with any of this?"

"Well, you saw some o' the reason I'm bringin' her up, thinkin' back t' what you saw o' her in the Prickle Stitch Valley," he alluded, though somewhat avoidantly.

"Yeah… Above all else, she clung to you like a koala bear to a tree and… and kissed you… on the cheek," she recalled, using every bit of energy in her to keep from showing her utter disgust at the incorrigible event.

"That, an' she full-on confessed her… uh, her feelings t' me before you an' Shantae showed up t' try an' save me from her an' Vinegar," he explained, further catching Sky by surprise. "I know what you an' Shantae say about her, but after spendin' some time with her an' Vinegar, it'd be rude o' me t' pretend like what she said didn't have an impact on me…"

"Tayshan… Are you serious?" the thoroughly-aghast bird trainer asked, almost completely unable to believe her ears. Did he REALLY just say he was considering the feelings of Twitch of all people? "She and that friend of hers are rotten to the core! I mean, not to be rude, but why would you be thinking about her at all?"

"It sounds inappropriate t' even mention her, I know, but hear me out. Even though they kidnapped me, I got more than enough time t' actually make friends with Twitch an' Vinegar. An'… well…" Tayshan hesitantly spoke up, uncertain of how to convey such a controversial point to another friend who'd just confessed her feeling to him moments prior. "I really got t' know them; Twitch especially. I even saved her life at one point with help from Vinegar, though it thankfully didn't involve me havin' t' kiss Twitch at all…"

"…Oh…"

"Yeah… an' maybe it's just me bein' naïve, but I feel like she genuinely likes me, too…"

"O-okay…" Sky acknowledged, her heartbeat growing heavy enough that each voluminous pump of the organ in question could be heard miles away. "It's good to know that your willingness to save people doesn't just boil down to saving friends. You're truly incredible, Tay. But, what am I supposed to interpret from that statement? What are you saying? That you… that you might like Twitch back?"

"No, I'm not sayin' that, either," he assured, though he also wasn't sure of his feelings toward Twitch, much less how to explain his position to Sky. Regardless, he pressed on. "I don't know at all how I feel about any o' this, is what I guess I'm really tryin' t' say… It started off so simple, with me an' Shantae just bein' friends an' tag partners. It was still simple when you an' I became friends, considerin' what happened up t' the point where we traveled t' Naga Mountain. Since then, bein' kidnapped by Twitch an' Vinegar caused me t' bond with them, an' it led t' Twitch outright sayin' what she wants with me. Believe it or not, it surprisingly didn't have anything t' do with my world's weapons, either. Again, I refer t' how she grabbed an' kissed me before Shantae told her t' back off. That move o' hers was more cumulative than sudden, if you get what I mean."

"…Interesting…"

"I'm sure it is when you listen t' what I'm ramblin' on about. Then this situation with Shantae happened, an' it's drivin' me crazy t' even try t' conceptualize what I'm supposed t' feel or imagine what she feels… an' now here I am, havin' just been full-on confessed to for the second time, an' I haven't a clue on how t' respond. I don't want to hurt you, Sky. I'd never even dream of it. An' though you might not like t' hear it, I don't wanna hurt Twitch, either. An' as if I need t' mention it again, I'm distraught that I hurt Shantae. I just…" Tay finally paused for a moment after a guilt-riddled, panicked rant about the predicament he'd been in. He took in his 463rd deep, tension-laden breath before blowing every ounce of the hot air out of his lungs upward while his hands went to scratching his head like he was attempting to dig into his own brain.

"Goodness, Tay, I'm really sorry…" Sky apologized, again placing a hand on his knee. "I had a hunch this was a bad time to say anything about my feelings toward you, and I feel so selfish for digging into you like I have been tonight," she added, realizing that she indeed may have taken things a tad too far regarding making her confession. She also silently cursed herself for following Barracuda Joe's advice, for it seemed that it may have ultimately set things back on her 'progress' with getting closer the soldier before her. Why did she even listen to her ex-boyfriend of all people for advice in the first place? At that moment, she further kicked herself for taking his opinion as valid enough to follow up on, concluding that it did her more harm than good. "If I knew this was the gravity of what you've been dealing with, I'd have never sprung this on you…"

"Understood, an' I ain't holdin' a grudge for it," he understood, regaining enough of his resolve to shake off some of his previous bewilderment and return his gaze to Sky. "I mean, in a weird sense, I'm at least glad you got it out there instead o' makin' me play guessin' games while you beat around the bush."

"Really?" Sky asked, reeling back as she tried to hide her shock.

"Yes, surprisingly… as if you haven't been surprised enough already," he observed, reading her facial expressions as their conversation progressed.

"So you're aware of that much, at least?" she remarked with a lighthearted smirk, impressed that he knew how she felt in that moment without her saying it outright. "Clever boy…"

"Clever as I might appear t' be, I still ain't got a clue on what t' do about the situation I'm in right now," he matched her remark with one of his own. "But yeah, I am glad you an' Twitch let me know right away how y'all felt. While it don't make it any easier t' actually figure out what t' do, it at least gives me some clarity that may or may not help me figure it out in the long run," he further explained. "It's just… I'm the kind o' guy who considers things from every avenue, so sometimes, it takes me a while t' draw a conclusion… if that doesn't sound frustratin' at all t' hear from me. Much as I really enjoy comin' across as indecisive, I've never had t' deal with anything like this situation before now."

"No, no, I get it completely, Tay," Sky reassured, though she did little to hide her dismay toward his statement and indecision. "I mean, I would personally prefer it if you simply drew the conclusion to date me over Twitch, but y'know…" she nonchalantly added with a shrug of her shoulders as she momentarily cast her gaze elsewhere.

"I'm painfully aware, but like I said, I don't wanna hurt anybody," he defended, his body temperature flaring up like the sun had just paid a personal visit to the apartment. "This is new t' me in so many ways... Plus, I'd be a stone-hearted, brain-damaged fool t' just up an' pick one o' y'all without considerin' the other's feelings. Addin' t' that, I just…" he trailed off, his mind wandering back to the very reason he and Sky were even having this conversation in the first place. After yet another anxious sigh, he came forward with another realization brought on by the conversation itself. "I guess I should stop lyin' t' myself by this point, since the general consensus goes 100% against what I originally thought. So, I'll just say it: I kissed Shantae t' cure her of a poison she was infected with. And, without mincin' words, she kissed me back; deeply, at that," he shakily confessed, feeling even more nervous than he did before… as if that were somehow possible for a guy in a situation like his. He also acknowledged the tinge of discomfort he'd felt, flashing back to how, despite him having to initiate the procedure, he was not the one to turn that incident into a possibly romantic exchange... at least, not intentionally.

"Surprise me even an ounce more, Tayshan, and you're gonna cause me to explode with confetti or something," Sky remarked, shaking her head as she sat, stunned beyond belief at his explanation of his and the half-genie's actions. "I'd like to save that for when I graduate college, so please spare me until then, okay?"

"Wouldn't want that t' happen…" he acknowledged with a slight, worried chuckle as he scratched his head. "Still, Sky, I… I'm still clueless as t' what t' say or do at this point. It's definitely helped that you listened t' me blather on about this whole situation t' this point, at least, but I'm sorry if I haven't given you a straight answer by now…"

"No, I totally see where you're coming from!" Sky assured once more. "It's a tough position to be in, and I definitely realize now that I may have made things more difficult for you just now. Again, I apologize."

"It's fine, Sky. Thanks for hearin' me out, no less."

"No thanks are necessary. Buuuut, rather than leave it to dangle in your mind like wet laundry on a wire, maybe it's good to keep talking about it? I'll try to ease off on the flirting, too, so feel free to share your thoughts and feelings without worrying too much about how I might feel," she offered, though it took so much of her willpower not to scream in a mix of embarrassment, frustration, and eagerness to grab the soldier and… uh, find some way to convince him to disregard Twitch and choose her, that she could practically feel her body about to react all on its own. She was trembling with anticipation, but she was forced to restrain herself to avoid making any further mistakes in the wake of bolstering her bond with Sequin Land's resident alien.

"Hmm… Yeah, maybe talkin' about it more WOULD help me get a grip on it… but hey, look, I'm not gonna pretend like this doesn't affect you," he asserted. "If there's somethin' on your mind, Sky, my ears are also open."

"Thanks, Tay! I'll be sure to keep that in mind. And, I'm here to help. I also know we still haven't properly gotten to know each other, and… if you're not too tuckered out, maybe now's an opportunity to start? We'll take it slow, of course. No rushing into anything without being totally certain of our feelings. Granted, I know you might also still be presently thinking about what happened in your conversation with Shantae earlier, if nothing else…"

"…Yeah, you're right. I am still super worried about her, but… I just hope I can talk with her next time we meet. She doesn't deserve t' be upset over my mistake after all she's done for me since I got here. Also, maybe… you an' I should get t' know each other a little bit better," he acquiesced with a nod, though he felt inconceivably conflicted. "Don't expect me t' just jump into your arms, though. I'm still pretty confused about… just about everything regardin' even bein' in this world, t' be totally honest. Until I get my head in the right place, I'm… not comfortable with the idea of bein' in a relationship at all right now, if I'm gonna be blunt," he finally answered. "If you don't mind, can we at least keep bein' friends?"

"Not a problem," she nodded with a smile, having taken his answer to her offer as a definite 'maybe.' "Like I said, taking it slow. The last thing I'd ever want to do is force you to make a decision when you're not in the right mindset. I can't say enough that I get that I might've done just that a second ago, and I'm kicking myself for putting you in that spot. Anything you want to talk about, we can talk about here and now, if you're willing to spend the night here. I'll help you figure things out, so you don't feel so lost. I can only imagine the culture shock you must be experiencing right now, and the least I can do is lend a hand."

"I suppose. Thank you."

"Definitely. Plus, to bring it back to the main point, you'd be giving Shantae enough breathing room that I'd bet you and she would have a much easier time talking about the incident the next time you spoke."

"Yeah, but she's probably wonderin' where I am. I can't just crash here an' not let her know. I know she's mad at me, but she's still my friend. Disappearin' on her is definitely not gonna help make things better."

"You raise an excellent point. How about you write her a note, and I'll have one of my birds fly it over to her? She'll know where you are and that you're safe."

"That… actually doesn't sound like a bad idea. Though, I'd prefer t' simply go back there myself."

"I'm sure you do, Tay, but trust me when I say you should leave her be for now. Going back and trying to fix things now is only going to make it worse."

"I… I guess. Fine. In that case, you got somethin' I could write on?"

"I'll get something for you," Sky offered. With that, she got up and walked toward a nearby wooden work desk. After some rummaging through some of the drawers on the desk, she located a pen and a blank sheet of paper and provided them to her guest. Tay, while still ambivalent about not returning to the lighthouse, carefully thought out the contents of the letter he would send his friend. After a moment of thought, he silently drafted the note, taking no time to proofread it before relinquishing it to Sky.

"There… I… only hope that's enough for her t' understand."

"Got it," she affirmed, not reading the note as she whistled, calling a small, gray pigeon to her. The pigeon perched on her open window, where Sky pulled out a silky red ribbon with which to tie the rolled-up note to its leg. The skillful bird trainer whistled again, sending the avian messenger off to its intended destination before turning her attention back to Tay. "So… wanna stay?"

"…Sure."

"Great! It's settled, then. Why don't you make yourself comfortable?"

"Of course… Thank you so much, Sky. I… I can't appreciate it enough. I owe you big time for this on top o' when you saved me back on Naga Mountain…"

"Nonsense, Tay! You have no debts to pay to me. I'm just doing what a devoted FRIEND would do for a friend."

"Heh heh, right…" he smirked, though he was nervous due to his awareness of the possibility that Sky would continue flirting with him. Her unusual hesitation merely emphasized his thought.

"I've… only got one bedroom though, so we'll have to share if you're looking to sleep in a bed…" she admitted, shrugging and tilting her head as though to acknowledge the inconvenience of the arrangement.

"WOW… I can't say I expected you t' go zero to a hundred quite like that…" he remarked, blindsided beyond belief as he gawked at her.

"What do you mean? There's only one bedroom, but I have a guest bed in there for you to use. One of my ex-boyfriends left it here after he… uh, 'departed,'" she informed him, though she euphemized the bit of information where something may very well have happened to cause this mystery ex-boyfriend's 'departure.'

"Oh. O-of course that's what you meant. What else could it be?" the soldier sheepishly stammered with a scratch of his cheek, his face getting hot with embarrassment. Just like when he first met his half-genie team leader, he walked right into it.

"Just what were you thinking, anyway?" Sky questioned with a coquettish smirk, causing him to freeze up as he continued to look at her. "Because it sounds like you thought I meant we had to share the b-!"

"Hey, you got a shower or a bathtub here?" Tay fretfully interrupted before his host spoke his impure thoughts aloud. "That desert trip really dirtied me up somethin' good an' I could use the refreshment!" he finished with an awkward, anxious titter.

"Over there, Tay," the gracious young lady pointed with a giggle to one of the three juxtaposed doorways behind the serviceman. "There are already towels, cloths, razors, and even an extra toothbrush in there for you to use. I'll be waiting in the bedroom for our long-awaited heart-to-heart chat~!" she informed him with a beaming smile as she and Tay got up from their chairs. "I can also wash your clothes for you. I presume you didn't bring extras."

"Perceptive, you are," Tay confirmed with a nod. "I only came here with the clothes on my back. Though, you've done more than enough just lettin' me stay here an' hearin' me out about today. I couldn't possibly ask for more. I'll wash 'em. Don't worry, I've learned how t' do it. Though, it may be a stretch to ask, but… do you maybe… have any spare shirts of any kind that an old special somebody may have left behind? None o' the clothing stores in any o' the places I visited since I got here have anything in my size but underwear an' socks, though I haven't tried that item shop here yet…"

"I'll look through the closet, but I can't promise you what I find will be an exact fit for someone as tall as you are. Whatever I may find, it MIGHT be a little tight on you. And, all things considered, you ARE pretty tall. Clothes in your size are hard to come by unless they're special order."

"Which I have neither the time, nor the money for. Seriously, three weeks an' 1,500 gems for one pair o' pants out o' Water Town? Come on!" he complained, seeming to be growing accustomed to life in Sequin Land.

"That's our clothing market for you. Effective, but horrendously slow on special orders. How long do you think it took for me to get this top? Or my cloak?"

"Hmm… Fair enough," he admitted with an understanding nod. "I'll take whatever you have t' give me."

"Alrighty, I'll go look. Don't keep me waiting for you now," Sky teased with a wink as she set off to her bedroom to find her guest some hand-me-down spare clothing.

"Uh, yeah, I uh… won't be long…" Tay uncertainly waved as he entered Sky's bathroom. Once he was alone behind the closed door of the lavatory, he took his ice pack off his face, threw his head up and sighed hard enough that it could have blown the giant egg that served as the roof off the building. "Aw man, what a mess this turned out t' be… I better find a way t' fix this soon so I can round up those weapons an' get home. Thank goodness Sky let me stay here, but if she keeps this relationship stuff up, I'm not sure what I'm gonna do… I don't wanna hurt her… Shoot, I'm no good at this romance shtick at all…" he soliloquized as he prepared himself to take his first traditional shower since his arrival in Sequin Land. "I only hope I can talk t' Shantae again soon, at the very least…"

Certainly, the otherworldly young man had fallen on hard times. He was spontaneously cast into a world he did not know, he had spent almost all of his time being shown the ropes of its culture at basically Mach 5 speeds, and he had his life endangered multiple times… in the span of a single week. If this was what that fortune-telling jackal woman from Prickle Stitch Valley had meant by her warning to him that his chances of dying were quite high, he'd surely have taken her word for it by this point. He had yet to encounter her again, so things looked… manageable thus far. However, it certainly didn't help him in the slightest that he'd suddenly engaged in an emotional dispute with his partner, who happened to be the first person he familiarized himself with in this enigmatic realm.

Making matters worse was the fact that another resident of this ethereal plane, said partner's best friend, was trying her hardest to convince him to date her. We can't forget about the others, either. He had far from forgotten about Twitch… and it's debatable whether a certain Hypnotist protégé (who was male AND Shantae's kinda-sorta former crush) was worth mention, considering it was unlikely he would cross paths with him again… he thought. Even with all that taken into account, Tayshan recognized that his journey was far from over; despite all that he'd been through. He still had a goal in mind, and, while moderately disconcerted by his circumstances, he remained determined to see it through to the end… before his own end came, preferably.

 ** _Meanwhile…_**

Shantae sat alone in the dim, moonlit lighthouse, somberly pondering the events of her discussion with her ethereal friend and the events that prompted it. She hadn't moved from her spot on the floor, still sitting up against the stony wall with her knees hugged tightly to her chest, though her tears had long since stopped. She thought back to the event that served as the catalyst of the second big rift in her partnership with Tay. She mentally replayed it again and again, ruminating deeply about how it made her feel. She additionally repeated bits of her conversation with the serviceman about the incident in her head. The melancholy half-genie dwelled on the conversation that eventually led to him leaving her in what she interpreted as a mix of fear and apologetic discomfort.

"I… just don't get it…" she mumbled, her thoughts racing as her head remained bowed, her eyes glued to the floor. She wondered how something so simple as a kiss could cause this much trouble between them. In her time alone, she realized that maybe she shouldn't have reacted so negatively to Tay's poorly-timed joke. She figured he may have simply been trying to ease some of the nigh-tangible pressure they collectively felt when talking about their encounter. However, that realization did nothing to quell her frustration with him for having actually made the joke and its implication that he strongly disagreed with her viewpoint on it being an undeniable kiss. Granted, he didn't necessarily have to agree with her, but he also didn't have to belittle her perspective like she'd given him the wrong answer to a basic math equation. That was simply rude and uncalled for.

Nonetheless, he did save her life. How could she ever forget that? Granted, she'd been saved from certain doom by her friends before. For that, she was eternally grateful to have people she could depend on when she found herself in a sticky situation. She was more so glad that she was able to receive the antivenom from her sidekick to avoid a terrible fate at the hands of a Dark Magic-corrupted Alsumu. The maiden drummed up hypothetical sequences in which events had played out differently. What would've happened if she'd avoided getting stung? Or if Tay had shown up without the antidote on his person? Or even… What if he were the one fighting Alsumu and he was stung in her stead while she was trapped in the dungeon, looking for an antidote and a way out? Would she have done the same thing he did for her if the roles were reversed? She wasn't certain.

She knew that she would do just about anything in her power to protect her friends from harm. She also knew from experience that they would do anything in their power to protect, support, and even save her. Heck, Tayshan himself even mentioned before that if it ever did come down to it, he would kiss a friend to save them. What a wonderful time to be made to put one's money where their mouth is; literally a day after he made the vow. Why couldn't he have simply said he'd give up the shirt off his back to save her or someone from a potential wardrobe malfunction, or something far less embarrassing and frustrating? Way to go, Tay… However, as Shantae thought deeper about it, she understood for herself that Tayshan had possibly gone the farthest of any of her friends to save her. At least, that's how it felt. Shantae acknowledged that all of her friends had stuck their necks out for her in the past, but… never in her life did she imagine having to be kissed—especially like THAT—to keep out of harm's way.

Additionally, she acknowledged that Tayshan at least attempted to apologize, as well as give her some time to think on her own. She sort of needed it, though she wouldn't outwardly admit it. She realized that she wasn't entirely certain on the nature of their encounter in the Kitschy Quilt Desert. She remembered the conversation they had just before it happened. She recalled the hesitation they both experienced, the mutual unwillingness to engage, and… of course, everything that happened after the initial discomfort was skirted past. No matter how the young woman thought of it or how frequently she let the scenario repeat in her mind, each time would cause her to experience that peculiar 'butterflies' feeling that filled her with a mix of bashfulness, discomfort… and even a bit of joy she couldn't explain, which only served to make her angrier at Tayshan for their conversation after the fact. She hardly thought about the reason behind the so-called 'kiss,' which seemed almost irrelevant to her, save for the fact that it would never have happened without said reason. But then, how could she be mad at him for keeping her safe?

Even if the offhand remark hadn't been made, there still existed the distressing idea that her first kiss was wasted on someone who didn't even understand, much less reciprocate the feelings she experienced, as far as she could tell. Those stories of hers must really not have been entirely accurate about how it was supposed to go down; not that she would care so much if it were, like, her hundredth kiss or anything. She didn't harbor any romantic feelings for him anyway. Why did it matter that the kiss happened, then? Who cares if they had to do it? Who even cares about who felt what when they didn't even agree on what the act even was? Either way, it was done for a very specific purpose; curing an infection before it took its toll on her. Seriously though, was it a kiss or was it just poorly-executed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation? Who cares, right? Why not just bury the humiliating incident beneath the dirt like dogs bury bones and ignore it? Why did it even matter?

Of course, she wound up flashing back to the kiss once more and, once again, experienced that familiar euphoric rush of warmth and elation that set her heart aflutter. THAT'S why it mattered; because it was a game-changer for both of them, regardless of who'd be willing to admit what. She was begrudgingly aware that she still enjoyed the physiological feelings brought on by the encounter… as well as the actual feeling of an actual pair of actual boy lips actually pressed against her actual own; passionately or otherwise, actually. Then, there was the way she kept breaking for air before kissing him again, and again… and then she actually kissed him deeper and hugged him around his neck… like they were doing so much more than dispelling the effects of a deadly poison that threatened her health. It was just about everything she'd imagined a kiss of that caliber would feel like, save for the fact that there was nothing overtly romantic about it at all. Still, she had felt nothing so intense and so tantalizing before, which further frustrated and flustered her beyond belief. The perturbed young woman sighed away some of her pent-up tension as she stood and stretched.

"Man, this stinks… I've never felt so confused about anything in my life; and I fight the likes of giant monsters, pirate armies, and wizards by myself for a living! How is it that a measly kiss is bothering me this much?" she thought aloud, scratching her head in irritation. Eventually, she came to a realization and shook her head to refocus. "Actually… Tay hasn't come back yet. It's been at least a couple hours now, and I'm starting to get a little worried that he might've gotten lost. I should go look for him," she stated to herself, gathering herself up to leave her abode when a series of knocks and chirps sounded at her front door. "Hm? I wonder if that's him now…" she pondered as she walked to her door and opened it. "Hello?" she called, though she could immediately see no one. She peered into the cloudy outside atmosphere to locate who knocked on her door. Before she was made to wonder, she heard more birdlike cooing noises coming from down below. She looked down and, sure enough, a pigeon was standing, staring curiously at her from her doorstep.

"Oh, hey, little guy," Shantae greeted with a smile as she squatted down to meet the bird at eye level. "What are you doing out here so late? Wait…" Immediately, she noticed it had a roll of paper tied to its leg with a fancy-looking red ribbon. "You're definitely one of Sky's messenger birds if you've got a ribbon and a note tied to you," the observant young lady surmised as she carefully undid the ribbon to obtain the note. Once she got the note, Shantae handed the pigeon the ribbon, which it took with its beak. It flew into the night with another chirp, its mission accomplished. "Thanks! Bye now," she called after it, waving the bird off and wishing it well before reentering her lighthouse and unfurling the letter.

"It's from Tay… Hmm…" she wondered, her heart sinking slightly when she noticed his name. Nonetheless, she read the letter to herself in a hushed whisper:

 _"'Dear Shantae… I know you're angry with me, and you have every right to be. I shouldn't have joked about your feelings when it came to what happened back in the desert. You know… That kiss. I understand now that, as /y/our first, it's a special once-in-a-lifetime occurrence and I probably didn't do you any favors by making it seem frivolous and unimportant. I'm sorry for ruining that for you. I royally messed up… I'll admit that outright. There's more I think we should talk about that this letter won't cover. I left because I wanted to give you space and time while I got my own thoughts together. In case you're worried about where I am, Sky found me and offered—no, INSISTED that I stay with her tonight. That's why that pigeon was at your door, but I'm sure you'd know that by now if you saw it with this note on its leg. So, no sweat, I'm safe. I'm no good at judging a decent time to talk about things with this much emotional weight, so… whenever you're ready, I'd be glad to hopefully come to a friendly conclusion about what happened back there so we can go back to kicking butt and taking names like the dynamic duo we turned out to be. Till next time… Tayshan, signing off.'"_

The already-distraught young woman sighed in a blend of sadness and exhaustion as she rolled the letter back up. She suddenly felt worse for causing him to leave in the middle of their discussion. She scratched her head, her eyes watering up as she set the note down on a nearby table and let her thoughts run rampant. She was, however, moderately surprised by a tiny detail hidden within the note.

"At least he's somewhere he won't get hurt…" she muttered, though still somewhat dejected. "I thought he would've come back here, though. Maybe I overreacted. I should go there as soon as I can and apologize…" With that thought, Shantae began her nightly routine of readying herself for bed, though by the time she dressed herself in her pajamas and laid herself up in her hammock, she found it incredibly difficult to actually fall asleep. Her thoughts were racing, her stomach was still doing somersaults, and despite the frigid chill of the autumn air in her home, she felt unseasonably warm from head to toe.

"Still… the fact that that 'Y' was crossed out… It could be a stretch, but… Does… does that mean it was HIS first kiss, too? Is it… possible he and I accidentally exchanged first kisses and he was just too shy to admit to it until now?" she asked herself as she ruminated on the letter Tay sent her, though the very thought sent another enrapturing wave of butterflies soaring through her abdomen as she squirmed in her sleeping quarters. Her heartbeat intensified as she once again flashed back to the racy kiss itself, her body temperature rising further. She suddenly found it more difficult to breathe as the air around her grew thicker yet again. "Gosh, why… why do I feel like it just happened all over again? My entire body feels so hot and it's like I can hardly focus on anything else… Hm, I don't know if I'll be able to sleep at this rate… Is something wrong with me? I don't feel like the venom is affecting me anymore… At least, I hope it isn't, but man am I hot… and it feels so stuffy in here that I can hardly breathe, but I'm not dizzy or nauseous, nor am I in any pain… But if it isn't the venom, then… why do I feel so… weird…?" she pondered as she huddled up, lying on her side as she tucked her hands between her folded legs to find a comfortable resting position. Her mind seemed to be at odds with her body on how she was supposed to feel about the ordeal, which caused her to nervously, yet curiously fidget and fiddle as she rustled around in her hammock. Not long after, she instinctively brought a hand to her mouth to nibble on her index finger while the other hand remained tucked snug between her legs.

At this point, one could be conceivably convinced she was running a fever, though she didn't feel sick. Yet, she'd been on the cusp of breaking a sweat, her breaths growing heavier as she rolled onto her back, her hands in the same positions as she stretched her legs a little to make another attempt at getting comfortable enough to sleep. "Mmh… I wonder… if maybe this being his first time as well, was part of why he didn't want to make it seem like such a big deal… It would definitely make more sense, but now I feel even more nervous than I did before. If we were each other's first kisses, then we've definitely got to find a way to hash this out… I just don't know how we're gonna even come close to doing so… Hmm…" The nation-renowned half-genie hero had been wracked with a flurry of conflicting feelings about their latest trip. After reading his note, her frustration with Tay simmered down, though it made her want to find him right away. However, she trusted her best friend Sky to keep him out of trouble until they met again. Until then, the half-genie was left alone to deal with her feelings for the first time since the soldier's arrival to Sequin Land.

Shantae's latest country-wide endeavor had thus far been one filled with new experiences she'd never thought she'd encounter before it began. Granted, the main cause of it was, as always, Risky Boots being up to her old, nefarious tricks again. Conversely, she would never have guessed her adventure would involve actively teaming up and becoming intimately familiar with a gun-toting, ultra-strong, combat-trained, magic-imbued villain-turned-sidekick from a parallel timeline, stopping Risky from taking over Sequin Land using weapons she stole from said parallel timeline using a completely malignant version of her uncle's invention, or even fathoming the possibility of interstellar travel to ANY place other than the Genie Realm. Nevertheless, she planned to step up to the plate like she always did. As she attempted to rest up for the next big quest in her newest adventure, she resolved to tackle the next incoming challenges head-on… except the ones regarding her now-conflicted feelings toward her sidekick. Much as she would've liked to smooth things over immediately, she had little issue at this point with saving that task for a later point, after they'd had some time to cool off. One way or another, however, something had to give… right?


	13. Tactical Difficulties

Chapter 8: Tactical Difficulties

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN LIGHTHOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 23RD, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 0945 HOURS

'Twas a brisk, sunny morning in Scuttle Town. The town's resident protector had gotten a full night's rest and was ready to tackle the day like any other… is what I would've said had any of that been true. Well, except the part about the weather. It was definitely cold and clear. Definitely. Take my word for it. Anyway, Shantae had awoken feeling glum and just a tad drowsy. She hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in the last couple days, as her thoughts about the other night plagued her like fleas plagued dogs. She was up and at 'em, nonetheless, but from the minute she opened her eyes, she had a task in mind to complete.

"Better go pay Sky a visit as soon as I can…" our heroine murmured aloud in apprehension as she changed out of her pajamas and into her regular dancing gear. "Maybe we can all talk about what happened by now. It's been two days without me seeing or hearing from either of them. Not to mention, I still feel… so off about it, it's insane… I can't believe it's still bothering me this much…" she further soliloquized, her memory of the kissing incident and its ensuing conversation fresh in her mind like it happened ten seconds ago. She let out a sigh as she pent her hair up into that famous baddie-beating ponytail and donned her gold bracelets. "We've got to come to some conclusion if we want to put this behind us… I've let this drag on long enough. I only hope he's willing to talk to me after the way things went the other night… Maybe he is, considering that letter…" Shantae had a compelling desire to clear the air with her extraterrestrial ally, but struggled with anticipating his reaction. Would he be angry? Would he be understanding? Would he confess hidden affections for her after realizing she was right, for all she knew? She had to scratch that last thought, however, as the mere prospect made her a mite more nervous than she already was. Just as the half-genie took another deep breath to build her courage, a series of knocks on her front door shook her out of her train of thought.

"Oh! I wonder if that's him coming back now…" she pondered with a mix of anticipation and dread as she hopped down the hole in the floor of her upper deck and rushed to her front door. She answered it swiftly, but she was astonished to see who it was.

"Morning, Shantae," greeted a familiar short, blue-haired young man wearing a yellow bandana around his forehead.

"Bolo?" Shantae addressed the visitor as none other than her other best friend, who appeared with a serious face as though to break some bad news to her. "Good morning. What's up?" she politely greeted with a smile.

"Two things. One, we've got work to do over in the Thimble Canyon," Bolo informed with utmost seriousness in his tone that communicated a sense of urgency.

"What kind of work?" she asked, uncertain about the nature of her friend's message.

"Risky Boots-related. Her ship was spotted heading toward there not too long ago. If we get there soon enough, we can intercept her and stop her in her tracks," he further divulged, fully intending to do something about Sequin Land's recurring pirate problem.

"Oh!" Shantae perked up immediately. "I'd better get going then! Thanks for the tip, Bolo!" she expressed her gratitude as she stepped outside and prepared to dash off, only to be stopped by Bolo holding a hand out in front of her.

"Not so fast. There's something else we need to discuss," Bolo stated, unwilling to let Shantae simply slide by him.

"What's wrong?" she asked, picking up some additional fervency in his voice.

"Thing number two: I'm coming with you." At that, Shantae breathed a sigh and rolled her eyes.

"Bolo, no. We've been over this. I'm okay going on these adventures alone. I don't want you to get hurt," Shantae reasoned, figuring that he'd be safer on the sidelines.

"I'll be fine. Don't you remember when we teamed up back on Mermaid Falls? I totally handled myself!"

"By dashing off ahead of me and getting yourself caught up in all the trouble Techno Baron was drumming up until I rescued you," she corrected.

"Okay, maybe there were a couple of hiccups there," he admitted with a shrug of his shoulders and a sheepish grin. "But you still can't deny that I contributed in helping you save the day."

"Hmm… Well, you, Sky, and Rottytops did help me break free from Risky's Magic Reverser that almost turned me completely evil," she acknowledged with a nod. "Thanks again for that."

"Of course. Friends to the End, right?" he rhetorically asked, shooting her a sly wink.

"Right… but I still think I should go alone on this one. I ran into Risky the other day in the Kitschy Quilt Desert and, so far as I've seen, she's more dangerous this time around than she's ever been."

"Aw, come on!" he whined, refusing to take 'no' for an answer.

"I'm not joking, Bolo. She stole an entire collection of highly-dangerous weapons from an alternate universe and is planning on using them to take over the entire nation!"

"Which is why you should let me tag along!" he eagerly argued, paying no heed to the gravity of Shantae's warning. "Didn't you say something about relying on your friends more for help from now on?"

"I did…" she affirmed, thinking back to the last time she'd been saved from certain doom by her longtime friends.

"Right. And who's the most dependable person you know?" the young, ambitious warrior asked, proudly pointing his thumb toward himself to give Shantae a 'subtle' hint as to whom he was referring.

"Sky," she replied with a smirk and about 0.3 seconds of thought. "Though, she isn't always available to team up with me. If anything, she generally doesn't like going on adventures; only helping me get to the places I need to go."

"Ha-ha," Bolo flatly shot back, slumping his shoulders and deadpanning. "Okay, who's the most dependable GUY you know?"

"Ohhh, you should've said so!" Shantae exclaimed, realizing Bolo's hint when he got specific. "I'd have to say… Uncle! His inventions and world of knowledge have come in handy in almost every single quest I've ever been on. I don't know where I'd be without him! We just have to work on keeping his inventions from falling into the clutches of Risky Boots."

"Stop messing with me!" Bolo shouted, frustrated that the half-genie wouldn't throw him the bone he was so readily looking for. "Who's the most dependable YOUNG, DETERMINED, HEROIC, MARTIAL ARTS-TRAINED GUY you know? There's no way you can get away from THAT one."

"Ohh. See, now we're speaking the same language. In that case… Tayshan," she answered with yet another confident grin. "He's not too experienced with the quests I embark on just yet, but he's proven himself to be quite dependable in a pinch." At that, Bolo cocked an eyebrow in a mix of ire and confusion.

"That's cheating! All you did there was just switch your own name around to make it sound like a boy's name!"

"What? No, I di-! Oh, right, you haven't formally met him aside from the bathhouse incident and the other time you two crossed paths…" Shantae realized, tapping her forehead with an index finger. "Tayshan is the guy you saw with me last week and accused of working for Risky Boots. Tall, dark skin, black tank top—well, USUALLY a black tank top, pants that look like there are stains all over them? The one who swiped your mace and ran off with me?"

"Oh, HIM…" the young warrior remarked in evident disdain, rolling his eyes.

"I know you guys got off on the wrong foot, but please don't take what happened personally…"

"No, I'm not upset about that," he countered, shaking his head. "I admit that it was kind of hasty of me to accuse a total stranger of being evil without a proper interrogation."

"Then what's wrong?"

"What's wrong is that, as far as I've been hearing, he's your new sidekick and you've been going on all kinds of adventures together recently. Why didn't you tell me you were recruiting new members for our team?"

"New members for our 'team'?"

"Yeah. If we needed to boost our numbers, we could've held auditions and scouted for members ready to face the perils we encounter on a monthly basis. I know you're the de facto leader of the team, but you still have to communicate with the rest of us when you add a new recruit. As far as I'm concerned, that guy's a total rookie who's in over his head and needs to learn the ropes."

"Well, we've been together for about a week and he's handled himself just fine," she countered with a shrug. "He's actually accomplished quite a lot since we got started."

"Such as?" he questioned as though he hadn't already been given the scoop by Sky already.

"Helping me defeat bosses, navigating an entire dungeon on his own, demonstrating a lot of special skills I've never seen before, switching bodies with me and still managing to smash his way through an entire stage and half a boss fight before we switched back… He even has a unique fighting style that's thrown me for a couple of loops, so far as my sparring matches with him have shown me. Oh, and he fought Risky Boots hand-to-hand by himself and lived to tell the tale. Twice."

"That remains to be seen," Bolo skeptically remarked, hiding his intrigue in testing this rookie's skills. Surely, it must've been beginner's luck to challenge the meanest, toughest, most… alluring, yet wicked woman in all of Sequin Land to a fistfight and somehow come out in one piece; win, lose, or draw.

"You should give him a chance. Talk to him yourself."

"Don't mind if I do. Where is he, anyway?"

"With Sky for the time-being. I was headed over there now, but if you saw where Risky was headed, I think I'll go straight to Thimble Canyon," she informed, possibly not quite ready to face her fears regarding reconciling with her extraterrestrial teammate. "Of course, I'll still need a way there."

"Nonsense. I've got an all-new, state-of-the-art, steam-powered speed boat we can use to zip on over there in a flash."

"You're awfully eager to go with me this time. Why?"

"Because if some sticky-fingered novice can tag along on multiple quests and handle himself on all of them, there's no reason you can't rely on me, too. I even heard from Sky that you, she, and that guy teamed up and totally dominated Naga Mountain together. And, like you said, Sky doesn't even LIKE going on your adventures!"

"Ehh, that's true… Sure. Fine, let's go," Shantae acquiesced with a sigh, understanding his point.

"But Shantae, I-! Wait, what was that?"

"Let's go to Thimble Canyon together. You're right. It'd be unfair to leave you out. So, why don't we team up? It'll be the first time in a while… if ever, that we did."

"Awesome!" Bolo jubilantly exclaimed with an indomitable grin and a clash of his fists, the gleam in his eyes determinant of his enthusiasm. "I've already got supplies loaded on the boat so we don't have to spend time gearing up."

"Wow… You came prepared, huh?"

"You bet! Now let's get a move on before she gets away!"

"I don't see why not, at this rate. Lead the way," Shantae offered with a gesture of her hand, prompting her overzealous friend to lead her to his vehicle, which was parked near the dock outside her home. Though, there was something amiss about the sea craft. "Bolo, how is it your boat capsized already?" she observed, noting that the vehicle was upside down in the water.

"What do you mean?"

"…I mean the boat's upside down in the water," she remarked, eyeing her teammate up and down as though he were blind.

"Upside down? No, I built it that way, so we don't have to worry about sinking."

"Uh… O-okay… and where are we supposed to sit?" she asked, her apprehension about accepting Bolo's help growing by the minute.

"On top, of course. See the rails there? You hold onto them the whole way through, so you don't fall off," Bolo confidently explained, seeing nothing functionally wrong with this utterly impractical monstrosity of a failed boating experiment.

"Right… So, where's the steam engine on it?"

"In the front… er, back. You pull the string on it and it revs up on its own. Here, I'll show you," he offered as he leapt down, climbed onto his… contraption, and fished what was evidently the ignition string for the engine out of the water, and yanked it hard. The engine (which one could assume was submerged underwater) sputtered, squeaked, and clanked like an oil drum full of raccoons, but appeared to do nothing that indicated that it was working. "Hold on, give it a sec," Bolo assured as the machine continued to crank and pop. Eventually, the engine turned over, though it still sounded like it would break down or—worse—explode at any given second. To say that Shantae was thoroughly unconvinced by Bolo's unconventional, borderline-dysfunctional invention would've been an understatement severe enough that it could get someone arrested. Accordingly, the disconcerted young lady cocked an eyebrow as she scratched her head in perplexity.

"Umm… Bolo, I'm not a hundred percent on this," she began, her reasonable doubt evident. "I'm no expert on boats, but… I'm pretty sure this one is… upside-down, inside-out, and totally backward in every way imaginable. Seriously, I… I don't even know how you got this thing over here."

"See, that's where you fail, my oh-so skeptical number one protégé."

"Protégé?"

"Martial arts teacher, remember?" he graciously (read: arrogantly) reminded her, proudly pointing a thumb to himself.

"But… you only taught me like three or four moves. That spinning kick that I had to be right next to a bad guy to use, or else it wouldn't land and I'd wind up getting hit, for one. I had to improvise on that one myself. I can't even remember the other kick moves you taught me. The only other thing I remember is the backdash."

"Ah, but if you learned something from me and it stuck to the point that you remember it today, then that means my job was done, does it not?"

"I… you…" Shantae attempted to reason with her friend, who did a splendid job in proving himself as being far from the sharpest knife in the drawer, but she could find no words to penetrate his impeccable logic. Instead, she let out a frustrated sigh. "Y'know what? Let's just… get out of here. We're wasting time just twiddling our thumbs at this point."

"Roger that!" Bolo excitedly acknowledged, climbing onto his… anti-boat, patting a spot behind him for his half-genie pal to climb aboard. "Let's get a move on!" Shantae, with a dread-fueled shake of her head, leapt down and climbed aboard the vessel, being forced to wrap her arms around her friend's abdomen. As it appeared, Bolo only installed one safety rail, thereby implying that if he was made to let go for any reason, he and Shantae both would be goners.

"Seriously, I think I'd rather swim there as a mermaid than do this…" the reasonably-discouraged young woman remarked under her breath, squeezing the lad tight for dear life.

"And we're off!" Bolo announced, somehow rocketing the misshapen sea-craft into the wild blue yonder. The speed boat blasted off at such a sudden, astounding speed that a they may very well have been sent through a portal themselves. One could only hope Bolo knew how to properly stop that crazy thing, because if not… the two of them could very well find themselves instantly turned to masses of pulpy jelly the second they hit literally anything at all. So, let's come back in a little while and see how this trip turned out.

 _ **A Couple Hours Later…**_

LOCATION: TINY HOLE DOCK, THIMBLE CANYON, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 23RD, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1310 HOURS

"WAAAAAAAAH!" Shantae and Bolo screamed in unison, the two of them hurtling and flailing through the air like they'd been shot out of cannons. The two heroes landed with the grace of eggs being thrown at Mayor Scuttlebutt's house as Shantae found herself faceplanted in a thankfully-soft, shock-absorbent, conveniently-placed mound of dirt to the side. Her sidekick for this adventure? He… wasn't so lucky. With a heavy, dense *SMACK*, Bolo became intimately familiar with a stony wall sporting a rich, copper color, plastering onto it like a permanent paint stain.

"Ugh…" Shantae groaned as she recovered from the impact of her unceremonious flight. She quickly spat the dirt out of her mouth and shook the rest of it off her hair and clothes. "Note to self: Minerals in food and minerals in dirt are two totally different things…" In the time it took her to recover, Bolo had peeled off the wall and had fallen into a nearby bush of cacti, where the half-genie dug him out and helped him up. "Are… you okay, Bolo?"

"Never… N-never better!" he assured with a thumbs-up and a smirk that revealed he had lost a tooth. His outfit was sullied with a series of twigs and cactus quills that he picked out of his shirt and hair once he noticed them. He, too, shook the rest of the dirt off him to regain his composure. "Well… we made it," he further observed as he looked around and choosing not to acknowledge the smoking pile of burning wreckage that used to be his speed boat sinking in the distance.

"Yeah, but your boat exploded before we could bring it to shore," Shantae pointed out as though she didn't expect that to happen. Totally called it, by the way. Just sayin'. "And I'm pretty sure all the items you packed were on it. It really doesn't seem worth the hours-long trip we took on that thing… We're stuck here with no extra equipment and no way out of here except to call Sky or complete this quest."

"Right…" Bolo acknowledged with a sigh as he and Shantae stood on the rocky island, pondering their options. "Well, we've been in worse situations, haven't we?"

"Arguably… but I don't know that we should take that chance. Just look at this place…" Shantae advised, taking in the view of the mountainous region that hosted the duo. As far as the eye could see, there were crags and jagged cliffs of colors ranging from a bright, sunbathed tan to a golden, flaming orange. There were bits of tropical green and sunset red shrubbery, moss, and leafy, thorny vines enveloping the crags in expansively large, yet distant splotches. The mountainous landscape appeared to only house one long, narrow path with a slim, yet flowing stream of crystal-clear freshwater cycling through into the parallel mountainsides that grew darker with the deeper the two peered into the opening.

There were scarce signs of life on the civilization-deprived stony wasteland save for the vague audible cues of animals uttering their peaceful cries in the distance and a glimpse of some intimidating red-feathered avian creature hovering high above, its ruffly form cloaked in blinding sunlight as it squawked and screeched incessantly. The foreboding canyon, appearing largely untouched by any form of modernization, unsettled the half-genie, as she'd never been to this island and did not know what to expect. If it was anything like the Kitschy Quilt Desert, she would make it a point to keep her guard way up.

"This place can't be that bad," Bolo argued, undeterred by their collective unfamiliarity with their latest spelunking spot. "If it's anything like the other mountains we've been through, this'll be a cinch! No sweat!"

"Bolo, I'm really on the fence about this… Are you sure you saw Risky Boots heading here? I figured we'd have seen her ship berthed at this dock over here. That is, unless we got here too late and she left already…"

"I'm as certain I saw her as I am that we'll find her," he coolly assured. "It's possible she didn't actually make it here yet. Maybe she took a detour. When I saw her ship earlier, she was still a fair distance away."

"In that case, we should wait for her to show. From there, we'll catch her by surprise like…" Shantae began to reason before being distracted by a distant splash of water and leafy rustling coming from the valley. When she turned to look, she spotted a red scarf she immediately identified as belonging to a Tinkerbat. She also took note of a radiant gleam coming from that direction that hit her in the eye. As she focused her gaze on the mysterious source of her curiosity, the creature gazed back at her. Gathering that she needed confirmation, Shantae charged a fireball in her hand and readied herself as she slowly approached.

"Shantae? What are you…?"

"Shhh…" the lavender-haired adventurer quieted her partner. "There's something in there. If it's what I think it is, then we'll need to investgate. Wait right here," she instructed as she crept ever closer to the creature, who merely stared at her with glowing sunflower-yellow eyes. After creeping within a reasonable distance, Shantae launched the fireball at the creature. As expected, it scurried off as the fireball dissipated upon impact with the crags. However, she got a good enough glimpse from the light of her fireball to note the creature's red pants, lanky jet-black frame, and scimitar. "Looks like they're already here," she informed Bolo, who'd raised his eyebrows in a mix of excitement and anticipation.

"What'd you see?"

"A Tinkerbat. It must've been trying to get the drop on us. I wonder if Risky might've been expecting us to come here, too. Hmm…"

"If she expected us, then why don't we go pay her a visit? It'd be rude not to take what was clearly supposed to be an invite for us to take her head-on."

"We don't want to walk right into a trap, though, Bolo. Don't forget, Risky Boots is notorious for pulling out all the stops to get her way."

"That's true. We can't just let her slip through our grasp, though. How about if we…?" he trailed off as a sudden *clink* sound could be heard nearby. Shantae and Bolo turned in the direction of the noise and spotted an odd, black, cylindrical device that bounced toward them. "What the heck is that thing?" Bolo asked as he moved closer to investigate. Shantae, however, knew better. Though the half-genie could not rightly identify the object, she noticed lever jutting from the top of it. She also spotted the inscription on its side. She saw the word 'STUN' in large, white letters that tipped her off. As such, she hastily reacted.

"Bolo, wait! That's a weapon from the-!" she attempted to warn her friend as she ran toward him. Bolo had been standing right in front of the device, about to pick it up. Unfortunately, it was too late for Shantae to save him, as the strange mechanism exploded with a deafening *BOOM* that immediately clouded both heroes' visions with a blinding blue light. Neither one of them could see a thing, as though they'd both gone totally blind. To make things worse, within an instant of the device exploding, both of the adventurers found themselves plagued with an ear-splitting high-pitched ringing noise that overrode their ability to hear anything but the insufferable tone.

Shantae, having been spared only by not being right in front of the trap, found her symptoms dissipating after a few seconds, though she was still greatly dizzied for reasons she couldn't explain. Immediately feeling a series of what seemed to be either vines or fingers grasping at her in her disorientation, Shantae swung, hair-whipped, and kicked around, using enough of her strength to fend off whoever had just tried to take her captive. She was met with success despite her impaired senses as she managed to free herself as her sight and hearing gradually returned to her.

"Wha-? AGH!" Bolo yelled in agony, though Shantae could barely see or hear him. By the time her impaired senses returned to her, she was greeted with the sight of Bolo face-down on the rocky shore, surrounded by Tinkerbats tying him up with rope. Noticing this, the half-genie reoriented herself and gave chase to assist him.

"Hey! Get away from him!" she roared, charging toward them like an angry jaguar whose kin had been endangered. Seeming to anticipate this, one of the abducting Tinkerbats quickly pulled out an olive-green cylindrical canister, pulled a pin, and tossed it toward the enraged heroine. Not knowing what to expect from this device, Shantae halted her mad sprint and jumped backward as a shroud of smoke enveloped the vicinity. Her sense of urgency skyrocketed as she thought about how to brave the smokescreen to rescue Bolo. Before she could figure out her next move, however, she was alerted by the sound of propellers gearing up and, before long, the Tinkerbats were airborne with the unconscious Bolo in tow.

"I don't know what you creeps are planning, but you're not taking my friend with you!" Shantae vowed in anger as she initiated her Harpy dance. She transformed into her semi-avian form and attempted to pursue them. Instead of finding an opportunity to catch up, however, she was met with an aggressive barrage of bullets from otherworldly pistols that kept her from gaining on them. The form's unwieldly flight capability further inhibited her, though she was determined to save the boy from the dastardly creatures. However, a series of high-velocity *WHOOSH* noises made themselves evident with the longer she stayed airborne, forcing her to take haphazard evasive maneuvers to dodge the unforeseen attack. Though the half-genie hadn't been stricken, she noted the straight, smoky trails leading in her direction from within the shrubs atop the canyon. She was forced to land and change back before she was injured, noting that Risky may very well have planned for her to arrive on this island. She watched helplessly as the Tinkerbats kidnapped her friend, taking him over the horizon and deep into the canyon.

"D'oh…! Darn it!" the reasonably-frustrated woman cursed, stomping the ground. "Now I have no choice but to go in. I can't risk flying in there as a Harpy, either. Looks like they have more than just those bombs from the other world here to keep the pressure on… What a hassle…" With her options limited and with no time to lose, Shantae fearlessly raced toward the entrance of the gravelly ravine, set on completing her first solo quest since this hazardous series of journeys began. She only hoped she'd be prepared for the interdimensional curveballs thrown her way. Nonetheless, she reached the starting point without a second thought.

"Rock 'n' Roll!" she announced with a clever pun, commencing the start of her first solo quest since her latest adventure began. Shantae was swift in her approach, determined to conquer the canyon and save Bolo from certain doom. Within a few paces of her mad dash, Shantae was immediately introduced to a long, wide, steaming dark green lake hidden within the trough of the golden canyon walls. Curious to see if the water was safe, she knelt down and touched a finger to the surface.

"Ouch!" she exclaimed, snatching her hand away from the lake, learning the hard way that it was not to be trifled with. "I know it's hot out here, but the water shouldn't feel like lava! Yikes… I can't just swim in there to get across, from the looks of it…" she observed. "I wouldn't go Crab form here, either. The temperature of this water would cook me alive. Then again, my Mermaid form might be able to handle it for a short while before I have to jump out, but I shouldn't need to go in…" With that, the young adventurer pondered momentarily on the risk of jumping into dangerous scalding water with no protective gear to clear a gap. She also pondered transforming into either a bat or harpy to fly across. Not long after weighing her options, Shantae initiated her signature dance number and…

"Traaaansform!" she announced. With a *POOF* of pink smoke, she transformed into a bat. She was steady in hovering toward the lake, seeing nothing in the immediate vicinity that would bring her harm. However, just as she was about to fly over the lake, a distant *fwoosh* could be heard from high above. Within two seconds, an alarming, sudden eruption of smoke, gravel, and water, accompanied by a deafening *KABOOM* threw the unsuspecting girl backward as she was sent hurtling through the air. She quickly regained control of her flight, though she was forced to change back to her human form immediately after. She scoured the area for potential threats, suspecting that someone or something had tried to attack her. Initially, she saw nothing when she looked around. However, when she turned her focus upward, she noticed shadowy blotches peering at her from the clifftops. The glaring sunlight prevented her from seeing who or what the blotches were, but she noticed that there were many of them.

"Looks like I'm being… WHOA!" she exclaimed again, dashing backward to avoid an additional attack from above. This time, she was tipped off by an air-splitting *whoosh* sound, which gave her just enough time to dodge the high-speed flashing marble that kicked dust high into the air upon its impact with the dirt below. "…I'm being watched. More Tinkerbats with those guns, no doubt. Risky was DEFINITELY expecting me to come here. If that's the case, then I'd better move like the wind." With that, Shantae sprinted toward the lake, avoiding another two shots from the weapons above. She hurriedly belly danced her way into her Mermaid transformation, wordlessly poofing into the form of the mythological creature. She hopped into the lake, dodging yet another bullet as she dove under its murky waters. She swam forward while submerged, seeing nothing worth note but the sandy floor below that let her know it was shallow. Here, she was safe from the gunmen that relentlessly targeted her.

However, she soon felt the effects of lingering in the scalding water as she neared the other end. Her skin began to heat up to the point where it felt like she'd been cooking under the sun's rays during a heat wave in a desert. It became increasingly difficult to see and move clearly. To make matters more perilous, her movements gradually became slower with the longer she remained in the lake. Before long, however, Shantae finally managed to reach the other end, leaping out and turning back to her human form before landing on solid ground. She paused momentarily, taking a series of deep breaths to calm her nerves.

"My goodness, that water is HOT!" the now-enlightened maiden observed as she sprinted forward, dodging a rain of gunfire from above. "I can barely stand it for a full minute as a mermaid! I only wonder if I have to do that again while I'm here…" Shantae mused, though she had little time to ponder before she was on her way deeper into the Thimble Canyon. The young heroine deftly traversed the craggy valley, her resolve holding strong despite the immediate and imminent danger she found herself in. She maintained a steady, non-stop sprinting stride as she charged forward, making sure to avoid getting shot. The figures hiding on the clifftops continued their assault, shooting at her with weapons that were evidently effective from an absurdly long distance. The rate at which these mysterious assailants fired their weapons became rapid enough that it nearly matched with each footstep the half-genie took toward her destination. As she dashed forward through the gravelly trench, she encountered droves of enemies that included green spike blobs and Nagas that didn't recognize her (thereby possibly hinting they had nothing to do with the Nagas on Naga Mountain), as well as shiny, electric blue dragonflies that shot bolts of lightning at the ponytailed crusader as she ran past.

Shantae found it difficult right away to deal with these enemies, as Nagas were generally resilient and the slimes would shoot spikes every which way when given the chance. The dragonflies, the likes of which she had never previously encountered, whizzed swiftly through the air, making them especially hard to hit. They only stopped when they found safe spaces from which to pause and fire jolts of electricity before zipping away to avoid being countered. Combined with the constant gunfire from above, the half-genie was forced to skip past as much as she could.

Of course, a ludicrously dangerous landscape like this was not without its environmental hazards. Shantae frequently ran into sections that put her acrobatic skills to the test: First and foremost were large, open skull cloud-spewing gaps with dud platforms and tall, unsteady hoodoos that tilted like seesaws the minute she perched onto them, forcing her to keep her pace as rapid as possible while also maintaining her balance. Making the hoodoos more difficult to traverse was the fact that if she remained on one too long and the boulder on top didn't tilt over into the abyss, the enemies from above would fire fast-travelling explosives at her in attempts to make her lose her balance. There also existed expansive fields of bright green, tropical cacti decorated with flowers of a mix of passion pink, scarlet red, and sunflower yellow that she was made to either burn with her fireballs while she ran, or lunge over if she couldn't find an opening between spurts of enemy fire. The canyon's naturally-uneven landscape challenged Shantae to keep her footing with each and every step for fear of tripping, injuring herself, or slowing down to a point where she'd be rained on with bullets from above. One slip up and she'd be a goner for sure. The pressure was most definitely on.

Her trailblazing approach to conquering this turbulent bullet/explosive/bug/Naga storm was a terrifying trade-off of speed and tact. She ripped through, fighting as little as possible while avoiding all the hazards thrown her way. She flicked fireballs to dispose of slimes as she saw them. She hopped over Nagas, knowing their high defense from past experience. She occasionally summoned her projectile-deflecting Bubble to temporarily block out the bullet storm and other distant enemy attacks when she needed to focus her energy on passing through a series of pendulous platforms, though she had to use it sparingly to conserve her magic. She also hair-whipped dragonflies that stopped to attack her and bolted under those that flew around her as they waited for an opportunity to strike. However, this all cost her in the finesse department, as she took moderate damage from a combination of Naga bullets, dragonfly bolts, slimes that conveniently marked their territory on the hoodoos, and at least two gunshots when she found herself unprepared to accommodate. She had also come across yet another scalding hot water reserve, twice as large as the last, that she immediately transformed into a mermaid to traverse. She feared her flight-granting transformations would leave her vulnerable, as her harpy form was none too quick or agile, and her bat form was nearly useless in this environment.

As she had already come to find out, hiding in the lake protected her from harm by the enemies hot on her tail; especially those with guns. However, extended amounts of time spent in Thimble Canyon's treacherous waters slowly wore away at her Heart Points as she would quickly feel the burning effect that compared to having a hundred piping hot branding irons pressed against every inch of her body all at once. She, of course, made this dip as short as possible, leaping out once again as soon as the opportunity arose. The half-genie changed back to human form instantly to continue traversing the perilous valley. As far as she'd known, this particular level was much harder than any she'd dealt with in recent history.

Nonetheless, our heroine fervently pressed forward until she reached a golden, stony wall with a series of very loose, flimsy, rocky platforms protruding from it at uneven angles. Immediately, Shantae noted that she could use the platforms to scale the wall and reach the top. However, this was also where she encountered her next wave of enemies.

"I don't think I've ever encountered these before," she commented as she continued to move, studying the creatures she beheld. On some of the platforms, she saw what looked like forest green, shiny avocado-shaped beetles with cobalt blue eyes trudging on and around the platforms, which she knew would make scaling the mountainside more difficult. She also took note of an intimidating species of bird the likes of which she'd not encountered in person before. It was a frightening creature, seemingly the size of a person. It bore shaggy, puffy ruby-red feathers with white on the tip on its tail. It had a hideous, wrinkly, pink, bald, featherless head. Its menacing orange eyes sent a chill up the half-genie's spine as it hungrily glared at her, seeming ready to tear her apart if she approached. As if that weren't enough, Shantae heard another *whoosh* coming from above and behind. She jumped to narrowly dodge yet another bullet moving at a much faster speed than she'd encountered previously. "To make things worse, I'm being pressured to keep moving under fire. This place really turned the difficulty dial up to eleven… Only one way I can think of to get up there fast enough to avoid everything all at once…" With that, Shantae danced once more and transformed into her Monkey form.

Assuming the form of a miniature primate once again, Shantae got to climbing. The instant she leapt onto her first platform, the red condor made its malicious intentions known. It opened its gray, hooked beak and let loose a shrill, croaky squawk that sounded like scimitars on a chalkboard. It bared its jagged talons and dove directly toward the half-genie with the desire to do some serious damage. Anticipating an attack, Shantae jumped over it as it swept toward the platform in an attempt to grab her. She landed safely on a separate, higher platform to her right. As she landed though, she was tipped off to another attack by the figures from the clifftops, hearing another distant *whoosh*. She jumped again, landing on another higher platform to her left. However, the platform she'd previously stood on had been struck by the bullet, obliterating the protruding foothold entirely.

"Looks like things are getting rocky now…!" the acrobatic monkey girl quipped as she noticed the platform's destruction. Staying determined nonetheless, she hopped aboard another platform directly above and was met by two more platforms on either side of her, each one with a beetle guarding it. Right away, it appeared not to matter which platform she chose, as both harbored the same danger. However, her hand was forced when the condor she avoided attempted to attack again with another diving talon swipe. Shantae did her best to adapt to the increasingly difficult wall climb, leaping over the aggressive bird while also noting how little time she had between jumps before a platform would be shot from under her feet. She jumped high and landed onto the platform to her left, where she was greeted by the platform-guarding green bug. Immediately, it dashed toward her, attempting to ensnare her in its pincers. The half-genie quickly changed back into her human form and crouched to whip the creature. She struck the beetle three times, though it tanked through them and gripped its pincers on her hand.

"Ow!" Shantae shouted in agony, quickly bringing herself to a stand as she tried shaking the offending bug off. Its grip held firm, however, as it squeezed onto the webbing between her thumb and index finger with the force of a vice. Ignoring the thresholds of acute, debilitating pain shooting through to her forearm resultant of the beetle's bite, Shantae jumped toward another platform up to her right as the one she was standing on was predictably shot down. Upon landing on the gravelly surface of the next platform, she concentrated her energy into the hand being pinched by the beetle and summoned a ball of flame that engulfed the foul creature almost instantaneously. It suffered enough damage that it flew off of the heroine's hand and away into the distance. Breathing a small sigh of relief, Shantae jumped toward another adjacent platform high up to her right, where she spotted two more beetles. Knowing that she may not be able to defeat them quickly, she observed her surroundings, looking upward to see a slew of platforms jutting out at haphazard angles from each other, an increasing number of which were covered by green beetles, and what appeared to be another red condor waiting for her to come closer.

As though the beetle-infested wall weren't challenge enough, the first red condor continued to follow her up the wall, periodically trying to attack her. Right as she jumped on the next platform, it launched another aerial assault. Prepared this time, she whipped at it as it came by. To Shantae's surprise, however, she was met with a *clink* sound that indicated that her hair whip was ineffective against the condor. It blew past and scraped its talons across the half-genie's arm.

"Wah!" she shouted again, clutching the injured area in shock, pain, and confusion. How could her signature attack not work on this particular bird? She didn't have time to think about it, as she had become aware that there was a pattern regarding the distant enemy fire. She couldn't think about that either, as she was forced to jump to another higher platform to avoid having the previous one shot down with her on it. This platform was clear of beetles, thankfully, but the condor was persistent. It followed her up and tried launching another attack at her. Wise to its attack plan at this point, she hopped over it and whipped it as it ascended back to a safe distance. Again, the *clink* of futility sounded. "Doesn't look like my hair attack works against this thing at all," she analyzed, leaping to the next platform as the previous one was shot down. She was met by another two beetles. She at least had an idea of how to deal with them. She conjured up another magic fireball and cast it at one of them, which took massive damage and was defeated in a flash. This gave her just enough time to jump to the next platform to her left while charging another fireball. As predicted, the lower platform was blasted away by a speeding bullet, defeating the remaining beetle.

The aggressive aerial creature continued to follow the young woman, swooping down at her to land an attack. Shantae jumped once again and threw the fireball at the bird. With a fiery *pwoosh*, the ember hit its mark. However, a subsequent series of *clinks* again notified Shantae that the bird was immune to it.

"Darn! Fire doesn't work on this thing either? Those are my only special attacks right now… If I had any Pike Balls, I'd give those a try…" she bemoaned, leaping from platform to platform, where she was again met by another beetle. At this point, however, the second condor entered the fray. It appeared to be an exact duplicate of its friend, glaring at the half-genie with malevolence in its eyes as it flapped its giant, feathery wings to stay afloat. "If I can't attack, then I'll have to run and get up to the top as fast as I can," she hypothesized, jumping onto another platform up to her right. The platform was empty of threats, though both condors lined up on either side of the half-genie, flying high above. "Double the trouble!" she exclaimed in alarm, sensing the imminent danger posed to her. Thinking VERY quickly, Shantae performed the quickest dance number she could, almost instantly *poofing* back into her monkey transformation as the condors initiated a dual assault where they both came swooping in, talons drawn and looking for blood. Just as the two vicious birds neared their target, the determined simian girl jumped as high as she could, clearing the predators as they swooped under her in opposite directions. Of course, as she was airborne, another bullet struck the platform she jumped off of, obliterating it instantly. Shantae expected as much as she made her way to the next platform in a hurry. Once more, she was met with a double helping of avocado beetles at the ready to oppose her as the condors were in hot pursuit.

It was at this point that the half-genie knew she had to keep up a rapid pace if she planned on scaling this incorrigible mountain face in one piece. She peered upward once more to notice she had just a few more haphazard platforms left to board before she was at finally on higher ground. Breathing deeply, the motivated young heroine began her race to the top. She hopped, skipped, and leapt between platforms with the skill and grace of a seasoned trapeze artist… y'know, if trapeze artists were tiny monkeys. Anyway, she climbed as fast as she could, boarding each rock formation for barely a second each as she repeatedly dodged the perpetual threat of the diving crimson condors and the jade beetles. She moved at such a rate that the enemy gunfire had trouble keeping up, evidenced by the fact that they began skipping rock platforms in their efforts to knock her back to the bottom. Alas, the half-genie proved quick on her simian feet, speedily clearing the remainder of the platforms before finally reaching the mossy, flat surface at the top of the rock formation. The condors immediately and inexplicably abandoned their pursuit and descended. Once there, Shantae changed back to her humanoid form once more and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Whew… What a crazy wall climb that was…" she murmured, wiping sweat off of her brow. "One slip-up, and I'd have never been able to get up here without risking being picked off out of the sky. Whatever guns those guys are using sure do put Archers to shame… Still, I only wonder how I'll fare at this point if my attacks don't work well on the enemies here. There's no way I'd stand much of a chance against the boss if I can't even damage the normal enemies, but something's gotta give. Maybe there's a power-up somewhere, or at least a spot where I could find that merchant snake lady in a jar from my last adventure…? Hmm… Either way, now that I'm up here… I wonder if I can catch a glimpse at whoever was shooting at me. Let's see…" Shantae went prone on the hot, ridged clifftop to avoid being shot at while she was searching for the source of all the gunfire she'd been pressured by.

Considering the direction from which it came, she peered past the cliff from which she climbed, squinting her eyes to try and make out an image of anything that would clue her in on where her attackers were hiding. In the distance atop a separate escarpment, she could just barely see a series of glimmers of something that was reflecting the brutal sunlight. She had no idea what was causing the glimmers, however. She only knew that, whatever was over there, it was heavily armed and ready to shoot. Based on her recent encounter before beginning this perilous quest, she elected to guess that it was indeed Tinkerbats trying to take her down from a safe distance. She also deduced that whatever those gleams of reflective light were, there were quite a few of them. As she watched however, she noticed what looked like a series of propellers emerging from the lush, green shrubbery atop the other golden, stony bluffs. Soon, the propellers began to lift, revealing a whole gang of Tinkerbats armed with more unfamiliar weapons presumed to be from the other dimension. They were also equipped with propeller packs that allowed them to fly across the valley. As Shantae noticed, they were headed her way… and fast.

"I figured…" Shantae affirmed as she stood, preparing to run. "Those Tinkerbats are armed to the teeth with guns from Tayshan's home world," she guessed, though the mention of the person those guns belonged to had sent a harrowing pang through her chest. Her face heated up as she felt a rush of anxious anticipation course through her abdomen, her heart skipping a beat as she was reminded of her unresolved concern with him. Realizing right away the discomfort she felt, she shook it off and breathed, emptying her mind to focus on her current mission. "There are too many for me to face, and it's to a point where even my Bubble shield wouldn't hold out long enough between uses before I ran out of magic. It looks like they're determined to keep their advantage strong, too. I'd better get out of here before they get too close." With that observation, Shantae turned and dashed forward across the mossy landscape, her goal still fresh in her mind.

She quickly came across a series of floating platforms and walls that appeared not to move. She noticed right away that the platforms were too high for her to reach on her own without her Harpy dance. She also noted a square panel at her feet with an emerald green triangle mark on it. Curious, she stepped onto it, at which the platforms rearranged themselves in an order that, while different, provided her with no access to higher ground. Juxtaposed to the switch were two other square push panels, one marked with a garnet pentagon while the other bore the symbol of an azure diamond.

"This looks like a puzzle of some sort," Shantae observed with utmost curiosity, cupping her chin with her hand as she studied the structure of the peculiar obstacle. She took note of the shift in the platform's walls to where it looked… like something she couldn't make heads or tails of, because she heard another distant *whoosh*, prompting her to just barely dodge another bullet as it whizzed past the side of her head. "Shoot! I have to get going!" she reminded herself in alarm, dashing past the puzzle to avoid the impending threat of Tinkerbats. As she sprinted past, however, she looked back. Immediately, our heroic adventurer noticed that, at the top of the floating platform puzzle was an olive-green treasure chest; one containing weapons from her comrade's home dimension, no doubt. Making a mental note to come back for it later, Shantae continued her sprint. As she expected, however, the section that awaited her beyond the edge of the next cliff yielded more eccentric-looking enemies ahead, as well as some environmental hazards littering the landscape below. Just as she was prepared to brave the next section of this incorrigibly-difficult level, she suddenly heard a series of voluminous cawing noises, accompanied by a slew of rapid, distant *pops* coming from high above.

"That bird call… That sounds like…" Shantae pondered as she suddenly stopped, looking upward. She recognized the noise as belonging to a particular bird friend of hers as she scanned the open blue sky. As suspected, she spotted a familiar color-splashed eagle/albatross/falcon-like creature blasting through the air at top speed. "Wrench? What's he doing all the way out here?" she asked herself in wonder, studying the gargantuan animal from afar. Upon further inspection she noticed three familiar passengers atop Wrench's back; one of them was dressed in green and was armed with an otherworldly gun. The second passenger wore purple and light blue, and was commanding squads of smaller birds to attack what looked like an incredibly-aggressive squad of Propeller-equipped Tinkerbats with guns hot on their tail. The third appeared to be armed with a rifle that also appeared to be from that other timeline, though her identity was easily deciphered by her eyeglasses and free-flowing blonde hair. Once it all came into focus, Shantae gasped in shock as she realized just what was happening above.

"Tay and Sky are up there fighting off a horde of Tinkerbats by themselves! What are they doing all the way out here? Why are they under attack!? And… and why is Twitch there with them?" she asked, her worry as evident as her curiosity regarding the phenomenon as she stood and watched. Luckily for her, the Tinkerbats that had been hounding her had also halted their assault, also stopping to examine the conflict above. However, before anyone could really enjoy the show, the Tinkerbats that previously aimed at Shantae had immediately set their sights on the prismatic avian creature evading pursuit from their allies. The half-genie was immediately alerted by the series of ear-splitting *BANGs* that rang out from the rifles of Risky's foul minions. And immediately, she was filled with protective anger the likes of which no one on the wrong side of it would want to see. These horrible fiends were trying to take out her friends with those dangerous weapons! How dare they!? The situation was made worse by the fact that it appeared that some of the bat-soldiers' shots were spot on, as Wrench was observed being forced to take even more evasive maneuvers than he'd already been doing. Without another thought, Shantae took off blasting toward her murderous enemies.

"Shoot at me all you want, but don't you ever DARE try to hurt my friends!" Shantae furiously remarked, dashing toward one of the Tinkerbat snipers while it wasn't paying attention and whipping her hair as hard as she could, the bone-crushing *WHAP* eliminating it on the spot. Following this, she dashed toward another Tinkerbat, who'd seen her coming. In a panic, it attempted to aim its rifle at her, though it was too late. Shantae gripped the firearm's barrel with a hand before spinning around it to deliver a powerful sideways thrust kick to disarm and vanquish the creature before she dropped the rifle on the ground.

Noticing right away that other Tinkerbats were still firing away at Wrench, Shantae refused to hold back. She charged up and launched a fireball across the mountaintop, where another Tinkerbat sniper was aiming down its rifle's scope while standing in a patch of very-flammable grass. A mere second before the projectile set the grass patch ablaze, the Tinkerbat fired a single shot, the *BOOM* of which ripped through the air. In the distance, a pained squawk could be heard, followed by distant shouts and screams. In that same instant, the Tinkerbat was defeated. Shantae could take no pleasure in having disposed of that Tinkerbat, however, as she was horrified by the terrified screams of her friends in the distance.

"No!" she shouted in panic, helpless as she watched Wrench hastily recover from his injury to perform a desperate emergency rescue maneuver to save his passengers, who'd evidently fallen off his back from an extremely high altitude; a situation that, needless to say, sent the poor half-genie's worry into hyper mode as she felt every centimeter of her body surge with tangible fear for their safety. She hoped to the high heavens that Wrench and her allies would be okay, though she immediately noticed three more Tinkerbats taking aim at the avian behemoth and firing potshots as he put forth his best effort to rescue his passengers. Shantae needed to see no more of their cruelty before her temper flared like a mountain-sized inferno. "That's it! You're all going down! NOW!" she roared, charging up multiple fireballs and launching them at two of the remaining Tinkerbat snipers, who'd heard her screaming at them. Made aware of her unforgiving wrath, they dropped their positions to dodge her attacks.

The third, however, was not so lucky. It was still peering down the scope of the rifle to try and score a finishing shot. As far as our favorite half-genie hero would have it, however, that Tinkerbat would not get even a millisecond to think about harming her friends further without regretting it. With the speed of a lightning bolt and with Light Magic fueling her every motion, she rushed over and, while digging her feet into the stony surface beneath her, delivered a silent, yet horribly-devastating haymaker uppercut to the creature's gut. The *THRASH* of an impact sent shockwaves through the Tinkerbat's body as its entire body was jerked up off the ground for a split second, demonstrating just how hard Shantae hit the henchman. It soon crumpled over with a dense *THUD*, clutching its abdomen in incredible pain and dropping its rifle before falling unconscious. The remaining two Tinkerbats saw this as a reason to refocus their attention to regain some sort of advantage before she did away with them too. Shantae, knowing just what they were planning, put forth another Bubble shield as one of them fired. The *PWANG* of the rifle's round against her shield reverberated through the air as the bullet itself ricocheted up and into the heavens.

At this point, however, it was two on one, and both of our heroine's enemies were too far away from her, even with her shield, to reach them in time to dispatch one of them before the other shot her. And even if they didn't shoot her, they could very well continue trying to shoot Wrench out of the air like they'd relentlessly been trying to do. Thinking quickly with just about no time to spare, she noticed the rifle dropped by the most recently-defeated Tinkerbat lying at her feet. On impulse, Shantae got Sniper Rifle (which, believe me, sounds just as unfathomable to me as it probably does to you) and did her best to try and aim it at one of the Tinkerbats while her shield was still active. The half-genie was caught by surprise, struggling to hold the enormous, long-scoped rifle, much less find a secure position from which to potentially fire it. She was surprised by it being deceptively heavy, in addition to it being so huge that one would have to be insane to try firing the weapon while standing in a situation like hers. Nevertheless, the Tinkerbats chose to split their tasks, one of them aiming at Shantae and waiting for her shield to drop while the other took aim at Wrench in the distance.

"I have no idea how to use this kind of gun, but something's gotta give! It's now or never!" she acknowledged, using what little she'd witnessed of the weapon's usage to mimic as practical a stance as she could while standing, which may or may not have proven her to be insane. She got a pass here, however, as she was not given any formal training on sniper rifles. It stands to reason exactly what sort of training these Tinkerbats had gone through, of course, as they seemed much more comfortable with holding their rifles from standing positions as opposed to lying prone or at least kneeling in a solid aiming stance.

Anyhow, once she realized the weight of the weapon, Shantae accommodated and aimed the rifle with the butt of it pressed to her upper arm, though she neglected to peer into the scope. She was essentially planning to fire from the hip before her shield dropped, though the intensive pressure of the situation caused her to nearly lose her nerve regarding following through. Of course, Shantae was never known to back down from any form of adversity, and this day was no exception. As such, she made her move.

"Eat THIS!" she yelled, haphazardly firing a single round from the sniper rifle. The immense, almost-deafening *BANG* of the round's discharge startled her almost as much as the heavy recoil that sent the weapon flying out of her hands as she stumbled back in shock, nearly falling to the ground.

As the young lady's implausible luck would have it however, she nailed the Tinkerbat aiming at Wrench right in the face with a speedy glowing marble that ricocheted off the ground, knocking it out cold. Seeing the results of her impromptu trick shot through her disorientation, Shantae recovered and, just as she dashed forward, her shield dropped automatically. The final opposing Tinkerbat tried to take its opportunity to fire, though it found some difficulty actually hitting her. Turns out, it's not such a good idea to peer down a long-distance scope of a long-range rifle when your target is pretty much right in your face. It fired two voluminous shots, both of which narrowly missed their mark, the rounds ricocheting off the mountain's plateau while said mark did her best to avoid taking any more hits from the extremely-painful rounds. Before the Tinkerbat had the chance to defend itself, Shantae bolted in, pelting the creature with a series of hair whips that made short work of the malevolent minion of Risky Boots.

After bringing the brutal scuffle to a swift, moderately-violent end, Shantae inspected the skies to see if Wrench and her friends were okay. Much to her relief, she spotted the giant bird ascending toward the clouds, cawing in what sounded like relief as its passengers appeared to have been safely resting on his back as he soared off to safety. Breathing a sigh of her own unmistakable relief, she watched on as the group soared off into the distance while she found herself standing in the midst of the group of Tinkerbats sprawled out all over the surrounding bushes.

The half-genie made her impact a strong and vindictive one, as she defeated her foes with urgent, mostly hair-based brutality. Taking preemptive safety measures, she collected the weapons dropped by the enemy marksmen, each rifle disappearing into her inventory where they could do no more harm. She was relieved that she saved her friends in time, but her heart pounded with unrelenting anxiety as she breathed another sigh of relief as though the first one wasn't enough.

"I need to rescue Bolo and get back to Scuttle Town ASAP. I hope Sky and Wrench are okay… Just what were they doing out here? And why are Risky's henchmen so hot on our tails all of a sudden?" Shantae wondered, unable to drum up a conclusive answer for her pressing concerns without a clue of what was going on. Before she had another minute to think, however, another distant *crack* split the air once more. Detecting the sound as having been made from behind, the wary half-genie hopped to the side. In an instant, yet another marble struck the ground beneath her, leaving a smoking burn mark in its wake. Noticing this, Shantae turned her head to see another sun-generated gleam coming from a bush in the distance, hinting that she wasn't in the clear just yet. "No time to dawdle, then. They're still on me."

With hardly another thought, she set out to continue her journey to save her other friend from whatever harm she could only imagine he'd been met with. Shantae ventured forth, approaching the other end of the mountainside. Once she reached the edge, she crouched and peered downward to get a scope of what she'd be dealing with. Immediately noticeable were the series of tiny protrusions positioned all over the wall of the mountain that mirrored the side she used to climb up. Noting this as peculiar, she examined the other mountain fronts in the vicinity and discovered that, apart from their varying sizes, they each monumental earthen massif bore a similar, nearly symmetrical appearance. At that moment, Shantae had a stunning realization.

"Oh, I get it now…! It's called the THIMBLE Canyon because the mountains here all look like giant, rocky thimbles!" she discovered, mildly humored by the coincidence… if one could call it that. "Hmm, I think I'm starting to see a pattern here with most of the recent places I've been to… I only wonder if the next place I visit will have a name consistent with its theme…" she pondered as she surveyed the valley below to see that, other than the steep downward drop from her position, it was more of what she'd been dealing with before, save for a couple of twists. A short distance ahead of a couple of unsteady hoodoos and pits, she spotted yet another scalding hot lake; only this time, it had a massive mouth, whose turbulent torrent steeply dipped lower into a deeper trench within the valley. The dense, billowing screens of naturally-occurring steam rising off the cascading rapids obscured her vision beyond that point.

"Looks like this last section's gonna be a real doozy," she theorized, though she had little time to prepare. Another *bang* from a considerable distance above prompted her to dodge once more, following up with another belly dance number she used to transform into her monkey form. "I've gotta get out of here. Fast!" With that, Monkey-Shantae leapt downward, clinging closely to the jagged wall of the mountain to steady her descent. However, two very familiar bloodthirsty condors made themselves apparent as soon as she began her descent. She was safe from the long-distance marksmen in this position, at least. Nevertheless, Shantae speedily began to rappel to the damp, grassy landscape below using nothing but her monkey form's unusual ability to cling to sturdy, flat surfaces as though her hands and feet bore heavy-duty suction cups.

As Monkey-Shantae carefully slid, hopped, and shimmied her way down the wall, the condors began their barrage of talon and beak attacks, swooping in every so often to try and pick her off. At least somewhat accustomed to their pattern of attack, she dodged them when they decided to dive in and hurried herself downward when they hovered in wait of their next opportunity. However, after their last encounter with their target, the condors grew wise to her method of scaling the mountain. The two vicious feathered beasts exchanged hungry, nodding glances with one another before one of them swooped in toward Shantae once more. Noticing this, she jumped to try and avoid the incoming assault. However, the creature feinted, instead opting to reveal a secret trump card to catch the monkey girl by surprise. The malevolent condor opened its beak while it was directly beside Shantae and discharged a blast of flames that nearly charred the poor girl on the spot.

"Whoa!" Monkey-Shantae shouted in combined pain and shock, taking damage from the condor's fire blast as it knocked her off-kilter. She fell a considerable distance, narrowly avoiding hitting the ground by regaining her senses and reattaching herself to the wall. However, she wasn't safe. The other condor took the opportunity to propel itself toward her, diving with gruesome intent as its shining, razor-sharp ivory talons were flared at her. Our heroine, having barely recovered from the first condor's surprise attack, noticed just in time to hug the cold, uneven wall, the bird scraping her back with some of its talons as it descended past her with the speed of a skyrocket. Shantae winced in pain, losing a great deal of coordination as she slipped again. Never one to give up in the face of a challenge of this caliber, Shantae once again regained her composure and stuck herself to a lower portion of the wall.

"Darn…! They're really tearing into me," she lamented, her growing fatigue showing. "Nothing I can do at the moment can take them down, either… I only wonder if these things are immune to magic in general, since my fire attacks don't work. If I still had my lightning or thunder cloud ability, that might've been able to do something…" Shantae was uncertain of what else to do to defend herself as the condors readied themselves for their next round of attack. She was fast in her current simian transformed state, but these belligerent birds proved faster. She couldn't attack them, as they were immune to anything she had to throw at them. They showed no signs of halting their brazen barrage of attacks. Simply running from and dodging them only worked but for so long before they apparently wised up to her movement patterns. She thought about simply leaping all the way down, forgoing safety for convenience, but she was aware that if the birds didn't pick her off out of the air, the ground below would not serve as a great alternative. Speaking of which, she looked down and noticed that she hadn't even descended halfway past. She was still high enough up that falling or jumping straight down would not bode well for her. However…

"What's that giant ridge poking out below?" she asked herself, noting a gigantic protruding rock formation a few short descending leaps below. She examined it a bit more, discovering that it was a good enough distance downward where simply jumping onto it would be safe enough that she wouldn't be injured. "If I can get down there quickly enough, it might make things easier on me," she hypothesized. "Of course, I'll have to wait until these condors try to attack me again to buy the time necessary… though it looks like they know how I move. That must be why they haven't made another attempt just yet," she surmised as she glanced up at each of the avian predators. "Looks like they're just watching me now, waiting for me to make my next move. Hmm…" she trailed off, taking a brief moment to think about a countermeasure. Once the moment passed, she put her latest plan into action.

She let go of the incredibly-steep mountainside and allowed herself to drop. In that moment, the first condor dove toward her again. Predicting that it would possibly try to swoop in, she waited for it to get close as she clung to the wall again. The condor bulleted toward her beak-first, intending to either spear her or force her to slip. Just as it was about to reach her, the brave young woman kicked off of the wall, causing the condor to completely miss as she let herself drop toward the platform below. The second condor made its move to intercept her by diving directly toward her with its talons flared and ready to maim someone senseless. It blasted toward her with unprecedented speed, giving Shantae very little time to react. Thankfully, Shantae anticipated this. She watched the rancorous creature, waiting until the right moment, where she stuck herself to the wall once more, causing the condor to totally miss its mark; just the opening she needed. She let go of the wall again, dropping the remainder of the way before landing on the smooth, flat platform jutting from the mountainside.

"Phew! I made it!" she proclaimed, turning back to her human form with a *POOF* before wiping sweat from her brow, sighing in relief. "Now where do I go from here? It's still a long way down, and those birds won't let up. I can tell by now that they're adjusting their attack patterns to catch me off-guard, but…" the half-genie observed as she surveyed her vantage point, stopping mid-sentence when she noticed a tiny coin-sized hole in the wall. "Wait, what's that?" Shantae asked herself, looking closer to examine the miniature gap in the otherwise-solid mountainside. Upon closer inspection, Shantae picked up that the crevice sparkled with an arcane array of bright blue floating sparks. "Oh! It's a secret entrance! I've got just the thing to get in there with, too," she deduced, recognizing the hole as some kind of secret passageway. Without another word, Shantae performed another of her signature dance numbers, sashaying her hips side to side as she closed her eyes and clasped her hands together in front of her to build up magic. The condors above, stalking her from the air, read her lack of movement as their next opportunity to strike. Both birds simultaneously nose-dived toward her, intending to wrap up their hunt with extreme malice. As the ravenous monsters were inches from striking her, however…

"Traaaaansform!" Shantae announced, seeming to disappear with yet another *POOF*, allowing the two condors to collide with one another, sending a mass of feathers and fire splashing everywhere. As we (presumably) know, however, Shantae didn't simply vanish. She transformed into a tiny, teal-furred, yellow-eyed mouse about the size of one's fingerprint… if even that big. The condors, in their newly-infuriated confusion, squawked at one another in a collective frenzy, drawing their attention away from the young shapeshifting heroine they'd been trying to hunt down. I'm not Sky, so I don't speak bird, but I'm pretty sure they were probably yelling at each other for not being able to take down a single target despite there being two of them.

Anyway, Mouse-Shantae made a quiet escape, slipping into the hole in the wall to reveal what appeared to be a secret, gold-clad cavern containing a particularly sparkly red treasure chest at the end of it. Of course, it wasn't so simple for her to collect on her bounty. She first had to navigate through a not-so difficult maze in mouse form to maneuver to the treasure. Knowing her way around a mouse-form maze, Shantae made short work of sifting through the series of haphazard, intentionally-confounding 90-degree turns that eventually saw her emerge at the end of the mini cave from a hole in the floor. Wasting little time, she changed back to her human form once again.

"Looks like more Heart Holders," she guessed as she approached, though she hadn't opened the chest yet to confirm. "Although, no treasure chest I've found thus far has ever been so… shiny… Maybe it's something else…?" she further observed, her curiosity growing as she wondered just what was inside. Without another thought, Shantae opened the sparkly box and peered inside. "What…? A… a hair tie?" she guessed again, pulling out a hair tie that looked identical to the one already in her hair, save for the fact that it sparkled and gleamed as though it were made of star light. It bore a luminescent, alluring golden chrome that wowed the half-genie as she stared at the object in her hand.

"It looks just like mine, but… I feel… something's different about this one. Other than the fact that it's much shinier… I wonder…" she contemplated, setting the sparkly hair tie down. She undid her current one, letting it fall to the floor as she held her ponytail in place with a hand. The curious young lady then picked up her new hair accessory, carefully fixing it into her hair. Once she was finished, she instantly struck a pose, signifying that Shantae Got Elemental Hair Tie. Not realizing right away why she suddenly struck a victory pose, she examined the open treasure chest to see that it read 'Elemental Hair Tie.'

"Elemental… Hair Tie…? Does… does that mean I've finally picked up a new type of power-up for my hair whip attack?" she gasped in a mix of surprise and excitement. "But then… how do I use it…?" she asked herself, immediately aware that her new power-up didn't exactly come with an instruction manual. She pondered for a moment, understanding that the word 'Elemental' must've meant that her new skill granted her some form of weather or nature-related perk for her hair attack. As she thought, however, she noticed that her bracelets began to radiate an aura of rosy red. She also began to feel the temperature of the room seemingly rise to an almost-unbearable level… in her head. The rest of her body was unaffected. "Why is it so hot in here all of a sudden? Am I starting to run a fever?" she asked again, brushing her spiky bangs aside and feeling her forehead. At this point, however, she noticed that her hair color was just SLIGHTLY off. "What the…?" she remarked, understandably dumbfounded by the discovery. She quickly grabbed her ponytail to examine it. What she saw nearly swept the half-genie off her feet.

"My hair! It's… red-orange!? And it's glowing! It looks like it's on fire!" she bellowed in a state of utter shock at the discovery that her previously-royal purple hair suddenly changed color to a fiery reddish orange and felt warm to the touch. "Whoa… I wonder…" she further commented with utmost intrigue. Without further thought, the young heroine tested her new hairstyle out by whipping her hair. Her ponytail flashed with a spray of flames, emitting embers with every snap of it against the open air. Even the sound of her hair whip emphasized her ability to lash embers from her ponytail. "I can channel fire into my hair attack now! Awesome! But then… I wonder…" she pondered once more, studying the aura around her bracelets. As though it were instinct, she clapped her bracelets together, at which point she witnessed the energy around them change from red to a deep, dark blue. Suddenly, she felt bitterly cold, as though someone had encased her in a block of ice. Without even needing to think about it, she checked her ponytail again to see that her hair had turned a bright, icy glacier blue. She also noticed that there appeared to be chunks of ice embedded into her hair.

"Ice, t-too? N-n-n-no way!" she exclaimed, though she couldn't stop herself from shivering from the sudden sheer cold. Nonetheless, she whipped her hair a few more times. Again, the sound of her hair whip changed to where every snap sounded like someone was crushing ice into their hands. Her hair emitted shining, glittery shards of ice that emphasized the sub-zero temperature and power her hair packed. "This is so cool! No pun intended…" she gushed with an oh-so clever play on words. "I wonder if there's anything else…?" Once more, she clapped her bracelets together, causing the aura to turn a luminescent sunflower yellow.

Suddenly, Shantae was overcome with a series of light, stimulating prickles and tingles coursing through her head. She felt as though she had an electric current running through her… or like someone had rubbed her head with a balloon and generated a ton of static electricity. Of course, she examined her ponytail once more to note that her hair had changed to a dazzling golden blonde and that her locks were standing up in an extensive series of spiky tufts. She also took note of the bright blue electic bolts running up and down her ponytail as though her hair was fitted with conductive wiring.

"Now my hair is blonde, spiky, and a ton more conductive of electricity to the point where I can see lightning bolts coursing through it?" she questioned, her amazement never-ending as she found herself nearly incapable of breaking her mesmerized gaze. "It's just like in Lummox Egg Z! I wish I had a mirror… I'll bet I look JUST LIKE Bayim Gokhan in his Sparking Raijin 3 transformation!" she commented in absolute amazement, taking the moment to nerd-gush about another one of her comics. Nonetheless, she whipped her hair to test her new ability, discovering right away that each whip produced a loud, startling crackling noise reminiscent of the lightning generated from the perilous skies of the Kitschy Quilt Desert resultant of her archenemy's now-demolished Tinker-Stormer. Coming with such a shocking (no pun intended, I swear) change was the blinding blue bolts of electricity that came shooting out of her ponytail each time she performed her attack. "This is incredible! I can't believe after all this time, I've FINALLY found a way to power up my strongest attack!" she exclaimed, clanging her bracelets once more to see what would happen. The aura disappeared, returning the jewelry (and her hair) back to their normal states. Taking note of this, she looked at her hair again to note that it was back to its regular bright purple.

"Okay, so I've got fire, ice, and electricity at my disposal, and all I have to do to activate one of them or turn them off is clap my bracelets together," she surmised, examining her wristwear and nodding. "I only wonder what I'll be able to do against the enemies here, all things considered about my other attacks not working on them… and it's about time I found out. I am Ret-2-Go!" she proclaimed, grinning as she clashed her fists together to emphasize her determination.

With that, Shantae danced to transform into her mouse form, where she navigated her way back through the maze and out onto the mountainside. Once our heroine was outside, she immediately changed back into her humanoid form, where she was greeted not only by the two starving condors that had been trying to eat her, but also a small horde of green beetles and a team of dragonflies.

"Wow, you guys are really serious, huh?" she commented, undeterred by the fact that she was outnumbered. As one might expect, the creatures she faced responded by immediately launching a full-frontal assault on their half-genie foe, starting with one of the condors. It attempted to dive in and scrape at her with its talons, but Shantae was prepared. She jumped over it as soon as it got close enough, clashing her wrists together to activate her new power. In an instant, Shantae's hair flashed as though it were engulfed in flames, its color changing to that burning, blazing red-orange it had been previously. Just then, three green beetles attempted to rush her down while she was distracted. Without hesitation, Shantae ducked low and whipped the creatures, who were instantly ignited in fire. A rapid series of "5's" emerged from the burning bugs as they roasted until they were defeated by the residual effects of Shantae's flaming hair whip.

There would be no celebration of victory right away, however. The second condor made its presence known by diving in at her beak-first. Shantae jumped and whipped at the creature, though her fire whip produced yet another futile *clink* sound against the bird.

"Darn! These birds aren't hurt by fire at all!" she realized. "Not even combined with my hair whip… Fine then. I guess I'll just have to cool you guys off," she cunningly and heroically quipped, banging her bracelets again. Her hair flashed again, instantly turning from red to iceberg blue. In that moment, three dragonflies entered the fray, coming in close to zap her with electricity. Shantae, quick on the draw, closed in on the creatures, whipping each of them once with her frigid blue ponytail. With just a single touch of her hair, each of the offending aerial insects was encased in a block of ice that fell to the ground. Additionally, Shantae caught sight of the "2's" that rose out of the dragonflies the minute she attacked them. Having little time to study the effects of her hair on the creatures, she quickly punted one of them off the platform while the other two broke free from their icy prisons after a few seconds of immobilization. Making certain to keep the pressure on, Shantae whipped them to freeze them again, following up by kicking them off as well. Once more, one of the condors approached from above and launched a blast of flames from its open beak. Wise to the trick by this point, Shantae performed a spinning backdash to avoid impact, swiftly followed by her whipping the condor while her hair was in ice form. However, she only inflicted "1" point of damage and the creature was not encased in ice.

"Ice doesn't work either? Guess that narrows it down, but it'll be more of a shock for you than it was for me!" she joked again, certifying that as long as there existed puns in any of these worlds, I would undeniably have a miserable experience doing my job. Ugh… E-er, anyway, before Shantae could change her hair color from blue to yellow, two more beetles came scurrying toward her as fast as they could. Shantae noticed right away and whipped the little vermin. Again, she only did "1" point of damage, but the beetles were frozen for a literal second before they continued their march. Beginning to understand that different elements had different effects depending on the enemy, Shantae whipped the beetles frozen once more and immediately kicked them off the platform before they could thaw out. Having gotten rid of the beetles and dragon flies, all that was left were the couple of carnivorous crimson condors. Shantae, eager to rid herself of the aerial threat once and for all, clashed her bracelets together once more to enter her Sparking Raijin 3 transfor—uh, I-I mean…her hair flashed, turning blonde as it began to course with electricity.

"Let's see if you bombarding buzzards can take me on now!" she brashly challenged, practically itching to test her favorite new hairstyle of the three on her most persistent enemies. One condor charged in, talons at the ready to rip into the young woman as it came diving in. At just the right moment, Shantae dodged the attack by somersaulting backward and whipped the creature with her electrified golden ponytail while it tried recovering from its move. The instant her hair lashed the ferocious creature, it squawked in pain as its entire body was wrapped in a relentless flow of electricity. The attack dealt a whopping "10" points of damage as it paralyzed the bird in midair. Despite her surprise at the effects of the move, Shantae moved to dig her foot into the dirt behind her and tighten her fist and her focus. In one fluid explosion of movement, the half-genie launched another explosive haymaker, dishing out an additional "12" points as she sent the incapacitated bird crashing into the wall of the mountain. Alarmed that a simple punch could make such a devastating impact, she examined her fist.

"Wow… punching harder really DOES start from the feet…" she realized, recalling what her extraterrestrial partner taught her. Before she had time to give it more thought, however, the second bird furiously charged in to avenge its friend. It screeched and squawked with a bloodthirsty rage in its last-ditch effort to take down its foe, who now far outmatched it. Shantae was mildly alarmed by the suddenness of the condor's attack, but it did nothing to shake her focus. She whipped the creature once, causing the exact same paralyzing effect on the bird as it very rapidly flashed between its normal and inverted versions of its colors while bolts of lightning coursed around it. "Haaa!" Shantae shouted, throwing yet another full-body hook at the electricity-stunned creature. With another heavy *THUMP*, Shantae clocked the condor hard enough to send it careening into its ally, who'd already been knocked out by her efforts. In a matter of just a minute, Shantae's worst enemies during her climb up and down the mountain had been defeated…

"Whew…" she breathed in relief, clapping her bracelets again to return her hair to normal before turning her attention to the remainder of the canyon, where she saw what looked like an entrance way dug into the base of the next thimble-shaped mountain. "Almost there. Thank goodness for this Elemental Hair Tie. I don't know how I would've gotten past them if—WHOA!" she was about to comment before hearing two jarring *KABOOM* noises coming from behind her. When she turned to look, she noticed right away that the condors were gone. In their place were two giant black burn marks plastered across the mountainside and the giant rock platform; speaking of which, the platform began to shake and rumble as though it were about to detach from the mountainside.

"Uh-oh… Those birds must've exploded and caused this giant platform to lose its stability!" she quickly guessed, frantically looking around as she tried keeping her footing. "If I don't do something fast, I'm going to wind up rock-surfing through the rest of this canyon with no way to stop!" she further predicted. And as she predicted, the plateau suddenly shifted, almost completely detaching itself from the wall it was originally fixed to. "Ohhh, nooooo-waaaaaaah!" Shantae yelled in panic as the platform, with a series of *CRACKs* and crumbling noises, snapped from the wall completely, forcing the young woman to try and ground herself as best as she could. She didn't have to brace herself for long, however, as the platform met the ravine below with a monumental *SPLASH* within a few pulse-pounding seconds. Almost the instant she made somewhat-literal landfall, the rocky plateau began to slide down the perilous, steamy gorge with the speed of a race car.

Shantae did her best to keep from losing her nerve in the wake of becoming the only passenger on this most unceremonious, death-defying ride through the most hazardous landscape yet, at least able to rise to her feet as the enormous boulder zoomed past patches of cacti, admittedly-beautiful tropical flowers of the most vibrant colors, and ribbed golden walls. She peered down the slope to see that her ride wouldn't be a terribly long one, but without a set of brakes to use at a time like this, the end of the ride would be… less than convenient, in layman's terms. However, before she could even begin to think about the high wind and suffocating steam in her face from the lava-like rapids, she was greeted by a series of obstacles in the form of floating blocks covered top to bottom in spikes, occasional splashes of scalding-hot water that she immediately found herself diving out of the way to dodge, and the occasional bombardment of enemies she'd previously encountered.

"Goodness, does this level ever-! WHOA!" she tried to complain before being made to duck under a trio of floating spike blocks that would've cleaned her clock had she not been aware. "Does this level ev-! YIKES!" she cut herself off again as she tried climbing to her feet, only to nearly be ambushed by three gigantic waves of lava-water that splattered themselves over nearly every square inch of the runaway boulder's surface as it rocked, swayed, and jiggled during its rapid descent. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that this ride was extremely bumpy. That's just putting it lightly, considering how often the boulder slammed against walls, zipped over tiny ridges in the ravine, or rounded a sharp curve. "Okay, as I was saying… Does this le-! Aw, come on!" she yelled as she was suddenly assailed by another hideous red condor, joined by armor-clad ravens that dropped green beetles and spiky slime creatures onto the platform. At this point, Shantae would never get to finish her thought, though if she was thinking what I was thinking, and you were thinking what I was thinking, which means you were thinking what she was thinking by transitive property, then we could probably surmise that she wasn't too fond of how obnoxiously-difficult this particular quest had become for her.

Of course, a massive, unfair difficulty spike was not something Shantae was unfamiliar with… marginally. As such, she did her best to accommodate. She quickly sought to exterminate any enemy infestations as they made themselves apparent on her platform. Putting her new hair powers to the test, she got busy using her fiery hair whip to quickly dispatch of beetles that were trying to nip at her feet. She switched to her icy hair whip to stop some of the armored ravens in their tracks before they got the chance to drop off an enemy and attack her. She froze them solid with her attack and, rather than kick the Popsicle-ized creature off the platform, she picked them up and threw them at other ravens to save herself the trouble of dealing with additional enemy drops. As for that pesky condor, it kept what it judged was a safe distance to spout fireballs from its beak to try and get Shantae to lose her balance, so it was granted an opportunity to strike. Shantae, while managing the situation as best as she could with the constant multitasking, identified a balance between vanquishing enemies, dodging cascades of skin-melting water, and… well, keeping her balance so she didn't fall off the boulder.

Sadly, even Shantae's luck can run dry at times (ironically speaking). As such, she attempted to ice-whip another pair of green slimes shortly after having done away with the ravens who dropped them when a sudden, deafening *SLAM* of the boulder against the crags of the trench knocked her down as a chunk of it broke clean off, halving the amount of space she had to work with. As she moved to recover and defend herself, the condor saw its chance. Hastily and hungrily, it nosedived in, ready to get its first taste of genie flesh as its prey was distracted with trying to regroup herself, regain her balance, and defend herself from the enemies she focused on. Just barely noticing in time to do anything about it, Shantae rolled onto her back and kicked the aerial predator's beak as it closed in, eliciting a highly-pained squawk from it as it retreated. However, the unattended spike blobs were granted just enough time to fire off separate barrages of spikes that forced Shantae to summon her Bubble before she was hit.

"Darn it…! If things keep going this way, I'm gonna have to use my only potion before I get anywhere near the Boss Battle…!" she complained, making evident that she came prepared for the long haul if things got rough. "Doesn't help that most of the other supplies I brought sank with Bolo's faulty speed boat…!" she added, making even more evident that she was more prepared, but that a certain boating accident left her with limited options. Nevertheless, she improvised as best as she could. While the condor recoiled from Shantae's last-second beak punt and the spike blobs took a moment to replenish their weapon supplies, the half-genie herself steadied herself and ice-whipped the creatures into frozen cubes just before noticing another barrage of floating spike bricks that she either ducked under, jumped over, or narrowly side-stepped as she kept her balance. She kicked the frozen blobs off of what was left of the platform before being made to dodge yet another boiling splash of ravine magma-water with basically no time to react. She did it, however, only getting wet with steam and harmless water vapors. However, another, particularly-harrowing set of spike bricks came at her at such a blinding pace that a single mistake could wind up with her face being replaced with one or two of them.

"Oh, jeez! Oh, shoot! Oh, man! Oh, gosh! Oh, no! Oh—YIKES!" she panicked, realizing the imminent danger she was in, using every curse word she knew (don't give me that look, reader) as she ducked under and rolled over to avoid the first five or six blocks before she was made to jump over the next three… sets of three. We're talkin' long, very tightly-timed leaps here, folks. Then, another two enormous hot-water splashes came crashing down on the boulder, forcing her to dash out of the way. Then, the condor she hadn't yet disposed of began shooting fireballs at her, which reminded her to clap her wrist bands together to go Super Raijin 3 to prepare for her moment to dispose of the foul creature once and for all. Then, she basically had to belly dance past a figurative jungle of spike bricks coming at her high and low, in addition to the occasional water crash.

She busted out all of her best dance moves at as rapid a rate as she could conceivably manage, with her having to undulate her hips here, raise her arms above her head there, spin and strike a pose at a couple of other points, rock her hips even more and with such uncanny precision that each time she jutted her hips to one side, it was meant to avoid a spike block or two or six before she had to mirror her movement to avoid another; which was made even more difficult by the fact that there almost seemed to be no pattern with how these blocks were coming at her. Need I even mention the amount of times she had to perform that spinning backdash to avoid getting soaked/scalded with water with temperature rivaling that of a flamethrower's flames, OR the sporadic bursts of pyromaniac condor fire blasts? Because she had to do a TON of those.

Anyway, the blocks and waves eventually lightened up as, with one more haphazard crashing turn down the ravine from an adventurer's worst nightmare, the end was in sight. Shantae had managed to avoid taking too much damage throughout the course of this solo journey, but it cost her a ton of her energy, as she tried to catch her breath while the time seemed to permit it. That pesky condor, however, had other ideas. As soon as the coast was clear for it (because it flew high above all the hazards Shantae had to deal with while also trying to roast her to cinders), it took the young heroine's fatigue as its chance to score that meal it so desperately wanted. It swooped in, beak first (evidently not having learned its lesson like its comrades before it), practically drooling with carnivorous intent. Shantae, hearing the sound of the creature's wings against the high-speed wind, readied herself. As soon as the crimson condor got close, she made her move.

"Think you can get the drop on me, huh!? Well, you'll be shocked to see I'm ready for you!" she punned just one more insufferable time as she electro-whipped the condor, paralyzing it in place as it flashed and crackled with electricity. "Now take this!" she roared as she prepared to condemn the predatory bird to the same fate its friends met for trying to make a meal out of her. Sure enough, with another jarring, feathery *THWACK* of her fist against the bird's body, she sent it packing as it hurtled into the air and exploded, finally ridding our hero of the vigorous threats that nearly did her in. Soon after, she clacked her golden vambraces together to return her hair back to its classic state. Afterward, she dodged four more sets of spike bricks and one more splash before the home stretch came into immediate view… and of course, the home stretch was basically a couple of stony, golden walls with ridges littered across their mossy surfaces. One was much higher than the other, with the lower one coming up way sooner than the higher one.

"Finally, I made it! If that wasn't a true test of my dancing skills, I don't know what would be. I haven't had that much of a challenge since my hardest show at the old Dance Parlor… Anyway, it looks like there's only gonna be one way for this thing to brake, so I'd better get prepared…" and with that statement, Shantae raised her arms and rhythmically shook her hips to wordlessly transform herself into her Monkey form. Almost immediately after, the boulder came to a screeching halt, smashing into the foremost wall and breaking into dust and gravel while propelling Monkey-Shantae forward to the final ridged wall. Without hesitation (and with a heavy desire to wrap this quest up as fast as she could), Shantae made short work of scaling the mountain side. It probably helped that there were no more enemies to worry about. She also noticed that there were no more Tinkerbat snipers, which struck her as odd, considering there were still at least a couple that she swore were chasing her by this point. Nevertheless, she internally celebrated the break as she climbed the mountain, which was a bit higher (and mossier) than the last. After making it up to the smooth, surprisingly-even mountaintop, Shantae transformed back to her human self and marched forward, where she was immediately greeted by a familiar, initially-relieving sight.

"Bolo! You're alright!" she cheered, rushing over to see the young man she'd set out to rescue.

"…" Bolo responded as he stood on the other end of the plateau, his chain mace in his hand and his head hung to where Shantae couldn't see his eyes. Not quite picking up on anything strange yet, however, Shantae continued her approach.

"I'm so glad… I thought those Tinkerbats were gonna do something awful to you," she further expressed her relief as she drew near him. "I gotta tell you though, it was one heck of an experience getting up here. I even had to rescue Sky and Wrench from being shot down on my way here! Would you believe it? Man, am I glad you're not hurt…"

"…" Bolo again loquaciously answered her, having not even moved a single finger from his current position.

"Um… Bolo?" Shantae called once more as her approach slowed. "Bolo! Hellooo! It's me! Shantae! Can you hear me?" she asked as she drew slightly closer to where she was just outside of arm's length of him.

"…!" the wordy young warrior responded, though his voice was drowned out by the ambient *whoosh* of the wind blowing past them. It was at this point that Shantae's disposition changed from excited to moderately worried. Something was wrong… Very wrong. Why was Bolo just standing there? Why wouldn't he say anything? And for that matter, how long had he been here, holding his chain mace in his hand like he was ready to attack? And where were the Tinkerbats that were responsible for bringing him here? Something suddenly didn't add up… Despite this, Shantae warily drew closer to her seemingly-incapacitated friend.

"Bolo? Are you okay? What did those rotten Tinkerbats do to you?" she asked, the concern evident in her tone as she moved to lay a hand on his shoulder. The instant she did so, the young man reacted. His head flew upward, revealing a bone-chilling, purple-eyed glare laced with nothing but unmitigated hatred as he moved to attack his would-be rescuer by swinging his chain mace at her with all his might. "WHOA!" Shantae bellowed as she dodged the unexpected assault, ducking under Bolo's wild swing before jumping back to create some distance.

"Grrr…! You… You'll pay for this…!" Bolo uncharacteristically growled as he continued to swing his chain mace, ready to take… some form of revenge against his friend.

"What? Pay for what?" Shantae reasonably questioned, warily entering a stance of battle. "What's gotten into you, Bolo? Why are your eyes glowing that creepy purple? And why are you attacking me?"

"I thought we were friends…!" he continued to growl, glaring at Shantae as he continued to swing his chain mace. "But you… you betrayed me! Left me here to fend for myself while you ran away!" he accused, completely throwing the half-genie off. What was he talking about?

"I did no such thing! If that were true, then why would I even be here right now?"

"To see if I was dead, I'm sure… but you won't be allowed to roam the planet, destroying everything you touch, you despicable genie wretch!" he venomously spat, again catching his friend by complete surprise.

"Excuse me!? What's the matter with you!? Why would you-!?" she tried to ask, highly offended by her comrade's vitriolic remark.

"I'll… I'll take you down right here… and right now… for the sake of Scuttle Town… the kids back home… and for all of Sequin Land!" he declared, ready for an ultimate battle of good versus evil… though it seemed he may have had his sights set on the wrong target. "I can't believe we ever fell for your 'righteous hero' act! Today, you'll learn what happens to treacherous snakes like you!"

"'Righteous hero' act? Treacherous snake? What are you TALKING about!?" Shantae yelled, even more confused as to why Bolo turned against her in such a hostile fashion. "Bolo, snap out of it! You're not acting like yourself! I'm your friend, remember?"

"I don't befriend spineless, cowardly traitors! Enough of this small talk, you revolting, pointy-eared freak! I'm done wasting my breath on you! Time to meet your maker!" he challenged, hurling yet another unnecessary, spiteful remark at her. The astonished young woman gasped in a mix of hurt and shock.

"Revolting… Pointy-eared… freak?" Shantae repeated, instinctively bringing her hands to her ears as she registered the extremely-disparaging comments he made toward her. She couldn't make heads or tails of what was wrong with him, but no one… and she meant NO ONE ever got away with lambasting her like that without being made to answer for it. "How could you say such a horrible thing to me!? Are you really that upset that I didn't save you before Risky's minions carried you off? If that's the case, then I'm sorry, but you've gotta get a grip, dude! I'm here now! I understand if you're angry, but it gives you no right to speak to me like that! I'm still your friend!"

"No, you're not! You're a traitor, a deceiver, and a monster! And monsters need to learn that they're only feared when they hide in the dark! And the darkness is repelled by the light! Now prepare to perish!" Bolo declared war, lunging forward while swinging the chain mace at his friend-turned-enemy. Shantae noticed the chained mace coming around and took measures to avoid it by ducking under the young man's high swing. The high-speed *whoosh* of the warrior's mace against the open air as he barely missed his mark made itself very apparent that he was trying to kill her. Soon after Shantae's evasive maneuver, the sound of buzzing and whirring entered her ears. As she turned to scope out the vicinity, she caught sight of that missing group of Tinkerbat snipers, who'd surrounded the makeshift arena with their rifles transfixed on her as they remained airborne. "You're kidding me…! So this WAS an elaborate trap after all…" she realized with bitter disdain. "Darn you, Risky Boots…!"

"My new allies and I are gonna make you regret the day you ever tried to take Sequin Land for yourself! Do you hear me!?"

"Bolo, snap out of it! Risky must be controlling your mind or something! You've got to-!" she was about to warn before a *BANG* of a sniper rifle forced her to dodge out of the way, only for Bolo to run in while she was distracted, his chain mace cocked back.

"Hrraaah!" the young man shouted, launching a most dastardly sneak attack on his former friend as she recovered from nearly being picked off yet again.

"Huh?" Shantae barely had time to utter out before Bolo's attack smashed into her abdomen with a *THWANG* of an impact, knocking her to the ground. "Gagh…! Ouch…!" she groaned, clutching her stomach with one hand as she gingerly picked herself back up to see her latest adversary crossing his arms and snickering as he stood before her. "Agh…! So that's how you wanna play it, huh? Okay, Bolo, have it your way!" Shantae dared, striking up a battle stance of her own in preparation for a not-so-friendly sparring match against her former mentor. "I don't know what's gotten into you, but I'll have you back to normal in no time," she murmured to herself, seeming to pick up on the fact that Bolo wasn't quite himself. I swear it…!" And now, without further ado…

 _ **SHANTAE VS. BOLO: CATASTROPHIC COMRADE CONFLICT!**_

"Slap some sense into him!" Shantae ordered of herself as she bravely charged in, ready to square up against one of her best friends. Having just the slightest hunch that someone may have been behind his dispositional shift from 'Half-Wit Hero' to 'Deluded Dimwit,' she made it a point to hold back when it came to attacking him directly. The six Tinkerbats interfering with their bout would receive no such kindness.

Nevertheless, Bolo came in with a quick, low swing of his Morning Star, which his adversary hopped to avoid. Thinking on his feet, however, the would-be hero spun around, tightening his grip on the mace as he went for another calculated swing upward. The spiky metal ball ripped through the air as its chain rattled like tambourine.

"Eep!" Shantae bellowed out, ducking while in midair to just barely avoid being struck again by Bolo's surprisingly-speedy counterattack. Just as she was about to land, however, her supposed adventuring partner moved to tackle her to the ground. Shantae hit the smooth, arid stone with a *FLOP*, whereas Bolo landed on top of her, propped up on his knees and ready to take advantage of the situation. The half-genie gasped in pain, but she refused to let the situation discourage her. Bolo immediately tried throwing a brutal punch toward her face, but she reacted by catching his fist with one hand. Not at all surprised by this, however, the malevolent young fighter moved to harshly plant his knee on Shantae's abdomen with a disturbing *THUMP* in an attempt to subdue her by knocking the wind out of her.

"Gaa-haagh…!" the unfortunate young woman choked out in excruciating agony as her friend-turned-enemy dug his knee into her.

"Give it up, genie girl! You know you can't-!" Bolo was about to advise of his opponent before a *CRACK* of an impact from her fist shut his statement down. "Ow! Why you…!" he grumbled as he tried again to knee her while she was down. As soon as he lifted himself up to attack again, however, Shantae saw just enough of an opportunity to slip both her feet between them and tuck them as closely into her chest as she could.

"HARAAH!" Shantae let out a mighty roar as she, with a full explosive motion, thrust both her legs upward and into Bolo's chest with a nasty *THOCK*, sending him flying through the air before he fell flat on his back a few yards back. She used the opportunity to kip up back to her feet, shaking off the abdominal pain before she heard another distant *POW* of another sniper rifle. Having little time to identify the direction, Shantae summoned a Bubble shield to block it. The round bounced off the back of her shield, the indicative *tink* cluing her in. Taking this as an opportunity to make things easier on her, she charged a fireball in her hand and, in one very risky move, manually deactivated the shield. At that exact moment, four sniper shots rang out at once. Seeming prepared for this outcome, however, the crafty half-genie quickly performed a spinning backdash toward the position of one of the floating Tinkerbats before turning and launching her own counterattack. "Burn!" she shouted as she flung the fireball upward toward the Tinkerbat levitating many yards directly above her.

With little time to react from such a disadvantaged position, the Tinkerbat tried to move out of the way, saving itself in the process… but not its propeller pack, which immediately caught flame as soon as the magic-conjured projectile brushed against it. With a decisive *POP*, the device combusted, sending the henchman into a frenzied bout of swinging through the air like a fly that got stuck in someone's house. The Tinkerbat, being just about as lucky as other Tinkerbats tend to be in situations like this, wound up smacking directly into one of its allies, taking both of them down in a ridiculous blaze of shame and incompetence as Shantae and the remaining four Tinkerbats watched.

She would get no enjoyment out of it, however, as Bolo had already recovered and tried to attack her again from afar with his Morning Star. Keeping her eyes on the prize, the young adventurer sidestepped Bolo's sneak attack and grasped his weapon by the chain. Turning to face him, she tried to yank the chain toward herself in order to reel him in for a counter he'd never forget; brainwashed or not. However, she was met with an alarming level of resistance from her opponent, who'd planted his feet onto the plateau's surface.

"Nice try, but that old trick won't work on me!" Bolo boasted before he, with a mighty twist of his body and tug of his mace, reeled Shantae in for a counter that SHE would not forget… or, he probably would've reeled her in, if she actually tried to hold onto the mace. Instead, she let go of the business end of the weapon as soon as he yanked it toward himself. The wayward Morning Star flew through the air with the speed of a diving falcon. Before Bolo could even think to react, the Morning Star clocked him in the face with a disturbing metal *PWANG*, knocking him flat on his back… as well as seemingly knocking him out cold.

"Oh, gosh! Bolo!" Shantae called to her injured friend/opponent, intensely-worried about the vicious self-inflicted metal beating the unfortunate young man received from his own weapon. Wasting no time, she ran over to him and knelt by him to inspect his condition… which she found unusually difficult when a giant metal ball with spikes on it was stuck in his face. Hastily ripping the Pike Ball at the end of the chain mace off of Bolo's face, she moved to place a finger under his slightly-swollen, reddened nose (and believe me, it wasn't just his nose that looked like that) to identify that he was still alive. "Oh, thank goodness…" she breathed a sigh of relief before she began tapping, shaking, and slapping away at him. "Bolo! Hey, wake up! Are you okay?" she asked before the remaining Tinkerbat snipers took the moment as an opportunity to strike as they took aim. Noticing the sudden reflective glares from the rifle scopes, Shantae immediately activated another Bubble to proect herself and her friend while she tried waking him up.

"…Ooogh… my aching head…" Bolo groaned, finally coming to after a few solid seconds of Shantae prodding him to snap back to reality. He gingerly sat up, blinking his eyes to reorient himself. Shantae immediately picked up that they were no longer glowing purple. "What… what happened…?" he asked, still woozy as he looked around to see himself accompanied by the young woman he'd originally traveled with to this miserably-unforgiving canyon. "Shantae…?" he wearily questioned as his yellow headband fell off, letting loose the shags of his navy-blue hair.

"Bolo!" Shantae cheered as she hugged her enemy-turned-confused-friend. "You're back to normal! Thank goodness, because I don't know what I would've had to do if you got stuck being brainwashed by Risky Boots. It's a good thing you clobbered yourself hard enough to snap yourself out of it. Good thinking!"

"Risky… Boots…?" Bolo echoed in confusion, seeming to be thinking about something as he came to. Before long, however, he perked up as he rose to his feet. His headband fell to the ground without him realizing it wasn't fixed to his forehead. "Risky Boots! Shantae, you were right! She set us up for a trap!" he hurriedly warned her as the Bubble dissipated, opening the both of them up to Tinkerbat attacks.

"I figured as much from how much of a nightmare it was to get over here to pick you up," she acknowledged as she and Bolo prepared themselves for their ruthless adversaries. And you'd better believe how ready they were to dispatch the half-genie and their ally-turned-enemy. However, learning that simply trying to shoot at them would possibly not yield the best results, the conniving Tinkerbats drummed up a most heinous idea.

That idea? Throw in a Stun Grenade and disable the half-genie and the would-be warrior, and then execute them while they were incapacitated. Without wasting another moment, one of the Tinkerbats revealed a Stun Grenade and quickly activated it before tossing it down toward the duo.

"Shantae, look out! It's another one of those crazy explosive devices that made us go blind and deaf last time!" Bolo pointed out, alerting his friend to the immediate threat as it came tumbling down with a series of metallic *clinks* along the mountain surface. Shantae immediately attempted to activate another Bubble, but found it futile, as the protective shield fizzled out as soon as she tried to activate it.

"Shoot! Out of magic…!" she worriedly realized, opting instead to run toward the device and punt it away like a football. "Here goes nothing!" she called out, sprinting toward the explosive, managing to kick it just far enough away that when it exploded, it yielded none of the blinding or deafening effects on either herself or Bolo. However, where one Tinkerbat failed to subdue their enemies, two more tried by throwing two more Stun Grenades into the arena, one immediately following the other.

"Look alive, Shantae! Here comes more of 'em!" Bolo warned, readying his chain mace to counter.

"Heard!" she responded, immediately trying to think up a more convenient way to take down the airborne Tinkerbats without the use of her magic. She had no time to even drink the potion she'd brought with her, as Risky's minions were still sniffing out the right opportunity to catch her off-guard. In that moment, one of the Tinkerbats that didn't throw a grenade at them opted to try its hand at sharpshooting once more, the *BOOM* of its rifle beaming another high-velocity flashing marble at the half-genie. Both Shantae and Bolo moved in separate directions to avoid getting hit, though Bolo was much more focused on something else. Likewise, he took the opportunity to strike back.

"Let's see how YOU like having these weird canteens blow up in your faces!" he shouted as he, with a mighty swing of his trusty Morning Star, struck the airborne Stun Grenade as it headed for him. With a satisfying *CLINK*, the device was sent back to its user in the exact same angle it was initially thrown. By the time it reached the Tinkerbat, the *KAPOW* of the device's detonation stunned the Tinkerbat senseless as it panicked. Clutching its bandana-adorned head, it unknowingly lowered itself to ground level to try and recuperate. "Perfect! Now eat this!" Bolo yelled once more, lashing his weapon at the subdued Tinkerbat and vanquishing it in two decisive hits.

"Nice work, Bolo!" Shantae complimented after having punted the other Stun Grenade into the distance before it detonated. "Now we've only got three left!" she added as one of the three remaining Tinkerbats threw a Frag Grenade (that's right, FRAG, not STUN) into the mix. "Whoa!" Shantae shouted in very much-justified alarm, immediately recognizing the pine cone-shaped explosive. Acting as quickly as she could, she dashed toward the grenade as it descended and tried whipping it with her hair (in normal form), which only caused it to fall flat to the ground instead of being deflected back. "Oh, jeez!" she nearly panicked, her heart racing like a pack of wolves to caribou as she kicked the Frag Grenade away as hard as she could. Thankfully, it expoded with minimal risk of injury to herself or Bolo. "Why didn't that work for me?"

"Not sure, but-!" Bolo was about to reply before leaping out of the way of another sniper round. "…it looks like they intend on trying to overwhelm us here. Stay on your toes and stay focused!"

"Yeah, I think I know that already!" she shot back, unappreciative of his advice as she witnessed the same Tinkerbat pull out and lob a Thermite Grenade into the mix. "Goodness, those fire bombs, too? If those are let to explode, then they'll wind up setting this whole place on fire!" she theorized, thinking on the fly how to protect herself and the environment. "I'm stumped on options, so I hope what I'm thinking works!" And with that, the half-genie put her last-second idea into practice. With two clicks of her wristbands, Shantae activated her Icy Hair Whip ability.

"Shantae, make sure yo-! Whoa, what in the heck!?" Bolo turned to her to warn before being blown away by the sudden color change of her hair from purple to a bright, flashy blue while also suddenly being decorated with sparkling shards of ice. Stunned, the young warrior watched on as he tried to make sense of his friend's sudden new ability.

"Here goes nothing! Hyah!" Shantae announced, stepping backward a few paces to position herself under the Thermite Grenade. At just the right moment, she jumped, again barely avoiding getting shot as another of the three remaining Tinkerbats shot at her feet. While in midair, however, the icy young woman whipped the device as it descended toward her. With a sudden acrtic *CRUMBLE*, she managed to successfully freeze the Thermite Grenade before it landed without it detonating, the harmless *THUNK* on the ground bringing her some much-needed relief as she kicked it away.

"How…? Who…? What!?" Bolo stammered in awe, seeming to forget the incredible amount of danger he was in. "When did you-!?"

"Pay attention! The Tinkerbat behind you is throwing a Frag Grenade!" she warned, clicking her wristbands once again to reveal her lightning-imbued blonde Electric Hair Whip as she rushed past Bolo to defend him. The Tinkerbat in question bulleted the grenade with all deliberate force as a means to try and take them out as quickly as possible. Shantae, uncertain of how her ability would work this time around, hoped for the best. As soon as the opportunity arose, she whipped the Frag Grenade. The *CRACKLE* of her hair against the explosive stopped it in midair as it surged with electricity. Taking no chances while acting on pure impulse and adrenaline, she grabbed the electrified grenade out of the air and threw it back at the astonished Tinkerbat as hard as she could. It, like Bolo, was utterly blown away by Shantae's new power-up to the point where it didn't realize it was in trouble until it was too late. The grenade struck the creature in its chest, paralyzing it the same way being hit by the half-genie's electro-whip would've before the grenade exploded and dispatched it without further issue.

"It might be a bit soon to say, but I think I'm picking up a pattern here…" the observant young woman mused as she kept a watchful eye on the remaining two Tinkerbats, one of whom was about to throw another grenade while the other had pulled something else out. The one with the grenade pulled the pin on it, though it opted to wait a full two seconds before lobbing it. Noticing this, Shantae pondered why it would wait after activating the explosive to throw it. Soon enough, she would find her answer.

"I got this one! Stand back!" Bolo volunteered without warning, eagerly dashing forward and leaping in front of his teammate to save the day.

"Bolo, no! Wait!" Shantae tried to warn, reaching out to him while remaining wise to keep her distance. It was too late, however. Just as the energetic young warrior reeled his weapon back to strike the airborne explosive, it detonated right in front of him with another voluminous *KAPOW* that sent echoes ripping through the open Thimble Canyon skies. "Gagh…! Not again…!" Bolo groaned in disorientation and agony as he fell to the ground on one knee, clasping his head as he tried to regain his sight and hearing.

"Just when I thought we had them all figured out…" Shantae mused again, taking note of the sneaky tactic employed by the Tinkerbat as she remained ready to counter when the opportunity presented itself. Meanwhile, said Tinkerbat readied its rifle, peering down its scope as it took aim at the distracted blue-haired boy it was responsible for incapacitating. Reading its every move, Shantae stepped in. "Oh, no you don't!" she valiantly challenged, rushing to stand between her friend and his would-be assassin. In that moment, the Tinkerbat fired a single round from the elongated barrel of the sniper rifle, forcing the half-genie into a 'Do-or-Die' situation that would be over in a matter of three seconds regardless of her action. Nevertheless, Shantae's on-the-spot reflexive thinking had her drum up just one more idea crazy enough to work. She tapped her wristbands together two more times, switching her hair from glorious electric yellow to the brilliant, burning red that enabled her to utilize her Fire Whip. Immediately after changing form, she acted on impulse by jumping and whipping the airborne flashing marble as it speedily approached. With a fiery *THWACK*, the half-genie's attack deflected the sniper's round, splitting it into three while sending them careening back from whence they came. In a matter of a second, the Tinkerbat was struck and felled by its own bullet as it was sent spiraling into the sky while the two copy rounds flew off in adjecent directions.

"Whew… These guys aren't messing around this time…" she observed, taking the moment to finally grab her Potion from her inventory and practically swallow it whole to replenish her health and magic stores. "I almost thought I'd never get the chance to drink my Potion by the time this was over… and yet, it still isn't over," she further mused, turning her attention to the Tinkerbat glaring at her from a safe distance far above. "I should go Harpy and take that Tinkerbat out right now, but I'm still not sure if he's really the last one… or if I could get up to him fast enough while he has that gun… or if I could try shooting him down myself with one of the guns I picked up, though I wouldn't trust myself to be accurate enough with how long and heavy those things are… Hmm…"

"Darn… darn it…!" Bolo groaned once more, finally recovering from the Stun Grenade he'd previously been victimized by as he steadily brought himself to a stand. He'd still been slightly dizzy, but he was otherwise able to process his surroundings again. Once his vision was clear enough, his vision became filled with the image of his ponytailed teammate, her hair ablaze as she set her eyes on the final remaining Tinkerbat. "How… How are you doing all this…? Did… you pick up a new ability at some point?" the young man asked, awed as he was somewhat disheartened by the situation at hand. Hearing him, Shantae turned and helped him to reorient.

"Yeah, I did… I picked it up on my way here to save you. Pretty cool, right?" she confirmed while asking for his opinion on her Elemental Hair Whip. Before he could give his input, however, Shantae made sure to assist him with ridding himself of the effects of the explosive device before he was fully able to see and hear correctly.

"Yeah… Th-that's awesome!" he complimented with a smile and a thumbs-up, though he couldn't help but feel embarrassed about how things had been going for him by this point as he rubbed his slightly-swollen cheek. "Chalk up another one to your already-long list of superpowers, heh…" he further added.

"I know, right?" Shantae excitedly cheered, raising her fists to her chest to exemplify her enthusiasm. "We haven't seen much of each other recently, but I'm definitely getting stronger and stronger every day!" she boasted before the shrill, almost-deafening *SCREECH* of a whistle from up above shook them out of their distracted state and redirected their attention to the Tinkerbat above. "Huh?" Shantae grunted in wonder, watching as the desperate henchman turned its back to them and made a series of hand gestures. Just after it finished doing so, the pitter-patter of footsteps sounded out from all around, growing progressively louder by the second.

"Looks like he may have just called in reinforcements," Bolo deduced, hurriedly turning to pick up his weapon before noticing his headband on the ground nearby. As he approached it to retrieve it, he noticed something… tiny, but glowing within the pale-yellow cloth, its light ominously dark and either black or midnight purple in color. "Huh…? I… I wonder if this is how they managed to cause me to…?" he murmured before he looked ahead to see a long row of Tinkerbats, each armed with flintlock pistols, climbing up to the summit of the mountain and immediately aiming at him as they aggressively approached. His senses pushed into high-alert, he hurriedly swiped his bandana off the flat, rocky surface and pocketed it before striking a stance of battle, his Morning Star cocked and ready. "Shantae, get ready! The second wave of…" he turned to try and warn her, but he trailed off once he'd seen that she was already hard at work.

"Hyah!" Shantae effortfully shouted, kicking a Tinkerbat armed with a scimitar in the face while another fired a round at her from its flintlock. Remembering what she'd accomplished moments earlier, Shantae whipped the incoming round while her hair was still in Fire mode. With another hot *THWACK*, the bullet was sent back while also splitting into three, ensuring that multiple Tinkerbats would pay for the mistake of one. Taking no time to celebrate, Shantae fire-whipped the Tinkerbat that originally shot at her, immediately setting it alight with flames as it was knocked away, defeated. In its place, two more Tinkerbats with scimitars came in slashing, their swipes slicing through the humid canyon air hard enough for one to hear the metal scraping against invisible particles. Shantae hastily evaded their simultaneous, haphazard swings, all the while making sure not to become so distracted that she'd lost focus on the Tinkerbats with guns… namely, the one still in the air trying to aim its sniper rifle at her.

"These guys are relentless!" she complained, still doing her best to dodge everything coming at her at light speed. She whipped bullet after bullet away from her as she was forced to practically dance across and around the arena as additional Tinkerbats joined in the effort to either cut her down to size, riddle her with holes, or create some combination of the two. Her resolve held strong, however, as the Tinkerbats' deflected rounds did half her job for her while she found sporadic opportunities to strike back. By the time the minions with swords halted their mostly-futile assault, the heroic half-genie was already on the offensive, whipping multiple of them in succession once they relented. One might've thought the young heroine was starting a mountaintop campfire, she'd set so many of her enemies ablaze. However, in the time it took her to finally relieve some of the pressure, the Tinkerbat sniper readied its rifle with its sights fixed on her. Without warning, it fired, the *BANG* ripping through the air as the round beamed toward its target.

"Finally, you decide to make your move!" she called out, punching one more Tinkerbat out and performing a spinning fire-whip to dispatch another before the crucial moment arrived. "Take THIS!" She defiantly shouted as she whipped the bullet as hard as she could. As though it were a special occasion, the blazing *THROCK* came accompanied by a definitive *PING* that reverberated through the skies as the round split into three and sped back toward the Tinkerbat at twice the speed it was fired. It had zero time to react before it was struck, dropping its rifle as it was flung way off into the horizon while its grounded comrades watched. However, it didn't take long before every one of the swarm of Tinkerbats turned their attention directly toward the perpetrator of that henchman's defeat. "If you guys keep this up, you're all gonna end up like that one! Wanna give it a try?" Shantae heroically challenged, feeling the momentum shift heavily in her direction. As though the challenge hadn't even needed to be issued, eight of the Tinkerbats (because yes, there were many, many more) pulled out at least one of every type of grenade encountered thus far. with the intent of immediately overwhelming her. "…Okay, maybe I was a LITTLE overzealous there…" she worriedly muttered as she counted off the grenades she could see in order to process some kind of plan. "So, as far as I've seen, the fire grenades can be stopped by my ice whip, the frag grenades can be stopped by my electric whip, and the flash bang grenades… Oh, wait! I never got the chance to try and counter that one! Oh, shoot! I don't know how to-!" she was about to point out in panic before two grenades came flying at her simultaneously.

"Oh, that is so unfair! You guys are cheating now!" the half-genie complained as a Tinkerbat tried to attack her while it thought she was distracted. Thinking quickly, she clashed her wristbands together once more to activate her Ice Whip before flicking her ponytail at the offending creature to freeze it solid. Afterward, she immediately looked toward the grenades descending toward her. "One Frag, one Fire… Okay, no time to lose! Here goes!" she urged herself as she sprang into action. The Thermite Grenade came first, with her kicking the frozen Tinkerbat so that it slid across the open mountain summit to bowl over a few of its peers before ice-whipping the Thermite Grenade to turn it into a mostly-harmless ice brick. Immediately after, she clapped her wrists to switch to Electric mode and whipped the incoming Frag Grenade to electrocute it in midair.

"Hey! You dropped something! Don't worry though, 'cause I'm giving it right back!" she taunted, hurriedly grasping the grenade and flinging it at the crowd of Tinkerbats and causing many of them to disperse as hastily as they could. Of course, they had little time to react before the eardrum-shattering *BOOM* of the explosive device sent shrapnel flying in every direction with blinding speed. Being within range of the device, Shantae acted quickly by summoning her Bubble just as some of the shrapnel bulleted toward her. "That was close…" she sighed with relief before she heard the *clinks* of projectiles bouncing off her shield from behind. She turned to see another, smaller group of Tinkerbats with flintlock pistols rushing toward her with malicious intent.

"You guys never learn… That's fine. I could use the exercise anyway! Bring it on!" Shantae further challenged, evidently in the full swing of enjoying testing her new powers as she charged toward them. With a devastating *CRACKLE* of her electric hair whip, she paralyzed a Tinkerbat as she began throwing roundhouses and haymakers at others before finishing off the Tinkerbat she shocked into oblivion. It was at this point that the remainder of the first couple of waves of Tinkerbats joined this new one, surrounding the half-genie at the center of the arena as they charged her all at once. Never afraid, however, Shantae deactivated and reactivated her Bubble while switching her hair back to its normal, royal-purple shade. "It's no secret by now that, as awesome as my new hair attacks are, none of them do quite as much damage as the original, classic Hair Whip," she revealed as she dug her heels in and got busy clearing out the next wave of Tinkerbats.

Now, you're probably wondering why Shantae was seeing so much action, whereas Bolo had been neglected. I assure you, this is not because there was nothing going on regarding his side of the Tinkerbat ambush. It was, however, because his side of the Tinkerbat ambush… was disproportionately smaller in comparison. While his half-genie protégé/team leader (whichever one you choose to believe) was cleaning up shop, Bolo had evidently been far lower on the list of priorities for Risky Boots's minions. Don't believe me? Well, it IS always better to show than to tell. Soooo…

"You little creeps have terrorized Sequin Land for too long! One way or another, you're going down!" our valiant eternal sidekick challenged, whipping away at the four Tinkerbats that bothered to challenge him with his Morning Star as he steadily lost ground. These Tinkerbats, however, were armed with otherworldly pistols that, unlike their normal flintlocks, needed much less time to aim, shoot, and reload. The ones who'd originally confronted him instead ran past him and toward Shantae as she handled her business. Of the four facing Bolo, two of them fired a volley of rounds, the *BANGs* alone being intimidating enough for the poor fellow to jump back and dodge the imcoming flying, flashing marbles. Just this was enough to pressure the young man, who'd only been armed with his chain mace, into stepping back while the Tinkerbats continued their approach.

"You cowards! You hide behind those guns and you won't even think to face me man-to-man!" he challenged, quickly growing frustrated as he drew closer to the edge of the mountain summit. Noticing this right away, he did his best to hold his ground. "Shoot, these guys have me cornered… What do I do to escape the immense, unfathomable pressure?" he asked, just SLIGHTLY overselling the situation at hand as he glanced toward the center of the arena to see Shantae hard at work eliminating Tinkerbats in droves. He could hear the effortful, enthusiastic shouts of the half-genie as she beat back minion after minion, coupled with explosions, sword swings, and gunshots galore. The mere sight of this both invigorated and… strangely, infuriated the young man, who'd taken it as somewhat insulting that so much of the Tinkerbats' attention was directed at Shantae and not him. Granted, he also figured that if he was going to be this sorely underestimated, then they must not have understood who he was. It was like he was no threat to them at all; something he chose to change right then and there, as he would show them who they were messing with. "Hyahh!" Bolo shouted, lunging out of the corner he'd been placed into in order to stage a counterattack like no other.

He swung his mace, the links on it extending to the mild surprise of the Tinkerbats opposing him as they jumped backward to create some distance. One of them got the bright idea to fire three rounds from its pistol at him as he dashed forward. Wordlessly, Bolo spun around the incoming bullets, his chain mace twirling around him as he maintained his speed. Just as another Tinkerbat was ready to fire at him, he concluded his evasive spin maneuver by swinging his mace as hard as he could. The weapon inexplicably extended to three times its normal length, managing to knock out one of the Tinkerbats with a definitive *PWACK* before knocking the weapon out of another one's hands in one fell swoop. The other two managed to avoid the attack completely by hopping over the weapon like they were playing a game of jump rope. Noticing this, Bolo spun once more as he advanced toward the remaining three bat soldiers, forcing them all to hop once more before he concluded his special attack.

"The tables have turned now! It's hero time!" he triumphantly declared, striking another 'heroic' pose as he readied his Morning Star once again. "You guys may not know this, but I'm Shantae's mentor," he further proclaimed (again, believe this at your own peril), causing the Tinkerbats to pause as they aimed their guns at him. Understandably thrown off, they paused to glance at each other, so as to communicate that the loudmouthed fool in front of them MUST'VE been joking. As they turned back to face him, however, their eyes lit up with intense, petrifying fear as they lowered their weapons and frightfully stepped back. "Huh? Suddenly, you guys are shaking like shaved cats in the wintertime," Bolo observed, never moving from his current stance. As one might expect, however, the young wannabe hero attributed the Tinkerbats' sudden show of cowardice to them being afraid of him after what they'd seen and heard. At that, he stood tall as he triumphantly crossed his arms, failing to notice the shadow looming behind him. "I knew you'd get the message eventually. Nobody messes with Shantae and me and lives without regretting it. I could take you all on right here and now, or I could let you guys make the wise choice and…" he continued to brazenly taunt as that shadow I mentioned a second ago began to blot out the sunlight from behind him. "Huh… it sure did get dark all of a sudden… I wonder…" he pondered, turning around to see a certain blue-skinned, skull-outfitted, intensely-angry red-eyed woman towering over him as she glared unspeakable evil rage at him. Shocked out of his wits, he spun all the way around to behold the frightening sight before him.

"R-R-R-R-R-Risky Boots!?" he stammered and stuttered as he froze in place, since it was his turn to be reasonably petrified by someone's mere presence. However, the Pirate Queen in question said nothing to him. Instead, she raised an arm high and across her chest, and within a millisecond, swatted across, leading with the back of her hand. The debilitating *SMACK* of her knuckles against poor, defenseless Bolo's face sent him reeling as he flew across the stage before flopping unceremoniously on the surface, grimacing and clutching his face in intense, burning agony. "Agh…! Ahah…! Gagh…!" Bolo groaned and choked out in unbelievable pain as he writhed on the ground.

"Pathetic…! Every bit of this embarrassing display of pure incompetence…! Pathetic!" Risky growled, beyond furious as she turned to see more of her men getting their butts handed to them by the very brat that she'd set out to preemptively eliminate. Having seen more than enough, the Pirate Queen made her presence known to the rest of the group. "AVAST, MEN! STAND DOWN! NOW!" And with that, every single Tinkerbat in the vicinity froze in their tracks before hurriedly scattering to the perimeter of the mountain summit.

"Huh? What's going on…?" Shantae pondered while still in battle mode, wondering why the Tinkerbats suddenly called off their relentless assault while she was in the groove of tearing them a new one. She relaxed her stance, scanning the arena to see that all the Tinkerbats she didn't defeat were suddenly standing as tall as they could, not even moving a muscle as they did their best impressions of statues. She also noticed Bolo on the ground nearby, hunched over on the ground as he groaned and moaned, appearing as though he'd been severely injured. "Bolo!" she called out in worry, ready to rush over to him before catching sight of the very reason her injured friend was in the state she'd seen him in. "Risky Boots!" she called out as she turned her full attention to the sneering pirate woman standing before her.

"We meet again, you obnoxious little wench," Risky scornfully 'greeted' her arch-nemesis as she crossed her arms and shot Shantae a most disapproving stare. "Once again, you've managed to completely muck things up instead of lying down and submitting like you know you should."

"What did you do to Bolo!?" Shantae defiantly questioned, angered by the sight of her best friend in such horrible despair. "I'll make you-!"

"Who?" Risky asked in mild confusion, unaware of who Shantae was referring to. Caught by surprise, Shantae incredulously cocked an eyebrow.

"My friend who's over there on the ground!" she pointed out, emphasized by her pointing toward Bolo. "I know you had something to do with that, and-!"

"Oh, that reminds me, brat…" Risky interrupted again, seemingly uninterested in discussing the matter further. "Your boyfriend. What happened to him?" she asked, causing her least favorite half-genie to gawk at her in absolute discombobulation.

"What!?" Shantae bellowed, her anger suddenly turned into a mix of anger and mild embarrassment. "Ew, no! Bolo is not my boyfriend! That's disgusting!" she added, unknowingly insulting her friend in the process.

"Not that worthless clown, you moron!" the buxom buccaneer insulted both of them, further stinging the young man as the pain in his face subsided just enough for him to turn and sit up. "The other guy! Where is he!?"

"I… don't have a boyfriend," the half-genie explained. "I… never have. Who are you talking about? Aashiq?" she asked, at this point making it somewhat unclear as to if she was purposely avoiding mentioning a certain someone or if she really didn't know who Risky was talking about when she described the individual with the term 'boyfriend.' "I'm honestly surprised you'd even kn—!"

"I don't have time for your idiotic games, you little whelp!" she barked as she cut her archenemy off once again. "Where is that filthy mongrel!?"

"Filthy mongrel?" Shantae questioned again, at this point certifiably uncertain of who (or what) Risky was asking about. "Now we're talking about dogs? I don't own a dog either, Risky. Are you okay? Did you not get enough sleep after the last time we met?" At that Risky let out an exasperated sigh as she slapped her hand to her forehead to massage it before she responded.

"…You think you're so cute, acting like I don't know by now that you and that fool Tayshan are locked in a spicy little fling of a relationship," she revealed, sending a massive shockwave through Shantae the likes of which the flabbergasted half-genie had never felt in her life. "Masking his whereabouts won't save him from my inextinguishable wrath!"

"WHAT!?" Shantae practically screamed, her eyes wider than the moon and her face glowing so red that it looked like she might've come down with a case of spontaneous sunburn. "Where the heck did you get THAT ridiculous idea!? Tayshan and I are NOT dating! At all!" she voluminously denied, her stomach erupting with butterflies so huge and so frantic that I almost thought she might've spat a few Monarchs and Swallowtails from her mouth.

"Humph. Tell that to some of the folks over in Scuttle Town, Genie's Hem, and Oasis Town," she incredulously challenged, revealing that she'd been to at least some of the locations previously visited by the ponytailed heroine and her currently-absent sidekick. "I'd assumed at first that you two must've been busy uselessly trying to track me down, but it seems you two have been even busier getting nice and comfy with each other," she added with a taunting snicker. "In the meantime, you've made yourselves the talk of multiple towns while you've saved me some valuable time by distracting each other. My, how risqué!"

"B-but those are just… those are just rumors!" Shantae argued, every bit flustered as she tried to take a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Anyway, Risky, what are you-!?"

"Yeah, and I'm a block of moldy cheese," she disbelievingly deflected the assertion. "There's even an idea floating around that the reason you're even alive right now is because on the Kitschy Quilt Desert, you were saved because you had to-!"

"Waste a lot of time searching for a spare antidote!" Shantae quickly cut in, wanting absolutely NO ONE to mention a certain incident that continued to haunt her like a recurring dream. "W-we had to search around for a spare antidote! That's all! Whatever you heard about him kissing me in order to cure my poisoning after I got stung in my lower lip by Al is pure hearsay!" she tried to lie, though she ironically sold herself down the river with her preemptive, super-detailed remark.

"What!? Seriously!?" Risky bellowed in thoroughly-amused astonishment as she began raucously laughing at Shantae, nearly falling over in disbelief. "I'd only heard you had to be the one playing 'damsel in distress' for once, but THAT is SO much juicier! Thanks for that scandalous reveal! So poor little Shantae had to be saved from certain death by making out with her one true love like in some sappy kids' story, huh? How adorably convenient, considering that antidote had to be applied by mouth! Ha! Even more hilarious that you just tried to lie to me about it all!" she continued to tease, cackling as she did so.

"Whoa, whoa… Shantae, you-?" Bolo tried to inquire, at this point morbidly curious about what he'd just heard.

"No! No, no, no, no!" the poor young woman panicked, even more embarrassed that she'd let slip possibly the most humiliating secret she'd had to keep thus far. And who better to reveal it to than her worst enemy. At this point, Shantae had wished this was a bad dream and that she'd wake up in bed the next morning to the relief that none of this was real, but… yeah, we definitely know this wasn't a dream. Too many witnesses. "Risky, it isn't funny!" Shantae complained, shaking her fists in total embarrassment. "I could've been seriously hurt, first of all! Second, he's not my boyfriend! Third, you still haven't answered my question of what you're even doing here!" Shantae tried to change the subject, her breath getting progressively heavier as she watched the Pirate Queen laughing in her face. After a few moments, Risky eventually calmed down, though it's worth note that not a single Tinkerbat joined in on the festivity out of fear of Risky's proclivity to switch her mood at any time without warning. They remained stationary around the perimeter of the arena.

"Ah, that's actually perfect," Risky revealed as she wiped a laughter-induced tear from her eye, much to the shock of Shantae once again.

"What? What do you mean, 'perfect'?"

"My original plan was to lure you and Tayshan to this canyon, have my men ambush you, take him hostage, and then force him to take you down once you got here before I had my way with him," she revealed, answering two questions in one fell swoop. "Sadly, you brought this hopeless buffoon with you instead," she added, referring to Bolo. "I was hoping to use that little love connection between you and that handsy mutt to really make you both suffer as you unwillingly ripped each other to pieces," she further revealed, much to Shantae's shock as she pretty much solidified that she thought of Tay as little more than a dog needing training in the worst way imaginable.

"…You're kidding me. You'd really stoop THAT low this time?" the genie girl asked, appalled by the very idea as she thought about just how bad it was just for Bolo to have been brainwashed by Risky. She was so taken aback that a great deal of her previous embarrassment disappeared in an instant.

"Now, that's just rude. I wouldn't call it 'stooping low,' so much as I'd like to consider it using my enemies' tools to my advantage. Remember; the first step to destroying your enemy is knowing your enemy. Regardless, that was the plan to a 'T.' Still, I failed to account for the sheer magnitude your inconceivable strokes of dumb luck. There was no predicting you'd wind up bringing someone else to this little surprise party," Risky admitted with a nonchalant shrug. "Bonus points to you for bringing someone so insignificant and so forgettable that it'd be a waste of time and resources even paying them any mind," she bitterly and coldly expressed, shaking Bolo to the core as he silently listened on. "Looks like I'll have to rely on plan 'B' to snatch up your lover…"

"Why do you have it out against Tay-?" the agitated heroine tried to demand to know, her worry about her extraterrestrial comrade growing exponentially in tandem with her anxiety over not having spoken to him for a full two days before this point. It was as he'd previously stated last time she spoke to him; Risky Boots indeed had a MAJOR bone to pick with him, and she was looking to pick it like the location of her next merciless conquest.

"I also intentionally made this place a giant, festering, unforgiving death trap with nothing but the deadliest hazards in your wake, just HOPING you'd slip up at some point and do my dirty work for me," Risky continued to monologue as she changed the subject, callously cutting Shantae off again.

"Why, you…!" Shantae growled, not only infuriated by the news that this entire journey an elaborate, murderous ruse, but also concerned about the rapidly-elevating tricks the notorious swashbuckler was pulling to try and gain an edge.

"Clearly, I'm not trying hard enough. And much as I'd like to challenge you to a duel to the death right here and now, I've still got more important things to do… as you'll soon come to find out," she foreshadowed, implying that she had only begun with making the remainder of Shantae's latest series of escapades a living horror. "Alas, I think we've all wasted enough time here. Wouldn't you agree?" Risky asked with a wrathful scowl as she turned and raised a hand up high as though she were about to give a signal. With a point of a finger, her men immediately and hastily began scaling down the mountainside, where her ship could be seen idling near a heavily-vegetated coastline in the distance far below. Risky was just about to see herself out when…

"Where do you think you're going!? I'm not gonna let you just up and waltz away from me again after that!" Shantae challenged, rushing toward her enemy with reckless abandon; something the Pirate Queen hadn't expected, but welcomed nonetheless as she turned to face her. A sizable portion of her men paused, ready to interfere. Acknowledging this, Risky momentarily turned to them and gave them a wordless, one-handed instruction to halt. As such, the Tinkerbats that didn't flee the scene at her behest stood by and watched on as their leader took yet another rare opportunity to get her hands dirty. Thus, we commence our latest Boss Battle…

 _ **SHANTAE VS. RISKY BOOTS: REIGNITED RED-HOT RIVALRY!**_

Shantae made her attack a swift and brutal one, as she opted to begin her assault with a series of calculated hair whips at top speed. Risky, unfazed and unimpressed, dodged each of the follicle-based attacks with surprising ease as she began a defensive approach of backing up to lure her half-genie adversary in. Shantae relentlessly pursued Risky around the mountaintop, lashing out with whip after whip in her valiant effort to thwart her greatest enemy when she had the chance. Risky remained unarmed and on an ominously calm defensive, cackling as she continued dodging hair whip after hair whip. Bolo and the Tinkerbats watched on in anticipation, wondering how a sudden hero-versus-villain scuffle of such a dangerous caliber would unfold. It wasn't long, however, before Shantae grew frustrated with Risky's lack of effort. "What's the matter? This isn't like you to run away from a fight!" the half-genie observed as she let loose another two hair whips that Risky dodged by spinning around her opponent to wind up behind her.

"Me? Run from you? Hah! You never were much of a comedian, genie girl, and I wouldn't pick today to start if I were you," Risky taunted once more as Shantae turned and continued her pursuit. Dancing around the arena, the two women played this violent game of tag with Risky in full control of the situation as she continued to make Shantae ravenously and angrily chase her around.

"If you don't call this running, Risky, then maybe you should think about what a 'fight' is!" Shantae dared as she pressed on, her attacks continuing to miss one after another. "You haven't even drawn your sword! What's the hang-up!?"

"I suppose you should know by now that, since a certain semi-unfortunate occurrence a short while ago, I've reintroduced myself to the fun of using my most dangerous weapons; my own two beautiful hands and my own two lovely legs. Case in point…!" Risky shot back as she suddenly stopped her retreat, allowing Shantae to whip at her once more. Dodging it with ease, she ducked in toward the half-genie, her leg folded and cocked backward. With a forceful, twisting thrust of her body, Risky unleashed a powerful knee strike that crashed into her adversary's abdomen with a jarring, echoing *THUMP* that nearly knocked all the wind out of her. Risky followed up with a callous, full-range, backhanded *SLAP* of her hand against Shantae's face, sending the unfortunate heroine stumbling back and almost falling backward.

"Shantae!" Bolo called out, ready to jump in before he heard various clicking noises coming from multiple Tinkerbats. As he peered over to inspect the noise, he noticed the entire group that stuck around for the fight aiming various otherworldly weapons at him. "Darn it…! They're daring me to step in," he worried observed, reading their message; the message being that if he tried to interfere, it would cost him his life. Knowing just enough about the situation to understand it'd be a deadly lose-lose one if he chose to try and help before the appropriate time came, he remained anxious on the sidelines.

Meanwhile, Shantae had been hunched over, clutching her stomach in unprecedented agony as she put forth her best effort to recover.

"Agh…! Hah…!" Shantae heavily breathed, feeling every bit of the residual impact of Risky's knee in her gut.

"Still think I'm just running away from you now, little girl?" Risky taunted as she reveled in her advantage. "It's amusing that you'd be so foolish and naïve to think I wouldn't learn how to read your obnoxious moves by this point. Got anything else? Or shall I finish the job here and now?" she further ripped into her, daring her to keep trying. Shantae, glaring hotly at her disreputable opponent, said nothing as she prepared her next attack. With a clash of her bracelets, her hair lit ablaze with burning fury. "Oh? Well, would you look at that?" she observed, hiding her surprise at the heroine's new ability. "You've found a way to make this warm-up a little less predictable. Interesting…"

"Warm-up!? I could roast you if you get too cocky! Hrraaah!" Shantae warned, starting up another string of fire-haired whips, mixed in with sporadic punches as Risky continued to dodge while refusing to counter. Again, Risky lured Shantae around the arena as she watched the young maiden intently. Though she wouldn't outright admit it, she did begin to feel some of the pressure as her opponent's fiery whips brought about an intense heat that seemed unseasonable even for the hot, muggy atmosphere of the mountain they were fighting on. Additionally surprising to Risky was Shantae's chosen method of staging an offensive. Of all things Shantae was known to do in a fight, punching was not one of them. Even odder, her punches were coming with alarming ferocity and speed the likes of which Risky had never expected.

"You've picked up a couple new tricks, huh?" Risky commented, maintaining an eerie calmness as she remained on the defensive. Just as she tried to accommodate, however, she was grazed by one of the half-genie's fire whips, the *THWAP* of which scorched her shoulder upon impact. "Yeowch…!" she groaned, distracted by the sudden burst of searing pain. Shantae found a slight advantage just from that moment.

"Gotcha now! Take this!" Shantae valiantly shouted as she, with deadly precision, threw a nasty straight into the Pirate Queen's solar plexus, winding her. Quick to follow up, Shantae unleashed three consecutive fire whips that struck Risky's face and abdomen with incinerating intensity, causing her to stumble back as she quickly snapped out of her dazed stupor and did her best to ignore the throes of physical torment she'd been dealt. Shantae, wanting to keep the momentum in her favor, dashed toward Risky again, lashing out with one more fire whip.

"Oh, no you don't!" Risky challenged, side-stepping the attack before throwing a heavy-handed, full-range cross that struck Shantae's cheek with a hard *POCK* and sent her stumbling back again before she reoriented herself. "You're getting ahead of yourself, you filthy rugrat!"

"Haaaah!" Shantae roared in a mix of pain and frustration, choosing to try and reapply the intense pressure she had on Risky as they coursed through another round of the Pirate Queen dodging the half-genie's attacks while said half-genie hounded her. As this display went on for another solid minute, however, Risky again grew bored while Shantae grew steadily more frustrated. "Why are you just dodging me again!? All that smack talk, and you won't even try to attack me after that lucky shot once you're back on defense!?"

"Quite frankly, you haven't given me much reason to take you seriously at this point," Risky taunted with a snicker. "You think just lighting your hair on fire and throwing in some punches is going to do much good against someone who knows your general battle style by now? Don't delude yourself, you idiotic brat!"

"Oh, so you're looking for a little more variety?" Shantae sardonically asked as she paused, clashing her wristbands together to switch to her blue-haired ice whip. "I've got the coolest of tricks to show you, then!" she challenged, lashing at Risky again. Though surprised once more, Risky remained calm. This time, Risky blocked the attack with her fist, immediately noticing that said appendage was suddenly encased in a block of ice. "Gotcha!"

"Indeed, you have…" Risky pensively observed, studying her icy fist with barely a smidgen of concern. "Not gonna lie, that's pretty chilling," she matched her enemy's pun with another. "But, you're still ice-cold on really surprising me at all. At this rate, I'm starting to think I severely overestimated you," she brashly taunted.

"Keep talking big, Risky! I'll make you regret it!" Shantae roared, beginning another wave of icy hair whips, this time throwing in powerful rushing kicks. At this point, Risky was made to put forth a more noticeable effort, as she hadn't expected the half-genie to rely on more than her hair to continue attacking her. She blocked a few of the kicks she couldn't find the space necessary to dodge, though she continued to try and run the half-genie ragged while refusing to counter… that is, until she identified a perfect opportunity in the form of Shantae stepping forward to deliver a punishing side kick. Risky, with a dastardly smile on her face, also stepped forward, blocking the kick with her opposing arm.

"Hrrrah!" Risky shouted as she wrapped her arm around Shantae's ankle and, in one fluent motion, stepped forward and delivered a crushing hook to the half-genie's face using the fist that was encased in ice. The disturbing *CRUNCH* of the ice as it shattered upon impact sent waves of agony through Shantae's face as she was flung backward, landing on her back before quickly sitting up, brushing her cheek as she growled in intense anger. Snickering confidently, Risky shook and flexted her newly-thawed hand to warm it back up. "Want some more, sweetheart? Or was that last maneuver a little too cold for you?"

"You…!" Shantae growled again, at this point furious with Risky's insipid games. "That's it! You wanna play rough!?" she rhetorically asked, quickly getting up and clicking her bracelets one more time to turn her hair blonde while bolts of electricity coursed through it. "Then let's play rough! I'll make this next attack an electrifying one for you!"

"Goodness, how many colors can you turn that ridiculous hair of yours!? Purple, red, blue, yellow… What next!? Pink for Cotton Candy!? Green for Grass!?" Risky shouted, unable to keep her calm in the wake of her adversary showing off her newest combat tactics. Seriously, how many tricks did this little brat have up her sleeve!? "Not that it matters… You've got a couple new moves, but you won't overwhelm me so easily this time! I'll make sure of it!" At this point, however, Bolo picked up on Risky's faltering façade and oddly-passive remark (by comparison to how violent she normally was) and noticed something wrong with how… relatively mild this battle had been, to the point where her Tinkerbats had not even tried to interfere themselves while also making sure he didn't jump in. It was at this point that he'd put two and two together.

"Shantae, stop!" Bolo called out from the sidelines, realizing something that his comrade didn't. "She's playing you to get a read on your abilities! If you keep this up, she'll learn all your techniques! That's why she's holding back!" Alas, the young man's wise words appeared to fall on deaf ears as Shantae began yet another relentless elemental barrage.

"Let's see you try and stop this one! Haarraaah!" Shantae challenged, bravely engaging Risky Boots in yet another round of hand-to-hair-and-hand combat. Shantae started off with a surprisingly-coordinated, yet speedy rush of punches and kicks while Risky continued dodging and blocking attacks as they came. Noticing right away that her opponent wasn't using her hair this time around, Risky quickly switched her approach to where she'd become just as ruthlessly aggressive as her loathsome opponent. Immediately, the two hotly-competitive feuding women locked themselves in a sudden, no-holds-barred frenzy of punches, kicks, elbows, knees, and the kitchen sink. The speed and power of their frantic melee increased to where one could hardly follow who was doing what as they relentlessly swung and kicked away at each other while still whirling around the arena like a collective humanoid tornado.

"Whoa…!" Bolo commented as he watched Shantae and Risky try to kill each other, the vibrations from their attacks permeating the atmosphere as though one could feel (and even see) the shockwaves from each successive, titanic blow each of the superpowered maidens traded with one another. "When did they both get so… strong…?"

"Now we're talkin', you uppity little runt!" Risky remarked with utmost sass and sudden excitement, dodging a low kick and blocking a hook aimed at her torso before reacting with an uppercut that Shantae leaned back to dodge. Risky never let up, however, letting loose a flurry of jabs and knee kicks of her own as she pushed Shantae into an evasive stance. "Show me what you're really made of!"

"One way or another, I'm gonna take you down!" Shantae gladly accepted the challenge despite being pushed back. Risky voraciously increased the speed and strength of her already-rapid hooks, crosses, and low sweeps with the intent to decimate the half-genie the very instant she slipped up. This time, it was Risky's turn to force her enemy into a corner as Shantae's onslaught relented in favor of keeping her face from becoming the Siren of Suffering's new punching bag. Relying on her reflexes, Shantae began a bout of almost-exclusively dodging and blocking Risky's attacks, though she felt the sting of each blow that landed. Risky managed to land sporadic, nonconsecutive punches across her body and face, each hit feeling like a sack of bricks catapulted at her at mach speed. Risky made sure to mix it up as much as she could, adding in thrust kicks, slides, and side kicks alongside her barrage of fists to keep Shantae on the ropes. "Wow…! Now that you stopped messing around, you're even more aggressive than ever…! I can also tell you've gotten much stronger…!" she commented as she narrowly ducked under a high roundhouse before lunging backward to avoid being chin-checked by a deceptively-swift uppercut.

"And you'd better believe I'll end you the second the chance comes, genie girl!" Risky shot back, keeping the pressure on as best as she could while she belligerently fired off attacks that mostly found themselves blocked or avoided completely. Both girls began to break a visible sweat, panting heavily as they both ran low on steam. "It's all just a matter of… when…!" Risky paused to throw a vicious haymaker at Shantae, who'd weaved around it as hard as she could. "…You…!" Risky continued, twisting her body to release a full-range forward roundhouse that Shantae blocked using both her forearms. The force behind the reverberating *THWACK* of Risky's shin against her bracelets coursing through her arms as she was sent staggering back, feeling every bit of the devastating kick. Risky wasn't done, however, as she bulleted toward her enemy with the intent to finish her once and for all. "…Let your guard down! HAAAH!" Risky roared as she cocked a fist back, her hand glowing with an ominous black-and-purple aura that immediately clued Shantae in that Risky meant business.

Within a millisecond, Risky leapt high into the air, the energy-infused fist still cocked back and ready to murder a fool that wasn't prepared. Her curvy form was nearly overshadowed by the luminescent sunlight above, though Shantae made it a point to at least track the buccaneer's Dark Magic-infused fist.

"This is the end!" Risky shouted as she descended upon her enemy like a hungry eagle on an unsuspecting fish, eager to end the fight with one decisive punch.

"She's really serious all of a sudden…!" Shantae breathlessly observed as she squinted to keep her eye on the birdie trying to erase her from existence. Risky was indeed smart for using the sunlight to her advantage to mask her movement, Shantae had to admit. However, the half-genie herself was no slouch. "I've gotta make sure I time this right, or else she'll wipe me out… Gonna move… right… about… now!" she yelled as she leapt out of the way of Risky's descending fist, evidently having calculated the exact moment she'd needed to move to avoid being victimized.

In that moment, Risky came down HARD, her fist smashing so deeply into the flat, stony surface with such a literal earth-shattering *BOOM* that it caused what felt like a miniature earthquake throughout the mountain. Bolo and the Tinkerbats that bore witness to this thoroughly-flabbergasting show of strength were rocked off their feet, the tremors from the blow were so monumental. Risky had also punched the ground so hard, that she sent jagged rock shards and boulders flying upward while the surface itself destabilized. Massive cracks suddenly appeared all over the summit as the Pirate Queen's fist plunged wrist-deep into the spot where she struck. Dust kicked up, almost enshrouding the entire arena, though Shantae kept her eyes on the prize.

"Now's my chance! I'll give you an aftershock to remember!" the electrified half-genie quipped as she dashed forward while Risky was recovering from her attack. Just as Risky managed to pull her fist out of the ground, Shantae struck with a frightening *ZAP* of her ponytail, though Risky just barely managed to dodge as she hopped backward out of the smoke cloud. Shantae wasn't finished yet, however. Half-expecting her arch-nemesis to avoid the attack, the young heroine kicked it up a notch by taking off toward Risky at full speed as she landed. "Haaaaraaaaaahh!" Shantae effortfully hollered as she cocked a fist back, stepped in close, and dug her foot into the newly-cracked ground.

"What the-!?" Risky was about to remark before an astonishing *THRASH* of a fist made its impact with her wide-open abdomen. "Haagh…!" she choked out, the wind knocked out of her by a horrifying uppercut launched by her most obnoxious enemy. Making things even more harrowing was that Shantae had rammed her fist hard enough into Risky's gut that one could swear they'd be able to see the imprint of the half-genie's knuckles in the Pirate Queen's back for a split second.

"Yah!" Shantae shouted once again, stepping back to spin three times, striking Risky across the face with a debilitating series of *CRACKLEs* and *ZAPs* of her electric hair-whip. Risky winced as she reeled back, though the electricity ripping through her body momentarily trapped her in place before she could fall. Shantae followed up with one more spin, though she spun around her target, planting a leg behind both of Risky's while hooking her arm around her neck. With a single, fluent motion, Shantae lifted her leg up and back while forcing Risky backward by pushing forward with her arm. Shantae threw Risky to the ground with a hard, heavy *THUD* just as the paralysis effect began to wear off. For a moment, the Matriarch of Madness lay still, a look of utter surprise painted onto her face as she looked at the sky. Not one to be done in quite so easily, however, Risky gingerly sat up after a moment of gathering her thoughts, trying to catch her breath as she was hit with a most painful case of déjà vu.

"…That move… That insufferable move…!" Sequin Land's favorite villainess growled through her intense abdominal and facial pain with bolstered anger as she clutched her aching, bruised stomach with one hand. She hastily pulled herself up to her feet through the waves of residual agony she'd experienced, growing more enraged by the second. As it appeared, she knew Shantae's latest maneuver all too well, reminiscing about the last time such a technique was used on her.

"I've learned a couple of martial arts techniques in my time, too, in case you were wondering…" Shantae gloated with a confident smirk through heavy breaths of her own, proud of her crafty sneak attack as she struck fighting stance of putting her dukes up and bouncing on her toes. "Of course, I put my own spin on that one. No pun intended. I've gotten stronger as well, as you can see."

"…Grr… You and that insolent dog you call a boyfriend are both mine…!" Risky ominously threatened, glaring with nothing but unmitigated hatred at the half-genie as she menacingly pointed a finger at her. "And you know what, genie girl? Just for that, I'm gonna hunt him down first and make him wish he'd never met you…! And then when you come to try and save him… I'll make you suffer, too!"

"…Whoa, what?" Shantae asked, slightly unnerved by Risky's threat. Before she could inquire about the Mistress of Misery's threat, however, Risky raised her hand and gave a signal with one hand while covering her face with the other. Within a second, her Tinkerbats launched a series of canisters toward Shantae and Bolo that immediately began hissing as they shrouded the ruined arena in smoke. Both of our heroes put forth their best efforts to try and prevent the Pirate Mistress from following through on her latest trick, though they soon found themselves overwhelmed by the billowing fumes as they both entered fits of violent coughing as they tried to fan the smoke away. "Darn you, Risky Boots…!" Shantae cursed, none too pleased with her archenemy's escape tactic. Nevertheless, the only thing that either the half-genie or her mace-wielding sidekick could process was the sounds of footsteps scurrying off in a certain direction before the sounds suddenly came to a halt.

"Shoot…!" Bolo also cursed as he gained enough of his composure to begin twirling his mace as fast as he could, using it as a makeshift fan to blow away the fumes once the incessant hissing stopped. He was mildly successful, as he'd blown enough of the fumes away that the arena and his partner were at least partially visible. Shantae, noticing Bolo's maneuver, walked toward him while fanning smoke out of her face and kicking away any nearby canisters to aid in clearing the stony crest of the mountain of any smoke. Sadly, Risky and the Tinkerbats had long since departed by the time the air was clear enough for them breathe, much less speak to one another without gagging.

"She got away… again," the half-genie lamented, groaning with disappointment as she clashed her bracelets together to turn her hair back to its normal violet. In that same moment, the Stage Clear platform manifested in the middle of the battle-damaged plateau.

"Yeah, she did…" Bolo agreed, equally as disheartened by their failure to thoroughly defeat and capture Risky. "Sorry, Shantae…"

"It isn't your fault, Bolo," she assured as she patted him on the back. "I was just about to turn the tables on her, and she knew it, so she quit the battle before I got the chance to follow through."

"Thanks… but I mean… I'm… sorry for not being good enough," he confessed, taking the situation a bit harder than she'd thought. Hearing the dejection in his tone, accompanied by his head hanging low, Shantae quickly took notice.

"What's wrong, kiddo?" she asked him, worried as she kept her hand on his back. "You seem… a lot less excited than I thought you'd be to have completed a quest with me. We even kinda-sorta beat Risky Boots, too!"

"That's just it, Shantae… I… I don't feel like I completed the quest with you…" he further revealed as he looked up at her with a forlorn expression. "Nor do I feel like I had any part in you overwhelming Risky. I mean, I got kidnapped, brainwashed, and forced to fight you. I said all those unbelievably horrible things to you, too… You know I would never even THINK of, much less actually say anything of the sort to you in my right mind, right?"

"Don't sweat that. I know it was just Risky's mind control talking by now. It actually kind of reminds me of the guy I fought on the Kitschy Quilt Desert," she drew the comparison, though she soon wondered if the Pirate Queen had employed the same method of brainwashing on both Bolo and Alsumu. "Judging from that, I can only guess whatever she's using makes the victim uncharacteristically mean, among other things. So, no hard feelings, friend."

"Thanks for your forgiveness. I'm still not sure what they did to me, though…" he pondered, pulling his headband from his pocket, where the tiny crystal shards previously embedded in it fell to the floor of the arena. Both Shantae and Bolo examined them as their ominous glow faded, and the crystals themselves turned a cold, ashen gray. At that, Bolo spoke further. "I almost forgot… I found these rocks in my headband after it fell off. I know I never put them there, so I don't have a clue what they are or how they got there."

"Looks like some form of jewel… Just like last time…" Shantae investigated, letting go of Bolo to kneel and pick some of the shards up. As she rose back up, she examined the now-neutralized fragments carefully as the fledgling hero beside her watched.

"Do you know what that is?" he asked, uncertain of what she was trying to determine.

"I can't say for sure, but I've got my suspicions that these jewel fragments were tainted with Dark Magic…" she hypothesized, storing the shards in her inventory before turning her attention back to her bummed-out buddy. "They had the same effect on you that the other jewel had on the Boss in the desert, but these don't look quite like that one. I'll have to ask Uncle if he can figure something out about it."

"Understood… I guess. Still, Shantae, I… I should've done better," he conveyed, bringing the conversation back to the topic of his dissatisfaction with his performance. "Far better… I can't believe I let Risky's minions get the drop on me and take complete control of me like that…! I feel so… ashamed."

"Don't beat yourself up so much, bud!" Shantae tried to interject to cheer him up. "The important thing is that you snapped out of it and avoided being completely overtaken by the influence of these strange gems."

"By hitting myself in the face with my own weapon. Yeah, it's a real treat," he flatly clarified. "But still, even after I came to my senses, all I really got to do was fight a couple lousy Tinkerbats before Risky snuck up on me and slapped me so hard, I swear she shaved three years off my life clock…" he lamented, rubbing the swollen cheek Risky slapped.

"Oh, Bolo… Well, I mean, it could've been worse," she tried again to console, though she found herself at a stunning poverty for ways to spin the situation in a positive direction regarding her comrade. "She could've wound up capturing you and hauling you off, or… or you could've wound up never snapping out of the trance you were under… or…. Um…"

"I get it by now, Shantae. No need to patronize me," he stopped her, sighing as he wallowed in his disappointment. "You still think I'm deadweight, and there's no skirting past that at this point. All I did was prove it."

"What!? No, of course not!" she contested. "Why would I think so lowly of one of my best friends?"

"I could see it in a few things; namely, in how you and Risky talked about me before you started fighting," he explained, a slight tinge of frustration in his tone. "Not once did you defend me on anything she said about me being a useless, worthless, insignificant clown that wasn't even worth her time."

"You can't take anything Risky says to heart, dude, and you know that," she challenged. "Risky's rotten to the core, so she'll say whatever she wants, whenever she wants. It's a bonus to her if she manages to get under your skin. I mean, she's called me every name in the book to try and belittle, demean, and/or humiliate me. Yet, none of it fazes me, because I don't let it. You can't let her mean-spirited comments get to you."

"Sure, but even she has a reason, other than trying to hurt other people, for saying what she says. Shoot, she doesn't even know my name, even though we've met numerous times since we've been dealing with her. Plus, the way things panned out today was the same as pretty much every other time."

"To be fair, she doesn't know anyone's names except mine… and… apparently, a certain someone else," she alluded, purposely (and ironically) neglecting to mention the other individual by name. "And even then, she barely ever calls me by my name. It's always 'brat,' this, and 'pipsqueak,' that, despite the fact that I'm a grown woman… well, almost. I'm surprised she even still remembers my name. As for what you said about every other time… What do you mean?"

"Well, whenever you go off to tackle a quest by yourself, I ask you to tag along, and you tell me 'no,' and then when I come anyway, something always happens to me that knocks me out of the picture while you handle things on your own. It's happened so many times at this point, I've lost count."

"That's… true, but I'm not sure if I'm fully following."

"What's there not to follow? I'm the only one who always gets left behind, is what I'm saying. I don't want to keep being the only one who isn't taken seriously, but I also kind of get it now that I need to do better. But then, that kind of brings me to another point; that point being that the only way that I CAN do better is if I play a more active role in our crusade to stop Risky."

"Okay, but Bolo, you have to understand that these aren't just fun little field trips I go on," the half-genie countered, understanding his point. "These quests are filled to the brim with all kinds of peril, danger, and deadly threats that I've gotta be aware of at all times, or else I'll wind up hurting myself or worse. And while I learned my lesson that I should trust you and the others more, that doesn't mean I'm willing to put you all in harm's way for the sake of hanging out while we explore killer environments like this place. This trip alone alerted me to just how much of a threat Risky is not only to me, but to Sequin Land in general. Why would I want to bring you into a situation where you might certifiably be killed?"

"I get that, but that's no excuse. I mean, Sky does her thing with giving you pointers and rides to and from places like this, and you have no issues with her. You've even let her tag along with you on two trips, and evidently, she's perfectly fine. That Rottytops girl has flat-out sold you down the river once before and has just plain gotten in the way at other times. Yet, she barely gets any flak for it AND you still let her cooperate with you without a problem. I mean, I know the three of us did eventually learn how to work with each other long enough to travel through your mind to save you from the effects of Risky's Magic Reverser but come on!" he griped, though Shantae didn't really like the way he conveyed his thoughts.

"And what do Sky and Rotty have to do with you feeling left behind?"

"It's not that they have anything to do with it. It's that when they offer to help, you don't ever say anything to them that sounds like 'no.' At least, not to my knowledge. If anything, you go right to Sky when you need help with something. When I offer, you've always told me in one way or another that I shouldn't bother. It's to the point where I seriously question how much you trust me; even now."

"So, what are you getting at? That it's my fault your luck didn't turn out so great this time around? Or any time before that?" she questioned, growing mildly annoyed with his complaints.

"No, no, of course not. What I'm getting at is that it's clear you and Sky have little to no faith in my ability to contribute. Today was just a wake-up call; even if you caved and said 'yes' to me coming along this time. I mean, I've been following your uncle Mimic's teachings on finding my 'real purpose,' but I don't want to sit aside and watch as the rest of our group saves the day time and time again. I want to be right there with you, taking down bad guys and protecting our home from evil. I can't do that by learning menial handiwork skills, being a lab assistant, and pretending to be happy with being mediocre. That's why I'm trying to get better at exploring and fighting crime. I want you to believe in me."

"Bolo, listen," Shantae began, approaching her despondent friend and laying a hand on his shoulder. "Sky and I value you as much as we value each other, even though we may not always say it," she explained, thinking of how to turn his sour mood around. "We've all been together through thick and thin since we were kids. If we didn't consider you a valuable asset to the team we make, then why would we even still be friends? I just don't want to see you or any of my friends get hurt, y'know? These quests are no joke, and it's hard to get a real grasp on just how difficult any one of them will be until I'm going through it. Today's a prime example. Still, I understand what you're saying about my adventures. You've also got a point on how I should trust you in particular a bit more. You've definitely had your shining moments. Don't forget that. I know I haven't."

"Yeah, but a couple of shining moments is nothing in the grander scheme of things. Just from the last few adventures you've been on, I'm already seeing that you guys don't think that highly of me."

"Don't think that highly of you? Hey, hey, where's all this coming from?"

"From recent experience, Shantae, like I said. I mean, when I ran into you and that Tayshan guy last week, the first thing you did after he shoved me away and stole my mace was run off and tag along with him, rather than stop him and at least tell him to give it back," he explained, setting up to make a point about his inclusion (or lack thereof) in his best friend's quests. "Then, the next time I even hear from you or about you, Sky's telling me that you not only swept through the Scuttle Town Forest with that dude, but you also teamed up with her AND this mystery man to clean up shop on Naga Mountain. Don't even get me started on what I heard about the other places you've been to…"

"Okay, but Bolo, I don't get to just choose what day and time I go on my adventures, or what conditions are set. Plus-!"

"And you know, I can't ignore the fact that not only has that dude apparently been at your side on just about every adventure instead of barfing in your shadow like I always am despite the fact that he's supposedly new to this entire planet, you've even let the likes of those Ammonian Army girls and even that annoying, loudmouthed octopus team up with you before I was even a thought! Meanwhile, Sky's also doing much more than usual, and pretty much rubbed it in my face last time I talked to her! She didn't even like the idea of partnering up on your quests before!"

"I'm hearing what you're saying, and I get it. I'm sorry for not actively seeking you out," she apologized. "What do you want me to do, though? Like I said, I don't completely control when and where I explore, and there's so much going on this time around that, yeah, I am getting a lot more help than I have before. Sky's helping me look for Risky's hideout, despite the fact that we just ran into her here. We're trying to stop her before she really gets going with laying waste to Sequin Land, because she's much more dangerous than ever. Speaking of Risky Boots, she also stole something very important from Twitch and Vinegar, so they're in on basically a truce with us, so they can get their machine back. Squid Baron was a one-time thing, and I doubt that's gonna happen again anytime soon. Believe me. And Tayshan…" she paused, her heart skipping a beat once more at the mention of the soldier as her face grew hot. "…Well, Tayshan has been keeping me alert on the weapons Risky stole from his world, so I'm not overwhelmed by the threat she and her Tinkerbats pose with them. That's part of why I knew what to expect when they used them on us here. And… and Tay's been an incredibly reliable partner…" she finished, momentarily looking away as she scratched her head in sudden discomfort. Bolo, however, did not like what he'd been hearing.

"So, where does that leave me?" he asked, keeping his cool despite the internal frustration and disappointment he'd been dealing with. "Because it seems to me like, rather than be on the sidelines until we're needed like before, everyone else has an active role of some sort, while I'm left as the bench-warmer until I demand my spot on the playing field… and even then, I wind up not making the cut…" the forlorn adventurer-to-be further expressed, his displeasure evident in his facial expression.

"I… look, I know you're frustrated, Bolo, and I can't apologize enough for not including you as an active tag partner sooner," she continued trying to meet her disgruntled friend where he was at. She had not previously realized just how hurt he'd been about not being included as a travel partner on her adventures. Hearing his plight helped her understand his viewpoint to some degree, and as such, she thought about previous comments she'd made about him regarding his desire to join the fight. She quietly gulped with a bit of guilt before responding to his concerns. "Still, we made it here—although under some very questionable circumstances—to Thimble Canyon, and even after you snapped out of whatever mind control Risky's Tinkerbats cast on you, you did your part in helping me fend off that swarm of them until Risky herself showed up. If I was here all alone, who knows how things would've gone had I found some other way here? Plus, even though I didn't respond, I learned from what you said about Risky holding back to try and figure me out to gain an advantage on me."

"Oh… You heard that?" he asked, perking up in mild surprise.

"Of course. Why do you think I stopped using my hair attack until her guard was down?"

"Oh. Huh, I didn't think you were listening at all."

"I absolutely was. Even though your time as my mentor was short, I still at least remembered that you're a talented fighter in your own right and that when you're given a chance to shine, you do," she complimented him again. "Even when you're coaching me from the sidelines. That's the biggest reason I was able to catch Risky slipping and punish her for it once I went Electric mode on her."

"Wow… Thanks for that, Shantae. I'm glad to assist."

"I should be thanking you! And let's not forget that I probably wouldn't have figured out how to deflect the Tinkerbats' bullets and bombs with my hair whips if I didn't see you use your flail to knock one of them back at the Tinkerbat who threw it at you. You helped me pull through a lot more than you think, you know."

"Huh… That's… That's true, isn't it?"

"Heck yeah, it is! And even better, it's because you were kidnapped that I not only figured out some more of Risky's conniving tactics, I actually managed to protect Sky and Wrench when I caught a glimpse of them coming under attack by Tinkerbats armed with weapons from the other timeline."

"Sky was here?"

"Not quite 'here,' per se. I just happened to see her flying on Wrench back toward Scuttle Town when they were attacked by Tinkerbats with long-range guns that I had to knock out. That's another big reason I'm so thankful for you bringing me here at all. If you didn't, Sky… well, something really bad could've happened to her…"

"Oh, goodness…" Bolo gasped in shock, though he soon breathed a sigh of relief. "Good thing I trusted my incredible foresight then, huh?"

"Yeah! I… I-I guess that's true!"

"See, this is why it's a good idea to trust me more," he boasted, a substantial bit prouder about the situation as it unfolded… at least, in the way Shantae spun it in his favor. "I'm glad she's safe, no less. I mean… I'd have preferred to actively rip through this canyon with you, but I guess I could at least live with that," he accepted, his spirits lifting once he realized through Shantae's endless praise just how important he was… which I'd personally say was kind of a stretch, but y'know… I'm just gonna say 'Fragile Ego' and keep it moving.

"I'm glad you see it my way," she commended, still buttering him up. "And this might be a bit much to add, but you may have actually also saved Tayshan by volunteering to come here with me," she further commented, though the young man took this bit of praise with a grain of salt.

"…I guess, though I'm not sure how to feel about that one," he openly admitted. "While I'm glad to finally be acknowledged as the hero you know I can be, I'm not familiar enough with him to really know what that means. I've only laid eyes on the guy twice, and my opinion is still… shaky at best."

"Oh? Wow, I… didn't know you didn't like him…" Shantae hesitantly observed, taken aback.

"Nah, it's not that I don't like him. Don't misunderstand. I'm aware he may be cool since you and Sky are so fond of him, and I'm absolutely open to formally meeting him when the chance comes. Sky herself made sure I knew that," he countered, much to Shantae's relief. "But after all I've seen and heard, I can't help but still be a little wary…"

"Of… what, exactly?"

"My Morning Star aside, the only other time I've seen him is when you and Sky were fooling around with him while you were all half-naked in the Bathhouse." At that, Shantae's face immediately grew beet red as she froze, blindsided by the would-be hero's wildly-inappropriate assertion. One could see the steam pouring from her ears as she tried her hardest not to visualize the indescribably-lewd mental image Bolo placed into her mind in that moment. "To this day, I don't know what that was about, and I'm honestly afraid to ask. Anyway, that isn't exactly the most wholesome way to meet someone, and it raises a ton of other questions about exactly what's going on between you three… No matter what Sky says," he shared with a nonchalant shrug.

"…That… was a misunderstanding…" she managed to eke out, horribly embarrassed by Bolo's super-casual mention of the infamous Bathhouse incident. She'd initially though Sky had cleared the air with him about this pressing matter, though it didn't seem to stop him from developing his own ludicrous hypothesis. "Whatever you're thinking, it's… it's not-!"

"And then the only other info I've got on him is what I hear from you, Sky, the rumors floating around town, and most recently Risky. All I can pick up is that, between you, Sky, and one of the Ammonian girls, at least one of you is in a relationship with him. From what I've heard, I can only surely guess it's you he's dating," he deduced, nearly causing his ally to jump out of her skin and into orbit, she'd been so astonished. "That, and for some reason, Risky hates his guts almost as much as she does yours."

"Uh… Wow, where do I begin there…?" she murmured, brooding as she scratched her head. Her face remained redder than ripe tomatoes as she pondered how to refute Bolo's claims. "So much to untangle in just those two statements…"

"And… Not that I care that much, but… what Risky was teasing you about… About you and that guy kissing for whatever reason during one of your quests… Was… that true? It seems so unlike you to do such a thing, so I wouldn't be surprised if she was about to just make something up to get under your skin… But among all the other rumors I've heard, that one was a surprising first. Plus, that one had an awful lot of detail behind it, as compared to the others. If you don't want to talk about that one, then I understand."

"I'd very much prefer not to, thanks. There's nothing to explore there," she fervently and hastily denied, though her friend picked up on the tinge of discomfort in her voice and the sudden bout of her fidgeting with her hands.

"I figured you'd say that," he acknowledged with his aforementioned incredible foresight. "But then, you're the one who brought it up when you were talking to Risky, now that I remember."

"S-So?" she defensively challenged, instinctively bringing an index finger to her mouth.

"So, it's weird that you'd mention such a thing yourself without being provoked if there was nothing behind the statement you made. Plus, you're doing that thing where you chew on your finger when something's bothering you," he pointed out, calling attention to his friend's nervous tic. Shantae, realizing that she'd been nibbling on her finger again, hurriedly removed it from her mouth.

"Oh…"

"Something IS up with that statement, then," he again deciphered, causing the poor young woman to purse her lips as she scratched the back of her head and groaned with discomfort. "Alright, Shantae, out with it. What's got you so worked up all of a sudden?"

"…Well… do you really want to know, or are you just prying?" she warily asked, the waver in her tone evident as she grew nervous and she began wringing her ponytail.

"If that's a serious question, then I'll seriously answer you by saying that I seriously want to know. Seriously." As if things couldn't get serious enough.

"Okay… Then, can I trust you to keep a secret?" she asked again, further piquing his interest.

"Loose lips sink ships, and I've never sunken a ship yet," he assured with a nod as he brought a clutched fist to his chest. I could only guess that meant we were supposed to ignore the boat that spontaneously exploded on his and Shantae's way to the Thimble Canyon… y'know, since it technically wasn't a ship. "So… was it true?"

"…Y-yeah, it… it's true…" she shamefully admitted, very much to her comrade's shock as she grew increasingly flustered with the longer she stood to be probed about the situation in question. She'd kept it to herself long enough that even thinking about the incident continued to send her into a feverish, somewhat-guilty stupor that she'd only been able to shake by repressing it… which she soon realized only seemed to make the feelings stronger as she tried hiding it from Bolo. Maybe getting it out to someone she trusted would help her? Even a little?

"Whoa…!" Bolo remarked in wonder, his eyes widening at the very possibility that Shantae of all people, whom he'd known as the most straightforward and pure of all his female friends, had such a scandalous secret to hide.

"It… wasn't like like how you might be thinking, though. We… It… It was necessary for my survival…"

"What? How?"

"Because the Boss we fought on Kitschy Quilt Desert the other day was a giant, incredibly-poisonous, brainwashed Scorpion-Man… and he caught me off-guard and stung my lower lip, which caused me to be infected with his highly-toxic venom that would've killed me if I wasn't cured in time… and when Tay showed up with the only antidote available after I defeated the Boss, it turned out that the only way the cure could be applied was by extended mouth-to-wound contact…" she explained, flashing back to the ordeal and the… tender, yet-urgent embrace that followed as her face grew hot enough to melt crayons in mere minutes. "So, in a nutshell, Tay and I… W-we kissed… a lot… and… uh… well, I'm cured, but…"

"Gosh, Shantae, that must've been one wild ride…" Bolo acknowledged, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Just the way you're tensing up right now tells me a whole other story," he additionally pointed out as she looked downward and away, ashamed as she grasped her arm with her opposing hand. "Are you alright?"

"Not… particularly," she further admitted as Bolo released her. "Part of the reason Tay isn't here is because… because we kind of got into a fight about how that went down, and after that, I… haven't talked to him since. He's been hanging with Sky recently, and… I'm not really sure what to do from here… I feel like I messed up…" she explained, returning her gaze to him.

"Hm… Well, lovers' quarrels aren't as scary as you might think," Bolo nonchalantly blurted out, definitely making his friend feel so much better that she replaced her dejection with irritation at him in as little as a nanosecond. "I'm not the biggest expert on these sorts of issues, but I do know those happen all the time between couples. I'm sure you'll work it out, and then you'll be living happily ever after. You always make things work out in one way or another," he assured his visibly-annoyed friend as she glared at him and pouted. Not noticing this, he pondered what else to say to make her feel better before he realized something else. "Actually, wait… If you two are in a relationship, then… does that mean Sky's in on it, too?"

"What!? Absolutely not! Tay's not even my boyfriend! He's my student, if anything!" she shouted at him in a flustered panic.

"So I've heard. So, maybe Sky's story about your game of three-person tango in the Bathhouse just being a big misunderstanding was true, after all…"

"That situation has a long story behind it, but I assure you, we are NOT in any relationship of the sort. Sky wouldn't lie, and neither would I."

"Right… But then… if you're not dating him, then what's the big deal about you having to kiss him to get saved? The most important thing is that you were saved, in that case. I mean, I don't think I'd want you or Sky putting your lips on me, but I'd definitely make an exception if you were rescuing me. I'd understand, too, so there'd only be a little bit of awkwardness to skirt over," he naively asserted.

"No, you're not getting the full picture… It'd be different if you were involved in that situation at all instead of Tay. You and I are best friends and we've known each other for years, so if it did come down to it in that case, I'm sure we'd probably be laughing about it by now. Heck, even if it was Sky or Rottytops in Tay's place, I'd… be a little weirded out for certain reasons, but I think either one of them and I would still be able to talk it over after all was said and done…" she explained, trying to keep her mind from wandering too far in a certain direction.

"Okay, so I'm hearing that it's basically because it's your new friend who kissed you that the memory makes you uncomfortable."

"…Among other things, yes…"

"Fantastic. Then, if you write it off as a weird form of C.P.R., then you'd probably avoid a lot of the awkwardness that comes along with the experience," he advised, though this did not sit well with Shantae. She'd heard this excuse before, and hearing it again only frustrated her more.

"Kissing someone the way Tay kissed me is not C.P.R., Bolo!" she yelled, letting her temper flare for a moment before she paused and sighed to relax herself. "You… You have to be unconscious or choking to consider it that, anyway… We were both wide awake and fully aware of… what… we did…" she further added, feeling just a tad naughty as her legs tensed up and she lowered her head. "…and what we did… was… um…" she trailed off, clearing her throat as another rush of excitement and anxiety warmed her up from head to toe.

"Hm, you've got a point," he acknowledged, not at all fazed by the young woman having shouted at him. "A kiss is a kiss, no matter how it's given, so that's fair. Regardless, at least you're okay now. But then, I'm still stuck on who's dating who. If you're not the one, then does that mean Sky and/or the other girl are dating him? Because if one of them is, then that's bad, Shantae… Even worse that you're engaged in some weird student/teacher fling where that sort of thing is allowed. That's a conflict of interest right there, and you're gonna-!"

"No! Goodness, no!" she hastily denied, regretting ever thinking Bolo of all people was good at giving advice on how to mend a damaged relationship… of the platonic variety, of course. "Nobody's dating anybody, Bolo! Jeez!"

"So, why's it such a big deal?" he asked, vexing his ponytailed friend as she sighed in frustration.

"It's a big deal because… well… I-I've never had to deal with anything like this before, and I don't know how I'm gonna settle things right now. To be clear, there is NOTHING romantic going on between me and Tay. He's a good friend and my protégé outside of this one incident. That's all!"

"You say that, but something's not lining up," he pointed out, choosing the absolute best of times to become a romance sleuth. Meanwhile, Shantae chose the best of times to resist popping Bolo upside the head for putting her on the spot like this.

"How?"

"Because like you just said, if it were anyone else, you wouldn't be so flustered about a simple kiss. You also just said you and this mystery dude are just friends, but you're acting like you just did something embarrassing in front of someone you like and you're regretting it. And based on the way you're making the act itself sound, it wasn't just a peck or two…"

"That's because it wasn't 'just a peck…' or two," she affirmed. "It was… like, a few pecks… a lot of pecks… and pauses… and more pecks… and another pause… and then… a-and then they got deeper… and hotter… and… heavier… and more intense… and then we…"

"Ohh…" Bolo droned, again astonished by the news being shared with him. "So it was less C.P.R., and more of you two ACTUALLY full-blown making out like a newlywed couple?"

"Yes!" Shantae emphatically yelled, seeing that Bolo finally got her point… but then, she didn't want to confirm the wrong thing. "Wait! I mean, no! Not like that!" she tried to correct, though she didn't want to tell him his comparison was wrong, because it wasn't. "I-I mean, it kinda was, but it wasn't at the same time!" she further tried to meet the two previous answers in the middle with her third, though it was clear from the humored smirk on the young man's face that she'd already gave him an idea. "Stop looking at me like that!"

"Wow, Shantae… I'm not questioning the story behind you and that guy, but the more you tell me, the more it seems like you're definitely seeing him, but you're trying your hardest to cover it up…"

"Tayshan is not my boyfriend, Bolo! I just told you that already!" she hurriedly deflected, her tone matching her sense of urgency in the fact that she uttered the statement in under two seconds.

"Alright, alright… But then, there are all these other rumors and sightings people are gossiping on about, and I'm starting to wonder if this guy's been playing the field on you girls, or if you're all aware of each other and the connection between you is one of those taboo, multi-partnered relationships where all of you are sharing him, but then you're possibly involved with each other-!"

"No! No, no, absolutely, one-hundred-and-six-million-percent, times the entire history of this world, NO!" Shantae screeched loud enough that the entirety of the Thimble Canyon could hear it. "Nothing about any of that nonsense is true, ever! At all!"

"So why are so many people across town saying all this stuff about you?"

"I don't know!" she yelled, surprised he'd even ask such a frivolous question to her. "I haven't been paying attention to what anyone's heard or said about me! Anyway, Tay isn't dating any of us, none of us are in any sort of relationship at this point, and no matter what anybody says, He! Is! Not! My! Boyfriend!" she exclaimed, waving her arms in front of her while shaking her head to emphasize her point.

"Oh. So, I guess it's just a matter of people seeing you two hanging around all the time and making their own assumptions, then?"

"…Yeah… yeah, basically…" Shantae confirmed, taking a moment to try and decompress while she recoiled from being grilled by Bolo on her relationship status. "Thank you for finally getting it…"

"Of course, I got it…" he understood with a nod. "And you're sure that scene you told me about had absolutely everything to do with you being saved, and nothing to do with you simply wanting to kiss a guy?"

"Yes, it was all about being cured of the scorpion venom. I promise you, it was," she swore. "No matter how good it felt…" she further murmured, wanting to convince herself that she derived no pleasure from it whatsoever. The nigh-scorching warmth in her face alone was enough to display her rousing lack of success in doing so.

"Uh-huh… So, if that's the case, then why did it lead to you two getting into an argument apparently so bad, that it wound up causing you two to split? I mean, sorry if I sound like a broken record, but if it was all about you being saved, then it really shouldn't have led to this."

"Good question… Well… Without bogging you down with details, we both felt awkward about it… and when we tried to clarify it, it turned out he didn't really see it the way I did… and soon enough, I got mad, and he left my house out of guilt. I only know he went to Sky's because he sent me a letter later that night that was attached to one of her carrier pigeons. It was a note of apology for making me upset… and…" she paused, stopping to wonder if she should've mentioned the detail she noticed in the soldier's note to her.

"And… what?"

"And… in it, he admitted that he agreed with me… that we kissed… and that it… should've been special as 'our' first and that he was sorry for reacting the way he did…" she confessed, the pressure building as she became progressively more anxious. Somewhat affected by the knowledge, Bolo reeled back, though he contained his reaction as tightly as he could.

"Whelp, congrats on your first kiss," Bolo praised with a bittersweet thumbs-up, his lips forming into a reflective frown. "But then, even after that letter, neither one of you has bothered to go talk to the other?"

"No…"

"Why not? It's clear as day by now how you both feel about it. So, even though you two supposedly AREN'T dating, it shouldn't be that hard for one of you to go over to the other and hash it out. Actually, it's especially because you're not together like that, that it should be easier."

"Bolo, it's not that simple," Shantae argued. "You don't just kiss someone you've only known a short while the way we did, and then shrug it off… To be honest, it's because he tried that, that we separated in the first place…"

"Hmph," the young man grunted, scratching his head in confusion. "I don't get it. Sounds to me like you're making this more complicated than it needs to be."

"Of course, you'd say that."

"Fair, but listen: Two friends who are just friends at the end of the day wouldn't have this problem. Or at least, they wouldn't let it drag out for this long without some clue on how to make up. I mean, the longest you and I have ever been angry at each other is what, two hours tops? And then, we wash it all away and keep being friends. It's always been that simple."

"…Good point…"

"I only make the best of 'em, Shantae. Anyway, what do you hope to get out of clearing things up with that dude?"

"In a few words, I want to go back to being his mentor, and I want him to go back to being my friend," she answered confidently, though her impromptu therapist raised an eyebrow.

"You want to 'go back' to that, eh? That definitely says something… Hmm…" he contemplatively observed as he drew a conclusion, causing Shantae's curiosity to pique.

"That says what, exactly?"

"I'll get to it, but I think I'm zeroing in on the real problem here…"

"Oh, are you?" she questioned, just a tad incredulous about Bolo's method of interrogation.

"I know that tone. Don't take my detective skills lightly. I haven't perfected them yet, but trust me, I know when I'm onto something. Anyway, to be on the safe side…" he led on, further mystifying his friend/patient as she eyed him up and down in wary confusion.

"Safe side? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, I'm still curious about something, and since we're on the subject and completely alone up here… I figure I'd ask you here and now… So, here goes: Are you single?" At that, our flustered heroine had to pause to register if she'd heard him right.

"…What?" she flatly asked, hiding her discombobulation like a 'Welcome' mat hides a full-grown, live giraffe.

"Don't act like you didn't hear me," he remarked, sternly gazing at her. "Are you single?"

"Um… Yes?" she answered, though she became wary of her friend's intentions. "What's with the sudden interest in my relationship status? Is… there something you wanna tell me?"

"Goodness, no," he firmly denied, picking up on the implications of her tone. "You're like my naïve older sister, so I'd never even dream of that, if you're thinking I'm trying to ask you out. I'm just making sure that, as my 'sister' and as my protégé, you know what you're doing."

"You're calling ME naïve? Oh, brother…" she sighed as she rubbed her forehead with a hand and rolled her eyes, realizing just what she'd done by giving him so much leeway.

"Glad you understand. No offense, by the way. So anyway, you're single. Next question: Is this mystery suitor of yours single as well?"

"Yes, as far as I know…? Also, he and I are just friends. I'm telling you."

"I understand, but I still gotta be sure. That leads me to my final question…"

"Ask away, Bolo, since we're already on the topic…" she lazily permitted with a flick of her hand, ready to let him ask his question and get it over with. She couldn't help but admit that she was slightly curious to see where he was going with this, if he wasn't planning on confessing some arbitrary hidden affection for her.

"…In all honesty, Shantae, after everything that's happened between you and that guy, ignoring all the hearsay, and based on what I've seen and heard from you up to this point, I gotta ask… Do you… maybe have a little bit of a thing for him?"

"Bolo!" she yelled, for some reason not expecting him to ask such a blunt, impertinent question.

"I'm dead serious," he assured, wearing the sternest of facial expressions. "I won't tell anybody. Like I said, you know me. I'm the farthest thing from a Chatty Cathy when it comes to my best friends' secrets, and I'm all about the blunt honesty. It's the only kind of honest that there should ever be. I'm only asking because I feel like something's been bothering you, and I want you to be as bluntly honest as you can be with me. You just helped me out of a funk, so now I want to help you out of one."

"Oh… Huh… That actually makes sense…"

"Yeah, surprisingly-rational statement coming from someone everybody regards as an eternal dimwit, right?" he teasingly asked, displaying his awareness of his reputation around town.

"…N-no…?" she tried to lie, darting her eyes left and right as she nervously ran a hand through her ponytail.

"Thanks for sparing my feelings, at least," he remarked with a slight frown. "But, that's another reason why you shouldn't underestimate me. Anyway, I know you better than I think you do… o-or, you know me better than… you… think I do?" he stuttered, fumbling over his words as he shot down all of his momentum toward disproving the general consensus about his character. As such, he paused, momentarily looking away with a hand on his hip while the other scratched his head in confusion. "That doesn't sound right, either… Huh, where was I going with this…?" he asked himself, though his so-called 'protégé' overheard him. Eventually, he came to his conclusion on how he wanted to sell his point as he perked up and turned his attention back to her. "Ah! What I meant to say was that you know you better than I know me! Wait, no! Shoot… I-I mean… uh…"

"You're saying you know me better than I give you credit for, right?" Shantae corrected with a humored giggle, understanding his assertion better than he did.

"Y-yes, that! Exactly, dearest student of mine! Of course! I was just testing you. You passed," he matter-of-factly concurred with a nervous titter, pretending he didn't jumble his words like a children's puzzle. So much for blunt honesty… I guess that must be a situational thing.

"Right… Thanks for the laugh either way, boss," she appreciatively acknowledged, some of the pressure relieved. "I needed it. As for your question, though…" she continued, only to pause immediately after as her heartbeat grew heavier in her chest and her breath became heavy. She resisted the gut feeling she had at the mention of the idea. However, based on her body's reaction in contrast with her thoughts, she found herself almost falling into a trance as she began to ponder. "U-um…" Before too long, Bolo grew concerned as Shantae hesitated to answer.

"If you're struggling this much to say 'yes' or 'no,' then the answer is probably 'yes,'" he concluded, shaking the pensive half-genie out of her train of thought. "Or at least, an 'I'm not sure.' Either way, Shantae, just say the word and I'll do my best to guide you on how to deal with what you're feeling. I'm no expert at relationship counseling, but I'm a natural at scoping out potential partners, since I've got so much experience under my belt." At that, Shantae's cheeks remained rosy, though she couldn't help but chuckle again.

"Yeah, but most of your experience involves you getting beat up, rejected, or beat up and rejected because of the way girls tend to find out about your interest in them."

"I don't have a clue what you're talking about," he denied, rubbing a finger under his nose as he momentarily shot his embarrassed, grinning gaze upward. One could see his nose stretch out by at least five inches the minute he uttered that preposterous statement.

"Oh, is that right? Then, does the word 'Bathhouse' ring a bell?" she joked once more, causing him to purse his lips. "Or the name, 'Peeping Tom'?"

"Uh, hey! Th-this isn't about me! This is about you and your crush! Speaking of which, you should probably think to do something about it before you wind up getting distracted, or before your crush winds up linking up with someone else."

"I never said anything about having a crush, Bolo. You cut me off before I could give you my answer."

"That answer being…?"

"No."

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Even after you hesitated?"

"YES."

"Are you absolutely sure?"

"Yes!"

"Hundred percent?"

"Yes!"

"Scout's honor with a cherry on top, no takesies-backsies, don't wait, don't stop?"

"…That… doesn't make any sense, but… yes."

"Understood."

"Thank you."

"Of course…" Bolo acknowledged, though he had just one more trick up his sleeve. "I guess I don't need to keep it a secret anymore that Sky told me she hooked up with your 'friend,' then."

"WHAT!?" Shantae screamed, for some reason horrified by the news as her eyes went wider than satellites. "W-When did you hear that!? Why are they going out!? Why didn't you tell me sooner!? Did she mention when they were gonna tell me!? How…" she trailed off as her gaze fell to the ground and her heart grew heavy as it sank to her stomach. "…H-How could he…?"

"Kidding!" Bolo announced with an ill-timed chuckle, much to Shantae's ire as she immediately glared at him. "I was just kidding! I made that up!"

"Grrr, Bolo, you jerk! Don't do that!" she admonished, lightly punching him in the arm as she continued to scowl at him. Her face was awash in her embarrassment at his prank. "You had me worried sick there!"

"Ow! Sorry, sorry," he apologized as he calmed down, rubbing his arm. "I just had to see if you meant what you said… As you can imagine, though, I still don't know if you're being completely honest. So, I'll ask one more time, just to be sure. And I'd like you to answer this for real. Do you seriously have a crush on that guy?" At that, Shantae took a moment to breathe, understanding her tag partner's intentions when he tricked her. However, she still wasn't sure how to answer his question.

"...Umm..." she hummed in deep contemplation. She'd definitely made it a point in the past that she and Tay had nothing going on and that they were strictly platonic friends, adventuring buddies, and were basically disciple and master (or, mistress). It was all set in stone, basically. The answer to such a simple question should've been a no-brainer; with an emphasis on the'no.' So, why was it that she couldn't bring herself to say 'No,' and put the issue to rest? Why was her heart pumping like someone had a death grip on it? Why was her breath catching in her throat with each instant she almost brought herself to vocalize her answer? Why… Why was it that every time she'd thought about him since that fateful day, her mind automatically fixated on that fate-changing kiss and the telling confession letter he sent her later that night? Why were butterflies erupting in her stomach at that moment as intensely as they had been since the other day?

"…Well?" Bolo prodded, his concern growing as Shantae continued to hesitate.

"…I… I'm starting to think it might be possible…" she sheepishly admitted with a most conflicted look on her face as she bashfully grabbed onto her ponytail and twirled a finger between the locks. She felt as though she was still in limbo on how she felt toward Tayshan, but that something compelled her to stop denying the possibility of… something different being there regarding her sentiments toward him.

"Le gasp!" he reeled back, utterly (read: mildly) surprised by his best friend's revelation. "Finally, you come clean! It only took me yanking it out of you like I had to play Tug-of-War with the world's heaviest whale!"

"Shut up," she shyly requested of Bolo, turning away from him while pouting and pressing the tips of her index fingers together.

"Aw, I'm just playing, sis. No need to feel embarrassed about it," he encouraged as he patted her shoulder. "We all develop feelings like that at one point or another. I will still admit, though, that I didn't think you'd ever wind up with another crush."

"What…? Another crush? How…?" she was about to ask, though she already had an idea what he was referring to. "Wait. D-Don't tell me you-!"

"Knew about that one weird, flamboyant kid you always hung around way back when, when you thought I wasn't looking? Of course I did," he matter-of-factly finished for her. "It was so obvious you were sweet on him. How could I not pick up on how you felt toward him at the time?"

"Oh…" she droned, figuring that no one she hadn't told about the young Hypnotist apprentice in question would know such a thing. Here, she thought her former crush was one of her best-kept secrets. If even Bolo could sniff it out, then maybe it wasn't… She briefly pondered who else might've known about it before Bolo pressed on.

"You never came to me about that one, but I always figured you'd move past it when he suddenly vanished from Scuttle Town. Evidently, you did. He came in weird, and he left weird, no less."

"Aashiq wasn't weird," she defended, still a tad sensitive about her old flame. "Just misunderstood. But now you've got me wondering just how much you really know about me," she further pressed, tilting her head as she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Enough to be able to point things out about you that you wouldn't think I'd notice, Shantae," he assured, no form of facetiousness in his tone. "Anyway, this other guy. What's the deal? Are you gonna ask him out?"

"No, of course not. I'm not even sure if it really is the case that I'm developing… those kinds of feelings for him…"

"What do you mean?" he asked, crossing his arms and tilting his head as he studied his friend's nervous disposition.

"I… admit that I've… been thinking a lot about how I've been feeling recently, but I don't know if it's because I'm really starting to 'like' like him, or if it's just because we kissed once. A lot has happened between us since he and I met, but everything was just fine before two days ago. What do you think?"

"It's tough to say… I mean, I wasn't there to see anything, so I couldn't really make a proper guess. Either way, any two people who spend a ton of time together out of nowhere are gonna wind up getting attached to each other at one point or another," he reasoned, causing Shantae to perk up as she recalled a certain question she'd promised to ask when the appropriate time came. "The real question is in exactly how those two people figure out how they feel toward each other after a certain amount of time."

"Good point. Hmm…" she trailed off, mulling over her friend's words before she made her rebuttal. "I mean, I didn't always feel exactly like this regarding Tay. Up until a certain point, he and I were just friends. I was just his tour guide-slash-mentor, and we set that firm boundary up without anyone objecting to it, regardless of all the rumors. This… What I'm feeling now seems all-new to me… But then, it could just be that I'm worried about him because he's still new around here and I've been showing him the ropes since day one. These last two days have been the only two where he wasn't under my watch. It could also just be that I'm pretty much the only person who really knows him or understands him… so, maybe I just want to protect him? I don't want to… y'know, mistake that as having feelings that would complicate things… especially not after I flat-out told him once that we were just friends and nothing more… And it doesn't help that both Sky AND Twitch really like him."

"If you say so, Shantae…" Bolo nonchalantly acknowledged before the atmosphere went silent. After a solid three seconds, it finally registered. "Wait, WHAT!?" he basically shouted in complete disbelief. "Sky actually likes him, too? And… I'm not sure who Twitch is…"

"She's one of Ammo Baron's two assistants. You know, the two blonde girls with the attitudes that always hang around him?"

"Right, right… and, which of those two is which?"

"Twitch is the shorter one that usually wears the goggles and the miniskirt. Vinegar's the taller one with the face paint and the orange leotard."

"Wow… wow, wow…" he grumbled as he shook his head, seeming unhappy with this news. "It would be the cuter one of the two, now wouldn't it?"

"…I'm sorry, what?"

"How does that guy have not one, not two, but THREE of you fighting over him!? Are you sure he's not playing the field on you?"

"We're not fighting over him, I swear to you. At least, I'M not. Sky and Twitch are a different story," she dismissed, though the thought of the conflict sent a worrying pang through her heart. "And no, he's not playing the field… I hope. I've had my eye on him about that, and he's been nothing but honest with his thoughts on the whole ordeal. And if anything, Sky and Twitch pretty much began fighting as soon as they found out from each other they were going for the same guy."

"Talk about lucky!" the maddened young man blurted out, causing his comrade to scoff in disbelief.

"Bolo, are you kidding me!? You're not seriously getting jealous about something so awful, are you?"

"No!"

"Bolo…"

"Okay, a little! I mean, come on! This guy just blows in from out of nowhere, and within a week, he's the center of attention without even trying!"

"It isn't like anyone asked for things to turn out this way, in everyone's defense. Besides, who would ever enjoy having multiple people ready to kill each other for the sake of being in a relationship? Just from the outside looking in, it seems like a total hassle!"

"All things considered about your not-so-secret reputation as basically the most highly-coveted waifu of at least half of Sequin Land, Shantae, you should know the feeling," he pointed out.

"Waifu? Me? Seriously?" she asked in complete surprise that anyone would consider her marriage material. "You're joking. Nobody thinks about me like that."

"I wouldn't joke about that," he assured. "Since you made a name for yourself as Sequin Land's biggest hero, or as some would call you, the 'bodacious, belly dancing beauty,' there's been plenty of talk over the years about who'd be lucky enough to have your undivided attention. Heck, there was even this group of muscle-bound cyclopean dudes with broken arms—and one broken leg—that came to town looking for you the other day on their way to the Bathhouse, singing nothing but praises about you. Apparently, you really made an impression on them, because they would not shut up about you; no matter how much I tried to get them to."

"Ohh, right, them…" Shantae recalled, being clued in on the identities of the fans in question. "Interesting they made their way to Scuttle Town… But the other stuff… Are you sure they're talking about me like that? I don't think I've done all that much other than beat up some bad guys and save the day a couple times. I couldn't imagine that leading to people liking me as much as wanting to MARRY me, though. That's just odd to even think about…" she admitted, her cheeks brightening up as she grew slightly nervous. "If anything, I thought people still had mixed opinions on me because of my bad temper, my shoddy track record of stopping bad guys, the fact that I'm part genie, and my outlandish outfit."

"Well, no one's gonna please an entire crowd of ten people every time they make a sound to speak or lift a finger to do a magic trick," Bolo pointed out with utmost certainty. "Regardless, you're more popular than you think. Popular enough to draw the special attention of a lot of folks out there, Shantae."

"Why?"

"Beats me, but I've heard more than my fair share of gossip about how much people want to be with you."

"Oh… Well, then… That's… huh…" she remarked, stricken speechless about the very concept of being desired by others to such an alarming degree. What could she have possibly done to deserve that level of attention?

"Yeah. Regardless, you've gotta understand what that says about you when multiple people want your attention and company, and clamor over each other for it. It's amazing, I tell ya!"

"I… guess…?" she uncertainly agreed with a shrug, still unaware of exactly what he was describing.

"No need to guess, because it's true without question. Meanwhile, this mystery rookie's just basking in it like he's been a hero for years, and that gets my goat. If even YOU'RE interested in him, then something's gotta be up."

"Umm… I… don't know if that should count as a reason for there to be 'something up,'" she countered. "It isn't like I have super-exclusive, rigid tastes or anything, nor is it like I wouldn't have my own reasons for having a crush on someone if that was the case. Same goes for Sky and Twitch. The sort of thinking you're bringing up here totally shuts out our actual personal opinions and reasoning while oversimplifying our interests as just based on us finding some specific, yet paradoxically-vague excuse for favoring one person above all others. Regardless of my status, or their respective statuses, Bolo, we're still normal girls with normal interests. That said, if I like someone, then it's gonna be for a much better reason than simply because 'something's up' with that person."

"Oh yeah? Then what's he got that I don't?" he asked, kinda-sorta getting the point of the half-genie's rant, while also kinda-sorta NOT getting it. Try figuring that one out. Anyway, Shantae raised an eyebrow, wondering what Bolo was so upset about… while also finding a small window of opportunity to get some payback for his previous trick that led to this discussion.

"…Do you actually want me to answer that, or…?"

"Floor's open, Shantae," he invited.

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you. Let's see… He's got muscles, facial hair, a deep voice, incredible physical strength, extensive knowledge of fighting techniques, weapons, strategic adaptation, and survival skills, a positive win-loss record for fights he's been in with Bosses, a stable career before he was dragged into Sequin Land by Risky Boots, and some impressive delegating and diplomatic skills that have gained us many allies over the course of our crusade to stop Risky Boots, to name a few. He's also two years older than Sky, and older guys tend to be more mature. He's no exception to that, either. Simply put, he's no slouch, and I'd dare to say the attention he gets from Sky and Twitch was mostly earned. Not that that's necessarily a good thing in the long run because of how much of a distraction that's been, but still. Either way, he's also consciously working hard on improving himself as a person, not to mention he's earned a ton of my respect and trust, if I'm gonna flat-out admit that much… Need I go on?" she answered, making sure to do her best to avoid putting too much of her personal opinion into the statement.

"Aw, come on! I've got at least half that stuff, too!" Bolo complained, trying to flex a muscle to prove his point. "I mean, sure I'm fifteen and I'm still waiting for my beard to come in and my vocal tone to drop some more, but I'm still a pretty worthy contender in every other respect! So, why am I not being showered with attention from cute girls high and low?"

"Um… I don't really want to answer that. Let's just say that there's always room to grow and leave it at that. Okay, bud?" she proposed, already feeling uncomfortable with critiquing her 'little brother' in terms of his luck (or lack thereof) with finding love… or rather, having 'love' find him.

"Hmph. Fine, whatever…" Bolo dismissed with an agitated shrug, suddenly finding his distaste for a certain soldier increasing for other prejudicial reasons. "Anyway, you've sure got a lot of nice things to say about a guy you initially told me you're not sure about liking…"

"So? I'm just being 'bluntly honest,' like you told me to be," she tersely rebutted, unappreciative of his accusatory tone.

"Ah, I walked right into that one… I admit that. That aside, it still sounds to me like, even with Sky and Twitch in the mix, you're about ready to snag him for yourself if one of them hasn't already."

"No, no I'm not," she flatly denied. "Sky already said she was gonna give it a try, Twitch is pretty much convinced she has a shot, and it's up to Tay to decide who he likes… that is, IF he actually likes any one of us—er, them. If he likes either one of them, I meant," she hurriedly corrected, having misspoken once again as her heart skipped a beat. "I-I won't be doing anything about my feelings because I'm pretty sure it's just me wanting to take care of the guy while he's still new to Sequin Land, above all else… A-and even if it turns out I really DO have a crush, I… I wouldn't want to make things worse on us by dropping that bombshell on him… and, I still have to figure out how I'm even gonna break the ice about why we haven't talked in two days…"

"Hm. If you say so, Shantae… If you say so…"

"You say that like you don't believe me."

"No, no, I'm just… letting you know I understand. That's all," he nodded as he somewhat got over his envious tirade, though he was smirking as though he knew what was up. "Just make sure you clarify how you really feel before it's too late."

"Right… Well, thanks for the pep talk, either way," she expressed her gratitude for his concern. "You actually reminded me of something I've gotta ask him next time I hopefully get to talk to him. It's been a little over a week. Anyway, this stays between us. You're the only person I've told about any of this, and chances are, you're the only person I WILL tell about it unless otherwise stated."

"With great trust comes great responsibility," he vowed with a salute as he stood tall in front of her. "I won't tell a soul. But hey, if you need any advice on how to win a guy over, just come to me. No better source of info on how guys work than your best guy friend."

"…I'll pass, thanks. You've helped enough as it is. If anything comes up with that, I'm asking Sky or Rotty. No offense."

"Hmph. Your loss, sister," he dismissed with a casual shrug. "You'd just be misled asking either of them, though. Just sayin'. One of them can't keep a boyfriend for more than a week without someone winding up injured, dead, or undead, and the other one… PROBABLY can't keep a boyfriend for more than a week without someone winding up injured, dead, or undead. Can you guess which is which?"

"Clever as that snappy remark might be, little bro, you're no dating guru yourself. At the very least, Sky and Rotty have their own respective dating histories. Those in glass houses shouldn't throw stones," she advised, borrowing a favorite quote from a certain someone. "Now, let's get back to Scuttle Town, shall we?"

"Yeah… All this crime-fighting really tuckered me out…" he agreed, ignoring Shantae's advice as they walked toward the Stage Clear platform. "One more thing, though…"

"What's up?"

"How did you and Risky get so crazy strong out of nowhere?" he asked, referring to the bout he watched between the two adversarial women. "Not only did you completely obliterate a ton of those Tinkerbats, you and Risky fought tooth and nail like you were ready to blow up the mountain just by fighting! And then, with one superpowered punch, she almost DID blow up the mountain! You girls were all over the arena, clashing and tearing into each other like it was straight out of one of my favorite manga series! You were actually using some very well-executed punches, blocks, and kicks in addition to your hair, too! Speaking of which, it was also completely insane to see you switch your hair all those different colors and use the different powers each color came with! Don't even get me started on the look of your hair when you made it that radical electric blonde color with the blue lightning shooting through it! You were totally awesome out there!"

"Aw, thanks!" she modestly accepted his praise, which thankfully lightened her mood a bit more. "I've been able to practice a ton with Tayshan since these adventures kicked off, and this place in particular really tested the limits of my skills up to this point. As for Risky, I can only guess she's been practicing, too… I've never seen her fight quite like she did without her sword, which was a complete turnaround from when she once claimed she was helpless without it. Come to think of it, she didn't use any of her regular attacks… only that new Dark Magic attack that…" she trailed off, remembering the only other time such a punch had even been referred to. "…that let me know I'd better be on my 'A' game from now on…"

"I think we can handle her, no matter how much she switches up her battle style," Bolo assured. "For as much as she may have drawn out of you in terms of your fighting style, we definitely picked up a thing or two on how to at least keep her guessing."

"You're right… I hope," Shantae halfheartedly agreed, still unsure as to how much of a task it would be to defeat her greatest enemy after having witnessed her vastly-increased power.

"Don't sweat it. If anything, we'll find time to train, so we're all prepared. Now, let's go and rest up for the next quest!" he urged, ready to get a move on with the next adventure (while assuming he'd be guaranteed a spot in it).

"Right," she concurred as the two stepped on the platform. In an instant, the two struck their signature victory poses (with Bolo's being him standing tall as he excitedly pumped a fist toward the sky and grinned wide, in case you were wondering), as Shantae gave the stage-concluding "All Clear!" that came with the usual disembodied celebratory fanfare. After a few seconds, the half-genie and her half-wit partner vanished, thus concluding one more tumultuous excursion. An excursion that, as far as our heroes may or may not know, yielded many ominous implications about the adventures to come.

If it hadn't been made obvious by now, then it should be said that it seemed Risky Boots meant business. We'd already been clued in on her altered plans to target Shantae's friends (minus Bolo, who she'd evidently forgotten and then subsequently disregarded as insignificant), to which our heroes remained none the wiser. It certainly begs a few questions about just what she was up to. What did Risky Boots really gain from luring in and confronting Shantae so early on? How much more proficient were her Tinkerbats with their extraterrestrial arsenal, considering the Thimble Canyon was littered with snipers who really weren't such bad shots for the most part? And what exactly happened with a certain trio of heroes that led to them being so ruthlessly hounded and nearly taken out while riding their prismatic giant bird? So many questions, so little time… Of course, the answers can only be found by valiantly pressing on, so strap in for the next ride! Till next time! Peace out!


	14. Towering Trepidation

Chapter 9: Towering Trepidation

LOCATION: SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 23RD, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1926 HOURS

"Finally, we're home…" our one-and-only Half-Genie Hero tiredly, yet thankfully observed as she and her comrade Bolo were teleported back to the busy evening streets of Scuttle Town. "I'm gonna go see if Sky got back," she informed him as she stretched and yawned, the fatigue from a long, hard day's work catching up to her. Despite this fatigue, Shantae was intensely worried about the war bird trainer's safety and wellbeing as she flashed back to the near-death scenario she'd witnessed during her time in the Thimble Canyon. The weary maiden's mind was racing with thoughts about the wellbeing of her friends, and the only way for her to begin calming herself down was to check on them as soon as possible. "Coming with, Bolo?"

"Not right this minute," the blue-haired explorer denied as he set his sights on a nearby food stand, his stomach growling like a bear about to attack an unsuspecting hiker. "I'm starving… I haven't eaten since before we left for our trip this morning, so I'm gonna grab a bite for dinner. If I don't make it to Sky's before you wrap up, I'll see you for the next big adventure, okay?"

"Heard loud and clear. Alright, have a good night in case I don't see you," she bade as the two parted ways.

"Likewise, Shantae. Make sure you eat and rest easy, too!" Bolo advised as he waved, running off before disappearing into the crowd of townsfolk. "You worked hard out there today!"

"Right," she acknowledged as she began her stroll through Scuttle Town's stony streets toward Sky's abode. As far as she could see, citizens abound were casually lounging, pacing through, and drifting around the municipality, carrying on like they usually did… which would normally have had Shantae not even batting an eye as she walked on. While she remained silent for what should've been a minutes-long walk, she felt an unyielding pressure building up as she caught a glimpse of two inhabitants of the modest port town glancing at her as they whispered amongst themselves. Initially putting her discomfort off, Shantae continued her trek without hindrance. However, she'd also passed by another small group of townfolk who'd caught sight of her and smiled with… what she could interpret as an unusual amount of excitement as she passed them by. Politely, she waved at them, which prompted some to wave back while others giggled to themselves as though they'd heard a funny inside joke.

Again ignoring such an odd phenomenon, Shantae pressed on with her pilgrimage to Sky's house, which began to feel longer and more arduous with the more stares and glances she'd caught as she walked on. She'd continued to pay little mind to the strange stares she'd been getting from cityfolk young and old alike, but she couldn't help but acknowledge that the extra attention was starting to get to her. The nervous maiden had her suspicions as to why people were so fixed on her as she passed by, but she knew that even thinking of the reason would cause her immediate distress. Considering the burgeoning wave of speculations about her that had sprung up in the last week, she couldn't stand to think about why people even cared so much about her personal life that they'd treat it like a sensational news story.

As such, she lowered her gaze to the ground as she sped up her pace, hoping to make it to her best friend before things got worse. The unfortunate young lady had grown increasingly uncomfortable as she perambulated about the humble city. After all she'd heard about there being a dramatic increase of rumors being spread about her, Shantae wanted very little to do with remaining in the public eye. Just the idea of the extra attention that wasn't directed toward her tireless heroic efforts made her want to immediately learn an Invisibility Dance on the spot. As though the pressure of walking through Scuttle Town while a good chunk of its citizens gawked at her wasn't enough, things quickly took a turn for the awkward. Suddenly, a couple of Scuttle Town's denizens approached her from the front, causing her to stop in her tracks just as the sight of a giant polka-dotted egg on the roof of a building in the distance entered her peripheral vision.

"Good evening," the half-genie politely greeted, curious as to why this couple blocked her path.

"A most wonderful evening to you as well, young Shantae," the first of the couple, a fair-skinned woman in a mauve sari and matching hijab politely greeted back. "I must say, congratulations on the new beau!" she joyfully praised, which predictably threw her off. "You've been the talk of the town over these last few days, and I am so proud of you for finally taking that next step to becoming a woman!"

"Bow?" she asked with perplexity, misunderstanding the woman's statement while somehow also feeling her stomach sink as she processed the woman's observation "I'm sorry, but… I'm… not wearing any bows right now," she absentmindedly corrected, giving herself a once-over to certify that she was indeed not wearing a bow. "I… did get a new hair tie, though, if that's what you mean…"

"No, you silly, not the hair accessory kind of bow! Oh, you're just so cute…" the woman playfully assured with a chuckle. "Word on the street is that you've recently found love!" she rejoiced, causing the poor ponytailed young maiden to silently sigh in discomfort. Of COURSE, that's what she meant. Why else would this woman approach Shantae like she did? To randomly talk about bows that were nowhere to be seen? Evidently not.

"Oh… Well, despite popular belief, I'm not actually in a r-!" she tried to set the record straight, only to be cut off.

"Splendid indeed," the other member of the couple, a darker-skinned, turban-adorned man in pale tan harem pants and an olive-green vest, agreed, nodding in approval. "It's always good to see love blossoming right before our eyes. Just be careful not to get too explorative too soon now, sweetheart~! I'll have you know that you'd be hooked on it if you get there too quickly," he teased, making Shantae even more uncomfortable.

"Umm…" Shantae nervously droned, her face growing hot.

"Stop it, dear!" the woman laughingly admonished, tapping who we could presume was her husband on the shoulder, causing him to also let out a hearty chuckle. "You know that's none of our business what happened in that bathhouse the other day," she added, making the poor half-genie's face flush harder as it suddenly became more difficult to breathe. Did they SERIOUSLY have to bring that up now of all times? She was trying her hardest to push that predicament to the back of her mind, and this confrontation did nothing to help.

"Bathhouse? That's mere child's play! I mean yes, it was a spicy little flash in the pan, but I was talking about the rumor that she and some mysterious stranger had begun living together in her home," he corrected, chuckling some more before he turned his attention back to her. "You ARE making sure to at least take proper safety measures before you get… 'down to business,' no?" he asked, leaning toward her and hiding his lips behind a wide-open hand. "I'm aware of how eager your generation is to grow up and become adults, but nothing is more beneficial than being responsible."

"Gah! Uhm…!" Shantae panicked, petrified at the implication of the nosy man's question. What could he possibly have meant by THAT? Shantae was already stressed enough about the rumors she'd heard floating around, but she had to wonder if THIS was as bad as they got… and if it DID get this bad, then would she be able to show her face around Scuttle Town anymore without being the talk of the town for all the wrong reasons? She was supposed to be a hero, darn it! Not some cheap, easy target for slanderous scuttlebutt! And for the record, 'scuttlebutt' is another word for 'rumor,' so this has nothing to do with the name of the town's mayor… this time. Disclaimer made. Anyway…

"Habibi, stop that!" the woman admonished again, this time opting to repeatedly slap the back of her husband's neck to get him to stop salaciously interrogating a total stranger. Understanding his wife's consternation, he rose. "What Shantae does behind closed doors with that young man is none of our concern. However, Shantae, do beware. We were strolling around the eastern outskirts of town and we spotted your boyfriend conversing with your friend Sky and some troublesome little red-eyed blonde girl wearing glasses… and it didn't seem to me like the conversation was all that pleasant," she warned.

Based on that info, Shantae could only confirm that Sky had indeed made it back home safely. However, she could only speculate that Tay and possibly Twitch were there with her. The young woman instinctively gulped, a wave of anxiety overtaking her as she thought about how to approach, much less engage them… or, specifically, her 'boyfriend.' First and foremost, however, was how she'd get out of this embarrassing, inaccurate conversation in which this married couple all but solidified the knowledge that she and Tay were indeed the subjects of a most distressing rumor mill. Thinking quickly, she finally spoke.

"Thanks for your concern, sir and ma'am," she cordially acknowledged their concerns, her mind already elsewhere. "I've gotta get going now, but I appreciate you looking out for me."

"Anytime, sweetie," the woman assured as she linked arms with her husband. "If anything bothers you, be sure to seek the help you need, okay?"

"Got it. Thanks. Have a good night!" she bade as she moved past them in a rush. She'd already heard enough of the rumors that it made her seriously question how she'd even begin trying to work things out with Tayshan. She'd felt bad enough that they hadn't reached out to, much less spoken to one another in two whole days. She'd felt even worse about the rumors, considering what she'd told Bolo about her sentiments toward him. Need she even mention the swirling cyclone of impure feelings she continued to silently wrestle with? Or the very reason she and her alien comrade hadn't spoken to each other? Quickly growing irritated by the invasive, conflicting thoughts, she resolved to clear her mind completely as she marched onward to her best friend's apartment… or toward the outskirts, or wherever they were rumored (yes, RUMORED) to be. It certainly didn't help that she'd noticed several more of her fellow Scuttle Town residents casting various prying glances at her, which caused her more emotional turmoil as she set out to link up with Sky. As she zeroed in on her destination, she noticed a familiar-looking blue biplaine taking off into the expanding nighttime horizon.

 ** _Meanwhile, moments earlier near the outskirts of Scuttle Town…_**

"I didn't think we'd make it out of that awful place alive today…" griped a young, bespectacled, blonde woman wearing a loose-fitting, midriff-baring olive-green tank top with a knot tied into the back, a pair of baggy tan cargo shorts, and brown hiking boots. She'd appeared somewhat frazzled, as her clothes were matted with dirt and her long, wavy golden hair was untied, hanging freely down to her upper back.

"You can say that again, Twitch," agreed a certain tall, bare-chested young man wearing dark green camouflage-styled fatigues and black boots. Where he got a third set of clothes (or why he wasn't wearing a shirt), I have no clue. "That was just about the closest we got t' actually dyin'… Heck, if my face ain't proof of how close we cut it, I don't know what is. It's just too bad we didn't actually manage t' save that temple like we did the other places we came across…" he lamented, rubbing a series of disfiguring marks that stretched horizontally from his forehead, over his eye, and down just a couple inches further. There appeared to also be a mark stretching horizontally across his cheek, indicating that they did not make it out of their latest expedition unscathed.

"Between all the tricks and traps we survived, and the massive Tinkerbat ambush that followed right after, I'm not sure we had much chance at all to save such a fabled place as the Sheared Spool Shrine… We were lucky just to save ourselves…" Sky, in her usual pink-and-turquoise with the only difference being that her long goldenrod hair was completely unwrapped and hanging freely, flared at the ends like a bird's wings. "It honestly begs the question of if Risky knew we'd turn up there at some point, or if it was pure coincidence."

"Who knows?" Twitch shrugged, seeming not to think too deeply about the implications of the double-whammy the trio evidently faced together. "All I really know is that I snagged a hefty load of treasures out of that shrine, and so long as you two aren't planning to nag me to death on why I shouldn't have taken so much, I'm willing to give you a cut of my spoils to even the balance a little."

"For the record, I never objected t' you takin' what you did. I was just sayin' not t' get greedy an' take so much that you'd weigh yourself down," Tay corrected. "I took a bunch myself, but I made sure it was enough t' where I know I ain't gonna struggle t' buy extra supplies from here on, but where I didn't lose mobility tryin' t' carry it out. I mean, there's also the thing about you tryin' t' get me t' sell my newest weapons t' you, which I am not doin'. Still, you evidently had the better idea regardin' just loadin' up. I'll admit that."

"You bet that cute face and those sweet muscles of yours, I did, babe," Twitch flirtatiously concurred, winking and blowing a kiss toward Tay, who'd turned away and pouted.

"Argh, come on, stop that…" he grumbled, clearly unhappy with the impertinent way he'd been addressed. When would people eventually understand that the 'cute' thing got on his nerves? "An' how could you possibly consider THIS 'cute?'" he asked, gesturing a hand toward the wounds on his face.

"I… I can't apologize enough for that, Tay-Tay…" she remorsefully replied to him, frowning as she did so. "It was my fault you got those scars, and I hope you're not still mad at me after what happened…"

"The damage is already done, so there ain't no use holdin' it against you. I'm just glad my eye even still works. As long as we're still alive, all we can do is live with it. I don't have a choice. I'm… also glad you didn't get hurt."

"Aw, thanks, Tay-Tay!" she cheerfully acknowledged his concern for her. "I still think I should do something to make it up to you, but if it makes you feel better, those battle scars make you look even hotter," she tried to compliment, though it made the solider even more uncomfortable. "I mean that, by the way."

"…Why did I even bother bringin' it up…?" he murmured to himself, scratching his head with vexation.

"And going back to the other point, I can't forget that you're not the preachy stick-in-the-mud that our strait-laced, feather-headed third wheel here is."

"Hmph…" Sky scoffed. "Even though we were granted permission, I still don't entirely agree with us taking those gems the way we did. But then, it's not like we can really do anything about it now. I'd… be hard-pressed to keep objecting at this point, anyway, considering…" she trailed off, momentarily looking toward a normal-sized Wrench, who was decked out head-to-tail feather in jewelry as he perched on a nearby marble pillar, pecking at himself as though to scratch an itch in his wing. "Also, you'd better watch your mouth, Twitch, because I assure you, I've taken as much of your disrespect as I'm gonna tolerate. And for the last time, leave Tayshan alone! If anybody here's a third wheel, it's you!"

"You keep tellin' yourself that while you think about how wonderful your last relationship was and why you're not worth MY man's time," she taunted, firing Sky right up in an instant. "Just like the vast majority of those bountiful treasures and the weapons from his world we found up there in that temple, Tay-Tay's mine for the taking. Get it through your thick skull, why don't you?"

"Ooh, that's it! I have half a mind to-!" Sky was about to threaten, angry enough to attempt to rip the other girl into shreds with her bare hands as she aggressively marched toward her.

"I thought I told y'all t' cut that out!" Tay barked, stepping in between the two before things got violent. "Y'all spent the whole time squabblin' with each other over me, an' it's gotten old!"

"Yeah, well you can easily resolve the matter by telling your little friend here that you're taken already!" Twitch argued back. "And not by that sneaky purple-haired hussy you had to 'save,' either!" she further shouted, calling attention to a certain someone for a certain event she may have known about. That outburst froze the soldier in place as he glared at the brazen blonde before him. On the outside, he was livid. He couldn't fathom the thought that she would say something so awful about his half-genie tour guide after what she'd found out about the situation in question. He could hardly contain himself as his hands began to tremble and his breath became heavy like he'd been squeezed by a trash compactor.

On the inside, however, he was absolutely distraught. He instantly flashed back to the conversation he'd had with Shantae after the incident that led up to his current arrangement. He'd briefly visualized the young heroine's tearful face as he refrained from saying a word. He'd also been painfully reminded that Shantae hadn't even tried to visit Sky's home since he sent that letter the other night, which he was certain would've opened up the floor for both of them to talk. Her lack of responsiveness caused the soldier immeasurable anguish, as he'd continually feared that she hated him for… well, for kissing her, and then trying to laugh it off like it was nothing. Nevertheless, Tay realized that he shouldn't direct any of his frustration at Twitch, at which point he closed his eyes and shook his head to recollect himself. After blinking a few times, he relaxed his face, though his heart continued to pound in his chest.

"That's… not cool, Twitch…" he morosely informed her. Seeing the damage she'd done, Twitch backed up, covering her mouth with her hand.

"Oh… S-sorry, Tay-Tay," she apologized, repentant for having upset him. "That was a little much, I admit…"

"Just a little?" Sky chimed in, patting her shirtless comrade on the back as he continued to tremble with anxiety. She, too, was furious, though for mostly different reasons, as she glared intensely at her not-so-friendly ally. "That was totally unnecessary. First and foremost, don't you EVER say anything like that about my best friend. Say what you want about me, but I won't stand for you picking on Shantae. I'll make you regret it if you make one more remark like that about her. Second, you have some nerve even bringing that situation up again after Tay worked up the guts to even tell you about it. Hanging it over his head like that is just plain repugnant…!" At Sky's derisive comments, Twitch lost her cool as she glared hot death at Sky.

"Nobody asked you, birdbrain!" Twitch instinctively roared out, letting out more of her frustration with the conversation as it unfolded. "I said I was sorry! I don't need you trying to guilt-trip me into feeling worse about it! It's bad enough I have to fight with an obnoxious harpy like you, but how do you think _I_ feel about that… that shifty genie girl getting that close to him!" she further argued, bringing up a valid point before she sighed and recollected herself. "Tay-Tay… look, I'll take back what I said, but I've gotta know what you're thinking. I… I get it that a situation like what you told me happens once in a million years, and I get that it's messing with your head. If I were in your shoes, I'd be pretty confused, too. I… just hope that it doesn't get in the way of our relationship…"

"You don't have a relationship to speak of, remember?" Sky interjected once more.

"Shut it, wing-head! You're in a no-fly zone, and all you're doing is making things more complicated with your phony rebound crush," she pointed out, causing Sky to flinch with a mix of frustration and… what appeared to be discomfort, as though a chord had been struck within her. It made me wonder exactly what happened between these three for their conversation to erupt like this. "I already told you once why you shouldn't even bother trying to date in the first place, much less waste Tayshan's time and energy. Like I said before, it's obvious you're just trying to use him as a safety blanket to deal with the fact that you got-!"

"Twitch, chill," Tayshan finally spoke up, his tone low and calm. "This… this whole situation is messed up in more ways than I can count, believe me. An' I know I'm not doin' you any favors by holdin' my tongue as long as I have. So, I get your frustration, but I gotta ask you t' be more respectful toward Shantae an' Sky, if that ain't too much. The last thing I'd want is for another argument like the one we had earlier t' take place. I think we all need some time t' calm down an' think about things, if I'm gonna be completely honest."

"Tay-Tay…" she called to him as she cast her worried gaze on him, though she hardly knew what else to say. Tay had gazed back at her, wondering what she'd follow up with. Sky cast her gaze downward, her face twisted into a forlorn frown as she seemed to be contemplating something. After yet another tense silence, Twitch threw her head up and blew a rush of nervous air from her lungs as her heart, much like her allies before her, had been pounding intensely.

"…You're… You're right. That's a good idea. I'm… gonna take off home to clear my head," she informed, sticking her thumb and index fingers into her mouth before blowing an ear-splitting whistle that cut the otherwise-silent plainfield atmosphere like a saw blade through balsa wood. Within seconds, the droning *WHIRR* of a blue biplane filled the air as the aircraft flew itself toward the trio, landing safely a few yards away in the plains…no pun intended.

"You have ANOTHER plane?" Tayshan asked in complete surprise as he turned and examined the aircraft.

"Yep, though I'm running low on spares. Ever since I got tangled up with you guys, I've been losing planes left and right. Ammo Baron's gonna have a fit when he hears I lost my third plane this week today, but I'm sure he'll get over it once I split some of my profits with him," Twitch explained.

"Yikes… I can only imagine how expensive it must be t' replace just one of 'em…"

"Just be glad I don't bill you for blowing up the first one, sweetie," she remarked with a sly smirk, casually blaming him for beginning the cycle of her airplanes getting demolished.

"Understood, even though that wouldn't have happened had you not tried to kill me," he nodded with a light smirk, momentarily studying the airplane in question and identifying it as identical to the one Twitch had used to almost end his existence a week prior.

"Fair enough. I might not even be here talking with you if you didn't save me from getting back into it before it blew, so I'll let it slide this time," she admitted with a shrug.

"Cool. Thanks for your forgiveness. Anyway, I'd say we should talk again soon, but I realize now that we… don't necessarily-!"

"All taken care of, darling," she interrupted, reaching into her rucksack and tossing him an Ammonian Transceiver (or, a blue walkie-talkie in layman's terms). He caught the device, astonished to see it in person. "Honestly, I should've given this to you after the Prickle Stitch disaster."

"Huh… I shouldn't be surprised these also exist here, but I am…"

"What doesn't that planet of yours have, Tay-Tay?" she asked with a slight chuckle, though she didn't wait for an answer. "Anyway, you can always get ahold of me with that. I have the other one in my bag. It's off now, but please make sure to set the dial to '2' before you turn it on and try to call in. Any other frequency will either be blank or be heard by the rest of my platoon."

"Set to '2,' then turn on. Got it," he echoed before stashing the device in his pocket, where it disappeared into his inventory. "Thanks a bunch."

"Hm. If anything, I'd say use that sparingly," Sky commented, having somewhat recovered from her pensive stupor as she incredulously crossed her arms. "The less you might need that thing, the better."

"You're so funny," Twitch sardonically remarked, dismissing Sky's comment. "Anyway, I'll see ya soon, Tayshan," she bade, moving in to hug the soldier despite Sky being right next to him. Taken by surprise, the soldier bent downward to meet her halfway; a move that may not necessarily have been recommended, as Twitch took the opportunity to steal a quick smooch, planting it on the soldier's cheek.

"Agh…!" Tay flinched as he immediately let go of her, raising his hands high as she took advantage of the moment by clinging to him for an additional few seconds. "Alright, that's good. I think we verified that we're still friends. Plus, we agreed that you wouldn't do this anymore. You can let go now."

"You heard him. Get off!" Sky demanded, causing Twitch to grin at her with mischievous triumph as she obliged before sauntering off with a snicker toward her plane as it idled nearby. "You think you're so slick!"

"Slicker than the finest oil from Embroidery City, birdie!" she taunted with a wave as she hopped into her aircraft. "Time to fly! Call me sometime, Tay-Tay! The communicator will help so we can link up for more adventures in the future, buuuut… if you're ever bored or lonely, then don't be a stranger. Quick hint on that, by the way: The later at night, the better~!" she teased, her mood having evidently brightened as she took off with a voluminous *WHIRR* of her plane against the evening Scuttle Town air as she soared into the clear, darkening skies above. Within a minute, the image of Twitch's plane faded into obscurity as Tay and Sky watched on. Eventually, the air was silent save for the wind jostling the nearby bushes and the scurrying of animals (and nocturnal monsters that, for some reason, never entered the town despite there being only a wall to block them).

"…That girl is a natural boundary-breaker, no matter what you try t' tell her… Jeez…" Tay commented, shaking his head at Twitch's continued pressure. He was at least thankful that she gave him a means of communicating with her in case her help was required, no less.

"Argh, I didn't think I ever had to say it, but that girl is worse than Rottytops…! I can't stand her obnoxious attitude…!" Sky griped, making evident that she had something of a list of beefs she'd had with other folks around this neck of the woods.

"Rottytops?" Tay questioned, wondering to whom Sky was referring. He'd heard the name numerous times. He was also aware that this 'Rottytops' was one of Shantae's other friends, but he he was unable to put a face to such an odd name. He also wondered why it seemed to be the case that Sky didn't like her.

"Don't ask," Sky advised. "Anyway, I hope things weren't too troublesome for you today… I apologize for losing my cool back there… That isn't like me at all…"

"It's alright," Tay assured as best as he could, sighing away some of his nervousness as he and Sky began to trek into the city toward her house. With a quick whistle, Sky alerted Wrench to fly back to her place under his own power, the jewelry he wore jingling in the air as he soared off. "I'm just surprised you could wind up bein' provoked like that, Sky. I had you pegged as much more… level-headed."

"I usually am!" she proclaimed, moderately embarrassed by her apparent loss of composure. "It's just that Twitch pushed me past a limit I didn't even know I had!"

"You two were clawin', slappin', and scratchin' away at each other like kids fightin' over a candy bar," the humored soldier pointed out. "All o' that over a comment she made about your ex-boyfriend? I don't really know that such a fistfight was worth losin' that nice scarf an' hood o' yours over."

"It was way more than just her making fun of me for my not-so-successful relationship with Joe, Tay," she matter-of-factly informed him as they sifted through the near-empty streets of Scuttle Town's busiest district. "And believe me, she's lucky to have paid me back with enough of those gems to buy another set. Anyway, it had much more to do with-!"

"Sky!" a feminine voice from up ahead had called out. Recognizing it, Sky and Tayshan looked ahead to see a familiar scarlet-clad, purple-haired, pointy-eared, blue-eyed, ponytailed—It was Shantae, okay? I'm not sure how many more adjectives I can use to describe her unique appearance before this game of 'Guess Who?' was finished, but it was undeniably Shantae who'd called out to the blonde bird trainer.

"Shantae!" Sky called out as the half-genie bolted toward her in a massive hurry. Meanwhile, Tayshan, whose heart rate had increased dramatically at the sight of his recently-estranged teammate, made his best effort to call out to her.

"Yo, homegirl! Long time, no s-!" he was about to say as he stepped forward a few paces, though he was thrown for a loop when Shantae ran directly past him, not even sparing him a passing glance. Stunned, he watched, almost as if it were in slow motion, as his mentor dashed past him and pounced on her friend. "…Oh…"

"Hey now!" Sky cheered with a humored giggle as she and Shantae embraced, the half-genie nearly squeezing the air out of her. The two girls twirled around, Shantae jovially giggling as she held Sky tight. Sky, while unsure of this unprecedented show of affection from Shantae of all people, celebrated their oh-so long-awaited reunion with just as much gusto. The girls spun and giggled like schoolchildren on a merry-go-round for what seemed like a solid minute. Eventually, they stopped to separate just enough to where they were holding each other's hands as they smiled gleefully at one another. "Where's the fire, girl!? You attacked me like you haven't seen me in a decade!"

"Sky, you have no idea how happy I am to see you!" Shantae exclaimed, that joyful smile never leaving her face, though her gaze remained fixated on Sky. "I'm glad you made it home safe!"

"Made it home safe? What, were you worried about me?"

"Of course! We've gotta catch up on what happened since last time we saw each other," she suggested, shaking her best friend's arms as she did so. "So much has happened just today alone, and I can't wait to tell you all about it!"

"Alright, girl, alright!" Sky laughingly agreed, stiffening her arms so her ponytailed pal wouldn't accidentally rip them off. "Why don't you come to my house, so we can have a little story time?" she suggested, causing Shantae to grin even wider as she remained hyper-focused on Sky as they began to converse about something related to how they'd spend the night hanging out. Meanwhile, Tay had watched this exchange go on, all the while being unable to shake off his initial shock. His thoughts raced in that moment as he tried to analyze why Shantae didn't even look at him when he called out to her. Was she still angry? It didn't seem that way, considering how excited she seemed to be when she saw Sky. Was she still embarrassed? It was hard to tell, considering she was so happily swinging and dancing around with the bird tamer in the middle of the street a minute prior. Did she simply not see him? It was possible, though he couldn't fathom how, when he was standing right in front of her. It hadn't even been that dark out… So, why? Why did she just disregard him like that? Just to be sure he'd at least been seen, he tried once more to get her attention.

"Uh… Hey. It's… good to…?" he spoke out, albeit somewhat quietly and hesitantly as he nearly choked from the pressure brought on by his own thoughts. Considering that there was basically no one else around in the middle of Scuttle Town as most of the city's residents were safe in their homes by now, it was still impossible for him not to be heard. And, as one might infer, he was. Only, the reaction he'd gotten was even more distressing than before. In the span of a literal two to three seconds, he watched as Shantae turned her head toward him, freezing midway as she continued holding hands with Sky. It seemed like she was about to acknowledge him and say something, but the entire reaction amounted to her glancing at him from the corner of her eye before hurriedly snapping back to Sky.

To Tay, that was all that needed to be done for him to understand where she was at. As such, his eyes widened, welling up as his heart sank harder than a five-ton block of cement, his mouth slightly ajar as he breathed a slight exhale. "…So that's how it is, huh? Shoot…" he murmured to himself as he hung his head low, rubbing his forehead with a hand. Without notice, he turned away from the two young women and began to silently walk off in defeat. Sky, noticing from her peripheral vision that Tay had begun trudging away, turned to him.

"Tay? Hey, hon, where ya going?" she curiously questioned. Shantae, overcome with a mixture of fear and guilt, remained silent as she hesitantly batted her eyes toward him to see him walking off.

"I… I'm not sure, Sky," he sullenly replied, not even turning or stopping as he offered his blunt, flat statement. "I just… don't feel like I should be here…" he further murmured, though his tone was even more subdued in this statement than the last.

"What? Tayshan, what's going on?" she asked in worry, letting go of Shantae's hands to run after him. "Why so glum all of a sudden?" Meanwhile, Shantae's mood went from jovial to morose as she turned and silently watched her otherworldly friend trudge toward nowhere in particular while Sky gave chase.

"Don't worry, Sky. I just… would prefer t' be alone right now," he clarified, holding out a hand to stop her from pursuing him. Seeing this, the concerned bird tamer stopped in her tracks at his request. "I'm… not feelin' too good."

"Tayshan…" Sky weakly called out to him as he sped up his pace to a steady stroll as he separated himself from his allies. "Oh… Shantae, what should we…?" she turned to ask her best friend, though she stopped herself when she saw the half-genie. Shantae had stood still a couple yards behind, her eyes wide and her brow furrowed with anxious hesitation. She'd been nibbling hard on the knuckle of her index finger on one hand while the other hand was clutched to the first one's wrist. Her gaze was locked on Tayshan as he stormed off, indicating that there was indeed some unaddressed tension between the two. As such, Sky had to ask. "…So you're still mad at him. Aren't you?" she questioned, snapping the half-genie out of her trance. Shantae lowered her hands from her mouth as she focused her eyes on the other young woman.

"No… But I'm going to guess you know by now why he and I haven't been together…"

"Yeah, I got the full scoop," she assured, causing Shantae little surprise. She'd expected Tay to tell her something about the situation. The full scoop was not outside the range of expectation for how much Sky was made aware of. "In a nutshell, you two… had an intimate moment together during your desert trip, but the talk you had afterward didn't go too well… right?"

"Y-yeah… Sorry, Sky," she somberly apologized.

"Why are you apologizing to me?"

"Because… he and I… we… he… k-kissed me… and… I… I kissed him…" she stammered, wanting to be candid with her friend. However, her nerves got the better of her as she thought about the implications of making such a confession to Sky. Immediately at the forefront of the half-genie's mind was Sky's feelings, rather than her own. "B-but it was because I was poisoned and-!"

"I'm… aware," Sky informed, her heart pounding as she was reminded of the scenario in question. "But you have nothing to apologize for. As far as I understand, it had to be done. The most important thing is that you're alive and well as a result. Either way, Shantae, are you still not willing to make amends with him?"

"No, I… I want to make things right…"

"What's going on, then? If you're not mad and you're willing to talk, then why didn't you say anything?"

"I… don't know what to say to him…" she admitted, a frown creeping onto her face. "I… I don't even know how I feel… or, how he feels, and then just before I got to you, people were giving me all these weird stares, and then some nosy couple stopped me and said some weird things that I couldn't stop thinking about, and... I... I guess I lost my nerve by the time I saw you two..." she further admitted, alarming the war bird trainer as she stared intently at her. "I want to talk to him again, Sky, and I want to clear the air, but I'm… I'm confused, and… and I'm scared… of not knowing what to expect… although, even though I only glanced at him before he turned away, I couldn't help but notice the marks on his face. What happened to him?"

"…Why don't we go to my house? We've got a long night ahead of us, it seems…" Sky suggested, not even waiting for a reply before she turned and walked toward her house. Shantae wordlessly followed suit, hoping that Sky would be able to help her clarify what had been going on between her and Tayshan that led to their emotional split. Soon enough, the two girls made it to the bird trainer's abode, all the while discussing the matter as it presented itself.

 ** _Elsewhere, a short while later…_**

"Ah, those kebabs really hit the spot!" a certain spiky-haired young man cheered as he sat, patting his stomach as he rested at the edge of an empty dock on the western outskirts of the town. As it appeared, he'd successfully gotten his fill of dinner as he intended and had been spending the remainder of his evening watching the Sequin Land ocean waves crash against the sandy shoreline nearby. "Scuttle Town food market can't be beat for low-cost, low-maintenance delicacies, that's for sure. I probably should've brought extras for Shantae… Speaking of which, I wonder if I should head over to Sky's place to meet up with them…? I got so lost thinking about what we'll do for our next adventure that I lost track of time. The sun's all the way down by now, and I'm still peacing it up on this dock when I should be over there planning my next heroic crusade," he soliloquized, still seeming to be stoked about his time on the Thimble Canyon; despite how little he actually got to participate. "Matter of fact, I'll head there now… Wait, who's that?" he asked himself as he got up, only to catch sight of someone…

A tall, dark-skinned, shirtless man with a goatee wearing green pants with what kinda-sorta looked like tons of stains all over them, had appeared seemingly from nowhere. The man walked onto the neighboring dock and sat, hanging his legs off the planks as he lay himself back. He rested his head on his hands as he gazed high into the night sky, breathing a pressured sigh as he made himself comfortable. Bolo wasn't sure who this guy was, but he seemed oddly familiar. Figuring it to possibly be one of many vagabonds from another city that often frequented the streets of Scuttle Town at unusually late hours, Bolo carefully approached to get a better look.

"Hmph… Man, where do I go from here?" the man asked himself, evidently having been stressed out about something. "Shantae… how do I let you know by this point that I'm sorry for… makin' that kiss seem like such a small deal…? At what point do we get t' talk so we can finally understand each other on what it really was an' put it behind us…? It shouldn't be like this… I still ain't even figured out what I'm supposed t' do with Sky or Twitch at this point, either…" he continued to whisper to himself, letting his mind drift into a mental cacophony of bothersome thoughts about the last two days he'd spent trapped in Sequin Land and what it all was supposed to lead up to. "AND I'm supposed t' figure out how we can stop Pirate Girl from destroyin' this place, make it out alive, an' even then, be stuck with the decision t' either try an' go back home or destroy the portal an' be stuck here the rest o ' my life? I just don't know…! I'm half-expectin' t' just wake up back on the base, rememberin' all this as an elaborate fever dream or SOMETHIN'…!" he spoke quietly to himself with a sigh of notable vexation. Before long, Bolo made his presence known.

"Yo!" the fledgling adventurer called out, startling the man as he sprang up in a panic and looked over his shoulder. Upon the sight of the spiky-haired man behind him, the 'vagabond' relaxed, breathing a sigh of relief before he spoke.

"Good evenin'," he greeted as Bolo stood behind him. The shirtless stranger turned his attention toward the steady ripple of the Sequin Land sea. "You're… Bolo, if I ain't mistaken. Right?"

"My reputation precedes me, I see," Bolo acknowledged, though he'd already made the connection that if Shantae and Sky knew this guy, then there was no doubting that his name crossed the mysterious gunslinger's ears by this point. Nonetheless, he resisted the urge to reel back in shock at the condition of the man's face. "And if I'm correct, you're Shantae's new friend. Tayshan, was it?"

"Also correct, sir," he confirmed. "Nice t' formally meet you, not countin' our first two encounters. Oh, an' because it's way overdue t' be said, I'm sorry about takin' your-!"

"Water under the bridge, dude. No hard feelings," he assured as he drew near, even daring to sit next to Tayshan to watch the ocean with him. "It's a good thing you're here alone, no less, because now I get to interview—by which I PROBABLY mean interrogate—you without interference," he semi-joked, causing the soldier to mirthfully chuckle.

"Still under the impression I'm workin' for Risky Boots?"

"Not at this point, no," he denied, to Tayshan's mild surprise. "I've heard from a reliable source or two that she hates you almost as much as she hates Shantae, so you're clear on that. I'm more curious about other things."

"Such as?"

"Who are you, exactly? Where are you from? And what did you mean when you said you needed to 'destroy a portal' while trying to stop Risky Boots?" I've only heard rumors about you other than the two other times I've seen you, and-!" Bolo was set to continue, though Tay nearly panicked at the mention of his statement regarding his 'secret mission' to possibly destroy the very device responsible for landing him here in Sequin Land.

"I was just thinkin' t' myself," he interrupted, hoping to dismiss his previous statement regarding Risky's portal. "It ain't nothin' big, just… an idea I have. As for what you heard about me, I'm only gonna guess that the rumors are pretty spicy, right?" he preemptively asked, shooting Bolo a side-eyed look of expectancy. "Either I'm some weirdo drifter with boundary issues that brings nothin' but trouble where I go, or I'm Shantae's oh-so mysterious boyfriend. That, or I'm in the middle o' some depraved polygamist tryst, an' I should be condemned for such debauchery involvin' preyin' on adorable girls. Take your pick. Which one do you believe?"

"None," Bolo assured with a chuckle. "I've heard enough to know none of that stuff is true, though I MAY have been inclined at one point to believe choice number two or choice number three. And before you ask… Yes, it's because of what I saw in the Bathhouse the other day."

"Well then let me assure you, Bolo, that what you saw was the result of two ill-advised, but good-hearted girls thinkin' it was a good idea t' play a real funny prank on me while I was asleep," he informed with a scratch of his cheek, though his assertion was less than factual. However, he was forever bound by the honor code, 'What happens in the Bathhouse, STAYS in the Bathhouse.'

"Yeah, sure. Let's just say it was that," he jokingly dismissed, still having his suspicions. "Anyway, I was really gonna start with questioning you about your background and how you came to be Shantae's new right-hand man."

"Oh. Well, that's a change o' pace I wasn't expectin'," Tay remarked in a mild sense of relief.

"You'll come to find out that I'm not really in the business of milling rumors or spreading them. If I do hear anything, I usually go straight to the source or the subject for verification."

"It's good t' know there's at least ONE person in this town aside from Shantae an' Sky that can think for themselves…" the serviceman remarked with a small tinge of dismay in his voice, making evident that he'd been less than entertained by the stories being told about him.

"You bet," Bolo agreed with a nod. "There's a lot of benefits to relying on your own intelligence rather than following the crowd's line of thought," he further added, seeming to purport himself as a 'diamond in the rough' of sorts.

"Er… Right…"

"You know I am. So anyway, what's the deal with you, rookie?"

"Rookie?" Tay repeated with an inflection of mild surprise at the fact that the one of Shantae's friends who was always described as being the least experienced by a country mile, was playing the role of the pot calling the kettle black.

"Yeah, considering this is your first rodeo saving Sequin Land," Bolo rather impertinently asserted. "No one's an expert on their first go-around."

"Hmph. I guess that's fair enough," he passively acknowledged, understanding he had little room to stand from his perspective.

"There's no other way around it, I'm afraid. So, how did you come to be? What's your origin story?"

"Well, as far as my background goes… Long story short, I'm a displaced soldier from an alternate timeline, dragged here against my will by the deranged, reality-bendin' pirate thief Risky Boots. I'm just lookin' t' help prevent a complete interdimensional disaster while also searchin' for a way home," he answered, embellishing some details here and omitting some there to make the condensed version of his 'origin story' a bit easier to follow.

"Wow… That's actually pretty epic," the spiky-haired young man praised. "That's just the nutshelled version of it?"

"To a definitive 'T,' homie. As for how I got linked up with Shantae, that's a whole different story, so let's just say she saved me from certain death almost as soon as I got here, and that, whether anyone wants t' acknowledge it or not, I owe her my life… an' as you might have heard amongst other things, is that she took me under her wing ever since we started workin' together, makin' sure I pick up the skills necessary t' survive here an' t' beat Risky Boots."

"Also epic… Not a bad background for a rookie," Bolo impertinently complimented. Of course, Tayshan silently interpreted the compliment as somewhat patronizing.

"Oh?" Tay remarked, mindful that he still wanted to make a good formal first impression on the second of Shantae's three best friends.

"You bet. It's pretty cool you've got such a juicy origin story, and I don't see how you could make that up on the fly and tell it to me with a straight face…" Bolo again 'complimented,' seeming to imply that he was still at least a mite skeptical. Nevertheless, he continued his 'interview.' "So, it all checks out there. It needs work in its delivery, but it's pretty solid."

"Oh, I see. Duly noted, sir."

"Glad you're taking notes," Bolo acknowledged, ready to keep on with digging into the potential recruit. "So, you've already been around the block with the best of 'em a few times, as far as I'm hearing," he further pressed, cutting the funny business and getting right to the point of taking the opportunity to get to know Tayshan; to find out from his perspective what his last few adventures with Shantae were like. "What do you think so far? Intimidated? Frightened? Petrified? Surely, no one would blame you if you were having second th-!"

"'Determined' would be the word for it. Once I got used t' the general theme o' these quests, I stopped bein' so worried about what t' expect. I fear hardly a thing at this rate… not even death," he led on, taking the conversation on a sudden dark turn as he looked at Bolo's suddenly-silent, wide-eyed expression. "…but then again, I've recently learned the real meanin' of makin' a girl upset. That's the only thing I'm really scared of at this point," he joked, making a small allusion to his recent relationship troub—Er, I-I mean, uh… His on-the-job concerns with his coworkers. Y-yeah, that's what I meant. Totally all about the professionalism here. No spicy office romance drama here. At all. Ever. Professionalism.

"Ooh, okay, okay…" the young fighter nodded in approval, chuckling at Tay's hurried quip. "That's good. I think we can relate on that 'making a girl upset' part. Still, we need confident people in our squad; people that we know aren't gonna back down from a challenge. Now, I'm aware Shantae and Sky have pretty much been holding your hands the entire time, and I've gotten enough from them to know what's what. But has there ever been a time where you didn't have either of them to rely on?"

"What do you mean?"

"Y'know, a time where you, say… I dunno, maybe switched bodies with a certain someone, or found yourself trapped in a dungeon labyrinth by yourself, or… maybe found yourself behind enemy lines and had to collaborate with bad girls who you shared a common goal with?" Bolo cleverly led on, hoping to drag the stories of the serviceman's time in the half-genie's body, his story about his escapades in the 'Carnivorous Catacombs,' or at least the tale of how he became friends with Twitch and Vinegar, to really get a grasp on Tayshan's talents and capabilities.

"Yes, I spent a day in Shantae's body, and it was weird. 'Nuff said," Tay dismissively answered, already uncomfortable with the idea of reminiscing about being a woman for a day.

"Well, aren't you gonna go into detail?" Bolo pressed, trying not to sound to eager or interested in knowing about the experience.

"It was an uncomfortable experience as a whole. I'm gettin' chills just thinkin' about it. The only details I feel are worth sharin' are that bein' a girl is a whole world's worth o' culture shock, we ran into a lot o' kooky characters with some… interestin' quirks, an' if it wasn't for an incredible stroke o' luck, I would've been stuck in your friend's body forever."

"Oh… Wow, that doesn't sound entirely pleasant. Still, you were the main hero for a day. Surely, there's something good that's gotta come from being Shantae for as long as you were."

"Yeah, I guess," Tay dismissively replied with a shrug as he momentarily turned his attention to the stars above. "If anything, I now know how girls function in an' out. I also know a little bit about what it's like t' be a genie, though I never got t' pull off any fancy, charmin', an' allurin' dance moves. It's knowledge like that, that can't be disregarded, at least."

"Uh… R-right," Bolo hesitantly agreed, still hiding his desire to know what it was REALLY like to switch bodies with his best friend. "Well, don't be surprised if I've got other questions for you about this later on."

"I'm sure you will. I can read it on your face," Tay pointed out with an amused chuckle, causing Bolo to nearly jump before he shook his head and fixed his expression.

"Clever."

"Thanks. Also, yes, I definitely clawed my way through an entire underground dungeon on my own after I got trapped in it followin' an unfortunate electricity-related accident. It's also true that I got familiar with a certain Ammonian duo after they kidnapped me t' try an' extort me for info about the weapons Risky Boots stole from me, only for us t' become friends… well, ONE of them became my friend. The other one has made it abundantly clear that she wants more than my friendship an' camaraderie. MUCH, MUCH more…"

"How much we talking?"

"This might be a stretch t' ask back, but uh… You ever hear the story o' the two rabbits that learned how t' tango? The one where, once they learn how t' do it, they go on an' on without stoppin'?"

"Yeah, but what do rabbits have to…?" Bolo almost asked before he realized what his newest acquaintance meant. Fat chance that I'm telling you here. Use your imagination. "Wait… Oh! Ohhhhh… Wow, I uh…"

"Yeah. It's like that," Tay confirmed with moderate discomfort.

"Huh… How'd it get to that point with her?"

"Another long story, but in yet another nutshell, Twitch has been like that since I met her when Shantae an' I worked together t' win a Boss Battle against her an' her friend. It only really got elevated when Twitch's friend-slash-sister an' I worked together t' save her from bein' taken down in the middle of an ambush staged by a group o' Tinkerbats."

"Really now? You guys survived a Tinkerbat ambush? And now, because of that, Twitch fell in love with you?" the young warrior rapid-fired his questions, wanting to know more and more about the story. However, hearing that question nearly caused the poor soldier's heart to stop in its tracks as he processed Bolo's inquiries.

"I… don't know if we can say it's gone THAT far, so much as it is just her wantin' a super-close 'friend,' but it seems t' be somewhere in that ballpark…"

"Gosh, what a way to win a girl over. So in that case, what's the deal between you and Shantae?" Bolo impulsively asked, inadvertently breaching a vow of noncommunication between himself and the half-genie in question. At THAT question, Tay reeled back.

"Shantae? What about Shantae?"

"Oh! I-I mean uh… W-well, um… word along the grape vine is that she… might have had her eye on you, too…?" he stammered, making things worse as Tay turned his full attention to the motor-mouthed young man.

"Really, now? Did you hear somethin' worth note that I should know about?" he asked, his tone becoming tense and wary.

"No, no, of course not. If there really was something worth note, I'd have said so by now. These are uh… Just rumors! Yeah, just more silly old rumors…"

"Alright, then… So, are you sure there's nothin' more t' that question?" he asked, just to be certain. "Because that one's a lot more common than anything else right about now…"

"Uh, y-yeah! Just… another rumor," he stuttered some more, breathing away some of the pressure he'd felt as a result of slipping up and getting too curious. "Just thought I'd ask, in case there was something there, is all, and that doesn't seem to be the case, sooooo…"

"…Right," Tay rather incredulously remarked, suspicious of the sudden drop of Shantae's name as he was disheartened by it. No matter what way he looked at it, talking about her at this point was something of a sore point for him. "Anyway, I can tell you're interested in figurin' out just how I'm handlin' myself around these parts. Wanna hear a story about my recent experience that doesn't involve Shantae?" he asked, figuring he'd give his new acquaintance what he was looking for and then some while also changing the subject. "I assure you, it's a ton o' fun."

"Oh? Fun how?"

"Real fun. We're talkin' drama, suspense, action, teamwork, death-defyin', traumatizin' stunts, an' a heapin' ton o' Tinkerbats an' guns all wrapped up int' one big package. An', if you're into it, a little bit o' romance-related trouble, too. Plus, you get t' find out how I got these hideous scars on my face," he suggested, touching a finger to the disfiguring wounds stretching downward over his eye and across his cheek.

"What!? Dude, tell me now!" Bolo demanded in excitement before he realized he'd gotten ahead of himself. As such, he cleared his throat and recomposed himself. "I-I mean, uh… Sure. We can trade stories. I've got a pretty epic tale to tell you myself, but you can go first. Don't be surprised if my experiences trump yours, though."

"I'll bet I couldn't compare t' you, but I'll TRY t' meet the bar," he shot back with a smirk. "So anyway, this is the story of the trio o' troublemakers in a place called the Sheared Spool Shrine… So, what had happened was…" and with that transition, we finally delve into the events of Sky's, Twitch's, and Tay's day.

 ** _Much earlier (as in, basically concurrent to the events of the last adventure) …_**

LOCATION: SKY'S HOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 23RD, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 0830 HOURS

'Twas a brisk, sunny morning in Scuttle Town. The town's resident protector had gotten a full night's rest and was ready to tackle the day like any other… Oh, wait, I said that before, didn't I? Shoot. Darn flashbacks of adventures I didn't already get to share… They ought to hire a second person to do this with me, so I'm not forced to tell two different stories that happened at the pretty much exact same time. ANYWAY, we begin this action-packed alternate tale with our town-renowned bird tamer and her new temporary roommate as they geared up to take flight toward their next destination.

"Tay, are you sure you've got all you need?" Sky, already dressed in her usual adventuring attire, called to said roommate as she stuffed her very own invisible inventory full with food items and bird-themed weaponry. Magenta polka-dotted egg bombs, feather darts of all sorts of colors under the sun, blue polka-dotted eggs that allowed her buddy Wrench to turn into a temporary platform, tiny green potions that temporarily increased the strength of her attacks when ingested, copious amounts of bird seed for Wrench that would allow him to change sizes between normal and Giga… You name it and, so long as it was bird-themed or had some practical use, Sky had it. "We'll need to hit the skies pretty soon, but I want to make sure we're prepared. You sure you don't need to go to the item shop?"

"Nah, I'm alright. I picked up a few things from yesterday's trip back t' Genie's Hem, so I think I'm pretty well-supplied," he assured, stepping out of the bathroom after refreshing himself. "I'm glad t' have found the one weapons crate that I missed last time I was there, though. The equipment I picked up should definitely come in handy."

"I'm glad to hear it, in that case!" Sky approved with a smile. "I'm also glad to see that, even with Hypno Baron's presence there, things seem to have calmed down enough for the city to recuperate after what happened. No more fires, thankfully, and they've been rebuilding at a much faster rate than Scuttle Town usually does."

"You got that right. I'm also grateful we didn't run int' that wizard or any of his minions this time; including his apprentice…" Tay remarked in a mixture of relief and dread that left Sky perplexed.

"Apprentice? Hypno Baron has an apprentice?"

"Yep. His name was Aashiq, and he… was very interestin', simply put…"

"Ohh, so THAT'S who that is? I'd heard about it, but I couldn't believe it!" Sky exclaimed, evidently knowing what Tay had been referring to. "Shantae's former crush is Hypno Baron's apprentice!?"

"Affirmative."

"Wow, what a twist… I mean, I heard he wasn't at all evil, though, so that's a very surprising development."

"You're tellin' me," Tay agreed.

"Yeah… Almost as surprising as what I heard about him having a huge boy-crush on you," the young woman teased with a wide, giggling grin. This of course caused Tay to flinch and squirm in sudden monumental discomfort.

"T' be fair, he liked both me AND Shantae at the same time," Tay hastily defended himself, holding out a hand in a frightfully dismissive manner.

"I heard that, too," she plainly acknowledged with a smirk. "Still, Tay, that says something about you when you can even catch the eyes of other guys, don't you think?"

"No, but I THINK I'm done talkin' about this," he concluded, shutting down the topic while granting Sky a healthy, joyful laugh at his expense. "Thanks for this outfit, though. It's a perfect fit," he commended, changing the subject as he approached her at the center of her living room as she stood. It was worth note that this time, Sequin Land's one and only alien invader was wearing a different pair of camo fatigues that bore the same pattern as his other iterations. This time, however, the camouflage pattern bore a mix of a dark olive-green, mud brown, tan, and black. Also evident were his black boots and olive-green tank top that matched the green in his pants.

"I… never picked up any outfit," Sky remarked in moderate confusion. "I left out a plain white T-shirt for you, but you said it was too small."

"Oh… Huh, that's weird, then…" he pondered, for some reason just as confused as Sky was.

"Where DID you get that outfit, in that case? Did you maybe buy it during one of our trips and forget about it until today?"

"No, definitely not," he answered, scratching his head. "All I bought was food rations an' undergarments. Like we talked about before, no clothing store we've been to has anything else in my size."

"Then, I don't have much clue at all where those clothes came from… They look fantastic on you, but yeah, I don't know how they got here."

"Thanks. Still… Another mystery that I don't know will ever be solved…" Tay murmured as he was reminded of the other time a pair of clothes magically appeared for him to wear in place of his original outfit. White and blue camouflage for the last one, and forest camouflage for this one… How were these outfits finding him? And how was it that they would always be a perfect fit? And for that matter, he had no reason to believe either Sky or Shantae had any hand in discovering these articles of clothing for him to wear. So, just who was it that was not only making these strange outfits for him, but also finding him and delivering them to him without a word or a hint of their presence? "Hmm…" he continued to wonder, somewhat nervous about someone possibly stalking him. He could only surmise that whoever it was, didn't seem to have any foul intentions that he knew of… but it did nothing to sate the feeling of apprehension he felt for someone following him and giving him free clothes at random.

"We'll figure that out later, but we've gotta get going while the air is nice and warm," Sky urged, moving to climb onto Wrench, who'd been patiently awaiting orders as his owner sat on the saddle strapped to his back. "Let's just be thankful someone's looking out for you and get a move on. It's already weird enough someone might've broken in here, only to LEAVE something rather than take anything…"

"Copy that, Sarge," Tay acknowledged with a salute as he stood tall before hurrying toward Wrench with pep in his step. The giant eagle/albatross/falcon (I'll figure this thing's species out eventually) fixed his gaze on the soldier as if to examine him. Noticing this, Tay stopped in his tracks, staring back intently at the avian behemoth. After a quick, yet important moment of silence wherein the bird and the soldier exchanged glances, Wrench nodded his head twice and lowered himself to make it easier for Tayshan to climb on. Acknowledging this, Tay hopped aboard and patted Sky's trusty sidekick on the back. "Thanks for all the lifts, Wrench. I waited too long t' say it, but you an' Sky have my eternal gratitude." At that, Wrench cooed and chirped in acknowledgement.

"Aw, he likes you!" Sky pointed out with a beaming grin on her face. "That's a good sign… Anyway, hang onto me, Tay," she further advised as she took the reins and prepared for take-off. The serviceman wordlessly obliged by grasping his tag partner's shoulders. "You'll need to be a bit more secure than that, love. It's gonna be a bit of a long, turbulent ride, so safety first. Go ahead, wrap your arms around me."

"Er, okay. Understood," Tay nervously replied, hesitantly slipping his arms around Sky's bare midsection and pressing his hands onto her stomach. "…Like this?"

"Perfect~!" she lauded with a rather… questionable inflection, causing Tay to immediately heat up with a mix of apprehension and concern. "Alright, Wrench, let's fly! We're headed to the Sheared Spool Shrine. This is gonna be quite the trip to make, so let's make sure to zip on over there in as little time as possible."

"Ca-Caw!" Wrench agreed as he spread his enormous feathery wings and, with a hop and a preparatory flap, they were off through the opening in the ceiling of the apartment.

 ** _Hours later…_**

LOCATION: OASIS WAY, SHEARED SPOOL ISLAND, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 23RD, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1200 HOURS

"Now, when you mentioned this place bein' far north, I didn't expect that t' mean 'north' as in way up in the air," Tayshan observed as he and his comrades landed on the smooth, marble surface of their newest spelunking landscape. Immediately, the soldier took a quick peek over the edge to visualize the distant image of the ocean's current crashing against the scattered landmasses of an archipelago at least a few hundred… thousand feet above this planet's surface. Mildly intimidated by the nauseating view, Tay backed away from the ledge, shaking his head. "I'm not even sure how the idea of a floatin' island is even possible…"

"Yep, there are such things as airborne landmasses," Sky confirmed, unfazed by the extreme altitude of their destination as she climbed off Wrench. The bird tamer's travel partner/ride immediately shrunk to his original size and perched himself on her handling glove as she approached her discombobulated passenger. "Are there none in your world?"

"Absolutely not," he answered, still taken aback by the very ludicrous idea of a levitating plot of land. "Closest thing I got in my world t' this is the concept of mountain villages… an' it's safe t' say no mountain in either of our worlds could get as high as this."

"Interesting…" Sky observantly nodded. "In Sequin Land, there are a few places that reside high up in the air. There's this place, Propeller Town, and at least a couple others. Granted, Propeller Town gets its name because the entire town is kept airborne by… well, giant propellers."

"…and people actually LIVE in places like that? Just up in the clouds like birds, planes, an' super… elevated folks?"

"Correct. They do so quite comfortably, too. It sounds a bit far-fetched, I'll admit, but it's provided those with enough money to afford to live in places like Propeller Town with a dense, prolific culture the likes of which most land-based communities couldn't compare."

"…The amount o' money it must take t' even build a FLOATING town, on top of all the costs t' cover accommodations for the extreme weather conditions an' fall risks yielded by such a dangerous idea HAS t' be nothin' short of astronomical… an' in case it needs t' be said, no pun intended."

"That's quite a mouthful, but you're right, no less," Sky concurred with a nonchalant shrug. "It's very expensive living among the clouds. I won't lie, though, I've kinda wondered what it's like…"

"I'll bet you have. In your case, it'd kinda make sense. Speakin' o' sense, I don't even know that I should question what keeps this place afloat… Anyway, what exactly are we doin' up here? I'm not seein' or hearin' a ton o' stuff that'd keep us busy…" the serviceman asked and observed, taking in the view of the contents of the environment around them, which was… mostly bare, save for the also-enormous tower standing before them. As the name might've suggested, it was shaped from top to bottom like a long, slender spool with no string wrapped around it. The tower bore a lone entry point in the form of an open doorway. However, the path to the doorway was anything but straightforward; as in, it was a winding, spiraling walkway that led around the mysterious building and spread out nearly to the edges of the humongous platform on which they stood. Surrounding the tower (other than the path leading to it) was a bright, sparkling moat of sorts, where distant splashing could be heard by the soldier and the bird tamer, as well as a couple of neatly trimmed, spool-shaped hedges planted around the doorway.

"I came across this shrine the other day, and I could've sworn someone or something was here…" Sky pondered, also somewhat curious about the lack of activity on the premises. "I thought it was at least worth an investigative look."

"What did you see, exactly?"

"I can't rightly say," she responded with some uncertainty. "When Wrench and I flew under this place two days ago, I thought I'd seen something gleaming… like a magnifying glass amplifying sunlight directly on me. And before you ask, the beams were fixed on me from the second I saw them. That lasted for a full minute or two of us passing by before they disappeared. When I came back later to see if I was hallucinating, I could've sworn something had its eye on me from somewhere up here, but it scurried into this temple before I could pursue it. By that point, I figured I'd come back when the chance arose while I scouted for other areas of interest regarding where Risky Boots might be hiding."

"Odd… yet, considerin' how things have BEEN goin' with us stumblin' upon uncharted landscapes, something's bound t' be up," Tay acknowledged, his abdomen filling with a mix of dread and anticipation as he scrutinized the ostensibly-peaceful midair oasis. Within seconds of him and Sky falling silent as she joined him in scouring the area, another *SPLASH*, followed by what sounded like a sigh of contentment could be heard nearby. "…and if that ain't some indication of us not bein' alone, I don't know what is… We better be proactive this time around…"

"You got that right. I've got just the thing, too…" Sky agreed, cupping her free hand around her mouth and blowing an air-splitting whistle into the open environment. Within seconds, a team of fire-orange hummingbirds bulleted through the skies and presented themselves to the young woman who summoned them. With a series of silent hand motions, Sky instructed her team of avian scouts to inspect the area behind the temple, where the noise seemed to have been coming from. Without a second of hesitation, the hummingbirds zoomed around the Sheared Spool Shrine, the sound of their wings rapidly beating against the frigid breeze filling the atmosphere. As Tay and Sky waited, anticipating the presence of a foe, they both laid their hands on their weapons. Prepared for the worst, the duo silently turned to each other, exchanging determined expressions as though to assure that they had each other's backs through thick and thin. However, their anticipatory wait would be cut short by the sound of something… much less threatening filling the otherwise-silent atmosphere.

"Agh! Waah! What the heck!? Get away from me, you disgusting, repulsive—Ow! Can't a girl enjoy an afternoon swim without being harassed by—OUCH! Seriously, buzz off! I was here first!" a voice cried out in a mix of annoyance and alarm, causing the soldier and the bird tamer to drop their battle stances.

"Oops… Maybe we should've gone to check back there ourselves…?" Sky sheepishly acknowledged, for some reason unsure if she should've sent a team of birds to attack what sounded like a defenseless resident minding her own business.

"Yyyyeah, we PROBABLY should've…" Tay worriedly agreed, though he kept listening to the aggravated shrieks of the mystery girl under attack. "Though, that voice sounds eerily familiar…" he further observed, which only amplified his concern.

"It does? How would anyone's voice sound familiar to you when you've never been up here before?" Sky dared to ask. She would receive her answer soon enough; not necessarily from Tayshan, of course, but from the distressed damsel in question.

"OUCH! Okay, that's it! You filthy, feathered freaks of nature wanna ruin MY day off!? I'll show you what happens when you mess with one of the most feared members of the Ammonian Army!" the woman bellowed out, causing both of our heroes to tense up in a sudden bout of apprehension… which probably wasn't helped by the *click click* sound that followed. "Say hello to my little friend!" the woman threatened. Before anyone could do anything, the raucous *KABOOM* of a gun being fired startled Tay and Sky stiff. The hummingbirds that had originally harassed the woman were quick to disperse from the vicinity in all sorts of separate directions as the woman in question gave chase, cocking the weapon again. "You're lucky I don't have my jetpack, or else I'd barbecue every single one of you for ruining my alone time!" the irate woman shouted after them, firing another blast from her weapon.

"Ah! Uhhh…" Tay choked out, wide-eyed, mouth agape, and frozen even stiffer as he caught sight of the woman as she dashed from behind the temple in a frenzied rage. The woman, who hadn't yet noticed she had other company, cocked what appeared to be a shotgun and blasted another deafening *KABOOM* of a round into the air toward the frightened hummingbirds.

"Hey! Stop shooting at my birds, you lunatic!" Sky yelled, incredibly concerned about the condition of her scouting team as they'd been rained upon by disproportionately aggravated gunfire. This was enough to catch the woman's attention as she peered over toward the direction from which she was being yelled at. It's… probably worth mentioning by now that the woman in question (who'd just identified herself as being of Ammonian affiliation) was a familiar short, red-eyed, glasses-adorned blonde wearing a red-and-white-striped bikini… bottom, and nothing else. Where was her top, you may ask? Why, silly reader! If you'd been paying attention (and as far as I recall), the article of clothing in question was certifiably not on her. Instead, it found itself ensnared in the beaks of two of Sky's birds as they hurriedly fluttered off into the distance. So, in place of her bikini top was the barely-acceptable censorship of the shotgun she'd been holding, in addition to her loose, sopping wet hair hanging over her shoulders at just the right angle to serve as a… temporary alternative. Nevertheless, the woman caught sight of the source of the unexpected intrusion she'd suffered and… well…

"Tay-Tay!" she excitedly called out to the petrified soldier as she came barreling toward him like a stampede of die-hard fans to their favorite celebrity.

"Hey, wait! Wait, wait, waitwaitwaitwaitwait!" Tay uselessly tried to warn in a hugely embarrassed panic as he waved his hands in front of himself to stop this half-nude young woman from pouncing on him. However, his cries fell on deaf ears as the woman dropped the shotgun and pounced on him. "Gagh!" Tay grunted again as he caught her while also making sure not to lose his balance. The woman clung onto him like a koala bear to a tree branch, seeming to be quite fond of him.

"Hey, babe, long time, no see! It feels like it's been ages since we last met! How've you been!?"

"Agh! Hey, Twitch!" Tay continued to choke as the now-identified Twitch locked him into an inadvertent submission hold, her soaking wet embrace drenching the unfortunate young man's clothes in the process. "You… You're not…! You're…!"

"What's that? I'm… not what?" she curiously asked, perking her head up to look him in the eye. Knowing the consequences of letting her follow through with this action, Tay immediately clamped his arms onto her back, pushing her into his chest while he looked away as hard as he humanly could. "Ooh! Wow, Tay-Tay, you must've really missed me!" she comically misinterpreted, mistaking his sudden bear hug as a show of affection rather than a desperate bid to save her from embarrassing herself. "If you wanted to get THIS close and personal with me, you could've let me know sooner!"

"No, no, that ain't why I'm clampin' down…! It's because… you're missin' your… uh…" he continued to stammer, for some reason afraid to inform his friend of her unfortunate situation.

"Hm? Something the matter, boo?" Twitch absentmindedly questioned again. "I can feel your heart pounding like a mallet on deli beef… Am I having… an 'effect' on you, hm?" she teasingly asked as she smirked at him, continuing to misread the situation at hand. Sky, utterly repulsed by the mere thought, gagged like she'd instantly become nauseous. "I know it must be quite the breathtaking experience seeing your favorite girl in such an indecent state, but what can I say? I know how to rock a bikini~! Wouldn't you agree?"

"What!? Aw, for goodness sake, woman, I'm tryin' t' say…! Uh… I-I'm tryin' t' say that you're goin' commando up top…"

"Commando up top?" she asked, looking at his face. However, Tay blushingly turned his head away, too embarrassed to even look the young woman in the eye as she continued to hold onto him. Taking this as yet ANOTHER inappropriate sign, Twitch upped the ante. "Ohhhh~! Tayshan, you naughty dog, you!" the still-clueless young woman smilingly commented, though the mention of him being a 'dog' left a brutally sour taste in his mouth. Take a 'Risky' guess why. "I know I mentioned repaying you for saving my life before, but the only way we're going THAT far is after we've gone on a couple dates. It's a matter of give and take, y'know," she politely informed him with a coquettish giggle, causing Sky to roll her eyes in unmistakable revulsion.

"I'm wondering whether you're gonna eventually tell her in layman's terms, Tay, or if I have to," Sky commented, thankfully breaking this tense, oh-so romantically charged atmosphere. Twitch, hearing this, turned to see a disgruntled Sky crossing her arms and shooting her a deadpan expression.

"Ew, what's this harpy doing here?" Twitch rather brazenly asked as she finally let go of Tay, who'd still been averting his gaze as he let her down and took off his shirt.

"This 'harpy' is about to kindly let you know that you're missing half your outfit," Sky sardonically shot back, finally pointing out what Twitch desperately needed to know. "You're welcome for the tip, by the way."

"Half my outfit? What are you…?" she was about to ask before a gentle, frigid breeze rolled through, causing the unaware, sopping wet young lady to shiver as she wrapped her arms around her chest. "Jeez, there's suddenly such a draft up here… Wait… Huh?" she got a clue, looking downward to see exactly what Sky meant. At the sight of her wardrobe malfunction, she gasped as her face turned redder than her eyes. "What the...!?" She covered herself as best as she could, glancing around the area in a frightened panic, just about ready to scream bloody murder before a certain mortified soldier handed her the tank top off his back.

"Take this shirt," Tay politely (read: nervously) offered, trying his hardest to look away. "Take it, put it on, an' please make it quick. We've got some explainin' t' do…"

"Oh. Wow, thanks, Tay-Tay," Twitch graciously accepted, her cheeks still pinker than a stick of bubblegum as she got to addressing the matter… with an emphasis on 'dressing.'

 ** _One much-needed outfit change later…_**

"Tay-Tay, you're just the perfect gentleman!" Twitch lauded after gathering herself up and repackaging her belongings. Instead of her usual Ammonian attire, Twitch wore Tay's green tank top (which was too big on her, resulting in her tying it into a tight knot so that it bared her abdomen while covering what it needed to), tan cargo shorts, and a pair of brown hiking boots. She tied her hair into her usual pigtails, though she did so with blue elastic bands rather than her usual bows. Also on her person was her trusty rucksack, making evident that she had been on a break before Tay and Sky arrived to inadvertently mess it up for her. "To think you'd give me the shirt off your back to save me from such an embarrassing bird-related situation… Ooh, I can't help but thank you enough! This makes three times you've saved me!" she gushed, tightly hugging the now-shirtless young man as he warily returned the gesture with one arm. "I don't think you know how much I love you!"

"Y-yeah, that's c-c-cool," he stammered, breathing heavily and shivering up a storm as he tried not to mind the bitterly chilly air. "N-n-no problem, T-T-Twitch… You can k-k-k-keep the shirt-t-t-t… S-s-s-sorry about the b-b-b-birds…"

"Aw, don't worry about that! It wasn't YOUR fault somebody's hideous little bikini-thieving flying rats swiped my top…" Twitch assured, glaring at Sky as she made her comment.

"Look, I'm sorry," the bird tamer offered her sympathy as she shrugged with mild guilt. "We didn't know you of all people would be up here. We were just playing it safe."

"Some excuse that is… But of course a ditzy dunce like you would go and summon an attack squad on a defenseless civilian for no reason," she bitterly shot back, causing Sky nothing but grief. "I was just minding my own business, too. I'm not even surprised, though, because if it isn't genie girl mucking things up for me, it's that cackling pirate hag. And now I know that if it isn't either one of them, it's you. Just for that little prank, you're on my list, birdbrain… Watch your back."

"Great, because we didn't have enough reasons to disagree with each other," Sky remarked with a sigh. "Is there any chance we could move past this and at least TRY to be cordial with one another?"

"The day that happens is the day I quit my job, grow a beard, and become a circus performer," the disgruntled Ammonian affiliate rebuffed. "What are you even doing here, anyway? I obviously don't mind that Tay-Tay's here, but I don't remember inviting you to my secret chill spot."

"Your secret chill spot, huh?" Sky remarked, rolling her eyes and sighing as she lost hope in possibly at least becoming acquainted with the other young woman.

"Yeah. Granted, I only discovered it yesterday, but that's beside the point. I'm laying claim to it, so you're not welcome here," she matter-of-factly informed her uninvited guest, crossing her arms and turning her nose up.

"Okay, sure. Let's roll with that," Sky dismissed with a callous shrug. "Anyway, where's your taller, face-painted twin?"

"None of your business!" Twitch angrily answered, evidently knowing to whom Sky was referring. "That's classified information, and even if it wasn't, I certainly wouldn't tell the likes of you where Vinegar is!"

"Uh… I-is she alright, at least?" Tay answered through his unstoppable shivering. "It's j-j-j-just a l-l-little b-bit unusual sh-sh-she ain't here with you…"

"Ah, she's fine, darling," Twitch answered Tay in a much more… amicable tone. "She just had some loose ends of her own to tie up, so I took a vacation day by myself. It's rare that I do, but yeah. I'll let her know you said 'hello'."

"Sure thing," Tay plainly agreed with a thumbs-up, still fighting the unforgiving cold as he rubbed his hands on his arms to warm up.

"If you're cold, hon, then I can help warm you up," Twitch suggested with a knowing smile. "Also, have you been working out? You look like you're really toning up. Whatever it is you're doing to stay in shape, keep doing it. Just when I thought you couldn't get any hotter... I like what I'm seeing...~"

"I-I-I'll b-b-be okay," he nervously denied, though the rush of warmth he felt resulting from his discomfort with Twitch's aggressive flirting mostly abated his rampant shivering. "Also, thanks. I've... just been keepin' busy while squeezin' in time t' exercise between expeditions is all. Nothin' special..."

"No need to be modest, Tay-Tay. You gotta flaunt it whenever you can!" she encouraged, striking a provocative pose to emphasize her point. "Take a page or two from my book."

"...Uh..."

"And no, I don't mean my diary," she quickly shut him down as she dropped her pose, noticing him about to raise a finger to question her. "Not that I mind you thinking about what you read in it, so long as you continue to keep it our little secret... And who knows? Play your cards right, and we will definitely see about turning words into actions...~"

"...And, just like that, I don't wanna talk about this anymore," Tay hastily dismissed, so heated and flustered that, even in freezing temperatures miles upon miles in the air, he could potentially cause the water in the moat to boil simply by dipping a finger into it. But hey, at least he was nice and warm. Meanwhile, Twitch giggled with childish glee as she appeared to enjoy making her favorite alien soldier squirm in the wake of her beguiling charm.

"Right… Anyway, Tay and I are here to do a little recon work, if you must know," Sky irritably cut in, just about done with exchanging 'pleasantries' with Twitch. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we're gonna he-!"

"Oh, that's adorable!" Twitch sarcastically remarked, barely trying to hide her surprise at the arrangement. "You're calling it 'recon work' when it's just the two of you with no genie girl in sight," she pointed out, inadvertently making the serviceman flinch as his face grew hotter than molten lava at the repeated mentions of this 'genie girl.'

"You got a problem with that?" Sky brazenly asked, caring very little for Twitch's attitude.

"As a matter of fact, I do. Since our little rendezvous the other day, I've grown exceptionally wary of you, with your conniving self," she made it known to all. "You act like I haven't been onto you and your underhanded mind games, but let's be real: You're as superficial as they come."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that your poorly-orchestrated sneak attack on Tay-Tay ends right here, right now. Whatever plans you had to explore in and around this tower, you may now include yours truly on."

"What!? Excuse you! You can't just invite yourself into our adventure!" Sky indignantly shouted, evidently unhappy with the last-minute change of plans.

"I just did, birdbrain! What are you gonna do? Tell your parents?"

"Oh, you insufferable little troll! You're not coming with us! There is no way I'm gonna stand idly by as you shoehorn your way into my business!"

"You're not the boss of me, featherhead! I'll do whatever I please! The only way I'd stop is if my boyfriend was too worried about my safety and wellbeing to consider it. Isn't that right, Tay-Tay?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, no! I ain't jumpin' in the middle o' this one!" Tay firmly and anxiously denied. "An' we talked about this before! I'm not datin' anybody at this point in time."

"Exactly! And the fact is, you weren't invited, so you're not coming with us, Twitch! Go find somebody else to pester for a recon job!" Sky yelled at her would-be teammate.

"But Tay, sweetie, we've worked together before, and we came out on top last time! Wouldn't you want the extra bit of back-up in case Stacy McStickyFingers over here lays an egg?" she asked, blatantly ignoring Sky while also rudely insulting her as she addressed Tayshan with her question.

"Stacy McWhat!?" the bird tamer echoed, seriously offended by the umpteenth derogatory name she'd been called.

"In my honest an' TOTALLY neutral opinion, I don't mind either way. You do what you want, Twitch. But, I'm not the one who organized the trip here," Tay rebutted, much to the surprise of both girls. "Sky did. Whatever you two decide t' work out is between you two. I'm more interested in gettin' a move on so we don't waste all our time screamin' at each other."

"Tayshan!" Sky yelled, moderately displeased by his reply to Twitch. "It really isn't hard to just tell her to buzz off! It'd be a two-to-one vote, and she put the final judgment on you!"

"An' while I acknowledge that, I'm personally not int' the idea o' bein' the ball in this heated game o' one-on-one hoops you two have been playin' against each other. I've also come t' realize that no matter what I said t' either o' y'all, somebody's gonna get upset in every circumstance. I won't put myself in that position, considerin' you're both allies an' friends t' me. I don't wanna hurt either of you. I just wish you'd treat each other at least half as well as y'all treat me."

"But Tay, hon, come on! We-!"

"Whelp, I guess that decides it!" Twitch triumphantly declared. "I'm going with you!"

"No, you're not!" Sky shouted at Twitch.

"Yes, I am! I don't need your permission, and our partner already said he doesn't mind. So scoot over, Rita RuffleFeathers, because a challenger approaches in this little game!"

"…If you call me one more childish thing outside my name, I swear…!"

"I do gotta ask, though, Twitch…" Tay cautiously interjected. "Do you REALLY wanna team up with us? You said you were on your day off. Why bother throwin' away your much-needed R&R t' take up a mission you didn't even know about until five minutes ago?"

"Because, as you already know, a soldier's work is never really done. When you hear the call to action, you pretty much have no choice but to answer it. That said, there's always other times to take a break, and one more day of work isn't gonna kill me."

"Huh… Conveniently good point you got there."

"You know it! Plus, any opportunity I get to convince you to join me is always golden."

"I… thought I was pretty clear that I wasn't interested in defectin' t' the Ammonian Army."

"Huh? Oh, no, that isn't what I meant. Well, the door's always open for you there, but I was talking about something else…~"

"Of course you were…" Tay acknowledged with a defeated sigh. "Okay, can we get rollin' now or what?" he suggested, already growing jaded with the two girls arguing over who got permission to do what. "I'm pretty sure this conversation has reached its end point."

"D'oh…! Fine, whatever! Let's just get this over with!" Sky basically growled before marching ahead. One might've seen the steam fuming from her head, she was so angry.

"Don't get your feathers in a bunch, birdie! You knew from the second you saw me that I was coming along, so don't hate!" Twitch tauntingly called after her as she and Tay kicked it into high gear to follow her along the spiraling path to enter the Sheared Spool Shrine.

 ** _A rather short, tension-filled trip later…_**

After an incredibly long, winding journey (not really) along the tower's entrance path, the trio finally entered the spacious, sparkling, yet-dilapidated atmosphere of the tower. Upon entering, they spent some time scouring their surroundings. Honestly, the only reason they were doing so was because no one was talking in the wake of Sky's anger at Twitch's 'unnecessary' inclusion on her travels, in conjunction with her two partners' curiosity about the temple itself. Immediately visible were various marble statues depicting long-haired, curvy women in dancer costumes striking various flamboyant poses while holding spools encased in string. Also visible was what appeared to be a cylindrical wall that extended to the top of the shrine, indicating that the lone door at the other end of the room led to a possible stairwell. Either way, Twitch, Sky, and Tay also peered around the room they entered to notice the series of cracked, crumbling pillars in the foyer, as well as bits and pieces of the floor, were coated in patches of ice. In lieu of any man-made light source, the gleaming silvery-blue inner walls of the tower's first floor refracted the sunlight through the stained-glass of the Gothic cathedral windows and cast it all across the room.

"Wow…" Sky murmured in awe, nothing short of amazed by the serene ambiance of the tower upon her first look-around. "This place seems like it was abandoned ages ago… and yet, it seems to have stood the test of time…" she added, quickly running toward one of the statues and observing its incomparable archaic beauty.

"Huh… Honestly, I probably should've come in here to check it out first," Twitch agreed as she approached the doors at the other end of the room. "Not gonna lie, this place looks like one heck of a tourist attraction. I'm only wondering how no one discovered it or at least said anything about it until now…"

"Weird… Why… does this all seem… so… vaguely familiar…?" Tay pondered, throwing Twitch right off as she stopped admiring the doorway long enough to overhear his cryptic comment. Sky, having been too busy admiring the artistic designs of the stained-glass windows and the genie statues, did not pick up on this.

"What? What do you mean, 'familiar?'" she demanded to know in the least urgent way imaginable. "Have you been here with Shantae before?"

"Uh! N-no…" the serviceman nervously answered, the very mention of a certain tour guide of his causing him moderate discomfort as he took a moment to piece his thoughts together. "It's just that… if I'm not mistaken, then this temple looks… kinda like a place back on my world…"

"Whaaa?" the alarmed Ammonian servicewoman remarked with mild surprise, though it did little to evoke a more knowledge-based reaction. As it stood, she hadn't received much information from him about his world, and therefore had no point of reference from which to draw. "That's really interesting… I mean, I don't know what kind of world you come from, Tay-Tay, but what makes you so sure you're not just imagining things?"

"Well… I can't be too sure, but I swear this looks like somewhere I'd been at least once before I came t' Sequin Land… I… just can't remember what the name o' the place was… or if it looked that much like this. I only wish I'd been t' that other place sooner before I was taken here, so I could answer your question in a way that makes a little bit more sense."

"Hm. Fair enough," she rebutted with a shrug, none too interested in his pondering over the familiarity of the temple as she set to return her focus to the doorway. After a few moments of inspecting it to find a way to open it, however, a pressing thought crept into her mind. "Actually, speaking of Shantae, where is she?" she asked, causing Tay to stiffen up once again. This time, however, Twitch gauged his reaction to the question and patiently awaited his reply.

"Not here," Tay hastily and curtly answered as he continued scanning the vicinity for any points of interest.

"That much is obvious," Twitch remarked, unable to gain any form of insight into why the genie girl in question was nowhere to be seen. "Is she on her way, or are we planning to meet up with her later on, or…?"

"Uh… Sh-she… wasn't… included this time…" he stammered, avoiding the question as best as he could without flat-out lying as he turned and scratched his cheek. "No plans t' link up at this point, either."

"Uh-huh… and why's that?" she pressed, growing somewhat curious. "As far as I've seen, she was always breathing down your neck nonstop, doting on you like a mom watching her child. Did you finally get the bright idea to ditch her after our last trip? Or is it finally time for her 'student' to operate independently to learn his own lessons for once?" she jokingly asked with a smirk, though the humor could not be shared.

"No…" Tay answered again, his tone markedly anxious and dejected as his heart began to pump hard enough for its sound to practically fill the otherwise-silent room. "I would never abandon her. We just… need some time apart, I guess…"

"Need some time apart? That makes it sound like you two had a falling out or something," she guessed, causing the dejected serviceman to look away as he let out a tremendously-pressured sigh and frowned in contemplation. Noting the dissonance in his mood, Twitch approached him. "Gosh, whatever you two fought about must've been really serious. Tell me, babe, what's the matter?"

"It's better that you didn't stick your nose in other people's business like that," Sky intervened. She turned and approached her teammates, having overheard their conversation just as she'd spotted a noteworthy object on one of the genie statues. "You're not doing anyone any favors by prying, so practice what you preach. It's enough that you're even here with us."

"Don't start with me, hawk-head," the bespectacled young woman warned. "I asked him a question, and as an adult, he can answer it without you butting in. Once again, mind your business."

"Why don't YOU mind yours?" Sky shot back, taking no pleasure in Twitch's terseness. "You can clearly see that he doesn't want to talk about it, so why are you badgering him about something that has nothing to do with you?"

"The real question here is why you're being so defensive out of nowhere," she pointed out, catching the avian aficionado by surprise. "Unless you know something yourself about why your so-called 'best friend' isn't here right now, when she's usually the one gallivanting around Sequin Land on a whim, you don't necessarily have a leg to stand on to tell me what I should or shouldn't know about. And I highly doubt you're just filling in for her, for that matter."

"That isn't your concern, Twitch. The fact is, Shantae isn't here this time around, so let's just drop it and move on, shall we?"

"Why isn't she here then, birdie?" Twitch challenged, growing steadily more suspicious as the atmosphere grew tense. "Surely, if Tay-Tay can't answer that, then you can."

"Why does it matter to you?"

"Because as I was just clued in on, something happened between him and her that made it so they stopped talking to each other, and all you two have been doing is dodging a simple question that requires only a simple answer," she answered, drawing her conclusion based on what little information she was given. "So, one of you spill it! Why did you two show up here alone? Did you set up a date or something here?"

"Not at all," Tayshan curtly replied, unknowingly providing Twitch with much unspoken relief. "We came here t' investigate a lead regardin' suspicious activity from a couple days ago."

"Great, so that much is clear. That still doesn't answer my question about what this unusual arrangement is, though. So, I'll ask again: Why isn't genie girl here with us now?"

"She isn't here because she had something else to do, alright?" Sky cut in again, trying to keep the conversation from escalating further. "And in the meantime, I'm taking over with helping Tayshan get accustomed while we work on dealing with Risky Boots."

"Oh, stop it with the premeditated responses!" Twitch accused, quickly growing irritated. "You sound like a robot, belting out programmed answers to questions as you hear them, or deflecting questions you either can't or won't answer! Don't you sit there and insult my intelligence like I'm incapable of reading between the lines. Clearly, something's up that goes just a little deeper than 'I'm Shantae's substitute,' and the fact that you're continuing to dodge my question is proof of that!"

"And here I am, telling you that what happened between Shantae and Tayshan is solely between them! I'm not saying another word to you on the matter, so drop it!"

"Yeah, okay, because you think it'd just be that easy to write it off. I'd bet you'd want me to let this go, so you can pretend like you're the only one who knows how to help a friend in need while you hide your true motives, wouldn't you?" Twitch shot back. "See, this is exactly why I don't like you! You're such a devious, two-faced harpy!"

"Hey, come on now," Tay spoke up, having heard enough. However, his words were ignored.

"Excuse me!?" Sky roared back, infuriated by her supposed-teammate's brazen insult as the two verbal combatants stepped up to each other. "I told you already that your disrespect wasn't appreciated! Where do you get the nerve, huh!?"

"Yo, stop. This is gettin' out o'-!"

"You know exactly what I mean, little Miss Rebound!" Twitch accused, throwing a curveball Sky's way. At such a relentless assault on her character, Sky scoffed in a mix of fury and disbelief. "Yeah, that's right! Keep acting like I don't know what your manipulative little game with Tay-Tay is! Newsflash, honey: It isn't gonna work!"

"There's no 'game' to be played, you self-absorbed, bratty airhead!" the bird trainer lashed back, causing Twitch to scoff in her own brand of disdain. "Of course, you'd resort to personal attacks when you're not given what you want! For a supposed grown woman, you're so childish that I swear sometimes, your friend Vinegar is less your partner in crime and more your chaperone wherever you go! And of course, you'd try to spin this whole ordeal into something about your-!"

"STOP!" Tayshan yelled loud enough that the boom of his voice reverberated off the walls, thus startling his squabbling partners stiff as they turned to look at him. "We need t' get movin', an' sittin' here tearin' each other down over somethin' that has t' do exclusively with me an' homegirl ain't gonna get us anywhere! Can we please stash away the beefs an' get to work?" he requested, already tired of the girls going back and forth with each other. After a moment of silence, each of the girls recollected themselves and spoke up.

"Right," Sky agreed with a nod as she walked back toward the statue she'd been observing. "Sorry about that. We… we should get going. We've got work to do."

"…Tay-Tay… in all honesty… we ARE close, right?" Twitch asked with concern in her tone, opting to stay where she was rather than return to her original position of figuring out how the door opened. "As in, to each other?"

"I haven't had a reason since the other day t' say otherwise," he answered, hiding his surprise at her inquiry. "Granted, 'close' is a strong word when we've only known each other a week, an' we've only seen each other three times by this point…"

"It still stands to reason that we're not strangers to each other anymore, boo," she reasoned, mildly flustering the young man. "We've been through more in this past week than most pairs of people have been through in ten years."

"An… understandable point," he hesitantly concurred, though he internally questioned its accuracy. "In that case, I guess we could say we're 'close' in some respect."

"Glad you see it my way. But, if you understand that we're close, then why won't you tell me what's wrong?" she asked, raising the stakes without even trying. "I know we got off to a rocky start, but you said you'd trust me. Why is it that the instant you're having issues with genie girl, you run to that one instead of me?" she asked, 'that one' referring to Sky, who'd discovered and pressed a button on the statue. Within seconds, a long, voluminous *CRRREEEAK* graced the atmosphere as the doors to the next area slowly swung open. Despite this, Tay heard her question loud and clear.

"Barrin' the fact that you ain't exactly easy t' reach when we don't conveniently run into each other like we did today… or literally every other time we've met… it… it's… a lot more complicated than that, Twitch… an' I mean a LOT more complicated," he replied, frightful about the general idea of disseminating details of his and Shantae's falling out.

"Complicated how?" she pressed, her curiosity growing in tandem with her concern and… dare I say, jealousy as she interrogated her extraterrestrial friend. "What does that mean?"

"Believe me, if I could just blurt it out, I'd have done that a half-hour ago. You've got a point in that as friends, we should be more open, but… The fact is, uh… is that what happened between me an' homegirl was… very serious…"

"Tay, don't say anything you don't have to," Sky called over as she stood near the entrance way to the stairwell, greatly concerned for him as he contemplated letting Twitch in on the 'secret' being kept from her.

"And you think that helps your case HOW, birdbrain?" Twitch turned and remarked with a sneer aimed at Sky. "As if I couldn't be more suspicious of you."

"I don't need your trust or approval. This is more than likely the last time you and I will be working together for a long time, so don't count on me being at all interested in warming up to you."

"Tell that to someone who gives a hoot. Like one of the five dozen owls I'm sure you hoard in your gaudy little apartment. Anyway, Tayshan…" the Ammonian servicewoman redirected her attention. "If I tell you that I'll help you the best I can, no matter what you're going through, can I trust you to be completely honest with me? And can you trust me?"

"I trust you already, Twitch, an' I've been… well, almost 100% truthful with you, if we discount our first meetin'. I'm just not sure how you'd handle it if I let you know just what's been goin' on," he reasoned, putting Sky on high alert as she anxiously awaited them at the doorway.

"Tay, think about what you're saying," Sky advised. "Think about what you're going to say. You can do everything in your power to preserve your friendships, but don't let that be the driving force behind you spilling details about certain events, no matter how other people would feel… especially Shantae."

"I'm aware, Sky. Believe me, I'm aware," he acknowledged as he walked toward the stairway entrance, motioning for Twitch to follow him. "But if I wanna be able t' figure things out on my own, then the least I can do aside from bein' honest with myself is bein' honest with my friends. It's how I managed t' clear the air with y'all last time, so I'm gonna try it again this time. I… I say that, even though it feels like my chest is bein' compressed by a giant stone pillar an' my hands are tremblin' like we were standin' in the middle of an earthquake," he shared, vocalizing his extreme discomfort with the position in which he'd been placed.

"I won't say that isn't a good point, sweetie, but are you sure?"

"Yes, he's sure! Let him speak already, will ya!?" Twitch barked at Sky, growing impatient with the bird tamer's calls for Tayshan to hold his tongue. "And don't call him 'sweetie'! He's not your boyfriend!"

"He isn't yours either, so I'll remind you again to practice what you preach."

"Hmph!" Twitch eloquently replied, crossing her arms and turning her head away.

"Cool. It's good t' see you two are always on the same page," he sarcastically remarked through his anxiety, though no one laughed as they all committed to entering the stairwell together. "Well… why don't we talk as we go along, then?" he suggested, ready to move. "I'll… try t' nutshell it as best as I can…"

"Sure thing," Twitch acknowledged as the trio took their first true steps into their latest expedition.

 ** _One VERY long, dark, spiraling staircase and one more uncomfortable story time later…_**

Our moderately-mismatched motley crew of adventurers eventually emerged from the mile-high stairwell, their legs aching from the serious exercise they were put through as the already-open doorway. It was that this point that they were introduced to their first series of challenges… which would at first go unnoticed as Tayshan's impromptu story-time had just wrapped up by the time they reached the second floor of the Sheared Spool Shrine.

"…an'… well, I apologize if any o' what I told you makes you upset, Twitch, but I hope it's understood what happened an' how things turned out this way…" the nervous soldier concluded his harrowing tale, evidently making sure to spare his Ammonian comrade's feelings in the process as they trudged into the second area. Twitch, however, was anything but happy with what was revealed to her. If the infuriated scowl on her face didn't communicate that, I wasn't sure what would.

"…Great. And here I was, starting to think genie girl wasn't an issue," Twitch commented with such tightly-contained frustration that one might've expected her to explode if she was provoked. "That's honestly one of the most annoying things I've heard in my entire life…! Why'd she have to mess up so bad that YOU had to be the one to 'save' her?"

"Get over yourself," Sky advised. "Someone's life hung in the balance, and you're focusing on the wrong piece of it."

"Don't talk to me, birdcage!" Twitch yelled, wanting to hear none of Sky's input. "It's bad enough I have to be told such horrible news!"

"You had the option of not knowing anything about it, y'know. So, if there's anyone to blame for your frustration, it's you."

"Again, Twitch, my intention ain't t' make you uncomfortable," Tay cut in, wanting to avoid another verbal altercation between his two companions. "Trust me when I say this: The whole experience alone scrambled my brain harder than a hit t' the back o' the head with a baseball bat."

"…I'll bet it did," she acknowledged, sighing out a rush of anger as she made her statement. "It's not like I'm blaming you for what happened. If anything, I at least respect you more for going as far as you did to keep someone alive. You've made some pretty hefty sacrifices to save people, Tay-Tay. That much, I know from experience. Besides, it's that clumsy 'teacher' of yours that managed to screw up hard enough to get poisoned by a scorpion monster of all things. Seriously, how dumb do you have to be to get stung in the LIP of all places!? And how convenient is it that the only way a cure could've been applied was through… THAT!?"

"Come on now, Twitch," Tay protested. "The fact is, it was a weird experience for both of us. An' while I won't share any details o' the discussion that followed, the short of it is that Sky helped me t' understand things from what I hope is a better perspective, so I can try an' clear my head enough t' make amends."

"And that's the icing on the crud-cake!" she bellowed, much to Tay's surprise (okay, not really) and Sky's chagrin (yes, really). Little did they know, however, that they weren't alone. "The last thing you need in your life in a time like this, is a treacherous, scheming buzzard-in-the-crags, who I'm sure is ready to pull out all the stops to keep you to herself! Aw, who am I kidding? She's probably already put the moves on you!"

"What is your deal!?" Sky yelled back at Twitch. "Why are you being so paranoid!? Do I scare you that much!?"

"I'm not paranoid, egghead! You need to come clean about what you really want out of-!" she was about to further accuse before an ear-splitting *SCREEEEEEECH* ripped through the area, forcing all three team members to cover their ears for fear of their eardrums being ruptured. When the three travelers turned their attention to the source of the noise, they FINALLY caught sight of the challenges that lay ahead. Littering almost the entirety of the floor was an enormous spike bed, where the spikes were jagged, rusty, and coated in frost. However, they appeared sturdy enough to impale anyone unlucky enough to fall into them. And considering the plethora of dusty skeletons and suspicious red clothing fabrics entangled in the massive death trap… well, let's just say there was probably a good reason this place was forgotten or otherwise left to stand the test of time before this point. Nonetheless, the only method of travel over the enormous spike pit was a series of floating, ice-coated platforms that barely looked stable enough to hold a person's weight before it either crumbled or fell into the spike pit.

"Spikes abound, riddled with skeletons an' floatin' platforms coated in ice hangin' real high an' unsteady over 'em… Ooh, this tower's gonna be one for the books, I can tell," Tayshan observed, paying special attention to the environmental hazards he and his allies were marginally prepared to face.

"I can only wonder what kind of shrine this was, for its second floor to be this packed with danger… and without detracting from your point, this place looks like it's seen way better days than this," Sky added as she and her teammates scanned the death trap-laden tower floor with utmost disgust. "Ugh, it's to the point where there's all that brownish-green goop all over the ceiling and walls! And the smell…"

"Not to mention all the monsters crowding up the joint," Twitch pointed out, equally as appalled as she observed all the reason the trio needed to believe their trip through the cavernous dungeon of a tower was going to be far from pleasant. Speaking of monsters, though, the presence of a few… dozen monsters accentuated the perilous atmosphere. A heaping slew of ceiling-dwelling purple, blue-eyed slime creatures coated the upper portion of the room. Their gooey secretions dripped onto the platforms (and only the platforms), causing a disturbing hissing sound that heavily implied that the droplets of ooze were corrosive.

Also apparent was a horde of winged iguana-like creatures of shades varying between salmon pink, lime green, and sunset yellow, that clung to the walls and stained-glass windows of the room. Depending on their color, they either lashed their ridiculously-long, spiky pink tongues out in no predictable direction as they glided from wall to wall, soared high into the air before spitting out a barrage of gross-looking soggy orange powder balls that floated slowly toward the spikes below, or let out a horrifying, debilitating *SCREECH* of a battle cry before diving toward the platforms and swooping up to cling to the ceiling near the slimes.

"Man, we're gonna have our work cut out for us for sure…" Twitch complained as she took off her rucksack to pull out the shotgun she'd previously been armed with. In that moment, however, one of these screeching lizards, sunset yellow in color, disrupted its pattern upon sight of the three human intruders and immediately dashed toward them with the intent to dispatch them.

"Look sharp!" Tay commanded, bracing himself as he pulled out his pistol and fired a shot. With an even more jarring *BANG*, he struck the offending reptile and knocked it out of commission. This action, however, caused the rest of the monsters in the room to go into high alert, their patterns increasing in speed while they all glared at the trio with macabre intent.

"Whelp, that certainly made things a lot better," Sky flatly commented, keeping her eyes on the opposing lizards and slimes while readying a polka-dotted egg and a small team of sparrows.

"Way to state the obvious, feather-fingers," Twitch remarked, pulling out the shotgun and cocking it as she readied herself for battle. "Any game plans for a situation like this? We can't possibly cross to the other side with all these lizards and acid blobs everywhere. And I doubt our goal is to wipe them all out unless we're feeling like we need the extra challenge."

"Hmm… I might be able t' make it easier for us t' get across, but it's gonna take a bit o' time an' coordination," Tayshan suggested, sheathing his pistol and reaching into his inventory to pull out an iron sight-adorned selective fire M4 Carbine rifle.

"Whoa, Tay!" Twitch remarked in pleasant surprise. "Now that looks like a gun that can do some damage!"

"As we're about to find out, considerin' this is the first time we get t' see it in action," he commented back, loading it and adjusting its firing rate by flipping a switch on the side of the weapon. "Of course, all of its ammo was replaced by a certain pirate thief, so it won't be as strong. An' unlike my pistol, its ammo is limited. I've only got two mags on me, so expect me t' be firin' this thing VERY sparingly."

"Understood. Either way, that thing looks incredible! So, what's your idea?"

"I'll try an' take some o' these monsters out from a distance with this rifle an' clear a path immediately up ahead. That should make it easier for Sky's birds t' get rid of any threats farther along," he theorized, studying the obstacles ahead.

"Meanwhile, I'll take point and blow away anything that dares approach me on my way across. That sound accurate?" she guessed, much to Tay's shock.

"Uh, yeah, actually," he confirmed, impressed by her predictive accuracy. "How'd you know?"

"Great minds think alike, honey~!" she turned to him and answered with a smiling wink. "You're not the only one who can come up with genius strategies on the fly!"

"Alright, let's stay on-task and push through, shall we?" Sky called out, refusing to let Twitch have her moment in the spotlight.

"Leave it to the jealous spoilsport to step in right when it was least necessary," the eager shotgun-wielding young woman remarked with a triumphant smirk as she stepped forward. "Alright, babycakes, it's your call!" she further added, addressing the highly-embarrassed soldier as he grumbled and resisted the urge to mask his face with his hand.

"Stop labeling him with all those gross pet names!" Sky further protested, growing increasingly irritated with Twitch as they were forced to spend time around each other. "Playtime's over, so get your head out of the clouds and focus!"

"Alright now, I'm about t' take my first shot," Tay forewarned, aiming his weapon high. "If anyone wants t' kick this mission off with a unique battle cry, I'll signal when we're ready t' roll."

"Leave it to me!" both girls volunteered simultaneously, immediately glaring and growling at each other the instant they heard one another. Paying no heed to this, Tay held out a hand, extending three fingers. Without a word, he counted down from three… two… one… and, with a signal of his hand to begin…

"Here's egg on your face!" "Take no prisoners!" Twitch and Sky called out, demonstrating zero coordination right off the bat as they shot one another additional glares of disapproval.

"Seriously, birdbrain? Egg on your face? That's so stupid! Of course, YOU'D be the nerd to come up with something as cheesy and one-dimensional as an idiotic egg pun for a battle cry…"

"MY starting line is stupid!? Yours is completely irrelevant! Why would we even be taking any prisoners out of an abandoned temple located miles upon miles in the air!? Mine at least makes sense because it relates to my abilities!"

"Oh, boy, the unrivaled and astounding superpower of throwing eggs… How incredibly useful, when the two people you're teamed up with have guns. You'd be better suited for juvenile nighttime pranks than adventuring or battling monsters, in that case. Just sayin'."

"As you've seen, I can do far more than just 'throw eggs,' so don't you stand there and belittle my talents when you've only got a gun that isn't even yours!"

"How about both o' y'all stop wastin' time bickerin' about who can do what an' actually follow the plan!?" Tay intervened, having heard enough as he fired his first shot. With a definitive *BANG* of the weapon, he struck one of the slime creatures perched on the ceiling. Seeing that his first round did not dispatch the creature as he'd hoped, he fired two more rounds at it. At that point, the slime burst into chunks, dropping a series of gems onto the platform over which it hung. "Darn it, these things take three shots t' knock out…" he complained, switching the firing rate from single to three-round burst before he moved onto the next blob on the ceiling. "Let's see here… one… two… three… four… An' of course, there's NINE more o' these things up there. That's an entire mag wasted on small stuff, provided I don't miss any o' my shots…"

"In that case, I'll get moving now. I'll save us some time by wiping out some of the lizards as I-!" Twitch was about to suggest.

"Already on it," Sky preemptively volunteered, sending a team of sparrows to combat a trio of lizards, one of each color as she gracefully leapt onto the first icy platform. "Whoahwhoa!" she exclaimed, nearly losing her footing as her landing caused her to slide from one edge of the platform to the other. Hurriedly, she lobbed a blue polka-dotted egg forward and, within two seconds, the egg burst in midair, revealing Wrench. Sky's trusty sidekick was stationary in the air, posing as a makeshift platform with his wings spread wide. Sky took the opportunity to jump from the icy platform onto the bird, thereby providing her with a more reliable form of support. "Whew… Be careful getting up here! The ice on these platforms isn't just for show!" she called out before she heard a cry of agony come from just ahead. She turned ahead, only to find out that her sparrows were defeated by the lizards with a slap of one of their tongues. "No! My sparrows!" The poor creatures were knocked toward her, forcing her to leap upward and forward onto the second frozen platform while Wrench moved to catch them before they fell into the spike pit.

"Yeah, totally didn't see that coming," Twitch sarcastically remarked, leaping forward to join Sky on the icy platform as she aimed her shotgun at the approaching lizards. Ready for battle, Twitch took aim. "Now that you've had your appetizers, come and get your main course!" she threatened, causing one of the lizards to glide toward her and screech to disorient her. Just before the airborne reptile could even open its mouth to unleash its horrendous cry, Twitch pulled the trigger. With a jarring *KABOOM*, she immediately turned the creature to dust. The scattered marble pellets that didn't strike the offending monster dispersed, some of them striking the other two lizards to do some damage. However, the recoil from Twitch's shotgun blast sent her sliding back to the edge of the platform. "Whoa, oh no! Oh, jeez, oh no, oh no!" she panicked, tilting backward before Sky lunged forward and grabbed the Ammonian affiliate by her wrists.

"Yo! Be careful!" Tayshan called out, halting his target practice in preparation to try and save his comrades. As it seemed, Sky had to make sure to keep her balance, which was made quite difficult when she had no stable footing herself.

"Wuuaauaah! Wrench! Support!" she called out to Wrench, who'd been nursing the injured sparrows on the sidelines. Quickly, Wrench let out a caw of valor and took flight toward his endangered owner, taking the form of a platform right under Twitch as soon as he reached them. In that critical moment, the two girls fell off of the ice platform and landed safely onto Wrench… well, Twitch fell onto Wrench. Sky fell on top of Twitch. But, I digress. Meanwhile, Tayshan noted the difficulty in his allies' advancement and hurriedly refocused, firing two more bursts of three rounds at the remaining winged iguanas. Thankfully for all involved, his rounds neutralized the reptiles before they could pose a further threat.

"Whew… That was yet another close one," Sky sighed in relief as she took a moment to breathe. "And we only just got started. Not a good sign at all…"

"Y'all okay?" Tay called out as he fired another burst of three rounds toward the ceiling to eliminate the next slime blob.

"Yeah, Tay! We're-!"

"Ew, get off me, you weirdo!" Twitch angrily complained, thrusting her hands into Sky's chest to force the bird trainer off of her. The bespectacled maiden quickly climbed to her feet and brushed herself off as Sky, appalled by such an unappreciative action, also climbed to her feet while one of her arms was wrapped around her upper body.

"Y'know, a 'Thank you' would've worked, too!" she yelled, unhappy with Twitch's show of appreciation for being saved.

"Yeah, well I didn't ask for your help, and I definitely don't need you trying to get frisky with me!" she accused, climbing back onto the ice platform while making absolutely sure she had her footing.

"Frisky with YOU? Ew, absolutely not!" Sky protested, flabbergasted by the other maiden's brazen accusation. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Twitch! I was doing you a favor!"

"Keep your favors and your hands to yourself and just stay out of our way! That wouldn't have happened if your dumb birds weren't so useless!" Twitch shot back, glowering as she turned away to jump upward and forward onto the third platform once it became clear that Tay defeated the slime blob hanging over it.

"Hey! Don't talk about my birds like that! One of them just saved your life, and THAT'S how you show your appreciation? You've got a lot of nerve!" Sky barked at her teammate, though her comment unfortunately went ignored.

"Hmm…" Twitch hummed, looking ahead to figure out how to make her next move. Immediately, she was approached by a green winged iguana that kept its position high above her, making it difficult for her to aim her shotgun at a comfortable angle. As it levitated just above her, the creature lashed its tongue out to attack, forcing the Ammonian acolyte to dodge with what little room she had. She was able to keep her footing (though just barely) as a pink iguana floated in, lobbing a series of orange slime balls that rained specifically onto Twitch. Realizing her position, she thought quickly. "Tay-Tay! Aim for these slimy puff balls while I take care of the iguanas up here!"

"Copy!" Tay obliged, switching his firing rate to single and taking aim. "Sky, we're gonna need a bit more support! I'm most likely gonna need t' reload before I clear out enough o' those slime things t' clear the way for y'all! If you got anything that can take care o' them, though, I can refocus an' aim at the lizards! An' make sure t' keep Wrench handy in case you slip!"

"What!? No, I don't need her help! I've got this!"

"Heard!" Sky acknowledged with a nod before turning ahead and whistling to summon a pair of ravens to the battlefield while tossing a few feather darts to inflict damage on her airborne enemies. As Tay got to work shooting down the projectile vomit that was the offending pink iguana's assault and Twitch narrowly dodged another tongue lashing from the green one before firing another blast that struck it but failed to take it out, the jet-black creatures came crashing in through one of the stained-glass windows to report to their commander. "Alright! Edgar! Allan! I need each of you to take out one of the slime creatures on the ceiling up there, but be careful not to engage the flying iguanas!" she ordered, causing the two red-eyed twin ravens to caw in understanding. They each dodged a series of incoming attacks from opposing iguanas, though they were stopped by a pair of yellow ones that immediately began unleashing auditory wrath that froze them in place. Edgar and Allan were not the only ones affected, as Sky, Tay, and Twitch all suffered similar effects. Sky and Twitch covered their ears as best as they could, which led to them being forced to take evasive measures.

"Agh, that noise…!" Tay complained, quickly focusing himself enough to shoot down the last of the descending orange blobs before he made a knee-jerk choice to switch back to his pistol. "Can't afford t' waste too much rifle ammo on simple distractions, so let's see if I can rely on my aim alone t' make this situation better…!" With that statement, he aimed his Desert Eagle toward the screeching iguanas advancing upon the incapacitated ravens. Feeling an intense pressure overtaking him as he watched Sky and Twitch hopping and weaving around on the incredibly dangerous frozen platform as they fought for their lives, in addition to the imminent danger Sky's ravens were in, the soldier's nerves began to get the better of him. His hands began to tremble profusely as he attempted to steady his aim. "Come on, darn it…! Don't… do this t' me now! Don't do this t' me now! Stop shakin'!" he demanded of himself as his aim continued to suffer from the sudden increase in anxiety as his thoughts began to race.

He didn't want to miss and wind up wasting time. However, he didn't want to fire off rounds haphazardly and accidentally hit one of his comrade's birds. He was stuck. He could've foregone this plan of action and switched back to the M4, but he'd already wasted so much of his first magazine on what he believed to be cannon fodder that he felt using any more of it for any purpose other than to eliminate direct hazards to the icy platforms was impractical. The Desert Eagle, though its aim was abysmal in comparison to the M4, which also had a scope, appeared to be more powerful in that it previously eliminated an iguana in one hit, as opposed to the multiple it took from the M4 to do so.

Nevertheless, he had very little time to consider his options and as such, stuck to his guns (no pun intended) by taking a deep breath to steel his nerves. At first, it seemed not to do anything as his anxiety increased exponentially and his frustration grew just as much. And then, with yet another, much deeper breath, that's when it happened again… The ostensible freezing of time as everything around him slowed to a screeching halt… The transparent, yet-visible line that trailed from the barrel of his pistol toward the general direction of the screeching yellow winged iguanas he'd been aiming at… The sudden cessation of his uncontrollable shaking as he zeroed his hyper-focused gaze on the lizards… Recognizing it as that same strange ability he'd yet to identify, Tayshan took full advantage.

"Tayshan!" Twitch called out, ducking to avoid a tongue lashing from the green iguana trying to get a taste of her as she kept her ears covered. In the middle of her evasive maneuvers, she noticed an overwhelming lack of effort on the serviceman's part. "Wake up! We need support! What are you-?" she was about to ask, though one glimpse at the serviceman struck her speechless. In just that moment, Tay made his move. With the speed and precision of a seasoned professional sharpshooter, he fired off six rounds from his pistol in a span of what seemed like MAYBE 1.5 seconds. The rapid succession of *BANGs* from the gun nearly rivaled the volume of the two screeching yellow iguanas, and the rounds hurtled toward their targets with extreme prejudice. In yet another second or two, the two yellow iguanas, the pink and green iguanas that were engaging the girls, the slime creature dripping onto the platform just ahead of Sky and Twitch's position, and an additional green winged lizard that had been coming to the aid of its golden-scaled allies were all eliminated. Each of the defeated enemies either were sent packing in different directions or were exploded in a mass of gelatinous goop. "Whoa…!" Twitch remarked in awe, utterly astounded by the soldier's deadly precision as she took note of the six creatures being vanquished in what seemed to be one fell swoop.

"Oogh…" Tay droned, quickly disengaging from his hyper-focused state as he, for a moment, became slightly dizzy. He took a moment to catch his breath and blink his eyes as though he'd been spun around about thirty times. "Hah… It happened again with that focus thing, but man did that one take a lot out o' me…" he murmured in a mix of bewilderment and concern. In the meantime, Edgar and Allan recovered from the surprise attack and advanced toward the slime blobs hanging over the following two platforms. Each one approached one of the creatures and, with a simultaneous mighty flap of their wings, spewed forth a crimson-colored mist that dissolved the enemies with a disturbing *HISS* as though they were being dipped in a scalding hot fryer. The ravens made short work of the slime blobs, nevertheless, cawing toward Sky in triumph before they made their exit through the window they emerged from.

"Wow, we made it! We can make it across just a little easier now!" Sky cheered, breathing a sigh of relief as she scanned the surrounding area to notice much of it had been cleared. Acknowledging this, Sky turned toward the soldier as he'd finished recovering from the aftereffect of his unknown technique. "Tayshan, it should be safe enough for you to start making your way across on these platforms without too much trouble!"

"Acknowledged," he cordially called back, sizing up the platforms as he approached.

"You still have access to my Falcon Call, right?" she asked as he, with a mighty leap, landed on the first platform while making sure not to slip.

"I do, though I haven't used it recently," he replied as he made another calculated leap onto the second platform, which was raised slightly higher than the first. Again, he did his best to steady himself, which caused the bird trainer immeasurable panic as she feared for his safety.

"Sweetie, please be careful! These platforms are incredibly slippery!"

"I know," he assured. "I wanna save that Falcon Call in case I really need it, though. There was already a point in the recent past where I couldn't use it, as you already know, so now I'm tryin' t' get int' the game o' usin' it at the right times instead of every time there's a gap t' clear."

"Fair, but we can't have you slipping and possibly hurting yourself like-!"

"That time on Naga Mountain, I know," he assured with a stronger base in his tone that communicated that he acknowledged his past mistake. "It's partly because o' that that I wanna make sure I know what I'm doin' whenever we go on these trips. An' trust me, I've gotten TONS of experience in the last few adventures I've been on," he further explained with a thumbs-up as he drew his rifle out once more. "Now, both o' y'all go on ahead. We gotta keep movin'."

"Right there with you, Tay-Tay!" Twitch wholeheartedly agreed. "Before we do, though, do you think it's a good idea to keep trying to fight these lizards, or should we try to slip past them?"

"Hmm… Based on past experience, I'd say that it's better that we try t' run past."

"Are you sure, Tay?" Sky questioned. "While I'm normally on-board for that, we don't have much wiggle room this time around."

"That's why I'm figurin' I'll try t' eliminate as many o' those yellow lizards as I can while you send those ravens t' knock out the slimes while Twitch takes care o' the other lizards."

"Excellent idea, but Edgar and Allan aren't all that experienced with combat yet. The attacks you saw them use was all they had for at least a few days."

"Wow, way to actually do something useful, only to go right back to being dead weight once you were finished," Twitch complained, causing Sky to shoot her another contemptuous glare.

"Darn… In that case, Plan B: I'll stay one platform behind an' at least shoot down the slime monsters as we move along, but that means you two need t' coordinate as y'all push ahead."

"I'd prefer not to," Twitch again objected. "I can push ahead and wipe out those iguanas on my own. Tay, you just worry about the goo blobs up there. You and I have more than enough firepower to handle things."

"Right, Twitch, but I noticed you're not used t' the recoil on that shotgun. Your stance needs work, which is why you've been findin' it so hard t' keep your balance up on these slippery platforms when you shoot. It's safer for all of us if you let Sky help you out."

"What!? No, I don't want OR need her help! She's not gonna do anything but send her squawking little abominations to get in the way!"

"Get over yourself, will you!?" Sky yelled at Twitch. "I'm not exactly enthused by the idea of helping you, but he has a point! You're all over the place with that weapon, and you need as much help as you can get!"

"No, I don't! I'm-!"

"Stop arguin', an' let's go!" Tay cut in, shutting the objectionable young woman down. "Those flyin' iguanas look like they're done waitin' for us! We don't have any more time t' brainstorm other ideas because you don't wanna work with Sky!" he added, readying his weapon before firing another barrage of rounds at an approaching green reptile. Hurriedly, Sky and Twitch got to stepping by jumping onto the next platform together.

"…This sucks…!" Twitch cursed under her breath, hurt and frustrated as the war bird trainer remained close behind. Just as they reached the next platform, Tayshan shot down the slime blob hanging over the one after it. In that moment, however, the young women were engaged by a pair of yellow and pink iguanas. Sky, thinking quickly, launched a red polka-dotted egg bomb at them, which damaged the opposing creatures while temporarily delaying their assault. Afterward, she grabbed onto Twitch's shoulders and grounded herself as best as she could. She also whistled for Wrench to hover behind her for extra security.

"Doesn't look like my egg bombs will do the trick so easily. Twitch, finish them off with your shotgun! I'll hold you so you're safe!"

"Fine, whatever!" she shouted in extreme disdain as she cocked, aimed, and fired a deafening *KABOOM* of a blast that vanquished the iguanas in one go without either of the girls slipping as a result of the recoil. As it appeared, a successful pattern had been found. Not wasting a second, the girls hopped onto the next platform, where Tay followed close behind and eliminated two more of the blobs before any additional lizards could approach. This allowed Sky and Twitch to hop downward and forward once more, where they were suddenly approached by three more green lizards who'd swiftly geared up to lash their tongues out to attack. Meanwhile, a fourth pink one stayed behind and attempted to spit out another barrage of corrosive orange dust balls. Again, Sky committed to firmly grasping Twitch by the shoulders and grounding her stance.

"Okay, Twitch! Fire away! You might need to-!"

"Shut up! I don't need you telling me what to do!" she barked in rage as she fired another two blasts that wiped out the green iguanas as the pink one unleashed its attack. Slowly, another barrage of orange spit balls descended upon the two girls as they scoured the immediate area for options on evading.

"Don't worry, I got y'all covered!" Tay assured, using the last of his first magazine in his rifle to eliminate the pink lizard from a distance before switching to his pistol to shoot down the spit balls before they could harm his teammates. "We got this! I'm gonna have t' rely on my sidearm from this point because I need t' reload my rifle, by the way! Make sure y'all get t' the other side as quick as you can!"

"Roger!" Sky confidently acknowledged, peering ahead to see that most of the lizards and slime blobs were eliminated. Bringing an additional sense of relief to the hooded young woman was that the remainder of the platforms seemed to progressively descend toward the other side of the room. However, she did notice that at least three of the final platforms were shaking and crumbling; red flags if she'd ever seen them.

"Fine, we might as well skate past this before we get into any more trouble!" Twitch acknowledged as she set herself up to jump onto the next platform.

"No, wait!" Sky warned, grabbing Twitch by the wrist before she made her jump.

"Hey! Don't touch me!" she screamed, ripping her arm out of Sky's grasp.

"Cool it, will you!?" Sky yelled again. "Most of those platforms are duds! Jumping on them—!"

"Causes them to fall after a second, I know! I'm not a novice!" she roared back, growing more agitated with the situation at hand as she leapt forward onto each of the next few platforms as gracefully and as carefully as she could manage. Three of the remaining iguanas tried to slash, spit at, and screech at her as she hurried across the pendulous ice path, though she proved faster than they could anticipate. Sure enough, she made it to the other side. However, she caused all the dummy platforms to crumble under her, making things just a tad more difficult for Sky. To make up for this, however, Twitch took the opportunity to reload her shotgun as the lizards directed their attention toward her. "Choke on this, you freaks!" she roared out in a temperamental outburst, cocking and firing three blasts of her shotgun to eliminate the threat before they could make themselves apparent. "There, now you guys have a much safer out."

"Goodness, this…! Shoot…!" Tay murmured in contained frustration, immediately noticing the added challenge Twitch accidentally created as he shot down another reptile that tried to attack.

"Safer how? You destroyed the pathway!" Sky complained, infuriated by Twitch's unwillingness to cooperate. "You're lucky I have a back-up, or else we'd be stuck!" she further yelled before turning to Tayshan. "I hope you see now why I didn't want her here with us, Tay!"

"Hey!" the pigtailed maiden screamed, even angrier at Sky for her derisive remark.

"I'll continue t' be neutral on your feelings toward Twitch," he remarked, which did nothing to soothe the girl in question's feelings. "Your back-up plan, though. What's on your mind?"

"I'll need to use a mix of Wrench and the Falcon Call to get across. If you're patient enough, you'll climb onto the the platform I'm on now, avoid whatever attacks come your way, and wait until I set up a safe path for you. As you may have noticed, Wrench can serve as an additional platform the same way my falcons can. Wrench carries the same time limit as they do, of course."

"Let's go for it, then. Whatever gets us across safer," he agreed. With a nod, Sky used the Falcon Call to summon her birds to her. With little hesitation, she hopped onto them, where they carried her the rest of the way across without issue.

"Hey, how'd you manage t' stay on them for so long?" Tay asked as he advanced toward the giant spike gap, noticing that the falcon team stuck around for Sky much longer than they normally did for him.

"It's the maternal bond I have with my birds," she explained as she waved to him while dismounting the falcons. "They allow me to rely on them much longer than anyone else. Same goes for Wrench. Anyone else will have a much shorter range of time to stand on them before they disperse or get tired."

"Huh… Figures your abilities work better for you," Tay plainly acknowledged, ducking under a tongue lash from one more green iguana before firing a round from his pistol to knock it down. "Alrighty, I'm ready when you are. What do you want me t' do?"

"When I give the mark, use the Falcon Call! After that, ride them to where I direct Wrench to go, and then jump as far as you can toward the last platform here!"

"Oh, good, a triple leap o' faith is what I'm goin' for here…" Tay recognized, his heart beginning to pound at the thought as he narrowly dodged a yellow iguana that tried to swoop in and attack him up close. Rather than shoot at it, however, he paid close attention to Sky as she held up three fingers. In much the same fashion as he'd previously counted down, she'd counted down from three… two… one… and…

"Now!" she called, pulling out another blue polka-dotted egg. Tay, without a word, made his move. He whistled to summon the team of falcons that previously helped Sky get across, nearly getting distracted by the ear-piercing screech of the iguana trying to sabotage his efforts. Having no time to try and counterattack, Tay sheathed his gun and covered his ears, desperately hoping for the best. He was aware he'd only have one chance at this, so failure was NOT an option. Nevertheless, as he also tried to ignore the sight of the enormous, jagged, skeleton-riddled spikes below, Sky lobbed the egg forward, where it soon burst and revealed Wrench acting as another platform. The falcons carried Tayshan over toward Wrench with just enough time for him to leap off of them before they dispersed. The instant Tay landed on Wrench, however, he'd heard a disembodied ticking noise, akin to a clock counting down. He briefly peered below to see Wrench's body blinking, seemingly in and out of existence as the timer wound down. "Tay! Jump now before Wrench disappears!"

"Heard! Haaaah!" the terrified serviceman acknowledged as he hurriedly backed up to one edge of the Wrench-powered platform. With nothing but the wind beneath his nonexistent wings and the sudden burst of warm, prickly tingling in his legs to carry him on this fateful flight to end all flights, Tay stepped forward, putting forth his best effort to leap forward over the spikes and onto the last icy platform between him and safe ground… only, he realized right when it was too late that, even if he were to land on the last platform ahead, the ice on it would still be incredibly unstable and unable to support his landing. Even the momentum of his jump would've wound up propelling him right into a one-way ticket to a most… acupunctural demise. Understanding that he was doomed if he did and doomed if he didn't in that exact moment he was hurtling through the air with all the grace of a ragdoll, he did what any sensible human being in his predicament would do when certain death proved imminent.

"Come on! I've gotta make it or else I'm dead mea…! Wait, what!?" he yelled as he flailed about in the air as though he were trying to learn how to actually fly. However, he immediately noticed something amiss in pretty much the same second. Turns out, he'd jumped so hard and so far, that, with his incredible, possibly magic-fueled bound, he actually cleared the platform … and much, much more as Sky and Twitch helplessly watched him fly like an eagle way over their heads and toward the doorway behind them. It was at this moment that Tayshan introduced himself to his newest friend; the icy wall up ahead. "WhoaaaAAAAAAAGH!" he bellowed before slamming face-first into the wall above the doors with a devastating *SMASH* that rumbled the entire room. What made it worse was that he didn't even immediately fall to the ground after his impact; he pretty much PLASTERED onto the wall like a can of paint whose contents had been recklessly flung onto a blank canvas.

"…Ooh, I FELT that…" Sky worriedly commented, cringing in a mix of intense concern and empathetic agony.

"Felt it? I TASTED that…" Twitch one-upped Sky, also cringing in immeasurable worry as Tayshan continued to pretend to be a fly on the wall for the next few seconds before the invisible adhesive on his bare skin wore off. Only then did he unceremoniously flop onto the ground face-up with a resounding *THUD*.

"Agh! Owww! Awgh! Ohhoh!" He immediately sat up to eloquently communicate the crippling agony he suffered as he clutched his aching face. As if it needed to be mentioned, Sky immediately rushed to his aid. Twitch, however, took note of the door to the next stairwell and went to investigate it.

"You alright there, Tay?" Sky asked, kneeling beside him to inspect him for damages as she rubbed his back. "That was a nasty splat you took there. If I knew you were able to jump that far, I wouldn't have even bothered to make you wait for Wrench to become a platform. When did you learn to fly like that? I certainly don't remember teaching you that," she asked semi-jokingly as Tayshan finished up writhing in pain. After a moment or so, he finally began to recover.

"Ahaha, you got jokes…" he flatly remarked, removing his hand from his face and turning toward his comedic companion. At that point, Sky gasped in shock at the sight of the young man's injured face. "I should be okay, though my eye still hurts…"

"It MAY be because your eye is slightly swollen again, as far as I can tell…"

"What? No, that can't…" he was about to object before touching his hand to his eye to see that some of the swelling had indeed come back. "Aw, come ON! Again!?" he griped, poking away at the shiner in question.

"It's even worse that it's the exact same eye Risky targeted when you last encountered her."

"Don't remind me…" Tay angrily dismissed, bringing himself back to his feet alongside Sky to see Twitch pushing the door open. With a loud, echoing *CRRRREEEEEAAAAK* and a ton of effort on the young woman's part, she managed to grant the team access to the next section. "I just hope it doesn't mess around with my aim from here on… It's too early for my eye t' be an issue all over again."

"Looks like we're in the clear to advance," Twitch affirmed as she turned to see her teammates. Immediately, she noticed the soldier's eye and let out a slight chuckle. "Smart move slamming into the wall like you did, babe," she innocuously remarked, causing the disquieted soldier to cross his arms and cast his angered gaze elsewhere. "No, I'm serious! Mostly… I-I mean, it was kind of funny, but for real, the speed you crashed at seemed to jar it loose enough for me to force it open! And, for what it's worth, we'll just say your nifty new battle wound was from us fighting a boss monster or something. I've got your back on that in case you're a little embarrassed," she further expressed with a smirking thumbs-up, actually causing Sky to chuckle a little, though Sky had to cover her mouth and turn away to hide it. Tay, however, was even LESS amused by his teammate's humorous comment. Pouting like any man would do when he found himself being humiliated by two women as their point of POSSIBLY starting to get along with each other, he covered his eye with a hand.

"She actually has a point there. Silly as that leap of faith looked and sounded, it actually turned out for the better. If that isn't a _shining_ example of situational advantage, _I_ certainly wouldn't know what would be. Awesome work!" Sky added, further irritating him by throwing in what sounded like black eye-related puns.

"…Unbelievable…!" he grumbled, evidently not amused by what he perceived as a series of jokes aimed in his direction.

"Aw, don't be so glum, hon! We're just messin' with ya!" Sky consoled, letting out another small chuckle as she patted him on the back once more. "If it means anything, the way you jumped across the gap was pretty amazing. And your reactions were… actually… kinda cute in a sense," she remarked, pressing JUST the button she shouldn't have. At that, the triggered young man breathed a frustrated rush of air through his nose that was hot enough to melt the ice in and around the first floor of this sky dungeon of a temple.

"Alright, let's move. We got enough of a break as we need by now," he tersely replied with a sigh and a shake of his head, marching himself through the doorway, expecting his teammates to follow behind him. However, Twitch stood and watched Tay's reaction to Sky's comment and immediately found herself annoyed by the bird tamer all over again.

"Hey, leave him alone!" Twitch defended, much to Sky's surprise as she turned her gaze back toward the other girl. "Don't you have a shred of common sense in that sparrow egg-sized brain of yours?"

"Whoa, what's the problem this time? Why are you getting so touchy?"

"Because your little jokes weren't funny! Duh!" she expertly pointed out. "I was trying to make him feel better, but you completely screwed that up!"

"What are you talking about!? You were laughing, too!"

"Aside from that tiny, measly little chuckle before I saw his eye, no I wasn't! I was legit trying to keep up team morale! YOU were laughing at him that entire time!"

"Well, sorry for thinking we'd finally broken the ice a little after what we'd just been through," Sky shot back, disappointed and angered by Twitch's latest disparaging tirade. "And I wasn't laughing at him. I was just trying to make the situation a bit less tense for us. Maybe that didn't come across like I wanted it to, but is that so wrong?"

"You and I will never be friends, first of all. Let's get that straight, so you won't have to keep getting your hopes up about breaking any ice that isn't already coating this entire room. Second, yes, it is wrong, evidently. He just stormed off because of your ignorant comments. And building off my first point, this whole team-up means absolutely nothing for you and me. Only reason I'm really tolerating you is because Vinegar isn't here."

"You say that like you were even supposed to be a part of this quest in the first place! I brought Tay here so he and I could work together. Let's not forget you barged your way into our journey because you were scared of missing out, regardless of whether your trouble-making partner was here or not. We don't have to be friends, Twitch, but I expect you to eventually start treating me with at least a shred of consideration or respect!"

"Say what you want about how this arrangement came to be, but a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. And sweetheart, just based on how things went with this one room, you're our weakest link by far, with your mostly-useless winged bikini thieves flapping and squawking about with no real purpose. Realistically, Tayshan and I could handle this job on our own, considering we're far better equipped than you'll ever be."

"Are you kidding me or are you blind!? Clearly, you got a ton of help from me! Some of it was even at HIS request because of how much of a klutz you were with that shotgun, and despite your constant refusals to cooperate with me! And then you knocked down most of the last few platforms hanging over the spike pit, stranding Tay and me midway through! If it wasn't for me, you'd still be the only one over here! Yet, you wanna tell ME I'm the weakest link and that I don't belong here? Don't kid yourself!"

"I would've figured things out one way or another, no matter what you say. Trust me, you didn't help me near as much as you think you did. You mainly just got in the way. Also, I'm really enjoying how you keep trying to show me up in front of Tay-Tay because you know you'll never truly be good enough for him. It's even better when it's apparent you can't even sense when he's upset about something. Some friend you are. And yet, you delude yourself into thinking you deserve to call him, or any guy for that matter, your boyfriend. Hah! There's the real joke! No wonder your last guy dumped you! But then, you're probably used to the feeling, if not the experience."

"Hey! Now you're taking this way too far! First off, you don't know anything about me, so stop making these baseless assumptions like you do! Second, I don't know how much more you think you're gonna make your snooty, passive-aggressive remarks toward me, but I'm gonna tell you right now that you're asking for it! I've had enough of your disrespect!" Sky was provoked into barking out as she stepped up to her teammate/adversary. Twitch, unintimidated by the bird tamer's vitriolic approach, mirrored her motion as they got up in each other's faces and butted heads.

"What are you gonna do about it, then?"

"You wouldn't want to know, so you'd be wise not to push me."

"Don't start another fight you can't finish, bird girl. We both know I'd mop the floor with you and your flying pests, so I dare you to try me. What's more, I know more than enough about your type to see right through this shallow, pitiful charade you're putting on for Tay-Tay."

"Talk as big as you want, you mouthy gremlin. None of it is gonna make you look or sound any tougher. The last thing you wanna do is underestimate me and my birds. And I'm not sure what 'charade' you think I'm putting on, but I'll have you know I'm nothing but genuine to everyone."

"Except your ex-boyfriends, evidently," Twitch shot back with a condescending smirk as she placed her hands on her hips, further infuriating Sky. "Since you're so slow on the draw, I'll be the one to break the bad news to you in layman's terms that I know what your plan is."

"What plan!?"

"The sneaky little stack of phony parlor tricks you have for wooing my guy in order to soothe your broken, shambled mess of an ego, of course. After-!"

"Yo, are y'all comin'?" Tay peeked from behind the door to ask, apparently unaware of the altercation his friends were about to get into. "I thought y'all was right behind me."

"Oh! Coming!" Twitch turned and called to him, rushing toward the open door to join him. Sky followed afterward, but not before the other young lady turned and shot her a dirty look.

"Oh, you're such a devilish little brat…!" Sky muttered just loud enough for Twitch to hear.

"An' get your weapons ready. This stairwell's got a bit of a monster problem."

"Roger that," the hooded young woman acknowledged as she called for Wrench to follow closely while pulling out more egg bombs. Likewise, Twitch pulled out her shotgun while Tayshan prepared to make full use of his trademark pistol. As the trio entered the second stairwell, the doors automatically shut with a frightening *SLAM*, ensuring that from here, there was no turning back. As they observed the dilapidated, opaque walkway, they noticed their only source of light was in the form of the next doorway WAY up at the end. They also took note of the swarm of lizards and slime creatures floating and dripping all over their path. "Boy, do we have our hands full with this one…"

"You got that right," Tay concurred in shared anticipation.

"Only means we've gotta keep pushing! This is nothing after what we just did! Now let's go!" Twitch called out, taking initiative as she dashed ahead while taking Tay by the hand to pull him along.

"Hey! We're better moving together!" Sky called after them as the trio got set with continuing their extermination campaign. They thankfully made short enough work of the corridor, having already faced the same threats moments earlier. Of course, the narrow, opaque nature of the ascending pathway, in addition to there being enough stairs that anyone with weak legs would come out ready to jump to the moon in one go, quickly made it a challenge for the trio to progress. Taking such a wonderful array of complications into perspective, our mismatched squad of fledgling adventurers opted to rely more on their legs than their firepower to carry them through, minimizing the amount of time they spent clearing out enemies while prioritizing their goal of simply reaching the second floor of the tower.

 ** _One arduous game of Dungeon Monster Exterminator later…_**

Eventually, our fabled heroes made their way to the second floor, though it wasn't without its fair share of hiccups. They emerged soaked in splotches of pink goop and iguana spit, though they remained determined to carry on… at least, until they felt the broiling, thick, dense air of the atmosphere around them, accompanied by the sight of a menacing neon orange glow coming from a fair distance below the area where there should've been a floor.

"What the heck is THIS!?" Twitch bellowed out in a swirling mix of shock, frustration, and anticipation for what they'd be up against next.

"No floor!? AND there's a giant pool o' molten lava here!?" Tay pointed out, equally as flabbergasted by the egregious hazard as Twitch was. "How does that even work!? How does the ceilin' on the floor below even stay in place when it looked like it was made of ice as compared t' this!? Why ain't the lava meltin' through t' the first floor as we speak!?"

"The more you guys question it, the longer it's gonna take to get us past it," Sky dismissed, studying the swinging chains dangling from the mile-high ceiling of the cavernous temple room and the jagged, edgy perimeter of what looked like a caved in floor up above. "What I'm most worried about is that it seems like we're doing two floors in one go. The ceiling above looks like it fell through or otherwise crumbled away, meaning we'll be doing twice the work to get any closer to the top of this abandoned shrine… and boy, do we have another big job to do here. The next floor is so high up, I can barely see it!"

"Oh, good…" Tay remarked with a nervous gulp as he fanned himself with a hand. "It's even better that those chains look like they get shorter with the farther ahead we look, AND there's no platforms in between. We already need t' come up with a game plan for this if we expect t' get through."

"Well, you're the strongest of the three of us by far, Tay-Tay, so one idea I have is that you carry us while you grab onto the chains and jump between them," Twitch suggested, also studying the dynamics of the lava pit.

"What!? That's insane!" he expertly pointed out. "It's like 6000 degrees in this room, and you want me t' grab ont' metal chains with my bare hands an' swing across 'em when we can't even breathe in here?"

"True, the chains might be hot to the touch because of the lava and the center-of-the-Earth atmosphere it's creating, but unless we can teleport our way up there, it's the only feasible option we've got. Actually, let me check to see if I have anything in my bag that might protect your hands…" she pondered, kneeling down and removing her rucksack to dig into it.

"I don't really know about that idea," Tay continued to object, drumming up a much less unmercifully deleterious idea. "Sky, couldn't Wrench carry us all the way up so we can skip all this?"

"I knew you'd ask that, and as much as I hate to say it, I'm afraid not," she denied. "While it seems more convenient to have Wrench go Giga to fly us up to the top, the extreme heat would get to him very quickly. If he spent too much time in this type of atmosphere while carrying the three of us, he'd tire out long before we got close enough to wherever it is up there we need to go."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, unfortunately. The best he could do at this point would be to act as a temporary platform in short bursts while he's at his regular size."

"Shoot…"

"I know, it seems inconvenient that the most useful-sounding way to get to the top here would be hampered by such a bothersome circumstance, but this environment isn't suited for my birds in the slightest. Seems our best bet at this point would be to have you swing us across, unless we went one at a time."

"Well, however strong I might be, I can't guarantee I can hold all three of us on these chains," he posed, thinking as he turned his attention to the glasses-adorned woman still searching her bag. "Plus, how would we even manage t' swing from chain t' chain with no safety precautions, even if you did find somethin' in that bag o' yours, Twitch?"

"Well… I think we might be able to use my birds as platforms to help you along between chains, at the very least," Sky pitched, crossing her arms while contemplatively rubbing a hand under her chin as she continued gazing at the dangling chains up ahead. "Between Wrench and the Falcon Call, we might be able to find some way to alternate between them so they each have appropriate rest times between uses. You might have a point regarding the practicality of it all, of course. Although…" she trailed off as she turned to him. "You seem to be a lot stronger than you tend to let on. I think you could realistically handle carrying Twitch and me across."

"For once, I agree with FeatherFace Frida over there," Twitch interjected as she continued searching her backpack.

"The name's Sky, in case you haven't gotten the memo by now," the bird tamer sourly objected to her fellow woman's incessant name-calling. "You can stop pretending you don't know it."

"Pretty sure I don't care, birdbrain. Anyway, Tay-Tay, you're definitely a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for. Remember back on Prickle Stitch, when you bolted across the long, open, craggy, burning horizon with Vinni on your back like she weighed no more than the average pillow? Not that I'm making fun of Vinni or anything, but carrying her for that long while doing so much running and jumping must've taken much more strength than I could ever conceivably speak for."

"I… That's true, I guess but-!"

"Or even right before that, when you lifted me over your head with just one arm after I tried to stop you from storming off," she added, providing further evidence of his unusual feats of unusual strength. "That was pretty impressive in itself, barring you carrying Vinni as long and as far as you did."

"That's true, too, but I'm not really sure how I did either o' those things. I just remember bein' upset or under pressure t' some degree… like how it is most o' the time…" he murmured, seeming to be getting a clue on something.

"And then just a little while ago, when you jumped far enough over that last gap downstairs to slam into the wall high above the doorway. In all honesty, it looked like you could've gone far enough to clear the entire section in one or two big leaps," Sky added. "Plus, Shantae said she's seen you pull off some unbelievable feats with just your raw power on most of your trips with her. She specifically said something about how you even gathered the strength to beat up Hypno Baron after he nearly fried you to a crisp; multiple times, I might add," she pressed further, providing even more examples of his displays of strength. Twitch said nothing regarding the revelation of the soldier's battle against the dastardly wizard, though her eyes widened with shock. As for Tay, though his heart sank a little at the mention of a certain half-genie, he did his best to hide his discomfort as he was reminded of each and every time he'd experienced the phenomenon being described to him by his comrades.

"Hmm…" he silently pondered the implications of the girls' statements. Immediately, he linked the shows of strength to the tingling feeling he always got when he was under enormous levels of stress during an adventure… most recently, when he thought he was going to fail to jump over the remainder of the spike pit. As such, he related it to the many other occurrences of this feeling throughout his time in Sequin Land before finally coming to a conclusion… of sorts.

"You okay, Tay?" Sky asked, taking his silence as a point of concern.

"…I think I'm startin' t' understand what the deal with that is," he revealed, drawing the attention of both his teammates.

"Really, now?"

"Yeah. I've been tryin' t' figure it out since I got t' this world, but I think I finally get it, now that y'all helped me pinpoint the pattern," he explained.

"Well, don't leave us hangin'!" Twitch remarked with anticipation at her favorite comrade's possible discovery. "How are you so strong? What's your secret?"

"I never really did have control over it; it just happened whenever I needed it. It's dangerous situations like this that seem t' activate it for me, if I'm understandin' it now. Or at least, they make it easier t' access that strength boost."

"What exactly does that mean?" Sky prodded, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

"I guess I'll start with this: We all know what an adrenaline rush is, right?"

"Of course," Twitch answered with utmost certainty. "We've probably been getting them ever since we started this little field trip."

"Right. But, since I got here, it seems like every time I get fired up or it feels like I'm in danger, I get this… this burst of energy that makes my whole body tingle like there's electricity runnin' through me. An' when that happens, I feel at least ten times stronger than I normally am…" he pensively divulged, still trying to figure it out for himself. "An' yet, even when I'm NOT in danger, it's been feelin' like I could take down an entire buildin' with my bare hands. I was told it might have somethin' t' do with a certain level o' magic stuck inside me, but I haven't really been able t' see the connection until now…"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, stop the race," Twitch demanded, stopping everything she was doing. "You have MAGIC inside you!? How!? You're not gonna tell us you're part genie or something, are you!?"

"Or is it that your world is full of magical beings and you're discovering some latent ability you always had?" Sky also asked, almost as shocked as Twitch was.

"No, magic like what I've seen here doesn't exist in my world… or at least, I didn't think it did, but now I'm startin' t' wonder…" he further revealed, shocking the two girls even harder. "There's a ton o' questions I haven't been able t' answer on that, but anyway… No, I'm definitely not part genie. I'm a full-fledged human. Whatever this magic is, has… apparently only been inside me since I got int' my first fight with Risky Boots, though I can't say anything else about that. All I know is that I haven't been able t' just turn it on or off at will, as y'all saw earlier."

"Whoa…!"

"I don't even know if I can control it now, but I do know at least that once it's on, it's ON."

"How do you know?"

"Because I've been gettin' that weird tinglin' sensation since we started off downstairs," he answered as he examined his arms and chest. "Shoot, just lookin' at what we have t' go through in a couple minutes is makin' it even more intense."

"Interesting…" Twitch observantly commented, looking the shirtless soldier up and down. "So, while we still don't really know for sure where your crazy physical strength comes from, we do at least know it especially works when you're in danger? Am I following that correctly?"

"In a nutshell, yes."

"Thought so. In that case, let's test it out…" she dared, standing up and running toward the edge of the crumbled-away floor on which they stood, to the point where she was on her tippy toes near the edge.

"Whoa, whoa, hold your horses!" Sky shrieked, startled beyond belief as she watched her comrade play with her life. "Twitch, have you lost your mind!?"

"Yo, what are you doin'!?" Tay barked, intensely that she might fall as he instinctively stepped forward to try and grab her. "Get away from the edge!"

"Oh no, this perilous cliff is so incredibly slippery and unsafe!" she pretended to shout in fear as she teetered on the brink of her demise some more. "Whatever shall a poor, incredibly-beautiful young lady like me do in such dire straits! Oh, me! Oh, my! I need a big, strong, shirtless, muscly, possibly magic-imbued man to save me now!" she 'cleverly' added, selling her idea.

"Twitch, stop playin'! Step away from that edge before-!" Tay was about to warn before, with PERFECT timing, a man-sized red-orange gargoyle sprang to life from high above, uttering a hideous, screeching cry as it stretched out its bat-like wings and nose-dived toward her at breakneck speed.

"Waaah, what the heck is that hideous thing!?" Twitch shrieked in ACTUAL peril as she crouched. In the same instant, however, the gargoyle swooped upward past her, the humid gust of wind knocking her off balance. "Whawhawaaaah!" she screamed as she quickly tilted over the edge of the platform and lost her balance. Sky, suddenly on high alert, prepared to whistle to summon up a team of falcons to save her teammate from certain doom, but in the same breath of air…

"No!" Tayshan roared out loud enough to startle Sky out of her wits as he rushed ahead and dove forward to catch her by her ankle before she got too far. He had no time to even pay attention to the furious rush of energy coursing through his body as his form began to glow with a faint white light. Once again, he'd found himself teetering over an edge with Twitch's life literally hanging in the balance. The soldier was far more ready to pull her up this time, however, as he immediately focused on pulling her up with one arm while the other was used to pull himself back onto the platform. "Haaaaaaah!" he shouted with full effort, managing to climb to his knees with Twitch's ankle still in his grasp before he rose to a full stand. Holding the dangling young lady by the ankle still, he held her high as he glared at her with a mix of anger and insurmountable concern for her safety. However, the gargoyle came bulleting toward him as he recovered from saving Twitch's life a fourht time (or eighth or twenty-seventh, I'm starting to lose count). Thinking as quickly as he could, he turned to Sky. "Look alive, Sky!" he called out, turning Twitch upright before carefully tossing her toward his other comrade, where there was more ground to cover.

"Whoaaaaoaoh!" the Ammonian girl-turned-football hollered as she sailed through the air toward the bird tamer, flailing helplessly as she did so.

"Hey! That wasn't enough time to-!" she was about to complain as she braced herself. Within a second, the two girls collided, Twitch hurtling face-first into Sky with a pulse-pounding *CRASH* that sent them tumbling across the floor in a tangled mass of limbs. Meanwhile, Tay had just been in the process of turning his attention to the gargoyle as it screeched and took the liberty of attacking him while it appeared that he was distracted. He barely had time to even put his hands up to defend himself as the gargoyle flew right into him, its razor-sharp pin-pointed claws bared, and its arm cocked back and ready to tear deep into some human flesh. With a shrill, instantaneous *SHWING* of the enemy creature's claws against the thick, stuffy air, it launched its brazen assault.

"Gagh! ARRAAAGH!" he yelled in a torrent of immense pain and situational anger as the foul creature swooped by him and, in the matter of a split-second, plunged its claws into his forehead over his eye and ripped then downward as hard as it could. The injured soldier reeled back, turning away and holding his face as though it had been torn completely off. However, he at least knew he was nowhere close to safe enough to process the injury in that moment. As such, he turned back toward the creature as it soared upward and turned toward him. "Agh…! Darn it, you're gonna regret that!" he threatened through labored breaths, plastering a hand over his face. He'd been covering his eye (which was unfortunately the same one he'd already suffered damage to before), though one could see some of the damage. At a glance, it appeared as though a bandage had been ripped from an open wound on his forehead. The creature, paying little regard to the soldier's condition, turned around and charged at him with its claws bared again. Tay, feeling the full effect of the energy boost he'd just theorized about, caught the airborne monster by one of its wrists, immediately causing it to try wresting itself from his grip. Without warning, the injured serviceman took his free hand off his eye, revealing three sickeningly deep, gruesome, parallel cuts that trailed from his forehead, over his eye, and down to his cheek and top lip. And when I say 'sickeningly deep,' I'm talking deep enough that the skin surrounding the horrifying wounds looked like the skin of a peeled orange while the wounds themselves glowed with a crimson red. How he wasn't bleeding profusely at this point was a mystery all of its own, though one could also faintly see an enigmatic white glow surrounding the wounds. Nevertheless, he was barely able to keep the eye open, though he didn't let it stop him from reeling the adversarial gargoyle in, digging his heel into what little ground he had, and…

"Here's your PAYBACK!" he roared once more as he released one of the most devastating uppercuts he'd ever delivered. With a jarring, echoing *BOOM* of an impact of his fist against the gargoyle's gut, the creature let out a cry of defeat as it burst into dust particles. In its place, a healthy supply of gems rained down for him to collect. Though his eye stung and burned like he'd dipped his face directly into the lava below, he did his best to collect the gems before taking a moment to breathe and process the searing pain emanating from his wounds after such an unnerving, deadly encounter. As for his teammates…

"Get off me!" Twitch yelled out as she angrily floundered about on the ground. Sky had been sitting on top of her, somewhat disoriented by the surprise attack she'd been subjected to as she straddled the other woman and shook her head to collect herself.

"Ooh, what a messy rescue that was… Gosh, my head…" she murmured to herself as she blinked a few times and took a deep breath while reaching one hand toward the ground while the other rested on her forehead. Only real problem here was that, as I said, she reached a hand TOWARD the ground. I unfortunately didn't mean she actually planted her hand on the ground, because…

"HEY! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING TO ME, YOU FREAK!? YOU'RE SO DISGUSTING! GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF ME!" the furious bespectacled maiden screamed at the top of her lungs as she flailed even harder. This outburst caused Sky to wake all the way up and realize just what was happening beneath her. Evidently, Sky had uh… misplaced her hand as she sat, straddled on top of a helpless Twitch, whose face had been redder than a bottle of ketchup as she continued to thrash, slapping away at the bird tamer as she hurriedly jumped to her feet.

"Oh! S-sorry about that! I-I didn't mean to do that!" Sky apologized in a flustered panic as she moved to lend the other girl a hand. Twitch, being far from willing to accept any help from Sky at this point, brazenly slapped Sky's hand away before she helped herself up. Hot with rage and embarrassment, she fixed her shirt and crossed her arms over her chest, glaring at Sky.

"I knew you were weird, but that proves it! Stay away from me! You hear me!?" she bellowed out in a panic that may have been just a tad disproportionate to the situation. She made her statement as she accusingly pointed at her teammate while still guarding herself.

"Twitch, relax! That was an accident!" Sky tried to assure while being mindful not to approach the flustered Ammonian affiliate. "He threw you over to me with barely a warning! Mind you, you've got some explaining to do yourself, but first…" she reasoned before turning to the serviceman. "Tayshan! What was the big idea there!? You could've at least-! OH MY GOSH!" She was set to scold the young man for literally foisting Twitch onto her in such an unceremonious fashion before he turned to face her. In that moment, she and Twitch caught sight of the disfiguring claw marks running down the soldier's face, trailing over his already-damaged eye. Twitch gasped in horror as every bit of her previous frustration with Sky vanished in the wake of her concern for his health and wellbeing. They both also took note of the faint whitish aura surrounding him as he walked toward them, but the deep, swollen red claw marks streaking over his eye were the primary concern as they met him halfway. "Tay, are you alright!? Your eye!"

"Is it that bad?" he asked, uncertain of the amount of damage he'd suffered. "I can't tell. I just know it stings like somebody poured acid all over my face an' I can barely see out of it, but how does it look?"

"It's really bad, hon! REALLY bad!" Sky frantically informed him as she dug into her inventory. "It's to the point where skin is hanging off! Any deeper, and I swear I'd be able to see bone! You could've lost your eye if that monster cut you any harder! You're most likely coming out of this with permanent scars," she further advised to his dismay, pulling out a Vegetarian Hoagie and handing it to him. "Eat that, and then let me see your face. We need to get that eye checked out."

"But… I'm not hungry," he reasoned in mild confusion. "I mean, I know it'll heal me, but do I need the whole thing?"

"As much as it takes, just eat," she commanded, prompting Tay to take a few bites of the leafy sandwich. Instantly, he was filled with a rush of much-needed stamina as he resolved to finish the rest of it as quickly as he could. At that point, his eye had felt good as new, with the swelling and pain going down to nearly nothing as he blinked a few times to test it out.

"Huh… I guess I WAS just a little bit hungry. Thanks. That seemed t' help a lot more than I thought it would. I'll save the questions on how that even worked for later," he expressed before bending forward toward Sky. Without a moment to waste, Sky rested her hands on Tayshan's face and closely inspected his eye to see that, while the crimson red hue of the claw marks simmered down to a deep, tree bark brown thanks to the healing qualities of the Vegetarian Hoagie he'd eaten, there still remained three distressingly sizable scars in their place that hadn't shrunken at all.

"Ohh, it's just as I thought…" Sky worriedly concluded, letting go of him. "That monster got you good, Tay. That sandwich should've restored you to full health, but your wounds didn't heal all the way. The gashes it left on your face look like they're there to stay…" she added in intense concern, causing Twitch to cringe in a mix of discomfort and guilt as she gazed at the injured serviceman.

"Shoot…" Tay cursed, disheartened as he grazed a hand over his eye to feel the difference in the texture of his skin and the texture of the scars on his face. Indeed, he felt the disturbingly bumpy, ridged texture of the wound marks as compared to the smoothness of the skin surrounding them. "That's… not good…" he added, disheartened by the fact that it took a mere ten-second encounter with a single monster to injure him to the point where he'd never fully recover. "If that's how it is, then all I can say is that we really shouldn't mess around anymore…"

"I couldn't have said it better myself. We'll definitely need to be extra careful from here on. Let's focus on getting through the rest of this temple with as little opportunity for further injury as possible. You can guarantee that I'll protect you. Can you still see from that eye?"

"Yes, I can. Either that sandwich worked like I guess it was supposed to, or I got lucky enough not t' have it gouged out by that monster," he affirmed, taking a deep breath of relief that he could still use both his eyes. "I won't lie, though; I wasn't really lookin' for a facial makeover like this…" he further shared, still poking away at his facial scars.

"I'm… I'm so sorry, Tayshan," Twitch took it upon herself to apologize as she stepped up, frowning with unspeakable guilt. "You wouldn't have gotten hurt if it wasn't for me…"

"You got that right, sister!" Sky yelled, turning toward the young woman while scowling at her. "What were you thinking!?"

"Hey, don't get all snippy with me!" Twitch defended herself. "I was trying to test out a theory! I had no idea that ugly gargoyle was going to just pop up out of thin air and attack me!"

"So you test your 'theory' by deliberately putting yourself in harm's way to see if he would save you!? Are you serious!? You almost died because of your 'bright' idea! And poor Tayshan got seriously hurt!"

"No way! Wow, I TOTALLY didn't realize that!" Twitch sarcastically spat. "That's why I apologized, genius! But thankfully, he's fine now!" she dismissed, much to Sky's displeasure, before turning her attention toward Tayshan and moving to approach him. "Anyway, Tay-Tay, I-!"

"Fine!?" Sky yelled even louder, stepping in the other woman's path. "Have you seen his face!? He's gonna have to live the rest of his life with those awful claw marks on it because of your ill-advised little experiment! Don't you understand that!?" Sky hollered in tremendous empathetic anger as she became fed up with Twitch's antics. "Only someone as immature and inconsiderate as you could ever THINK to say something so callous about something that was entirely her fault! Something that someone else suffered for! You don't have a shred of remorse for it, either! That's the worst part about it!"

"Yo, come on," Tay calmly tried to intervene. "It's oka-!"

"SHUT YOUR CLUCKING MOUTH, SQUAWKS!" Twitch screamed, her eyes watering up and glimmering as she grew increasingly frustrated with Sky while her concern for the soldier's safety amplified tenfold. "You don't know me, so keep your judgments to yourself! I DO feel bad about it, which is why I'm trying to make up for it! I don't need you getting in my face about what just happened, so mind your own business and lay off me!"

"I'll 'lay off you' when you finally learn to stop messing everything up for us!" Sky accused, making Twitch scoff in ire. "You've made this trip a hundred times harder than it needed to be, and all you have to say for yourself is to tell me I don't know you and to mind my own business!? This whole quest IS my business, and YOU butted in, in case you forgot!"

"Oh, that's it! I swear I'm gonna-!"

"Yo! CHILL!" Tay declared, putting his foot down. Twitch and Sky stopped their squabbling long enough to turn to the still-glowing serviceman as they dropped their confrontational stances. "We don't have time t' go back an' forth over who's at fault for what! Let's just get up out o' here before more o' those gargoyle monsters show up. I get the feelin' there's more of 'em in here, so the sooner we move, the better."

"Right," Sky attentively acknowledged, stepping toward him after taking a breath to dispel her frustration. "So what's the plan for moving forward? Are we hitching a ride on you while you grab the chains?"

"Oh yeah, we never did actually come up with a plan…" he realized, kicking himself as he did so. As he looked down in contemplation, however, he took note of the smoky-looking light radiating from his arms. "Huh… How long has this been a thing?"

"You've been glowing like that since Twitch cluelessly offered herself up as bait for that monster," Sky answered, further irritating Twitch in the process. "So, there MIGHT be some validity to this 'theory' she so eagerly tested."

"Huh… That might be true," he acknowledged as he continued to study the aura outlining his form. "My whole body's tinglin' like it has been in situations like this. So, maybe there really IS a connection between how much pressure I'm under an' how strong this… this magic makes me in situations like the one we're in now…"

"How do we know for sure, though? That's the question…"

"Well… Mind if I pick you up an' see?" he politely suggested, though Sky flinched in surprise at the request. "I-I mean, like… just lift you up an' see if it's really feasible t' carry both o' y'all across. No disrespect, in case that came across as insultin'."

"No, no, don't worry. I didn't react like I did because I was offended by anything," she assured. "It's just… oh, never mind. Go right ahead," she permitted as she raised her arms toward the ceiling, prompting the soldier to approach and gently grasp the bird tamer's hips. "Ooh, that's a tad bold of you. I figured you'd lift me up by my feet," she commented with a slight chuckle, causing Tay's face to heat up with apprehension. Nevertheless, he effortlessly lifted the young woman off the ground and held her high as she stretched her limbs outward.

"Huh… Wow," he observed, carefully sliding one hand toward Sky's bare abdomen and removing the other. "At this point, you feel no heavier than an empty cardboard box." Sky, somewhat unnerved by his change of position, instinctively grabbed his wrist with both her hands as she hung her legs downward.

"Careful now," she advised. "We don't need any more slip-ups."

"Heard," Tay acknowledged, reaching his free hand to provide extra security for Sky as she remained suspended in the air. Only, he had very few options on where to replace the hand, considering the position of the hand planted on Sky's stomach in addition to her instinctive grasp on his wrist. Knowing, however, that he shouldn't keep her up there forever and that he didn't want to simply drop her, he sighed with apprehension before he spoke. "Uh… Now, don't take this the wrong way, Sky, but I'mma have t' place my free hand somewhere else t' bring you back down safely. I figure it'd be better t' warn you before I do anything you're uncomfortable with."

"Hm? I'm… not sure what you mean, but whatever you have to do, go for it. Just make sure I don't fall." she permitted once more. At that, Tay took another deep breath and made his move. Hesitantly, he lowered the bird trainer, holding his free hand out toward her as he lowered her toward himself. He followed up by placing his free hand on her lower back as he continued to lower her. However, the angle at which he tried to bring her down, in addition to the perspiration coating his palms, caused the bird tamer to slip. "Whoa!" she shouted as she panicked and lunged toward him, grasping his face as she fell. On the other end, Tay also panicked as his hands seemed to fly out on their own in an effort to keep Sky from falling. Thankfully, his reflexes permitted him to catch her as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Maybe not-so-thankfully, his hands found themselves serving as the hooded woman's seat as his palms became intimately familiar with her backside. Sky, however, paid no immediate heed to this in the wake of clinging onto her partner to keep from falling.

"Agh…!" Twitch exhaled in disbelief at the scene before her. Or maybe it wasn't disbelief, considering the look on her face. It… was definitely more that she was appalled by the sight of Sky squeezing Tayshan's face into her chest for dear life while he held her up by cupping his hands under her. And when I say 'appalled,' I meant she was furious enough that the rage-riddled scowl on her face could've frightened a full-grown bear into submission. So yeah, not a great moment for an already-perturbed Twitch.

"That was a close one… Add that one to the list," Sky commented with a sigh of relief as she straightened herself up in the soldier's grasp, allowing him the chance to look up at her as he tried processing what to do to keep from being pummeled through the ground for what he'd just done. Immediately, Sky read the hidden apprehension on his face.

"Um…" Tay tried to speak, though the words wouldn't come out as he remained practically stiff with Sky in his grasp. "Look, this was not-!"

"Don't sweat it, doll, I know you didn't do this on purpose," she smilingly acknowledged, much to his relief as she relaxed her grip on his shoulders. "Can't complain, though; it is a nice view up here. It seems like you're definitely capable of carrying me across, no less. To lift me all the way up with just one hand is as impressive as it gets," she assured him, gently tapping his cheek with her fingers, causing him to momentarily turn his gaze elsewhere out of embarrassment.

"R-right, of course… I just don't want t' give off the wrong idea all over again," he admitted as he cut his eyes toward her, eliciting another innocuous grin from the bird trainer as she nodded in appreciation.

"Considerate as you are cute, Tay. I like that," she laughingly pointed out, causing him even more embarrassment as his face grew red. Having heard the magic word once again, he groaned and pouted as he shot his gaze elsewhere again.

"Alright, that's enough," Twitch interjected, marching over and grabbing Sky by the hem of her capri pants and forcibly pulling her down from Tayshan's grasp. Sky barely landed on her feet while Tay fought to keep his balance after such a hurried, anger-fueled action had been taken.

"Whoa! Hey, what's your deal!?" Sky complained, turning and glaring at the Ammonian affiliate. Ignoring her, Twitch waltzed right past her and toward the otherworldly man with a pair of tan heat-proof gloves in her possession.

"Here, take these," she advised, handing the soldier the gloves for him to put on. "In case those chains are hot, those should provide you with adequate protection. There are even specialized grips on them to prevent slipping while we're up there.

"Oh, cool. Thanks, homie," Tay gratefully acknowledged as he wasted no time slipping the gloves over his hands and flexing his fingers to see how they fit. "They're a little bit snug, but they feel pretty good."

"Good," Twitch acknowledged. "Now pick me up," she further demanded without warning.

"You got it, boss lady," Tay obliged, though he didn't immediately do what she told him to. "What way would you want me t' do it?"

"Does it matter?" she asked, trying to hide her eagerness to be picked up. "I'm sure we'll figure out positioning in a minute."

"Right, but like I said t' Sky, I need t' figure out what makes y'all comfortable. There are still personal boundaries that come with this sort o' thing, an' if there's a line you don't want me t' cross, I gotta know where that line is."

"Of course, babe, but there's no need to be uptight about it. So what if we have to get a little close for comfort? Just… I don't know, hold your hands out like you're about to give me a boost, if you're looking for pointers."

"Acknowledged," he replied in a word, mildly put-off by Twitch's terseness as he took a knee and interlocked his fingers in a position that would allow the young lady in question to get that boost she requested. Once he was ready, Twitch did her part by stepping… over Tay's hands and in the space between his arms and the rest of his body. At that point, she was right in his face as she stood, grinning with unsavory intent. "Hey, you kinda missed…?" he was about to advise of her before she promptly took a seat directly on his hands, forcing him to reposition them as she latched her arms around his neck. "Yo, this uh… This ain't the boost I thought you was askin' for."

"Of course it is, Tay-Tay," she corrected, drawing much contempt from Sky as she watched this spiteful display. "I'm secure in your hands, and you've got just the leverage you need to stand and pick me all the way up," Twitch further slyly explained, wiggling her hips into his hands while turning to look down and inspect her position… which of course, also gave her just the opportunity to shoot a contemptuous smirking glance at a visibly-bothered Sky without Tay noticing in the wake of the tidal wave of situational pressure he felt. Before long, she turned her attention back to his discomfort-addled face. "Go right ahead, then. Take me, Tay-Tay~!"

"…See, this is the type o' thing that could really get me killed out here if these adventures don't do it…" he complained to himself as he lifted Twitch up at her command and rose to his feet while contemplating just what was most dangerous thing here in Sequin Land; the perilous environments, the ferocious monsters with all sorts of unpredictable resources at the ready (one of which had just left permanent wounds on his face), or the beautiful young women he associated himself with, just about all of whom came equipped with a penchant for putting him in dangerous situations involving one or both of the previous choices. That, or putting him in dangerous situations in which he could conceivably find himself buried alive by two or more of said young women for saying or doing anything remotely suspicious with one of them. Nonetheless, as he brought himself to a stand, Twitch took the opportunity hug him closer as she wrapped her legs around his torso.

"There! Safe and sound. I'm not too heavy now, am I?"

"Nope. Lighter than a balloon," he unenthusiastically pointed out, proving his statement by hopping twice while he and Twitch held onto one another. "At this rate, the level o' stress, or magic, or testosterone, or whatever it is I'm feelin' could have me carryin' the both o' y'all for ten straight miles without rest."

"Ooh, Tay-Tay, you're so rambunctious!" she praised with an energetic, flirtatious giggle, nuzzling into him as she took as much opportunity to A: Get closer to the man she felt belonged solely to her in the wake of not one, but possibly two other women trying to claim him for themselves, and B: Get on Sky's nerves as much as possible. "There's a time and place for that kind of fun, honey!"

"Stop that," he sternly rebuffed, turning his head away from her though his angered gaze remained pointed at her. "Don't act like I'm not mad at you for what you did just a couple minutes ago. I got the scars t' show for it now, in case you need a reminder," he further warned, deflating her a bit as she pursed her lips and frowned with worry.

"Sorry…" she guiltily acknowledged. "I didn't mean for you to get hurt, though. I just wanted to see if I could help you discover your powers a little. And, not that I'm saying this for justification, but it worked. You're holding me in your hands like I'm made of air. I won't do anything like that again, no less. I promise. I would never in my life want to see my friend get hurt like that again because of me… I mean it. I'm really sorry, Tayshan…" At that, Tayshan brought it in himself to take in his passenger's forlorn expression as he listened to her. In it, all he could see was a whirlwind of guilt, shame, and welled-up regret that immediately caused him to reconsider his feelings as he went silent. After a moment, he sighed.

"Twisted as it is t' say, you do have a point, I guess… and honestly, I can't stay completely mad at a face like that…" he mumbled, though both girls heard him. Sky's eyes went wide with surprise while Twitch took the opportunity to hug him for a moment.

"Aw, I knew you'd understand!"

"Okay, alright, that's enough. That doesn't mean you're entirely forgiven yet. Twitch, you gotta be careful from here on, because I don't know how many more close calls we can handle with you. Not t' say I won't try t' lend a hand whenever you need, but at this point, you'd be wise t' figure out quick how you're gonna keep yourself safe without it costin' your teammates somethin' in exchange."

"Heard loud and clear, Tay-Tay," she acknowledged as she loosened her grip and straightened herself out. "Thanks for always being there for me when we're together. I owe you so much by now, I'm not sure I could quantify it… At this rate, I'm starting to worry about if maybe I'd have to… I dunno, like… become your personal maid or something for the next five years to pay you back," she joked, though a suspicious blush crept onto her face at the mention of such an embarrassing idea.

"Now THAT'S a temptin' offer if I've ever heard one," Tay joked back with a half-smirk, shifting Twitch to one side in an effort to make room for Sky. "If that was the case, then trust me, there'd never be a point where I wouldn't have you doin' somethin' for me." At that remark, however, Twitch's blush grew much deeper as she let out a tiny, grinning exhale of pleasant surprise.

"Oh, my… I-I didn't think you'd be the kind of guy to go for that sort of thing, Tayshan… Once again, your naughty side blows my expectations right out of the water… Gosh…~" she excitedly, yet quietly murmured as she shifted her eyes downward and let her imagination run wild with utterly-indescribable ideas that shan't be discussed here.

"My naughty side…? What…?" Tay murmured as he turned to look at the thoroughly entertained Twitch in confusion. Sky, on the other hand, was the opposite of humored by the quip, crossed her arms while shooting Tayshan a vexed, interrogative look that he immediately recognized as being one Shantae would normally give him. Feeling a chill go down his spine, Tay turned toward Sky. The very minute he made eye contact with her, his heart sank like an anchor dropped hard enough to cause the planet to split upon hitting the ocean floor… from outer space. "Th-that was a joke. I swear. I get it just from seein' your face that it had bad timin' an' bad phrasin'. Uh, Twitch, you don't owe me anything at all. No indentured servitude or anything o' the sort is required. Just keep yourself safe, alright?" he was certain to add as his disclaimer, though Twitch was too… preoccupied to hear him.

"That's what I thought you meant," Sky authoritatively commented, though she couldn't help but smile a bit at the soldier's flustered reaction to her glare. "Good to know that, even with the given circumstances, you'll be on your best behavior. Right, Tayshan?"

"Yes, Chief Officer Sky…" he concurred, though his tone was deflated and riddled with embarrassment.

"Just 'Sky' will do, sweetie," she advised with a smirk. "It's a nice nickname, but I'm your friend, not your commander."

"Fair enough. Anyway, ready t' rumble?"

"As I'll ever be," she affirmed, approaching Tay as he knelt down and offered her his free arm. Without question, Sky situated herself to where she wrapped her arms around Tay's neck on the side opposite to Twitch while seating herself on the soldier's hand and forearm.

"Hap!" Tay grunted with some effort as he lifted himself back to his feet with both girls in tow.

"Ooh! Tay, your grasp is so strong!" Sky very appropriately commented, evidently caught off-guard by the strength of his grip on her as he held her up. "And here, I thought your handshakes were firm…" At that, Tay sighed and shook his head.

"Heavens above, have mercy on my soul…" he uttered a solemn prayer before directing his attention toward the chains above. "Okay… So, if I got this right, then Sky, you said you could have us switch between Wrench an' that Falcon Call as platforms between jumps, right?"

"Yeah," the bird tamer agreed. "It shouldn't be too much of a hassle switching between lobbing the eggs I need to summon up Wrench and whistling to call up my falcons."

"Cool. So, before we go, Twitch…"

"Yes?"

"Got a gun or somethin' you can use t' maybe keep enemies at bay in case there are any? A pistol should do the trick. Anything else would need you t' use both hands."

"Hmm… let's see…" she pondered, reaching downward into the pockets of her pants for a moment. "Aha!" she exclaimed pulling out what felt like a pistol, though she was soon disappointed to find an Overripe Banana in her hand. "D'oh…" she grumbled, carelessly tossing the fruit away, where it eventually met a gruesome, flaming end at the hand of the lava below. "No, I don't have anything that I'd only need one hand for."

"Shoot… Well, there's always my gun, though it's not the most useful, an' shootin' it with one hand is normally a very bad idea…"

"It's better than nothing," she concurred. "I've been privately training myself to handle weapons with high recoil since last time we met anyway, so that might be our best bet. That's how I managed to master the shotgun you gave me after I picked up some extra ammo afterward. Where's your pistol at?"

"In my holster on the other side. Sky, do you think you could pull it out for me?"

"Sure," Sky plainly obliged, looking down to see the gleaming silver firearm directly below her. She grabbed it and handed it over to Twitch, who said nothing as she took the gun from her hand. "Um… You're welcome?"

"For what? I asked Tayshan for the gun, not you," she coldly shot back.

"Of course. Why would I be so naïve as to expect you to be nice to me for once?"

"Yeah, not in a billion years. I don't like you."

"Feeling's mutual, ya little brat," Sky spat back.

"I'm a year older than you, so watch who you're calling a 'brat!'"

"Wow…" the soldier remarked, shaking his head as he examined the death-riddled landscape around them. "Anyway, y'all hold on tight. I'm gonna take my hands off an' get ready t' climb on the chains. Sky, whenever you're ready…"

"Roger," she agreed, placing the fingers of one hand near her mouth as she held tightly onto Tayshan with the other. Meanwhile, Twitch mirrored Sky's motion of tightening her grip on the serviceman as he let go of her while readying his pistol as best as she could. "On my mark… Three… Two… One…" Sky counted down. One more second later, Sky utilized the Falcon Call, signaling the start of the obstacle race. The very instant the falcons showed up, Tay wasted no time hopping onto them, where they lifted him just high enough to reach the first chain. Wasting no time, Tayshan hopped from the falcon platform and grabbed hold of the chain as best as he could. Unable to account for the challenge of supporting two whole people on his power alone while being suspended over a sweltering lava pit until this exact point, Tay nearly lost his grip the instant he tried to grab hold of the chain.

"Whoawhah!" Twitch and Sky both yelled in panic as Tay slid down the chain. If he didn't hold on, then all three of them would be done for. It was all on him to ensure their survival at this point, and anything close to a mistake could've proven fatal. As such…

"Graaaaah!" The soldier hollered out, another huge burst of energy surging through him as his entire body began to glow a radiant, luminescent white. In that instant, he felt his strength increase what felt like a hundred-fold as he quickly committed himself to climbing the chain enough to where he regained the height he'd lost from the initial slip-up. All the while, his grip was like that of a crocodile's jaws on the chain as he held on for the sake of his entire team. "The faster we do this, the better!" he urged as he began to shift his weight (and by extension, his partners') until they began to build up enough momentum to swing back and forth.

"Right!" Sky acknowledged, using her free hand to grab a blue polka-dotted egg. Just before she did so, however, the screech of another gargoyle quickly alerted them that their trip across would be as rough and unpleasant as possible. "Twitch, look out!" she warned, opting to clutch the swinging soldier for safety.

"I see it!" Twitch hurriedly called out, quick to fire a series of potshots at the creature using Tayshan's handgun. With each successive *BANG* of the weapon, the young woman's wrist jerked back and forth, thus proving just how difficult it was to aim it using one hand. Worse yet, because of Tay needing to swing to get across, it further deterred her aim. "Darn it, I can't get a read…!" she complained, watching as the monster zipped and zoomed past every round she fired at it. "Tay, watch out!"

"Wha-!" he was about to ask when he felt the sharp, burning sting of the aerial fiend's claws scrape against his back with a swift, heavy *SCHWING*. "Gaaagh!" he hollered out in agony, unable to defend himself as he did his best to remain focused on keeping his grip tight.

"Darn it! I'm gonna make you pay for hurting him! You hear me, you repulsive over-sized fruit bat!?" Twitch cried out in bolstered rage as she fired off another volley of Desert Eagle rounds as accurately as she could manage while the gargoyle soared around them to try and get a second slash in. Reading the danger they were in, Sky whistled once more to summon another team of sparrows that were quick to attack the foul creature. Distracted by the sudden interference, the gargoyle held itself in place, haphazardly swiping and slashing its claws at its tiny adversaries.

"He's vulnerable! Do it, Twitch!" Sky urged.

"Gotcha now!" Twitch announced, taking the tiny window of opportunity to fire off a few more rounds that, thanks to Sky's assistance, managed to hit the monster and vanquish it on the spot. "Finally! That revolting beast is gone!"

"Good! Now then…" Sky acknowledged while paying full attention to the pattern of Tayshan's swings while pulling out the egg she needed. At just the right timing, she lobbed the egg high toward the second chain, making sure there was as much time as possible to gauge the right time to activate it. After what she calculated to be a safe enough distance, she snapped her fingers to summon Wrench as a platform while they pendulously dangled over the burning chasm. "You're gonna have to leap for it! Wrench can't hold that form for too long before he tires out from the heat!"

"Got it! Hold on tight, ladies," Tay acknowledged and advised as he swung full-force toward the Wrench-made platform. "Here we GO!" he effortfully shouted as he did his best to lunge forward while the chain flung him upward. Immediately looking downward, Tay did his best to aim for Wrench as his descent came hard and fast. Thankfully, Sky had placed Wrench I just the position he needed. With a startling *THUMP* of his feet on the avian creature's wing, Tay made it. However, he immediately noticed Wrench beginning to flicker in and out of view under him, pressuring him to make his next move within the next five seconds before he vanished. "Shoot! Gotta move!" he yelled to himself in a panic as he hurriedly put as much strength as he could into his next jump. As he dashed forward for the tiny amount of space he had standing on Wrench, he kept his eyes locked on the dangling metal lifeline. "Hrrraaah!" he bellowed again, jumping as high as he could with Twitch and Sky in tow, managing to snag the second of the three chains without slipping.

"Good work, Tay-Tay! We're almost there!" Twitch cheered, clinging herself to Tayshan like her life depended on it… well, especially considering her life DID depend on it. Ignoring the sudden bout of intense anxious trembling throughout his entire body, Tayshan hurriedly began swinging to build up momentum to make his next life-or-death jump while doing everything in his magic-bolstered power to avoid looking down while ignoring the scorching, suffocating heat radiating from below. He began to sweat profusely, causing both Twitch and Sky to tighten their respective grips on him as best as they could. As one might imagine when they find themselves dangling hundreds of feet above molten lava by nothing but rusty chains, Tay became even tenser as every thought in his mind was geared toward making it to the other side safely.

"I'm about to summon up the falcons again!" Sky called, making sure to synchronize her birdcall with the soldier's swings. "One…" she began to count after Tay swung forward once. "Two…!" she counted again following his swing backward. The instant he began to shift his body to begin swinging forward again, Sky sounded off the Falcon Call, prompting the prismatic avian life-preservers to form at just the point Tay needed. "Now!"

"Hah!" Tay grunted with immense effort, using all the momentum he build up to propel himself forward off the second chain, where he landed on the falcon-made platform with another definitive *THUMP* of his boots. Without a moment to spare, the falcons put forth their best effort carrying the team upward and forward toward the final rusty chain. "Here… Goes!" he shouted again, putting as much power into his next jump as he could just as the falcons dispersed again. With grit, determination, and a tremendous fear of falling, he managed to firmly grasp the final chain of the bunch with Sky and Twitch continuing to hang onto him.

"Almost there, baby! Come on, push it!" Twitch cheered, her heart thumping with anticipation as she hoped for her life that Tay could make the next jump directly onto the platform jutting from the wall that housed the doorway to what they hoped was the next floor.

"Just a little more, Tay! You've got this! You can definitely make this last jump without using any birdcalls! Focus!" Sky also cheered on, patting him on the back while ignoring the copious amounts of sweat drenching every inch of his body. Without a word, Tayshan began to swing again, building up as much momentum as he could to try and make this last jump count. Having at least picked up a pattern to follow regarding his incredibly dangerous venture, the stressed-out serviceman locked his eyes on the platform just ahead. As far as he was concerned, the leap of faith didn't require pure power so much as it did require coordination, impeccable timing, and a lot of luck to pull off. His arms remained strong, though it was no secret he began to feel the strain of supporting not only his, but also his comrades' combined weight. Every muscle fiber in his limbs burned with the ferocity of a raging inferno as he tried to keep his focus.

"Gaagh…!" he yelled with intense strain in his voice. "Darn it, don't give in now! Gotta get…! This one last jump…! Come on, arms…!" The girls, hearing this, grew concerned that he wasn't going to make it before his arms gave out on him. For a moment, they glanced at one another in mutually shared worry as they hugged Tay tighter as they let it sink in that they could die the very second he slipped up. Feeling the increased strength of their respective grips on him, however, sent another burst of energy ripping through him as he thought about whose lives were at stake in this very moment. His arms began to glow a blinding white as he strengthened his grip on the creaky chain. "Haaaaaa!" he roared out as he caught a much-needed second wind, swinging as hard as he could until he built up the momentum to jump. And before long, that pivotal moment came.

As though it were in slow motion (and, in a strange sense of Déjà vu, considering he flashed back to the time he found himself in almost the exact same situation during his first quest with Shantae), Tay swung forward as hard as he could, getting as high as he could before catapulting himself off the chain. Dipping his feet downward and forward as he let go of the chain, he immediately wrapped each of his arms around his teammates and held on for dear life as the fated descent began. Though he was unable to see everything below him, he hoped for the best (which basically meant he hoped his feet would touch solid ground within the following five seconds). If this was anything like last time, his goose was as good as cooked… literally, as he didn't even land on his feet that time. If you remember, he barely clung to the edge with his arms before Shantae lifted him up over the ledge he got stuck on. This time, however, with some form of unconventional training under his belt, the results were different.

With a solid *THUD* of his boots on the platform, Tayshan had somehow made it. He barely managed to stay on his feet and nearly dropped Twitch and Sky upon landing, but he did it. The second he heard the sound of his boots plopping onto the platform, he stood, in a slightly squatted position, seemingly dazed by the fact that he was even still alive to witness such a monumental moment in his week-long career as a Sequin Land adventurer. His form still glowing bright like an exploding star, Tay gently set his comrades down before falling to his hands and knees, trembling uncontrollably as he breathed hard and heavy with anticipatory anxiety. Twitch and Sky watched in concern as they also processed the life-or-death situation for themselves. After a moment, however, Tay sat back, stretching his legs out as he gazed at his tremoring hands. His breaths became incredibly shaky as he grabbed one wrist with his opposing hand to try and stop himself from quaking like he'd been sitting on top of a running washing machine set on full blast.

However, he failed to bring himself together. He nearly lost his sense of awareness, feeling as though his soul was detaching itself from his body as he squeezed his eyes shut to try and recompose himself. Even that didn't work, however, as his heart began to race and his breathing became constricted like his lungs were wrapped in the thickest and most ensnaring of jungle vines. As it appeared, Tayshan had been losing control of himself as he continued trying to process what had just happened. Sky, while intensely concerned for the state her comrade was in, had no idea what was going on with him as she stared in shock. In that moment, however, Twitch instinctively sprung forward, kneeling down and hugging him softly as she rubbed a hand over his back.

"Just breathe, babe. Just breathe… Slowly and deeply," she instructed, demonstrating as best as she could while she tended to him. "Just like I'm doing right now. Breathe, close your eyes, and loosen your muscles… It's alright… It's okay… we're all okay. We made it… Just hang in there, Tayshan…" she softly whispered to him as she wrapped a hand across his chest with one arm and continued to stroke his back with the other. Tay, at least being able to hear Twitch's voice as she spoke to him, followed her instructions to close his eyes and begin taking deep, full-ranged breaths as he relaxed his body as best as he could. "Take a minute to clear your mind. Remember where we are and what we're here for, okay? Remember that we're here together…"

"Why are you coddling him like that?" Sky asked, confused as she was concerned. "I know this wasn't the best of situations to come out of, but you don't need to-!"

"I'm not coddling him! He's having a panic attack! Are you as blind as you are dumb!?" Twitch angrily barked at Sky, turning momentarily to glare at her with the hottest of fury. The bird tamer was petrified as she immediately felt bad for having asked her question. Granted, she didn't appreciate Twitch's abrasive tone, but she stood and watched, evidently being unaware of the soldier's condition. Seeing none of Sky's mortified reaction, Twitch turned her attention back to Tay as he continued to breathe deeply and reorient himself. "That's it, honey. Reel it in. I'm here. We're gonna get through this together, so just keep breathing deeply," she continued to coach as Tay managed to regain control of his breathing pattern. As a direct result, he'd also managed to dramatically decrease his trembling while bringing his heart rate back down to a reasonable level. Eventually, Tay took one final deep breath before blinking his eyes a few times as he regained his composure.

"Ergh… Wow, I… That… that's never happened t' me before…" he murmured, rubbing his face with his hands as he processed what foreign phenomenon just afflicted him.

"Oh, thank goodness," Twitch cheered, wrapping the young man in her arms as she laid her head on his shoulder. While still trying to figure out just what happened to him, he brought up the energy to wrap his arms around Twitch to return her embrace. Pleasantly surprised by what she read as his show of gratitude for her helping him, the young woman increased the strength of her hug and pushed herself forward to where the two of them toppled over. In a moment's glance, they were suddenly in a position where Tay was flat on his back, hugging Twitch with one arm as she lay on top of him, holding him with seemingly no intent to let go. "I'm so glad you're alright, Tay-Tay. Sorry I knocked us over, but I was so worried…"

"Hey, I get it," he understandingly acknowledged as he continued to hug her. "I… I can't even explain why that even happened t' me, but I'm okay now. Thank you so much for coachin' me through that, Twitch. I don't know if I would've ever been able t' snap out of it if it wasn't for you."

"Don't mention it!" she brightly accepted his praise as she sat herself up to where she'd been straddling him, allowing him the opportunity to shift to where he was sitting up, supporting his upper body with his hands. As he did this, however, Twitch took the opportunity to lay her hands on his shoulders. "I'm just happy to see that one: we're still alive, and two: that you managed to overcome that panic attack you had," she added, reeling him in for another hug.

"I didn't even know what a panic attack looked or felt like until now, an' I hope I don't ever have another one… but, it's good t' know you have the skills t' bring somebody out o' one when it happens," he gratefully pointed out, returning her embrace with one arm as he patted her on the back. He turned his head to the side due to her squeezing herself into him. Feeling his friend eventually start loosening her grip to create some space between them, he lowered his arm and turned his head toward her with the intent to climb back to his feet. However, right as he moved to face her, he'd only seen right when it was too late that a pair of puckered lips were headed right in his direction. "Mm?" he grunted as Twitch moved in to kiss him while her eyes were closed. The sensation of the woman's lips on his own utterly befuddled the already-disoriented serviceman as he froze in place. He was uncertain of if she had done it on purpose or by complete accident, in addition to being completely blindsided by his teammate's incredibly bold move. In short, he nearly jumped out of his skin.

Twitch, on the other hand, felt something was off about what her lips were touching when she moved in to kiss him. When she closed her eyes and moved in, she'd expected to plant her lips onto his cheek for a quick peck before they separated from their embrace. For what reason, it was known only to her at this point. She knew he wouldn't have expected it, but she did so anyway. However, when she opened her eyes to inspect the strange sensation she registered, she saw immediately what was wrong. At that, she quickly pulled her face away with a quiet *pop* of her lips off of his as her face heated up to the point where she could melt icebergs by simply looking at them.

"Oh! Oh, my gosh! Oh, my gosh, I'm sorry! I'm so, so, so sorry!" she apologized in a panic of her own, covering her mouth with her hands as she remained seated on her teammate. "I was going for your cheek, I swear! I didn't mean to do that! I-I didn't expect you to turn toward me so quickly after I let go of you!" she reasoned as rapidly as her heart was thumping in that moment, hoping that Tayshan didn't hate her for her most recent mistake. The young man in question found himself at a loss for words in the wake of her apology as he listened to her frantic rambling, though he could at least read that she meant what she was saying to him. She climbed off of him and backed up, allowing him to rise to his feet as he continued to study her… and catch a glimpse at a supremely infuriated Sky standing behind Twitch and glaring at her before he shifted his attention back to the mortified glasses-adorned woman still apologetically staring at him. After a moment, he sighed out a hot rush of air as he imagined the implications of this event.

"Oh, man…" he groaned, scratching his head as he contemplated what to say. "Um… I get what you were tryin' t' do, an' I sincerely thank you for the sentiment, but I… don't know if a kiss of any kind was necessary, much less… that," he hesitantly stated, causing Twitch's heart to sink as she flinched in embarrassment. Reading her reaction, Tay did his best to try and make an appropriate follow-up statement. "I… won't hold that against you, no less. I'm… not angry or offended, if that's what you're worried about. Accidents do happen."

"Uh, o-of course," Twitch agreed, also uncertain of what to say as her nerves got the better of her. "I… I was hoping you wouldn't be mad at me for messing up like that, so I'm glad you understand what my intentions were. It was an honest mistake, though, and I'll take full responsibility for it. If you feel any sort of way about that at all, Tayshan, then don't be afraid to tell me. I know when I'm in the wrong…"

"Nah, don't sweat it too much. It happened, an' the best thing we can do is be honest about it," he advised, though that very statement forced him to flash right back to his conversation with Shantae regarding a similar situation of this exact same nature. Realizing this, Tay's heart sank as he rested his hands on the back of his head before stretching backward to blow a rush of pressurized air from his mouth. "I get what you were goin' for, an' I'm… grateful for your concern for me. I also want you t' know that, focusin' on the big reason this happened, I'll have your back, too. I can't say I'm gonna kiss you when you feel stressed out, but I'll support you in a similar enough way t' how you supported me."

"As if you haven't gone above and beyond for me at this point," she acknowledged. "You've got scars on your face now because of me, Tay-Tay. I think you've let it sink in that we've got each other's backs. Still, I… I guess I should probably go ahead and say I'll…try to refrain from kissing you unless you give permission…"

"That would be appreciated," he stated while trying not to sound so agreeable to the idea that he would offend his comrade. "Meanwhile, we'll all try t' be careful an' protect each other, so nobody else winds up with battle scars, like I already said. We… we good?"

"We're great, Tay-Tay," Twitch assured with a sigh of relief and a smiling thumbs-up, though the blush on her face was still evident from a hundred square miles away. "Thanks for understanding. I suppose we can get right onto the next challenge then," she further advised, turning to walk toward the doorway before she caught sight of the immensely displeased stare aimed at her from a certain bird tamer who'd bore witness to her most heinous crime yet. "And what's the problem with you, birdbrain?" she flatly asked, caring nothing for Sky's frustration with her.

"Are you KIDDING ME!? You conniving, scheming, no-good, opportunistic con artist!" Sky very brazenly accused, very quickly irritating the other young woman. "You just pulled that sneaky little stunt after putting on that oh-so nurturing front, and now you have the nerve to pretend like nothing's wrong!? You are utterly repulsive!"

"Excuse me!? Who are YOU calling repulsive!?" Twitch barked back, glaring lasers into Sky's face. "You've got some nerve accusing me of doing anything other than help our teammate, when you sat there like a sad sack of rocks on a log, watching him suffer! Get your useless self out of my face! Oh, and it must take an 'opportunistic con artist' to know an opportunistic con artist, you feathery, two-faced hypocrite!"

"Hypocrite!? What the heck are you even talking about!?"

"And we're really still doin' this after all we just went through…" Tay muttered to himself, quickly growing annoyed with the bickering between his teammates. "Man, this is nuts…"

"You really don't think I picked up on the real reason you brought Tay-Tay up here without the company of your annoying girlfriend by now? The reason you've been so dead set on trying to steal him away from me? The reason you're even TRYING to get all lovey-dovey with him in the first place?"

"Say whatever you want, Twitch, but your jealous tirades make you sound crazy! The more you talk, the more you sound like an obsessive, delusional groupie that needs to get a clue! You know what you did to him was wrong, and you HAVE to know by this point that you're doing this whole mission more harm than good!"

"Oh, is that a fact? Despite everything we've been through so far?"

"Yes, it is! I'm getting tired of arguing with you, and no one here is amused by your obnoxious antics! Either learn to cooperate, or at least learn to shut your trap and lay low until we're finished here! And for the record, you're not doing yourself any favors just hurling baseless accusations at me like you know me!"

"Ha! Like I need to waste the effort getting to know you! I've seen more than enough to get a solid idea of your type. And even if it wasn't for that, I've got more than enough dirt on you from Barracuda Joe!" she challenged, causing the bird tamer's heart to sink as she reeled back in shock.

"What does Joe have to do with this!?"

"A lot more than you're letting on, Lisa the Lonely Lark," she venomously spat, cutting deeper into Sky. Though glaring angrily enough at Twitch that she may have made her spontaneously combust with the power of her mind, Sky remained silent as she held back from completely losing her temper. Twitch, however, took the other woman's silence as an admission of defeat. "Yeah, that's right. I bet that WOULD sting a bit to be reminded of-!"

"Ay!" Tay cut in, causing Twitch to turn toward him. "Cut it out," he warned, swiping a hand under his chin to signify that enough was enough.

"What? She started it!"

"I ain't worried about who started what. The constant squabblin' between y'all has gone on long enough. Wouldn't it be a good idea t' stop before somebody pushes it too far?"

"Depends on who's willing to cross that line," Twitch remarked with a shrug.

"Ugh, can we just leave her somewhere and finish this quest on our own, Tay? It's obvious she's bent on holding some disproportionate grudge against me, and all it's done is make this trip an hours-long torture-fest! My ears are ringing because of her constant babbling!"

"Watch it, birdbrain! I'll superglue your beak shut!"

"Come anywhere near me, you over-sized grade-schooler, and I'll-!"

"Stop!" Tay commanded as he stepped in between the girls, startling them while also triggering a bit of noise coming from above with the echo from his yell. "How about we all avoid gettin' close enough t' that line t' cross it," he suggested. "Besides, we've… got more important things t' worry about than how well you two get along." With that statement, Tay pointed upward, calling attention to a team of gargoyles identical to the one they'd vanquished previously as they hovered under and around another row of dangling chains that seemed to lead toward another exit. As far as he could tell, the doorway he and his teammates were set to enter would lead to the next platform from which to begin their next impromptu trapeze act. Oh, and did I mention the floating walls coated in spikes from every angle that were conveniently placed in positions that would make this next section even MORE insane? Because those were there, too.

"Oh boy…" Sky commented, her gut filling with dread as she also peered upward. "We'll be lucky to make it out of this one in one piece."

"No kidding," Twitch agreed, equally as intimidated. "Some sick sons of guns who built this temple, I tell ya…"

"…Whelp, if I don't have another panic attack before we even get up there t' throw our lives away, then that in itself would be a miracle…" Tay murmured with intense apprehension as he began to involuntarily glow with the same aura that powered him through the first miserable experience of dangling over a pool of thousand-degree lava.

"If it's any consolation, Tay, it looks like that section up there just might be the last before we move onto whatever could possibly be above it… Hopefully, the top of the tower and the end of this adventure, if I could put it in a few words," Sky stated, crossing her fingers as she breathed a heavy sigh to dispel some of the anticipatory tension she'd felt.

"I at least hope that whatever's up there is worth all the trouble we have to go through to get to it," Twitch added, wondering for what reason this temple was so unbearably difficult to climb out of nowhere.

"We won't know 'til we get up there… An' we won't get up there until we get movin'… So… Let's… go," he hesitantly suggested with a hard gulp meant to ease some of the pressure he'd felt, considering he'd have to be the one carrying his teammates while making sure he could muster up all the strength he needed to pull this most death-defying feat off. As such, the trio marched valiantly (read: timidly) toward the next challenge.

Aaaaaannnnnd… Break time! What a doozy of a trip this turned out to be, right? So many curveballs, traps, hazards, and generally bad circumstances all wrapped up into one perilous journey! Alas, this adventure wasn't over yet. Will they make it up to the top alive? Yes, because their survival was already kinda-sorta spoiled in the beginning of this chapter! That is, unless Sky, Twitch, and Tay turned into ghosts before they… nah, they were very much alive. I won't tease you about that. Anyway, it isn't a matter of if they did it, folks; it's a matter of how. And all things considered, it's a colossal 'HOW.' That said, get plenty of rest, take your vitamins, and prepare yourselves for the next pulse-pounding excerpt of this grand adventure!


	15. Raging Reservations

Chapter 9, Pt. 2: Raging Reservations

 ** _In the present(ish) time…_**

LOCATION: SKY'S HOUSE, SCUTTLE TOWN, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 23RD, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 2245 HOURS

"Whoa, you guys went through so much in just one afternoon!" A certain lavender-haired adventurer remarked as she sat in a wooden chair and sipped on a cup of hot tea in the comfort of her best friend's dimly-lit apartment. Shantae and Sky had been catching up with one another, trading stories and enjoying each other's company as they unwound following the events of their respective dog day afternoons. Ironically enough, Sky had been telling Shantae the same story a certain someone else was telling a certain OTHER someone else at the same time. How incredibly convenient and totally unexpected, right?

"Trust me, I know," Sky remarked, her tone riddled with fatigue as she sighed before taking a swig from her own tea mug. "I'm tellin' ya, it was a travesty from start to finish," she added, evidently using their hangout as something of an opportunity to vent a little.

"Sounds like it," Shantae agreed. "I'm still surprised Twitch was there without Vinegar and still decided to tag along with you. I'm even more surprised you two tolerated each other for so long without an issue… well, MOSTLY without issue. Or, maybe with mostly issues, as far as it sounds…"

"Yeah, but the more we kept working together, the worse it got. All those horrendous accusations and all the paranoid jealousy she was showing got to be such a hassle that I HAD to say something. She was just going on and on and on about 'secret agenda' this, 'stealing my boyfriend' that, 'you're useless and holding us back' the third… I swear, Shantae, I was ready to grab her and chuck her out of the nearest window we could find just to get her to stop talking!"

"Whaaaa?" the half-genie remarked with such humored shock that she may have felt a slight jolt of electricity course through her just from looking at Sky. "You? Throw someone out of a window? On purpose? Did she really get you that mad?"

"Oh, that's not even the half of why it got to that point! Now, I know I'm usually as levelheaded as I can be, but she cranked the 'obnoxious' dial to eleven… hundred!"

"Gosh, Sky… For someone to drive you to THAT point… It must not have been a pretty sight."

"Yeah, it's part of why my headdress is completely missing and my outfit's such a mess."

"Whoa! You're not saying what I think you're saying… Are you?" Shantae had to ask, anticipating the implications of Sky's statement before she'd even factually made it.

"Trust me, you'll be less surprised once we get to that point in my nightmarish tale. But, why don't I continue where we left off, so you get a little more context in relation to the situation?"

"Oh, you'd better believe I'm all ears!" the ponytailed maiden exclaimed, nearly spilling the remainder of her tea as she practically jumped with excitement. "I'm dying to know how you managed to get through it all!"

"Heh, you seem more excited to hear my story than you are to take on half of your regular quests. Plus, it sounds like your story about how you ALMOST teamed up with Bolo was just as daunting."

"Well, yeah, but you went on an adventure all on your own! I'm so proud that you're finally getting into it! As for my trip with Bolo to the Thimble Canyon, it wasn't anything TOO unusual… at least, not once I figured out Risky Boots was behind all the troubles we suffered at every corner."

"Let's not get our hopes up too high about me keeping this up after we actually complete the main goal here," she warned with a smirk, though she found a sense of joy in seeing her best friend get so excited for her. "Nonetheless, I'm shocked to hear you found Risky again, only for her to slip right through your fingers. Also again. Even with that fancy new power-up you showed me!"

"Yeah, this new Elemental Hair Tie definitely made things a lot easier to deal with, thank goodness," Shantae nodded with gratitude for her having found her new superpowered hair accessory. "I can't wait to see what I can accomplish with it next! The other thing was that Risky's Tinkerbats were all over the place with those guns. They almost took me out multiple times! And then I saw you flying on top of Wrench and almost fall to your doom!"

"Wait, you saw us!?" Sky asked, taken back by the half-genie's revelation.

"Yeah! Those rotten Tinkerbats were shooting at you with some of the guns from the other dimension and hit Wrench, knocking you and the others off him," she further revealed. "I had to beat them all down to protect you guys long enough for Wrench to save you. You have no idea how glad I am to see you made it, Sky. I'm serious."

"Wow… Wow, wow, wow… Goodness, Shantae, I don't even know where to begin thanking you," Sky admitted, stunned to find out that she owed her life to her best friend all over again. "If it weren't for you, I… I don't even know what would've happened…"

"Let's just be thankful things played out the way they did," Shantae assured, moving to hug the bird tamer tight. "No matter what, Sky, I've got your back. No way in this world that Risky or anyone is gonna keep me from protecting you or anyone who finds themselves in danger."

"At this point, I have no reason to believe otherwise," Sky replied, returning the affectionate embrace just as strongly. "Thanks again, girl. We owe you everything…"

"Don't mention it! The fact that we're here, holding each other and having this conversation right now is all the repayment I need," she assured further as the two young women concluded their embrace. "Still, I'm glad to see you're finally coming around to going on pulse-pounding, thrilling adventures on your own! I thought you'd never get comfortable with the idea."

"Thanks, but like I said; don't get your hopes up about me continuing to do this after we're done with Risky Boots. This is definitely much better suited for you than me. Plus, I wasn't alone."

"R-right, of course," she acknowledged, though with a noticeable sense of deflation in her tone. "I-I mean, Twitch was there, too, like you said. And… And… uh, s-so was Tay, but…" she stuttered as though she'd been trying to avoid mentioning someone until she had no way to do so.

"You say that like it's a bad thing he was there," Sky deduced, still worried about Shantae's reluctance to speak about the issue she had with him at this time.

"No, no… It's not that it's bad he was with you…" she began, setting her teacup down on the floor nearby. "It's just… I'm still a little surprised he teamed up with you without even at least giving me a heads-up… is all…"

"Well, he's been on a quest without you before, right? Granted, that was Twitch and Vinegar's fault… and, from the little bit of info I got from you at this point, you did just fine without him on your trip to the Thimble Canyon; even IF Bolo was there to muck things up as usual. Dysfunctional exploding speedboat and all," Sky remarked with a slight giggle, though Shantae did not share the sentiment in the wake of her apprehension.

"Yeah, but… I guess… it's just… odd, y'know? I mean, he and I have been together on most every other trip since he got here, but this time, he willingly went on an adventure without me," she lamented. "Especially after what happened between us just a couple days ago. I-I mean, I'm glad you guys got the experience, but…"

"Shantae… are… are you telling me you're… upset about not being included on an adventure?"

"No! Of course not," she denied, though she flicked her eyes elsewhere for a telling moment.

"Okay… Then, are you upset about him going without you?"

"No way! N-not at all… He can do whatever he wants… I-I can't dictate what he does…"

"Hmm… Girl, I know you well enough to see that your face tells me a different story than what you say."

"Oh…" Shantae conceded, slightly embarrassed to have her feelings pointed out in such a candid fashion. "Can't put anything past you, huh?"

"Short answer: no," Sky matter-of-factly stated. "Either way, I'm surprised to find this out from you. I mean, with all the adventures you go on by yourself, I wouldn't expect you to think about what you'd be missing out on if someone else did a little exploring."

"No, it isn't that," she countered, uncertain of how to word her next statement. "It's more like… I'm… just a little confused about how it could be so easy for him to just… up and go out on a trip with you out of nowhere…"

"Hm? So what, you're saying in one way or another that you don't want him exploring the landscape without you?"

"No… Well, kinda that, but it's more like… like, I wasn't sure he'd be ready to start taking on quests without me, I guess…" she uncertainly answered. "I figured I'd be guiding him from start to finish. But then, how can we even look at each other, much less get back to our usual mentor-student grind after what happened the other day?"

"It seems like this situation has been plaguing you for quite a bit, girl…" Sky sympathetically pointed out, patting her best friend's knee as the half-genie momentarily cast her melancholy gaze elsewhere. "If necessary, we've got the whole night to sort things out. That is, if you're willing to spend the night."

"Thanks, Sky, but… I'm gonna guess from the letter I was sent from one of your pigeons the other night that you already did the same thing for him?"

"Ah… W-well, in no better words, yes," she spoke after a momentary pause, uncertain of if she wanted to explore that topic too deeply right this minute. "I-I mean, we spent a lot of time clarifying things, and well…"

"Say no more, Sky," Shantae interrupted, sparing Sky a potentially awkward story about how that discussion went. "If you talked to him, then the best thing I can do is muster up the courage to approach him myself. Just based on what that letter said, he sounded like he feels really bad about how he initially viewed our kiss, and by now, I'm aware that not talking to him when I saw him made him feel worse… I'll try to go find him once we're done here, actually."

"Oh. That's pretty forward of you," Sky acknowledged, ignoring the tinge of discomfort suddenly sprouting in her gut that wouldn't go away.

"I know. But every other time we've had a disagreement, we were honest with each other straight-up, and that seemed to do the trick. The other night was the first time that it didn't, but even with that, I don't think there's any other way to approach it. Plus, it's sort of eating at me that I ignored him because I got cold feet earlier…" she expressed, her heart sinking a bit as she thought back to hers and the soldier's brief meeting. "He probably thinks I hate him…"

"I admire your can-do method of handling the issue, but don't be afraid of opening up to me if need be, Shantae," Sky offered. "You know I've got your back."

"Of course! I couldn't ask for a better friend than you!" she perkily stated, her mood raising just a bit. "I just don't want to burden you with what could basically be described as relationship trouble," she nonchalantly added, though the statement struck a chord with the bird tamer for reasons all-too sour for her.

"Heh, r-right…" Sky agreed, her tone a bit lower in mood as she tried to contain her dejection. As one might expect, however, Shantae picked up on it.

"Hm? You seem bothered too, Sky. Everything alright?"

"Um… I… I'm not sure, to be honest," she admitted, opening up herself.

"What's the matter? I'm all ears if you want to run it by me."

"It… actually has to do with the story I was telling you before we trailed off."

"Oh, right, we didn't finish that just yet. So, we left off at the part where you, Tay, and Twitch had to swing over a lava pit infested with gargoyles that tried to kill you, right?"

"Right, we did stop at that part…" Sky acknowledged with a heavy sigh before she recomposed herself. "Well, things got worse in more ways than one from there, so… do you want me to start off talking about how we almost died on every chain we latched onto because Twitch didn't know how to aim Tayshan's gun to save her own life, much less ours? Or how that swarm of at least fifteen gargoyles nearly ripped us to shreds if it wasn't for me having to call in Icarus to crash in through a giant stained-glass window and wipe out enough of them to give Twitch the massive handicap she desperately needed? Or maybe how Tayshan had to summon up so much of that unusual glowing willpower magic of his that, by the time we made to the fifth floor, he almost passed out from sheer exhaustion after carrying all of our weight with just his arms?"

"Ooh, so much of it sounds so dangerously exciting! But you know me. Honestly, I usually wouldn't want you to skimp on a single detail of that experience, but… I understand that something about that trip's got you feeling blue. My only guess so far is when Twitch basically forced herself on Tayshan again after she apparently calmed him down from a 'panic attack'?" Shantae asked, feeling a tad unsettled at just the thought of what she'd evidently been made aware of.

"…That's part of it," Sky confirmed, her brow furrowing in reminiscent disdain for the circumstance she'd bore witness to. "And a huge one, at that. Seriously, just thinking about it infuriates me to no end…! Especially when you consider this was after he came clean to her about what happened between you and him," she further growled, casting her gaze downward as she tightly wrung her hands. With neither of them knowing how to follow up on the statement, both of them went silent for a moment as they each ruminated on the incident.

Shantae, while understanding her best friend's frustration, was also hit with a troubling emotion of her own. She couldn't rightly place her finger on what the feeling was. What she knew, however, was that it made her heart pound with an aggravating intensity as it sank to her abdomen. She also acknowledged that the mere thought of Twitch of all people going so far as to force another kiss onto Tay (on the lips, no less) without any form of warning or consent immediately brought her feelings into a most concerning state of upheaval.

She acknowledged that her one and only protégé had experienced a most frightening event that must've overwhelmed him emotionally, and that knowledge alone amplified her worries about him. Learning that Twitch managed to bring him out of his panicked stupor did nothing to quell her distrust of the Ammonian affiliate, considering that what immediately followed was at least the second time or third time Twitch attempted to force herself onto him. If anything, the ponytailed maiden found herself more on-edge; especially considering this was apparently after Tay had confessed the details of the Kitschy Quilt incident to Twitch. That detail not only angered her more, it also mildly embarrassed her. At that point, however, she realized she and Sky were getting sidetracked over something that would continue to plague them until some much-needed clarification was granted. As such, she shook her head to dispel her apprehension.

"Seems like things keep getting more complicated with the more we let this drag out," Shantae mentioned, taking a deep breath to calm herself down a bit.

"I couldn't have said it better myself," Sky agreed, shaking her head before refocusing her gaze on Shantae. "What's worse for me, though, is all the other things I argued with Twitch about after the fact…"

"I'll bet. I want to hear more about your adventure, but I can contain my enthusiasm long enough to hear you out, Sky," Shantae offered with a disarming smile. "I'm sure I can get the rest of the details from Tay once we're done here. Soooo, where do we pick up?"

"Thanks, girl," Sky expressed, returning her best friend's smile with one of her own before contemplating an appropriate point at which to continue her story. "Hmm… So, I'll skip to the part where we got past the gargoyles, if you don't mind. What happened next was…"

 ** _Earlier…_**

LOCATION: FIFTH FLOOR CORRIDOR, SHEARED SPOOL SHRINE, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 23RD, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1505 HOURS

"If it's okay to put this out there, then I'm gonna go on the record and say I think we all lost a good twelve years off our lives apiece from that seriously-messed up trapeze act we pulled back there," Twitch commented as she, the weary soldier, and the disgruntled bird tamer left the lava chamber behind and wasted no time climbing the next sunlight-washed spiraling stairwell to reach their next objective… whatever that may have been at this point. Y'know, other than go home once the field trip reached its (hopefully manageable) conclusion.

"Could've probably been less time off our clocks if you had a more useful gun to rely on," Sky commented with no inflection of sarcasm in her tone as the trio trudged up the stairwell, where there seemed to be no enemies in sight or within earshot; only dusty, cobweb-covered bones and grimy red clothing tatters littering various parts of it as they ascended. "I get that the one you used wasn't that great on accuracy, but we pulled through."

"I thought I told you never to talk to me again after that situation, birdbrain. Our survival doesn't suddenly make us friends," the pigtailed young woman spat with contempt.

"Whoa, come on, now, Twitch," Sky attempted to reason. "I know I may have been a bit harsh with what I said, but it was a tense situation. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, and I didn't mean anything negative by what I just said a second ago."

"Oh, so NOW it's alright to acknowledge when you're wrong? Cool beans, but I'm gonna tell you right now where you can shove that ham-fisted, shoddy apology."

"Jeez, will you let up?" the bird tamer complained, growing irritated by her teammate's resistance to finding common ground. "I'm trying to own up to making you upset. Could you at least once say something to me that isn't dripping with contempt? Anything? You have no idea how much my stomach's turning even working up the nerve to talk to you with a sense of civility."

"Then vomit your discomfort out somewhere else and feel better or worse, for all I care. Don't think a quick 'sorry' is gonna magically wash away all the hot trash you had to spout at and about me while we were up on those chains. Or do you have the attention span of a bird, too?" At that, Sky sighed in such disappointment and annoyance that she could feel the seething enmity flowing from her lungs. It was safe to say she may have given up trying to get along with Twitch at this point.

"Depends on if you can tell me what you think the attention span of a bird is," Sky shot back, glaring at Twitch as they trailed behind a worn-out Tayshan, who'd been trying to ignore his partners' incessant bickering. "Because I'm willing to bet that, like with other things relating to this disaster of a trip, you don't have a clue. Nice aim by the way, sure-shot. I'm super convinced all those windows you broke were definitely effective for scaring the gargoyles away while my birds handled all the dirty work," she very sarcastically remarked, much to Twitch's chagrin.

"Shut up! You act all high and mighty because you finally drummed up the not-so-common sense in your tiny pea brain to call in that hideous eagle right in the middle of that gargoyle attack to make yourself look like the MVP. Newsflash: You're not special for that, so get off your high horse. Only other thing you did was scream and panic the whole time. At least I put forth a consistent effort. Oh, and let's not forget I still managed to take out at least three of those revolting monsters. No matter what way you slice it, we all played our parts in our survival."

"Yeah, but some of us had bigger parts than others. That much was obvious. Need a hint as to who the least useful of us was? Because her name is one letter off from 'Witch,'" Sky remarked without regard for Twitch's feelings. It appeared that, between her and Twitch, it was ON. For real, this time.

"Keep it up with the smart remarks, you walking chicken coop, and I'll make you regret ever crossing me! I dare you!" the irate bespectacled woman challenged, all but confirming that these two girls were ready to go to war against each other.

"All I asked for was a little bit o' cooperation, an' this is what I get…" Tay lamented with an exhausted sigh as he kept going. "These two can't spend more than thirteen seconds without findin' a reason t' be at each other's throats…"

"And another thing: No one likes a bird who doesn't know when to stop squawking and keep her fat beak shut!" Twitch continued, upping the ante as she became more belligerent with her words.

"Says literally the most obnoxious, most spoiled-rotten, self-entitled child in existence! Way to really find the right words to reflect right back onto you."

"This, coming from a two-faced, self-absorbed, thieving harpy who clearly has it twisted when it comes to how to be an adult. Honey, you're a year younger than me, but you're acting like we're six years apart. Time to grow up and smell the coffee, don'tcha think?"

"YOU wanna lecture ME about maturity?" Sky asked with a derisive scoff. "I already said you look and sound like a bratty grade-schooler, but YOUR maturity level actually matches the part! No wonder people still mistake you for being eight to twelve years old. You don't make it very hard to make that observation. At this rate, I'd be surprised if anyone took you seriously; including your colleagues in your little club. Just sayin'," she added, turning forward and shrugging as the trio continued up the stairwell. Sky was fortunate in this scenario, because Twitch was staring scalding hot metal stakes into the back of Sky's hooded head as she went silent with burning wrath.

"…Oh, that's how we're gonna play it, eh?" Twitch murmured, nodding as she continued to eye Sky up and down as though she were about to set up a malicious trap. "Okay, you asked for it. PLEASE say something else to provoke me… Please do it…! Gimme a reason…!"

"I noticed you stopped talking. Are you done being annoying yet?" Sky sarcastically asked after the moment of silence passed, inadvertently giving Twitch just the opening she was looking for.

"Dunno, Squawks. Are you done trying to uselessly seduce Tayshan behind Shantae's back to soothe your broken heart after Joe kicked your feathery butt to the curb?" At that, everyone froze. Everything went eerily silent. Sky turned around and shot such a red-hot, infuriated glare at the other young woman that one would've thought that she'd have made Twitch and everything behind her explode with the force of a propane tank on fire. "Oh yeah. I went there," Twitch defiantly egged on, smirking as she reveled in what she read as a victory on her end. Trembling with such hot, seething rage that she may very well have spontaneously combusted at any given moment, Sky resisted every urge to wreak unspeakable horrors onto the bespectacled maiden in retribution for her cruel remark.

"Don't you EVER say that again. Do you hear me, Twitch?" Sky warned as calmly as she could, the bass in her tone making evident that she was holding everything back as her eyes went glassy. "Don't. I'm warning you now. I have had put up with your nonsense for far too long, and I've had enough. Shut your mouth now, and we'll forget that this conversation happened."

"I'm not scared of you," Twitch challenged again, unfazed by the avian aficionado's harsh words. "If anything, it's you who's scared."

"Me? Scared?"

"Nice parrot impression, egg-face. Also, yes. Of what, you might ask? Why, the truth, of course. The truth that you're just a lonely opportunist looking for a chance to score a rebound because her standards on how to woo a guy are way too low to be respectable," she pressed on with a confident grin and shrug, bringing Sky's temper dangerously close to its boiling point. If there were a pot filled with water resting on the bird tamer's head, it would've been emitting steam. "It's pathetic, really. I've never seen such desperation and delusion in my life!"

"Oh, that's it! You f-!" Sky was about to lash out, moving toward Twitch before she felt a hand on her shoulder from behind her. She turned to see Tayshan resting his hand on her, scowling at Twitch as he intervened.

"That's enough out o' y'all. Do you hear me, Twitch?" he sternly warned as he pointed a finger toward the woman in question, catching the Ammonian affiliate by surprise.

"What? It isn't like I'm saying it just to get under her skin," she reasoned. "You and I both know-!"

"I'm not interested in hearin' your reasonin' for pickin' fights with her. I'm gettin' tired o' listenin' t' the two o' you goin' back an' forth like we ain't got better things t' do with our time here," he cut in, lifting his hand off Sky as he exchanged glances with both of the girls. "Cut it out an' figure out a way t' start talkin' like teammates."

"Hmph. Even you can't tell me I have to get along with someone I don't like, Tayshan," Twitch shot back with a tinge of contempt. "You don't get to boss me around."

"Yeah? Then how about you get a free choice instead? Either you stop with the venomous remarks an' at least cooperate with Sky, or you can sit here an' let the two of us finish the rest o' this quest, an' we go our separate ways after it's over. Those are the choices you have right now, since you're worried about me bossin' you around," he fervently laid out, again catching her off-guard as she reeled back in surprise.

"Tay, come on… Why are you taking her side?" she asked, hurt that he was being so short with her.

"It ain't about takin' sides. It's about on-the-job conduct. Twitch, you were allowed t' come along even after Sky said she didn't want you here, an' your show o' 'gratitude' was t' try t' tear down an' humiliate her this entire time. I ain't sayin' you gotta grovel at her feet or anything, but I expected far better from you."

"…Jeez, dude, it isn't that serious…" Twitch complained as her heart and her stance sank a bit. She turned her head to the side, clutching one arm with the other as she processed his ultimatum.

"Wow, Tay… Way to lay it on her," Sky lauded, relieved that Tay stepped in.

"Save the compliments, Sky," he tersely deflected, catching her by surprise as well. "You're just as responsible as she is for all the infightin' y'all have been doin'."

"Excuse me? What do you mean I'm just as responsible!?" she questioned, a new sense of frustration igniting as she shot him an incredulous, disapproving look. "Have you been paying any attention to how nasty she's been to me since we started here? And aren't you aware that she wouldn't have even been here in the first place if it wasn't for you being too scared to say 'no' to her joining us?"

"I knew you'd say that. But here's the thing: First off, while her attitude toward you ain't appreciated in any sense o' the word, that doesn't mean you're innocent. You lashed back at her the same way she's been doin' t' you, which is makin' the situation worse. Let's get that straight," he refuted, seeming all but fed up as he argued with his comrades. "Second, my opinion on acceptin' Twitch's help ain't the same as yours is. If you wanna bring that up, then I'll admit I would've flat-out said 'yes' t' her joinin' if it was REALLY up t' me. She would've only needed t' learn how t' get along with you," he revealed, much to the surprise of both girls, though the nature of each of their respective surprises was opposite of one another.

"Tayshan! You can't be serious!" Sky exclaimed, appalled by his statement.

"Yes, I am. Take this however you want to, but I'm a believer in the 'safety in numbers' idea, an' I've worked real well with her before. I was hopin' things would be the same this time, too. Y'all might not like each other, but you're both my allies an' friends. That automatically puts me right in the middle of it all. Maybe I was naïve t' think y'all could spend this trip learnin' how t' tear down the wall between y'all, an' now that it's gotten t' this point, maybe I should've been better with explainin' my position on the matter o' Twitch comin' along. Either way, I let you be the one t' give the final say-so on her inclusion, considerin' you were the one who arranged this whole trip in the first place."

"I understand, but Tayshan, we came here together. The idea was for us to delegate responsibility between the two of us as we moved along. One of the responsibilities we should've come together on was whether we really needed to take on any additional party members; especially Twitch of all people," Sky reasoned, making Tay think as he listened to her.

"I'm still over here, in case you forgot, Squawks!" Twitch protested, none too pleased with how Sky referred to her.

"I mean, isn't that how it usually works between you and Shantae?" she brought up while ignoring Twitch, hitting a sour note with Tay as she posed her question to the disheartened serviceman.

"Uh… Not… particularly," he admitted, causing Sky to widen her eyes in astonishment at the revelation. "It… it's more so that she makes all the decisions an' I follow along unless I have an objection than anything else… Er, regardless, we're all here now. An' since we're all here, can we PLEASE find some common ground an' get a move on? You two screechin' at each other has made this trip a lot longer an' harder than it needs t' be. An' y'know what? The sooner we get through this, the sooner you both can go your separate ways, if you're not interested in workin' together. Copy?" he suggested, ending with a question that both girls took a moment to mull over.

"…I suppose that's as good a point to make as it gets, then, huh?" Sky remarked, understanding that she indeed would be better off if they finished the adventure with as little additional conflict as possible. "For better or for worse, that's pretty much the exact situation we're in right now. So fine, while we're here, let's just focus on getting this over with."

"Thank you," Tay expressed, calming down a bit. "Sorry if I came across as harsh…"

"No, don't sweat it," Sky dismissed with a sigh and a flick of her hand. "If anything, it's good you stepped in when you did. There's no telling what would've happened otherwise. Plus, you have a point about us not letting our grievances cloud our judgment. I just hope you understand that I will NEVER work with her again after this, no matter what you say."

"Fair," Tay plainly acknowledged.

"Wow, Tay-Tay, when you mean business, there's no telling what surprises will come out of that mouth of yours," Twitch remarked, perking up as she stepped forward to rejoin her squad after nearly being booted out for insubordination. "Gotta appreciate a man who can take the reins and be a diplomat when the time calls for it."

"Ah, don't you go butterin' me up after that," he deflected, shooting the bespectacled blonde a silly-looking frown that betrayed the sound of his statement as they continued marching up the winding stairwell toward the next floor. Reading the nature of his facial expression, Twitch grinned.

"Whaaaat? Me? Butter you up? Nonsense, sir! I'd NEVER say anything I didn't mean unless I thought it'd get me a little farther ahead," she cryptically and jokingly remarked with a wink, to which Tay chuckled a bit before turning ahead. Relieved that things seemed to be okay, the young woman breathed a quiet sigh before being tapped on the shoulder. Suffice to say, she may have breathed that sigh too soon. Nevertheless, she turned to face a displeased Sky.

"You're on thin ice…! You hear me, Twitch? Thin…! Ice…!" Sky whispered, pointing a finger at the other young woman. Twitch, not taking kindly to Sky's confrontational approach, rolled her eyes.

"I'm sorry, you must be mistaking me for someone who gives two shakes of a tail feather about your empty threats…!" she harshly whispered back. "You'd do yourself real well not to provoke me further, you pathetic, boy-hungry shrew…! Otherwise, I'll pluck out all the feathers you're hiding under those tacky, hideous rags on your head. How about that for a warning…?"

"Okay, now the thin ice you're on is melting… FAST…!" Sky warned again. "Keep it up…!"

"I already told you I'm not scared of you, birdbrain…! Keep testing me, and I'll kick your chirping a-!"

"Sorry, did one o' y'all say somethin'?" Tay asked as they kept climbing, causing both girls to perk up as though they'd been caught arguing again.

"No. No, nothing important, sweetheart," Sky assured with a nervous titter. "Twitch and I were just… having a girls-only discussion is all."

"Uh, y-yeah, about girl stuff. Y'know, 'monthly gifts' and make-up tips, as well as some banter and gossip to 'break the ice,'" Twitch added just as nervously (and quite cleverly, considering the situational ice pun she slipped in there), though Tay seemed to suspect nothing unusual.

"Monthly gifts?" he repeated, thoroughly unsettled by the mere mention of the phrase. "If that means what I think it does, then forget I asked. You girls carry on with that," he dismissed with a tiny shudder, speeding up his pace just a bit so he wasn't too close to his teammates to hear much, if anything, of their 'girl talk.' Of course, once the coast was clear, Twitch and Sky were right back to quietly glaring, berating, and growling at each other as they traversed the staircase and neared their next destination. One could see the sparks of adversarial electricity clashing between their eyes…

 ** _Moments later…_**

After their impromptu team meeting, our heroes had made it to the next floor of the Sheared Spool Shrine; a dimly-lit, cavernous cathedral-like room that seemed entirely empty, save for the burning torches perched from woman-shaped statues designed in ways that had depicted them dancing while holding their arms up to support the handles from which the flames flickered. The only other source of light for this room was, once again, the sunlight shining in through the enormous stained-glass windows that cast prismatic beams all across the moss-covered floor. As one of our three brave spelunkers stopped to observe the gloomy, foreboding atmosphere, he noticed a peculiar detail regarding the stony, mossy surface of the floor.

"Hmm… For stone floorin', it's weird that they're neatly organized an' squared off like tiles…" he murmured as he stepped ahead and scanned the rest of the area. "No sign of any monsters this time, either… If anything, I've got the strangest feelin' this means there's somethin' else that needs t' be accounted for. But what…?" he asked himself as he stepped directly onto a floor tile that happened to have a sapphire-hued light shining onto it. The instant he did so, he'd heard what sounded like a trigger being set as his foot sank slightly into the ground, immediately putting him on high alert. Within the next second, the *fwish* of an object being projected from seemingly nowhere, caused the soldier to look to his side.

"Shoot!" he yelled in a panic, leaning back with all his might to narrowly avoid an arrow that otherwise would've found itself stuck in his chest. The arrow found itself embedded into the opposing wall with a *plink* of its metal-pointed head against the stone-crafted wall. "Whew… So instead o' monsters, we're dealin' with classic doomed temple booby-traps, from the looks of it…" Tay observed, dividing his attention between the floor tile he stepped on and the wall the resulting arrow plunged itself into. Convinced at this point that he and his team would need to be on their guard for the remainder of the wide, open, dim cavern of a room, he turned to warn the girls… only to see that they were far behind him, locked in the world's angriest staring contest as they sounded off at each other. "Oh, you can't be serious…!"

"It's honestly hilarious that you could still call yourself a halfway decent person, considering what you're doing to control a situation to make it work in your favor," Twitch accused Sky as the shouting match between the two had resumed. "And here I was, thinking I might've been a little manipulative at times. Squawks, you take the cake with this sneaky charade."

"First of all, I'm not manipulating anyone! Get that idea out of your immature, delusional mind!" Sky yelled back, evidently shedding none of her anger at Twitch as they went back and forth. "Second, what exactly do you call it when you try to seduce someone into spilling heavily-guarded secrets? Or flat-out kidnapping and extorting someone when they don't fall for your gross little flirty tricks? Or literally every interaction you've had with him since you met!? Because if you ask me, I wouldn't hesitate to tell you that 'a little manipulative' is about the biggest understatement I've EVER heard! Don't you go lumping me in with the likes of you!"

"Okay, but at least I'm honest about it! Sort of! Plus, I owned up to it and apologized," Twitch acknowledged while also implying that she still believed Sky to be a worse culprit. "And besides, I'm not even that worried about digging up info on those guns anymore! Considering I'm allowed to take the ones I want and use them as I please, there's hardly a reason to manipulate anyone for intel on that."

"So, why are you here now? You got what you wanted a long time ago, so there's really no point to you hovering around us as long as you have been!"

"As if you don't know by now! I'm here to be part of a collaborative effort to take down the pirate hag who absconded with some precious, irreplaceable Ammonian equipment! She stole a Hypersonic Propulsion Generator from the Ammonian Army, in addition to all the guns she took from that other world! Tay-Tay and I made a pact together that we'd have each other's backs, and while I'm annoyed that part of that pact includes being bothered to work with a talentless, boorish, lovesick amateur like YOU, I'm a woman of my word! Plus, we both already know that, by the end of this whole shebang, a certain something—or rather, a certain _someone_ will be all mine for the taking. Hence, why you should give up and stop wasting his time in that respect."

"Talentless, boorish, lovesick AMATEUR!?" Sky repeated, appalled to the highest degree by the disrespect she'd continually been dished out by Twitch.

"You're really nailing that parrot impression," Twitch mocked her again, falsely applauding Sky's impeccable performance. "Soon enough, I won't be able to tell the difference between you and an actual bird. Anyway, that's right. With an emphasis on-!"

"YO!" Tay yelled out, stopping the girls from fighting once again as they each looked at him. When they did, he raised his arms high, as though to nonverbally communicate that he wondered why they were still going back and forth with each other.

"Right. Sorry! We'll be right there!" Sky called back to him, putting some pep in her step; of course, not before the young ladies shot disparaging looks at each other before they hurried up to rejoin the soldier.

"Alright, so what's the deal this time around?" Twitch preemptively asked. "More monsters? More unusual stage hazards? A Boss Battle?"

"Hidden traps," he answered, scouring the room once more as he continued trying to figure out what to look out for. "So, yeah, your second guess was the right one. I just stepped on this part o' the floor here with the blue light from the window shinin' on it, and an arrow came shootin' out of a wall. It looks like we're gonna have t' tread lightly on this one," Tay explained. "If anything, my only real clue is that, based on how… convenient the color patterns from the windows look on the floor, we might be dealin' with a color-coordinated trap maze here."

"Interesting…" Sky observed, listening to her partner as she did her own round of studying the floor. "If that's true, then I've got a way to test it out," she suggested, about to whistle to summon one of her avian troopers to assist.

"Don't bother. I've already got a less obnoxious idea," Twitch interrupted, pulling a batch of (regular) marbles from her pocket. As in, not the kinds that had been loaded into the stolen weapons, but normal, run-of-the-mill, non-glowing marbles. "Rather than wait to find out anything we might need to know, I'll toss these marbles along the path to see what happens." With that and without waiting for a confirmation or denial, the Ammonian affiliate tossed the first marble. Within a span of two seconds, the marble hit a part of the ground highlighted in red with a *tick*, where the entire tile briefly erupted in a tower of flames. "Red equals fire…" she observed, wasting no time tossing the second marble. This one hit a green-lit tile, seemingly garnering no reaction… until a couple seconds later, where a truck tire-sized boulder slammed onto the floor from the mile-high ceiling with a startling *THUD*. "Green equals raining boulder…" she noted once more, tossing yet another marble as she studied the area. The third marble hit an orange tile, where it garnered no reaction whatsoever. However, the marble bounced and rolled ahead onto another blue tile, where another lightning-quick arrow rocketed itself all the way from the opposing wall the trio faced. Having more than enough time, they stepped aside and let the projectile whizz past them.

"Wow… This place is so full o' surprises…" Tay murmured in a mix of dread and wonder.

"You're telling me, babe," Twitch agreed, never breaking her focus. "So, orange might be safe, while blue causes arrows to shoot from the walls… So, the only colors we haven't accounted for that I can see are yellow, pink, and purple… and then there are some that aren't highlighted by any of the windows' colors," she further noted, aiming carefully before tossing one more marble toward the kaleidoscopic trap floor. The fourth of her marbles hit a yellow tile, causing it to crackle and buzz with electricity. "Typical… yellow is electricity," she noted yet again, throwing the fifth marble toward a purple-hued platform. The second the marble landed on the tile, it stuck to it with a wet *plop*. "Great, so purple is basically glue… or something. Hmm, but I don't know if I can hit the pink or non-highlighted ones… The pink ones are all the way on the other side, and I don't know if I've got the accuracy to hit them from here… and I can't tell if the non-highlighted ones are actually green or what. They look like they're just covered in moss, and then there are some that have other colors shining on them in part."

"Mind if I give it a shot, then?" Tay politely asked, rather intrigued by Twitch's strategic method of deciphering the puzzle maze. "Maybe I can try t' hit the other ones t' find out what's what."

"Absolutely!" she excitedly accepted his offer, handing him the remaining marbles. "You think you're able to hit the pink one and then maybe try to land one on a floor piece that looks suspicious?"

"I don't really know for sure," he admitted. "I've just got an idea t' try somethin', but if I miss once, I'll hand 'em back."

"Think it might be a good idea for me to just call one of my birds to finish the scouting job, then?" Sky offered, ready to cover for her teammates if absolutely necessary.

"I'd rather not put your birds in danger, but if it comes down to it, Sky, I'll let you know. I do need t' test somethin' out though…"

"Test what out?"

"We're about t' find out," he answered, shifting his focus toward the rainbow-checkered floorboard as he raised a marble to eye level. "Now Twitch… if I'm not mistaken, then you hit the floor in the order of Red, Green, Orange, Blue, Purple, and then Yellow by this point, right? And the only ones you didn't hit include Pink and the ones that either have no color or multiple colors on 'em?"

"Uh… I think? I was only worried about what each color did, not about what pattern I hit them in. Why?"

"Just wonderin'. I figure this might be a golden opportunity t' discover somethin' about myself for future reference…"

"Discover something…?" Sky asked in wonder, uncertain of what he might have meant.

"Yeah, but it's better shown than told. How fond are you o' these marbles, Twitch?"

"Not very, considering I've just been tossing them left and right. Use them however you want. They were meant for situations like this, anyway."

"Understood. Thanks," he showed his gratitude before going to work. As Tayshan held the marble up, he briefly closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He held the breath of air in for a few seconds before exhaling while tensing up his throwing arm. Afterward, he opened his eyes. "Okay…" he murmured, taking another deep breath as he tightened his focus. This time, however, he locked his sights on the floor as he remained transfixed on his target. "Hmm…" he hummed in contemplation as he drew in another rush of air, tightening every muscle in his arm as he furrowed his brow to focus harder.

"Tayshan? What are you-?" Twitch was about to ask.

"Shh!" Sky hushed the other woman. "You're going to break his concentration…!" she further rasped.

"Who do you think you're talking to, birdbrain!? Don't shush me!"

"Be quiet…!" she urged again, this time pointing toward the soldier as his focus remained locked on the floor. Instinctively following Sky's finger, Twitch looked toward Tay to see that his hand had begun to faintly glow that same mystic white that his entire body had done multiple times earlier. Drawing enough from the context to gather an understanding, Twitch begrudgingly pursed her lips to avoid uttering another sound while Tay continued with his experiment.

And speaking of said experiment, Tay continued taking deep breaths even after the glow in his hand had manifested from nowhere. He'd felt the encapsulating tingling sensation that such a phenomenon had always brought him when it became active. However, unbeknownst to his teammates, Tay had also begun to envision a faint, arching line trailing from his hand toward a specific spot on the floor. Silently, he recognized this as the same line he'd seen during his time in the underground storm bunker days prior. Adjusting his hand position and eye to figure out the trajectory of the marble pressed between his thumb and index finger, he oriented himself to where he was aiming toward a red-hued tile.

"Red, Green, Orange, Blue, Purple, Yellow, Pink, Other…" he murmured the order in which he intended to hit the tiles by color. Before moving, however, he took note of the marbles in his non-throwing hand. "Ten marbles left. Gotta make 'em count…" he again muttered, looking back at the color-coded floor. Without wasting another second, he quickly oriented his positioning to where he was specifically aiming at a red-bathed tile. "Here goes…!" And with that, he began.

With hardly a second in between each toss, Tay successively hurled marbles across the floor, doing his best to calculate each throw with the help of… whatever otherworldly energy planted itself in his body. Even if it was explained to him that it was magic, he could still hardly wrap his head around it. Nevertheless, the moment of truth made itself apparent just as he'd launched the eighth marble. In successive order as he'd intended, the first marble was swallowed by an upward spray of flames. The second bounced off a separate green tile and onto a non-colored one, triggering a boulder to fall onto the green tile a few seconds later. The third bounced off a far-away orange tile toward the other end, causing nothing to happen. The fourth struck a blue tile, causing an arrow to shoot from the left wall going toward the right, though this arrow struck a stained-glass window, bouncing off with a significant *CRACK* of the window from the arrow's force.

Nevertheless, his fifth marble landed on a purple tile, immediately becoming embedded in its apparently sticky surface. The sixth marble hit a yellow tile as intended, causing another *SPARK* of an electric current to shoot through it. The seventh marble soared all the way across to hit a pink tile, causing a flurry of nonthreatening hearts to float out of it, possibly marking that one as also posing no threat. The final marble hit a multi-colored tile, which caused another burst of flames to shoot up from it. Also worth note was that the marble that bounced off the green tile and landed on a non-colored one seemed to do nothing… Until a sudden rumbling quake of the room shook the tile loose from the floor pattern, causing it to drop. After a few tense, silence-filled seconds, that tile could be heard crashing hard into the lava two floors below. This fate was shared by the two green tiles that had been struck by boulders soon after.

"Whew…" Tayshan exhaled, finally breaking his focus and massaging his eyes to ward off what appeared to be a sudden dizzy spell. "Agh…"

"You alright there, Tay?" Sky asked, moving to help him steady himself as he reoriented.

"Y-yeah, I'm good. Just… a little bit dizzy is all, but it's passin'," he assured, breathing deeply for a short spell as he straightened himself up.

"Whoa…" Twitch droned in amazement. "Talk about accuracy! I thought you were something else when you were popping those monsters left and right without missing a beat a couple floors ago, but between that and just now, your handiwork is incredible!"

"Heh, thanks, Twitch, but that wasn't all handiwork. Some o' that had t' do with this odd magic in my body," he admitted, still examining himself in wonder.

"Either way, I gotta admit that it definitely has its uses," she additionally commended. "You never cease to amaze me, honey."

"Ah, right…" he uneasily acknowledged, somewhat disquieted by the young woman's use of pet names to describe him. "A-anyway, this trip's taught me quite a lot about how t' tap into it, but it seems like I can only use it in short bursts," he theorized. "If I let it go on for too long, I either get dizzy, or it burns me out. I'm still not even fully recovered from our chain-swingin' escapades."

"Sorry," Sky apologized. "We blew through our food supply just on that last section. Those gargoyles were a force to be reckoned with when we barely had the means to defend ourselves. Thankfully, we got out of there with hardly a scratch other than our tattered-up outfits and your eye, but we should've been better prepared for this…"

"It's alright, Sky. It ain't like you could've predicted at all how this trip would treat us," he forgave.

"True, but I feel awful for not doing more to prepare. Are you sure you're still able to push through? It looks like this is the last floor, thankfully, but who knows what's on the other side of that gigantic set of doors at the other end…?"

"If we're quick enough t' dip, duck, an' dodge all the traps waitin' for us here, then I think I can hold out."

"Okay, but please let me know if you tire out, Tayshan," Sky worriedly advised him as they prepared to traverse the booby-trap maze.

"Relax, will ya? He's a grown man," Twitch spoke out on Tay's behalf without warning, irritating the bird trainer. "He's already proven he can hold his own, so why are you picking now to act like you're his babysitter?"

"It's called 'being a good friend,' Twitch," Sky sardonically shot back. "Maybe the concept is foreign to you, but if I have to explain myself to you, then I'm looking out for his safety."

"No, it isn't foreign. In case you've forgotten, I have Vinegar, who's basically my other half," Twitch reasoned, though her phrasing threw both Sky and Tayshan off.

"Now, you don't hear THAT every day…" Tay murmured, exchanging glances with Twitch, who'd widened her eyes and covered her mouth with a hand once she realized what she'd just said.

"I had a feeling you two were awfully close to one another…" Sky remarked, suspiciously eyeing the other girl up and down. "Now it makes sense why you two are never away from each other, not counting today…"

"Wh-what!? No, no, no! It's not like that, you weirdo!" she blushingly denied, glaring at Sky. "Get your mind out of the mud bog! I meant like we're basically two halves of one person! In a sisterly sense! Y'know, like twins, even though she's older than me! It's like a sort of exclusive, symbiotic friendship we have!"

"Suuure, if that's what you want to call it," Sky dismissed with a shrug, still teasing her as Tay watched on, shaking his head in stark disapproval at Sky. "I'm not judging. It just makes me wonder why you're even bothering with Tayshan when-!"

"Shut up!" she demanded, growing increasingly flustered. "Y'know what? I don't have to explain myself to you! Anyway, my point was that there's a difference between 'being a good friend' and just being plain overbearing."

"And you think I'm overbearing because…?"

"Like I need to spell it out for you. You should know what that's like, little miss 'Talks-About-Marriage-On-The-First-Date,'" Twitch accused, immediately bringing Sky's temper to a ferocious boil as she glared death at her. "Why don't we ask your ex-boyfriend, in case you need a reminder?"

"D'oh, why do you keep bringing him up!? It's none of your business what happened between us! I'm sick and tired of you harassing me about my past relationship when you think it's-!" Sky roared out as she aggressively approached her snickering teammate before Tayshan stepped in between them.

"Aw, for goodness sake, stop screamin' at each other for five minutes an' FOCUS!" he demanded, separating the two girls and pointing toward what they'd hoped would be the final obstacle. "You both are gettin' carried away, an' it's about time we cut these talks short, alright!? If neither one o' y'all has anything nice t' say t' the other, then don't say anything period! It ain't that hard!"

"It is when you've got a gross, lonely harpy trying to sink her disgusting, jagged claws into someone she knows doesn't belong to her…" Twitch muttered under her breath, though everyone heard it.

"Grrr, I can't stand you!" Sky declared loud enough that the entire tower could hear it as she attempted once more to get past Tayshan to lunge at her, though Tay's stance held strong enough to keep her at bay.

"Twitch, I won't say it again," he warned as he turned to her. "Keep it professional or keep your mouth shut! Got it!?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it," she dismissively agreed, crossing her arms and turning forward, though she did nothing to hide the mischievous smirk she harbored as a result of getting under Sky's skin just one more time. Meanwhile, Tay continued to hold Sky back for just a few more seconds before she calmed herself enough to cease trying to get close enough to Twitch to strangle her. Instead, she angrily separated herself from the soldier and took a deep, exasperated breath before pulling out a polka-dotted egg.

"Can we just get this over with, or what?" the thoroughly frustrated bird tamer asked, itching to bring this quest to as swift an end as she could.

"Lead the way," Tay permitted. "We still need a plan, though. You think we'll be able t' alternate between your Falcon Call an' Wrench if we stuck together?"

"Not likely," she denied. "At least, not this time around. The cool-down periods for Wrench and the Falcon Call are too much for us to constantly switch between them without consequence. Chances are, we may have to separate to get across this time. And even then, we'd have to find a safe enough pace to move at to avoid being caught up with the hazards in front of us."

"That's true, ain't it…? Darn…"

"It's still not too big an issue for us to handle. Don't sweat it," Sky assured. "You have access to my Falcon Call, so maybe combining that with your newly-discovered magic will help you to get across in a couple of big leaps as you go along?"

"Oh, I _could_ do that, huh?" he realized with Sky's help, though there was something he wasn't sure of. "But then, I don't have full control over when the magic kicks in, other than when I know a situation's gonna cause me a ton o' stress… Plus, I'm not sure I have enough energy in general t' pull off a jump that huge so soon after the last section…"

"You don't think this situation is stressful enough for you to channel just enough of that magic to basically fly across this trap maze?"

"We won't know 'til we try, I suppose," he acknowledged, though the idea of testing out a theory in the face of imminent danger caused him insurmountable dread. "Although, Twitch is the only one without a convenient method o' skippin' past some o' the maze."

"You got that right. It sucks, I know," Twitch chimed in. "The one day I don't bring my jetpack, it turns out I'm in a situation where I could've used it. Then again, my jetpack was heavily damaged from our last big trip anyway, so I'd have been out of luck either way."

"Huh… So, how will you manage gettin' across?"

"Well… I was just wondering…" she innocently led on, looking directly at him as she locked her hands behind her back and rocked herself back and forth on her heels and toes. The… very telling look on her face immediately sent Tay a very mortifying message.

"…Please don't be weird, please don't be weird, please don't be weird…" he VERY silently chanted, giving her the benefit of the doubt while having his expectations of what she was about to follow up with.

"Think you can give a girl another ride she won't forget, Tay-Tay~?" she suggestively… suggested with a salacious smiling wink.

"And there it is…" he murmured with a sigh, disappointed that his expectations had been met.

"Nope, you're coming with me this time," Sky interjected as she motioned a finger to call the other woman over, immediately putting the kibosh on another of the bespectacled maiden's attempts to woo the soldier in front of her. "You'd just distract him if you went with him, and I'm willing to bite the bullet to get us across quicker."

"What!? No! I don't want you anywhere near me!" Twitch protested. "I don't need your help, birdbrain!"

"Twitch, she has a point," Tay agreed, catching Twitch off-guard. "The Falcon Call ain't as reliable as the platforms Sky can turn her pet bird into, an' I'd rather not put you in harm's way in the case that I slipped up."

"That, and as long as I'm standing on Wrench, he won't disappear from under us, if you remember from last time."

"Tay-Tay, I'll be fine going with you! I mean, maybe you can piggyback me like you did Vinegar!"

"That wouldn't work if we're lookin' t' minimize our chances o' bein' hit by somethin' we could've avoided by travelin' separately," he countered. "Plus, I don't know if I can handle another piggyback ride after what we went through on the last floor. At the very least, you an' Sky would be airborne for as long as you'd need t' be before y'all made a move. It's a matter o' safety an' practicality above all else."

"In that case, I'll take my chances with playing hopscotch with the trap triggers," she fervently rebuffed, addressing Tayshan. "It's worlds better than being cooped up on some dumb bird with her."

"Get over yourself and come here, will ya?" Sky demanded. "We're not playing 'Would You Rather' here, and if you want to survive without being maimed, crushed, or roasted like a marshmallow, you'd do yourself better to swallow your pride and come with me."

"Trust me, I'd rather dive feet-first into the lava below from way up here than deal with you and your grabby antics," she again refused, causing Sky to scoff in complete disdain. "Last thing I need is you copping another feel…"

"You are aware that I'm not that kind of girl, nor do I have ANY intent to make you more uncomfortable than you already make me, aren't you?" she asked, seriously concerned about the bold accusation hurled her way. "Maybe you have your preferences for what types of girls you DO like, Twitch, and like I said, I'm not judging, but-!"

"Shut your trap! I never said anything of the sort, so don't put words in my mouth! I only like boys! BOYS! You are disgusting!"

"Takes a disgusting person to know a disgusting person, I'm sure," Sky snarkily egged on.

"Right, because the sixteen times you've encroached on my space weren't clue enough! Why don't you go get grabby with your little girlfriend Shantae instead of forcing yourself on me and Tay-Tay!?"

"WHAT!?" Sky shouted, utterly appalled by Twitch's very unusual accusation. "Now you resort to making accusations about me and Shantae!? First of all, she's my best friend who's like a younger sister to me! Second, what is WRONG with you!?"

"What's wrong with YOU!?"

"I'm clearly not the one with the insecurity issue here, so don't deflect my question back at me! Are you still mad you embarrassed yourself by goofing up your description of your relationship with Vinegar!?"

"No! You-!"

"Yo, how is it that you two can find so many topics t' bicker an' scream at each other about? This topic doesn't even make sense TO be fightin' about! Y'all have GOT t' be jokin' right now!" Tay cut in as he instinctively chuckled in ironic frustration as he slapped a hand to his forehead, at his wits' end on how to keep his teammates from continuing to fight with each other.

"Well, tell this gutter-minded moron to stop insinuating things because she can't keep her hands to herself!" Twitch not-so-humbly requested.

"Twitch, I SWEAR to you that whatever your delusion is about me 'copping a feel' of you, is just that! Pure delusion! You need help!"

"No, YOU need help!"

"No, you!"

"You!"

"You!"

"You!"

"You!"

"Oh… My goodness. You are both killin' me right now," Tay cut in yet again before this argument devolved any further. "For the sake of all that is good on this planet, can we PLEASE get movin'!? Twitch, if you can stomach a mere three minutes of taggin' with Sky, you'd be handsomely rewarded with the grand prize o' never havin' t' team with her again. An' Sky, your prize is bein' done with Twitch! Now stop with the team-killin' an' let's go!"

"Ugh, fine!" Twitch complained, stepping toward Sky with extreme reluctance as she crossed her arms over herself for protection. "Lead the way, O Queen Creepy Claws," she demanded of Sky, flicking a hand toward her.

"For the last time, my name is SKY! Like that thing you see when you look up outside! S-K-Y! How hard is it for you to just call me by my name!?"

"Whatever, Squawks. Quit flapping your beak and bring out your mostly-useless bird."

"Y'know, you've got an awful lot of venom to spit about the birds that saved your life. Unbelievable that I still have to help you get across…" she complained, tossing her polka-dotted egg to summon Wrench as a platform over the first couple of feet of the highlighted puzzle maze. Without wasting yet another second of time they already burned through already, Sky leapt high, landing on Wrench without issue. Twitch followed suit, but she required help in the form of Sky catching her hands to help her up. As one might expect, however, Twitch swiftly snatched her hands away from Sky's as soon as she found footing.

"Finally…" Tay muttered in a fleeting sense of relief as he whistled and summoned up another team of falcons to carry him a short distance before he did his best to jump ahead onto a nearby orange triangle-shaped space in the maze. "Now, just gotta either wait a couple seconds, or wing it an' try landin' on one with a lower risk o' messin' me up… in which case, the ones I'd probably do best t' aim for would be green or blue. Hmm…" he pondered, thinking of his next move as he studied the unorthodox, uneven, and unusual pattern of the light beams. "Goodness, this trap looks almost as bad as the sand on that desert… Everything is so lopsided…!" With that observation, he took a deep breath and leapt toward a rhombus-shaped green space, which initiated a sudden quake beneath his feet. "Whoa! What the…?" he remarked in surprise as he struggled to keep his footing. As he glanced behind, he noticed that the orange space on which he stood dislodged from its position and fell, leaving behind a gaping hole. "Shoot…" Tay sighed, looking down to realize right away that he was still not safe. "Oh, shoot! Green meant boulder!" he further announced in a panic as he hurriedly searched for the next space, though he only saw blue, yellow, and purple.

Weighing his options in the three seconds he had before he was met with a rocky surprise, Tay hurriedly jumped toward the tiny blue pentagon-shaped space, which caused an arrow to rocket out from in front of him. In that same moment, the boulder (about the size of a single Squid Baron) came crashing down with a mighty *BOOM*, annihilating the ground below as it tore right through. Thinking quickly while focusing more on the arrow headed his way, Tay hopped forward and to the side to land on a multi-colored space. Now, one might think that at THIS point, he'd have been safe. Oh, how naïve you are… For, you see, the very second Tay's boot touched that space, it flashed yellow for a second after he landed on it. And, if you'd been paying attention to what colors brought about which hazards, then you'd know without me telling you about the sudden *ZAP* and *CRACKLE* noises that briefly filled the otherwise-silent temple.

"ZZZAAAGGHHAAAGAWAWWAAWAAGH!" Tayshan yelled out in agonized, garbled gibberish as he got stuck in place while being electrocuted, his body flashing white and bright neon blue as he became a human lightning rod. Luckily for him, the shocking (pun intended) twist of fate only punished him for a mere five seconds before it ceased, causing him to nearly collapse on the uneven multi-colored quadrilateral he'd landed on. "Augh…! That's gotta be the third… or fourth worst electric shock I've ever been hit with… This makes tasers feel like they only tickle…!" he observed, apparently having had his fill of experiences on the wrong end of an electric shock. I only wonder how he came to THAT conclusion… Nevertheless, Tay shook off the numbing paralysis effect as best as he could as he regained enough of his senses and energy to leap toward the next uneven trapezoid-shaped orange space before summoning another Falcon Call to help him across.

Meanwhile, Sky and Twitch had just hopped off Wrench together after having watched Tayshan's spectacular series of blunders and agreed (for once) to stick together. While holding hands, they landed simultaneously on a separate circle-shaped orange space, rendering them safe for a short time before they had to make their next move.

"Okay, we did it. Now, let's jump toward the right while we wait for Wrench to recover," the bird tamer instructed. With little hesitation, Sky attempted to jump toward a triangular green spot while doing her best to avoid the nearby purple and yellow spots, while Twitch, seeing what she felt was a better option, pulled in the opposite direction to try landing on a non-highlighted piece. As one might expect, they found mutual resistance when they stopped dead in their tracks in midair, landing together on a purple space. Sky, having tried harder to jump to her intended space than Twitch did hers, felt the brunt of the oppositional force, landing with a *SPLAT* flat on her back, whereas Twitch found herself flopping face-down right on top of her.

"Agh! You idiot!" Twitch berated, struggling to rip herself free from the goo that bound her to Sky in a most unfavorable position. "Why the heck would you jump over there!?" she further complained, trying to get her cheek unstuck from Sky's as they tried climbing to their feet.

"It's not my fault!" Sky challenged, painstakingly tearing her arms away from the platform to press her hands onto Twitch's shoulders in an attempt to push her off. "As if you haven't learned anything at all since we got here, you keep trying to do your own thing, and now look where your unwillingness to cooperate got us! I TOLD you to jump to the right, but you didn't listen! Also, do you mind taking your gross, sticky hands off my chest, please!?"

"It isn't like I put them there on purpose, so shut up and help me get us unstuck!" Twitch shot back as she tugged and pulled, though the sticky substance held tight, basically binding the two girls together. The goopy substance coating the violet-highlighted platform appeared to be just sticky enough to bind the girls together, but not quite sticky enough to hold them on the floor itself… however that worked. Nevertheless, both Twitch and Sky put all their combined strength into tearing themselves away from each other, grunting with extreme effort to pull themselves away. Sky pushed hard into Twitch's shoulders while Twitch pressed into Sky's chest just as aggressively. And eventually, they succeeded. With an incredibly loud, wet *SCHLOP*, they finally pulled themselves away, thought they went stumbling away in separate directions. Sky fell backward on a juxtaposed green space while Twitch fell onto a separate red one.

Taking no more than a few seconds to realize where they were (with Sky seeing a looming shadow growing progressively bigger over her while Twitch felt the spot under her rapidly getting warmer), each of the young ladies sprung into panic-laced action. As though they suddenly sprouted springs in their boots, Sky and Twitch leapt high and far from their spaces, just as a pillar of flames erupted with a deadly *FWOOSH* of burning fury and another giant, moss-covered boulder hit the ground with a deafening *SLAM*, taking out another chunk of the maze and making things much more perilous. The young women found themselves nice and cuddled up with each other, hugging for dear life on a blue (yes, BLUE) octagonal space a little further ahead. Sky, noticing this right away, was immediately further alerted by the *THWIP* of an arrow gunning for them from the side.

"Watch out!" Sky warned, diving to force herself and her partner out of the way. In the process, she inadvertently pinned Twitch to the ground as the arrow narrowly missed them to the point where the avian specialist could feel the wind from the deadly projectile on her lower back as it soared over her. As soon as the coast was clear, Sky breathed a sigh of relief. "Whew, what a close couple of calls those were…" she murmured as she lifted herself up to catch sight of a thoroughly incensed glare from the bespectacled blonde she'd been straddling herself over. "Sorry."

"Oh, I am so beyond done with you!" Twitch screamed, forcefully shoving her hands into Sky's chest with all her might to force her off.

"Ouch!" Sky yelped in pain, falling backward. She quickly wrapped an arm around her upper torso and picked herself up, grimacing in residual discomfort as she glared back at Twitch, who'd also brought herself to a stand. "What the heck is your problem!? I just helped you out, and that's how you thank me!?"

"I don't need your help! I don't need you touching me, I don't need you getting frisky, I don't need you smothering me, I definitely don't need you trying to order me around, and most of all, I don't need you! Just get away from me and stay away!"

"Ugh, I keep telling you that I have NO interest in you whatsoever! Get it through your thick skull and get over yourself! And it isn't like I asked for you to come along! You had the choice to keep your nose in your own business instead of sticking it in mine!" Sky argued back as the two very aggressively approached one another. "If anything, it's Tay and I that don't need YOU here!"

"And just who are you trying to convince of that? Me or yourself? Because I definitely pulled my weight and helped the both of you out of a few very tight spots! Also, you don't speak for him, so leave him out of it!" Twitch yelled, getting in Sky's face to directly challenge her. "Actually, no, don't leave him out! Because, like I've already said, you only brought him here because you're trying to put the moves on him when you think you've got a leg up on me! And sister, you picked the right place and time to have your devious scheme foiled!"

"Oh, and here we go again! You sound like a broken record! On and on and on with your brain-dead conspiracy theories! For goodness sake, I am not trying to manipulate anyone into a relationship!"

"You're so full of it, a dog could smell you from ten miles away!" the Ammonan affiliate accused, jabbing a finger into Sky's shoulder as they stood, nose to nose, basically trying to set each other on fire with their mutual angry stares. Oh, if looks could kill. "It's so obvious by now that you haven't gotten over Joe, so you're just playing up your little act to trick Tayshan into thinking you're worth his time! And to think you'd try and keep him to yourself right after he apparently had a falling out with your so-called best friend! Even I wouldn't be that conniving if Shantae was MY friend! Do yourself a favor and go get a teddy bear, because you clearly need someone to hold that you can pretend actually likes you!"

"Don't touch me!" Sky demanded, her temper far beyond its breaking point as she instinctively shoved Twitch away from her. "I'm done being subjected to your annoying accusations; do you understand!? I'm sick of having you hang my ex over my head, I'm tired of you telling me I'm a bad friend when you have no idea who I am, and I'm fed up with you pretending like you're better than me when all you've done is lie to, manipulate, and outright kidnap the same person you accuse me of trying to steal from Shantae! And you know what, Twitch? At the end of the day, there's no doubt in my mind that I'm a far better person in general than you'll ever be! That's probably why I've at least dated in the past while you've only ever been seen desperately clinging to people who can tolerate you for being a spoiled, selfish, snobby little brat! It almost makes me feel bad for Ammo Baron and Vinegar!"

"Oh, that's it! It's on now, you two-faced harpy! You can say whatever you want about me, but all you're doing is making yourself sound like the backstabbing, homewrecking traitor you know you are! And don't you ever let my crewmates' names slip from your squawking beak!" Twitch warned with fire in her eyes as she lunged forward and grabbed Sky's headdress with both hands. Before the bird tamer could stop her, Twitch ripped the hood and scarf from her with a swift, vicious tug, revealing Sky's long, straight blonde hair as she snatched the fabrics away entirely.

"My headdress!" she yelled out as Twitch immediately ran toward a nearby red oval-shaped space and wasted not a single millisecond to slam the scarf and hood onto it. "Twitch, don't you da-!" Sky was about to warn before a sudden *FWOOSH* of fire ignited the bird tamer's trademark clothing, roasting it to cinders before she could even blink. Sky watched in shock and horror as her favorite part of her usual ensemble went up in a cloud of smoke and torn, charred cloth. At that, the appalled young woman froze for a moment as her anger grew so exponentially, that it was like an ant growing to the size of two planet Jupiters in the span of five seconds.

"That's what you get! Now, what?" Twitch goaded, doing nothing to ease her ally-turned-adversary's pain. In that moment, something in the bird trainer snapped as she focused her enraged glare on the woman responsible for destroying one of her prized possessions. "I told you not to mess with-!"

"GRRRAAAH! I HATE YOU!" Sky roared with uncharacteristic rage, lunging at Twitch to begin one of the worst, most violent fistfights we'd witnessed thus far. The very instant the two girls tangled with one another, they began rolling all over the trap board, bouncing and tumbling haphazardly across it and triggering effects left and right. Meanwhile, the two were clawing, scratching, pulling, punching, grabbing, and slapping away at each other, growling like rabid lions as they did so.

"Agh! Get off me, you crazy buzzard-lover! Ow!" Twitch complained and screamed as she kicked and slapped away at her opponent. "I did you a favor snatching those hideous rags off your head! Now you can-! Ack! Now you can give that tiny ostrich brain of yours some air!"

"Letting you come here was the worst-! Oof! The worst move I ever made in my entire life!" Sky yelled back as the girls continued to roll around the board, somehow narrowly avoiding fire blasts, boulders, arrows, electric shocks, and pretty much everything else while they committed to cartoonishly trying to rip each other apart. One could even see a fight cloud surrounding them as limbs went flailing and flying in all directions. "I honestly don't know how anyone-! Ow! tolerates you, you obnoxious little-! OUCH! Let go of my hair!"

"You pulled mine first!" Twitch accused, throwing another couple of wild slaps and kicks at Sky while the infuriated bird tamer clawed and scratched at her. "Ow! You need a reality check, you chirping hag! Other than the-! Wah! Other than that ugly scarf, you're just mad because I exposed you as the lying, cheating fraud you are in front of-!"

"Shut up!" Sky interrupted as the intensity of their sudden death battle for the ages intensified. "None of that is true! The only person you've exposed here is yourself, you-! Ahagh! You're a bitter, jealous, obsessive, spoiled little woman-child who needs a serious spanking!"

"Takes one to know one, huh, hypocrite!? Gaah!"

"Comments like that prove my-! Oogh! My point! Arrgh!" And with that, the supposed teammates began trying to flat-out kill each other as their brawl intensified to the point where Wrench, afraid for his owner's safety (which was, in all honesty, in ALL sorts of jeopardy right at this point), tried to intervene by calling out to Sky as he stayed airborne to avoid being struck by any wayward projectile. When that proved futile, Wrench tried to get closer and possibly yank Sky from Twitch's grasp as the girls grunted, wrestled, and attempted to strangle each other. Of course, Wrench couldn't get close enough. The girls' vicious scuffle made it all but impossible, as they'd been triggering too many traps with too high a frequency for him to safely approach. Of course, if these two kept this up for too long, they'd both have wound up meeting a very untimely end before they ever entertained the idea of reconciling their differences. With that in mind, Wrench hurriedly turned his attention ahead to Tayshan, who'd appeared to be having the time of his life navigating the remainder of the puzzle maze. It seemed he hadn't even noticed the girls fighting. Why? Well, why don't we find out?

"Wuaawhoa!" Tay bellowed, nearly losing his footing as a couple of voluminous, crumbly *BOOMs* of boulders smashing into the stony floor of the puzzle sent quakes rocking through the tower. In the same vein, Tay had also been trying his hardest to avoid stepping onto any additional hazard-laden spaces, though it became much harder when there were arrows darting toward him from all directions despite him not having stepped on any blue spaces. "What the heck is goin' on!? Why is everything suddenly goin' so crazy!?" he demanded to know as he leapt from a green space to a yellow one toward his left. He immediately jumped toward a red one just ahead, wanting to avoid being electrocuted again. At that moment, another *BOOM* of a boulder dropping to the floor from behind him caused him to lose his balance as he flung forward, flopping onto a multi-colored space instead of the intended red one he'd aimed for. "Darn it, I can't keep my-!" he was about to complain before yet another *SLAM* of yet another boulder behind his position cut him off. Wasting no more time, he climbed to his feet as fast as he could, only to be greeted with three arrows coming at him from three different directions. As it turned out, the multicolored, diamond-shaped spot he'd landed on had flashed blue. Although, Tay couldn't figure out why multiple arrows were aimed at him.

"Whahaagh!" he shouted in understandable terror as dodged to the side to avoid an arrow beaming toward his shoulder. In that moment, he noticed yet another one coming from his side, causing him to crouch under it to avoid it. However, the third arrow, which would've lined up with his chest had he remained at a full stand, was now aimed directly at his head. "Shoot!" he shouted in a panic, though he was confident he'd have enough time to dodge it. Buuuut, as you might expect, yet another deafening, rocky *WHAM* of another boulder hitting the floor threw him off as it startled him. "Whoa! Another o-?" he was about to question before he briefly remembered the danger he was in. He focused his attention on the arrow just as it was maybe a foot from his face. "Oh, sh-!" he barely got the chance to utter as he leaned his head hard to the side. Unfortunately, with a lightning-quick *Schwick* of the dense, razor-sharp metal of the arrow's tip against his cheek, Tay had been scarred yet again. "Araagh!" he grimaced, clutching his hotly stinging check with both hands to cover the giant gash on it as he sucked in agonized breaths through his teeth. "Alright, I've had enough! We gotta get up out o' here pronto…!" And with that declaration, Tayshan summoned the Falcon Call once more and hopped onto the falcons just as another boulder smashed through the ground nearby, revealing what could've been yet another one-way ticket to certain death if he wasn't careful.

"Thank goodness y'all came when y'all did," the exhausted soldier expressed his gratitude. Taking note that he'd finally reached the end of the obstacle course by way of him coming within reach of the unexplored pink-highlighted squares up ahead, he'd breathed a sigh of relief. Although, he could still hear traps going off left, right, up, down, and all around, despite him not even touching the board at this point. Curious, he turned around and was immediately tipped off to why things had gone so wrong, so suddenly. In the distance, he caught the inconceivable and unfathomably irritating sight of his teammates angrily screaming and tangling with each other as they rolled and tumbled all over the floor. Just as he'd reached the end and leapt off the falcons to land on a pink circle at the end, he also saw Wrench approaching quickly, cawing and squawking with what the soldier could only decipher as intense concern as the bird flapped its wings. He barely noticed the rush of warmth in his body as he flashed pink for a hot second, accompanied by a great deal of his pain and fatigue disappearing in an instant.

Meanwhile, Wrench wasted no time communicating his concern through his caws and chirps once he reached Tayshan, though he needed to say little before the soldier got the picture.

"So they got into yet ANOTHER argument over somethin' they didn't even need t' be talkin' about, an' then it devolved int' this hot mess… That about right?" Tay guessed, growing rapidly more irritated by the second as he sought confirmation from the prismatic parrot/eagle/finch… bird.

Wrench nodded and cawed some more, indeed confirming Tayshan's theory.

"Okay… Whelp, I think we've had more than our fill o' this nonsense…!" Tay sighed in a mix of unmitigated anger and disappointment as he watched the girls miraculously tumble and battle their way toward him (and by extension, the correct end of the obstacle maze) while continuing to narrowly avoid being taken out by fire, electricity, arrows, boulders, and gigantic pitfalls alike. Fearing that their luck would run out before they got to him, however, Tayshan took matters into his own hands… starting with taking a deep breath, holding it in while cupping his hands around his mouth, and, with a burst of energy one could've sworn was magic-fueled… **"HEEEEY! WHAT ARE Y'ALL DOIN'!?"** …shouting at such an ear-splitting volume that it almost seemed convenient that one of the stained-glass windows shattered with a frightening *CRASH* at the moment his boisterous, outraged call left his vocal cords. Nevertheless, Tay threw caution to the wind as he rushed back into the maze without regard for the traps he'd just gotten done surviving. Hearing his blood-curdling yell, Sky and Twitch stopped their fight dead in its tracks, still tangled with one another as they gazed over to the blur of olive and cocoa dashing toward them at the speed of a diving hawk.

"Uh-oh…" Sky murmured, her heart sinking once she and Twitch realized the context of the situation. They were in the middle of the trap maze, surrounded by holes in the ground that ostensibly spewed air hot enough to melt icebergs in a matter of seconds, and their teammate was rushing toward them with a glare ominous enough to scare a herd of wild, rampaging elephants into submission. If it wasn't the white in the soldier's eyes being replaced with splotches of red that tipped them off to his anger at them, it would probably have been the veins protruding from his forehead and neck. That, or the faint glow of magic surrounding him as he angrily approached. Suffice to say, this situation officially brought out the worst in everyone involved…

 ** _One much-needed fight break-up-and-rescue later…_**

"What the heck is WRONG with you two!?" the soldier shouted at both girls as they stood, breathless, disheveled, and somewhat ashamed. This, coming after he marched onto the maze and dragged both of them to the end point of the trap-laden floor puzzle. "All the points in time for y'all t' come t' blows over whatever foolish garbage y'all wasted all this time arguin' about, an' y'all chose now!? Have y'all lost ya minds!?"

"Sorry…" Twitch apologized, lowering her head in shame.

"No, ain't no simple 'sorry' gonna smooth this over or explain what the problem is that y'all can't get it together! We all almost died over this pointless fight y'all got into! Every floor in this tower so far, an' all you've done is squabble, an' argue, an' scream at each other like one o' y'all slapped the other's mother! It has completely outweighed everything we've done together, an' it needs t' stop! Now! What are you doin'!?"

"Jeez, Tay, we're sorry, alright?" Sky chimed in, surprised as she was disheartened by the anger he displayed. "We got carried away with our differences, and we let them overwhelm us. We won't let it happen again."

"Okay, but how am I supposed t' believe that when y'all kept doin' it after the last couple times we had this talk?" he asked, taking the bird tamer aback as he deflected her explanation. "No disrespect, but it's like tellin' two stubborn kids t' clean up their toys before bed at this point."

"Yeah, well if you have such an issue with it, then maybe next time, you'll hold a stronger stance about us letting objectionable stowaways tag along," she argued back, none too appreciative of his tone.

"Hey!" Twitch objected, feeling that 'objectionable stowaway' did not exactly describe her role.

"She's only here because of you. If it were literally anyone else I'd come here with, she wouldn't have even gotten the idea to join in. So don't tell me how I should learn to get along with someone that clearly has no interest in doing the same, Tayshan. I've learned my lesson, but you still need to figure out how to put your foot down."

"Oh, so it's my fault Twitch came along? Sure, fine. Let's run with that," he began his rebuttal. "I already said before that I personally didn't mind her joinin' us, but that I let you make the final decision. I didn't know you two would carry your beef this far an' let it get this bad, though. I figured y'all would smooth things out just enough for us t' behave like a cohesive squad, but I guess I was wrong. Either way, answer me this, Sky: Why wouldn't you approve of her comin' along on a trip like this?"

"Because she's bad news, obviously. You've seen first-hand what sort of trouble she and her crew can cause. If I even need to bring it up, Tay, then one of the reasons you're so fond of her is because you-!"

"Gonna cut you off right there, birdie, and let you know that you can keep your assumptions to yourself," Twitch interjected. "For your information, I didn't just come along because of Tay-Tay. I thought I'd be of some help to you guys after our last trip the other day. Evidently, that proved true. Just because you don't like me doesn't mean you get to say I'm not a good teammate."

"Good teammate? What kind of 'good teammate' goads, teases, and picks on another member until they're literally at each other's throats? I've tried over and over and over again to be kind and considerate to you, yet you've spat in my face in return every time. That's what you've been doing since we started! Not to mention, you've disobeyed pretty much every command you were given that wasn't from Tayshan; and even then, you barely listened to him! Yet, you wonder why I was so adamant about not bringing you along in the first place."

"Well, it could've just been water under the bridge at the start had you not been so stubborn about not letting me join simply because you want to control everything. Other than your conniving, boyfriend-stealing charade that I won't tolerate, you bark orders and try to take the lead, but you have no actual idea what you're doing. I can't count how many times we got messed up because you tried to do things your way without even considering other options or suggestions from your team."

"You mean like you've also been doing since we started, if you're gonna accuse me of that?" Sky countered, seeing a glaring flaw in Twitch's logic while also acknowledging her stance.

"Yeah, except I had plans of my own that didn't necessarily require you, and I always made sure you knew what my plan was either way. I also never tried to bark orders at anyone or take charge when it wasn't necessary, unlike you. Like I'm trying to say, you're a real pain in the butt to work with," she admitted, finding no shame in taking the criticism as she drummed up her own rebuttal. "Presuming you're the leader of this group, all things considered, you're awful at actually working with your squad. Your planning is subpar, your communication is bad, and your cooperation is worse. It's to the point where our biggest successes were attributed to last-second plans thought up by someone else, as well as blind luck. Oh, and as if it needs to be said, I like and respect Tayshan far more than you; and I mean FAR more. Even if I didn't like that some of the plans we made involved me working with you, I could at least swallow my pride enough to listen to him, because he thinks a lot more pragmatically than you do."

"You say I'm a bad leader, when you're a bad teammate? Is that what you want me to take away from that statement?"

"No. Just that you're a bad leader. I'm an excellent teammate when the leadership is there. A poor leader blames her subordinates for her failures, by the way. Just sayin'."

"Why, you-!"

"Alright, y'all both have good points," Tay interjected to prevent them from escalating all over again, shocking the both of them.

"How?" both young ladies asked, mildly appalled that he would agree with both of them.

"Sky, you have a point in that Twitch hasn't shown you much respect since she joined, an' the most important part of becomin' a member of any squad is understandin' who your leader is an' how you plan t' work together, rather than tryin' t' 'lone wolf' it in certain situations just because you got a point t' prove about why you don't need a leader if you don't like the one you got."

"Ha! Exactly!" Sky triumphantly declared, much to Twitch's chagrin.

"However, Twitch, you also have a point in that the team leader has t' rally her troops an' understand them to the point where they can all sync up an' work like a functional unit. It also makes sense that the leader needs t' take the reins an' drive the team forward; otherwise, the whole operation will be swallowed up in chaos, much like the majority o' this adventure," he reasoned.

"Boom! Check and mate!" Twitch triumphantly declared, much to Sky's chagrin.

"Of course, that doesn't even begin t' address the real problem between you two," he cut in again. "That problem bein' the personal beef y'all have with each other. I know some o' the reason, but what exactly is it all about that y'all can't at least be civil to each other? It can't be just because you're both gunnin' for the same guy, so to speak…" he added, suddenly and oddly uncomfortable with the mention of one of the biggest reasons behind the feud between Sky and Twitch. "Why don't you two like each other?"

"Well that's a no-brainer," Twitch began. "I don't respect girls who try to steal guys that don't belong to them, nor do I like the idea of hanging around someone who routinely finds herself on the business end of the Ammonian arsenal for one reason or another."

"Of course, it all boils down to you being upset about something completely irrelevant to our current situation," Sky remarked. "Your little military club always finds a reason for Shantae and me to step in and stop you from running amok and terrorizing every place you set foot into, first of all. You can't fault me for that. If you and your crew stopped trying to scheme and conspire to conquer the land, I'm almost positive a lot of my problems with you would disappear. Also, you're trying to lay claim to a man without even considering his feelings on the subject in general, much less how he feels about you. You force yourself on him like it's cute, when it's actually really annoying, creepy, and borderline-obsessive."

"I could say the same about you!" Twitch protested, finding issue with the statement Sky made. "You brought him up here with the intent to get him alone, so you could have him to yourself unhindered! But you wanna call ME 'borderline-obsessive'? Get real! And I'm not forcing myself on him! Sounds to me like you're still salty over what happened back in the lava pit!"

"No, that's not true! We came together because we needed to get more Risky Boots-related work done and we hadn't seen this place before! You're being paranoid. Besides, you think a couple of sweet gestures, an inappropriate comment or two, and an accidental kiss are enough to just win him over?"

"Of course not! If it was that easy, then trust me, you and I wouldn't even be having this conversation. You sound awfully concerned about what I've done since we teamed up, by the way. Yet, I'M supposed to be the one who's paranoid? What a load!"

"Hello!?" Sky shouted at Twitch, disgusted with her lack of consideration. "This is exactly what I mean! You have no sense of consideration for any of the brash, impulsive stunts you pulled since we've been here; even after Tay worked up the nerve to tell you he had to make out with Shantae to save her life just the other day! Do you have any idea how much worse you're making things!?" At that, the three froze, an uncomfortable silence washing over them, save for the gusts of wind blowing through the shattered opening in the wall that used to house a stained-glass window.

"…I really wish you hadn't worded it like that," Tayshan commented, noticeably unsettled by Sky's statement.

"Seriously, birdbrain, way to rip open a fresh wound," Twitch agreed.

"Sorry… But there's no skirting around it. That situation happened as it did without question," she apologetically stated, though she held her stance. "My point is that it's… It's… insensitive… to badger him with your feelings when that event is so fresh…" she trailed off and looked away, feeling a guilty pang in her heart that she knew was an indicative reminder of a certain conversation she'd had with a certain someone the night previous.

"Weird that you're suddenly so hesitant to make such a statement," Twitch observantly called out as she crossed her arms, causing the bothered bird trainer to look back at her. "Humph. Sounds to me like someone should learn to follow her own advice before she tries to pass it onto someone else."

"You say that like you're on the moral high ground," Sky fervently shot back, doing nothing to deny Twitch's claim as her voice wavered with her tightly contained frustration. "After everything you did today, you think you're any more justified than me? Even for what my feelings are, I know how to respect boundaries when they're set. You've been nothing but intrusive, disrespectful, and outright crude to the point where you stole a kiss of your own out of jealousy and spite."

"I did not!" Twitch shouted, her cheeks turning pink as she reeled back. "That was a complete accident! I know what you're implying, and I couldn't be more appalled that you'd think I would stoop that low. And based on what you just said in relation to everything else going on, it sounds to me like you 'tried your hand' at some point and got shot down," she accused, causing Sky to flinch before they both went silent for a moment, staring intently at one another. "Uh-huh. I knew it," Twitch goaded with a smirk. "You're just the lonely, shallow, pathetic hypocrite I pegged you to be."

"I'm no hypocrite," the bird tamer rebuffed, becoming steadily more unsettled as the barely civil discussion continued. After a moment, Sky gulped and sighed before speaking her piece. "I won't even acknowledge anything else you called me. Yeah, I did air everything out. And yeah, I… I did let him know how I felt. Only, I actually gave him a chance to share his thoughts rather than force myself on him like you've been doing. And even after what we talked about, he and I can still consider each other dependable friends. Like I said earlier, I at least know how to respect boundaries when they're set. I know how to understand someone else's situation as it unfolds. And I know that, even with the mistake I made in confessing too soon, we can still work together without anyone feeling awkward about it; which is more than I could say about you, Twitch."

"And there you go, taking the preachy, goody-goody, politician-level rationalizing approach to you flat-out admitting you tried to take advantage of someone in a time of need," the bespectacled young woman bitterly shot back.

"I did not try to take advantage of him!" Sky shouted, mortified by the hostile accusation.

"You disgust me. Clearly, I'm a far better person than you, no matter how much you try to make it sound like the opposite. Even on my worst day, I'd never do something so conniving and selfish."

"This, coming from someone who recently kidnapped and coerced someone to work with her until he saw things her way," the disquieted young woman replied. "You have no idea how bad you make yourself look, passing on such vicious judgments when you've done so much worse than I have. Despicable…! You're such a sneaky little-!"

"Enough," Tay cut in once more, having heard more than his fair share of the girls' debate about who was worse than the other. "This ain't makin' anything easier, an' we clearly ain't gonna resolve this now."

"We technically could if you would… well… y'know, pick which one of us you're interested in," Twitch innocently suggested. "Me, this two-faced, backstabbing harpy, or that clumsy, opportunistic genie girl? Which one of us will it be?"

"Easy as that might sound comin' from you, it ain't easy for me after what's been goin' on with all y'all. Just hearin' this discussion between you two makes it even harder… Puttin' pressure on me like that makes me feel like I'm obligated t' deliver myself t' somebody when I've had just about no time t' really think about any o' what's been happenin' since I met y'all. Let's not forget it's only been a week an' some change since I've been here."

"Hmm… Good point," Sky murmured, more to herself than the others as she began to contemplate the nature of the love triangle (or possibly square) as it developed.

"Besides, Shantae said she uh… She said she…"

"She said what?" Twitch asked, immediately curious as Tay attempted to find the correct words to his statement.

"That… sh-she wasn't interested…" he admitted with a hint of hesitation, though it did nothing to discourage the two ladies in front of him from reacting with mild surprise.

"How do you know that? What, did you ask her out or something?" she questioned, anxious to hear his answer.

"No, she just up an' said it out o' nowhere without me askin' anything earlier this week… The day before that 'thing' happened, actually," he further divulged, causing Twitch's anticipation to go into a flux. "I can't give a reason why she said it, because I don't know for myself what the reason was, but she made her stance clear. I can only presume that the other day changed nothin' about it. Other than that, I don't really think now's a good time for me t' da-!" he almost concluded.

"Oh! Alrighty, that makes things much simpler to figure out!" she declared, breathing a sigh of relief as she presumed that there wasn't nearly as much competition as she'd initially perceived.

"...How?"

"Let's presume she'll get over that kissing thing and put it behind her, if what you're saying about her not liking you that way is true. Trust me, she's a big girl. She'll forget all about it. That, or understand that there was nothing romantic about it at all and drop it like a stack of yesterday's newspapers. Then, disregard birdbrain here because she's just trying to use you as a crutch to get over her last boyfriend, and the decision should be all but clear, Tay-Tay!" she excitedly concluded, ignoring all the other intricate details of the perplexing quagmire Tay found himself in. "I'm obviously the only one you should have eyes for, if this is the case! I'm single, you're single, we have a bunch in common, we're definitely not dealing with any lingering feelings for any estranged exes, and there's no doubt there's mutual attraction between us; even through all the distractions you've had to deal with. Plus, even if our first kiss was completely accidental, it wasn't at all forced like yours with Hairball was!"

"Excuse me!? Don't you write my feelings off as fake like that! It has nothing to do with Joe! At all!" Sky vehemently protested. "And how dare you just throw all those situations in a bag and toss them aside like they were just minor inconveniences for you? Not to mention you're doing exactly what I said not to do, which is forcing yourself on him when he's got so much else to worry about!"

"Alright, we're goin' way off-topic here," Tay attempted to redirect. "I get it now that whatever y'all have goin' on in regards t' me, ain't gonna be resolved in a single conversation… if ever. The point o' focus, however, should be why you two don't wanna work together right now."

"If we're going back to the core question that started this conversation, then it's because it's a chore babysitting an unwanted, insubordinate teammate," Sky matter-of-factly stated.

"Not as much of a chore as it is having to be nagged to death by an incompetent leader," Twitch also matter-of-factly stated as the two ladies crossed their arms and glared at each other.

"Sharp-tongued statements like that prove my point."

"And smart-alecky remarks like THAT, prove mine."

"You can dish it out, but can't take it? Then here's a tip: Stop hurling insults at people! That way, no one has to get their feelings hurt, and everyone can work a little harder on getting along! Simple as that!"

"I would, if a certain someone learned how to treat other people with a shred of decency and consideration! It doesn't take an engineer to understand basic communication, and I'm not one of your birds! You can't control me by barking—or, rather, squawking, cawing, and chirping orders at me!"

"No one's asking you to be a bird! If anything, I'd ask you to be a little less hardheaded and listen for once!"

"Yeah, well I'd ask YOU to stop being such a loudmouthed dunce first!"

"YOU'RE a dunce!"

"No, you are!"

"No, you!"

"You!"

"You!"

"You!"

"Grrrrr…!" both girls concluded their argument as they continued scowling at each other while Tay watched.

"…Ah, man…" the serviceman sighed in defeat. "At this point, I'mma just write this off as a clash o' personalities an' call it a day. Let's just get the rest o' this over with," he tiredly suggested, turning toward the door at the end to see that it had opened wide. "We're almost finished anyway."

"Couldn't agree more, hon," Sky and Twitch stated at the exact same time, mutually infuriating one another as they continued trying to kill each other with angry stares. "Don't call him that! He's not your boyfriend! He's not yours either! Stop copying me! No, you're copying me! You're so immature! Stop it! Grrrr!" they both shouted at each other simultaneously, ironically finding the one thing they agree on in the process; disagreeing with each other over agreeing with a third party. Oh, yeah, because conflicts of this caliber are ALWAYS a hoot to figure out.

"You girls are a trip an' a half, lemme tell ya," Tay remarked with a flabbergasted shake of his head, unable to piece together how they'd managed to communicate each other's thoughts aloud with perfect synchronization despite the fact that they hated each other. "It's astoundin' how much y'all seem t' enjoy arguin' with each other. We're movin' on, nonetheless. Come along once you're done fightin'," he added, running along one of two stairways adjacent to and leading past the dilapidated remains of what seemed to be a giant statue of a woman in dancer clothes, striking a graceful pose. Sky and Twitch followed, though they did not say anything else as they took off after the soldier, quickly catching up with him.

At this point, our heroes prepared to face their next challenge, be it another spike pit, lava pool, monster-infested winding stairwell, or another booby-trapped floor maze. This time, however, they came across a long, narrow corridor that yielded nothing but a faint, glimmering light at the end of it. Ready to wrap things up, no one hesitated to traverse the pathway. As soon as the trio stepped through the doorway, the gigantic, decorative gothic double doors snapped shut with a startling *SLAM* that scared the living daylights out of everyone.

"Wah!" Twitch yelped, quickly grabbing hold of the first person she could get her hands on. The person in question did the same.

"Jeez, this place just keeps you alert at every turn…" Tay commented, trying to examine the door, though he only found out that he couldn't see his hands in front of his face.

"You can say that again," Sky agreed. "Though, maybe you can loosen your grip a little, Tay? You're… uh, you're squeezing my chest… tightly, at that."

"What are you talkin' about?" he questioned in mild surprise as he walked toward the glimmering golden light at the end of the tunnel. "I'm not holdin' anybody, an' from the sound of it, I'm not even close enough t' touch you with a full-stretched hand," he further revealed, sending a wave of panic through both Sky and Twitch as they were tipped off by the comment he made.

"Wh-what? Then who-?"

"Ew, no wonder you felt all soft and squishy! Ugh, gross! Get off me!" the flustered glasses-adorned blonde exclaimed as she shoved Sky away and rubbed her hands on her pants in a feeble attempt at cleaning them off. "You got in my way, bird girl!"

"You latched onto me, thinking I was Tayshan? Jeez, you're so weird!" Sky also complained, rubbing the feeling of Twitch's touch off her body. "Are you seriously that deprived of attention that you need someone coddling you every time you get a little spooked!?"

"Shut up! You're such a hypocrite! You did the exact same thing!" Twitch accused right back. "All rubbing and feeling up on me like some-!"

"I did not! Your imagination is so filthy, I swear I've seen cleaner pig pens!"

"Aw, for the love of all that is good, will you two just STOP already!?" Tay yelled at them both. "You're drivin' me up a wall!"

"She started it!" the two of them accused each other simultaneously. "No, you did!" they accused again. "No, you!"

"Regardless, it ends NOW," Tay commanded with a rush of authoritarian vigor that alarmed both Sky and Twitch. "If it's such a problem that you two can't communicate or work with each other, then I'LL be the one takin' the lead from here on. An' if I hear one more snippy comment out of either o' you, then so help me, I will take the very strings off my boots an' tie your ankles together, so y'all don't got a choice BUT t' cooperate. Do you copy, comrades?"

"Yes, sir…" Sky agreed, taking the loss of her position as team leader with a sizable grain of salt.

"Yes, dad," Twitch simultaneously agreed, her inflection just as despondent as her teammates, though this did not go unnoticed as the trio continued to traverse toward the end of the tunnel.

"Twitch!" Tay called out, unappreciative of the perceived sarcasm. "Once again: Do you copy!?"

"Yes, daddy!" she responded with a more upbeat, yet still-sarcastic tone, though the opaque corridor went deathly silent the very second she uttered her crude remark. At that moment, though no one could actually see anything but the light at the end of the tunnel, the awkward intensity completely enveloped the atmosphere like a tidal wave through a… uh, well, a tunnel (so creative, I know) as everyone was struck speechless. I was so shocked that I couldn't even come up with a decent simile for it. So it isn't my fault! "…Sorry…" Twitch attempted to apologize to break the silence, though it was far too late.

"…You know what?" Tay began with a sigh through his calm, yet-flustered tone as he chuckled a bit. "I didn't think I had t' say it, but yo; you keep this up, an' I'll GIVE you a reason to call me 'daddy,'" he warned with as menacing a tone as he could manage, taking no nonsense as he attempted to bring a sense of order and organization to the chaos that was his team.

"Ooh, Tayshan~!" Twitch horribly misinterpreted with an elated giggle, reading his irritation-fueled response as… not so irritation-fueled. So, in layman's terms, our resident-alien soldier, in a single comment, spectacularly failed to rally his team together. "You're so naughty~! What are you gonna do to me for being such a bad little girl~?"

"Eh?" Tay remarked, caught by surprise at Twitch's unusual reaction.

"Tayshan!" Sky called after Twitch, though her tone was much more serious and riddled with disappointment and anger. "Are you kidding me!?"

"What? I didn't say anything but-! Wait…" he was about to ask, though he realized exactly what he was being yelled at about when he had roughly 0.2 seconds to think about it. "Wait, no! No, no, no, no, no! Shoot, she done got me again! That ain't what I meant at all!"

"I would hope you didn't, mister!" Sky yelled, marching forward through the dark and grasping at the young man as she angrily drew near him. Managing to snag his wrist into her hand, she continued to march, yanking him forward with her as they went along. "You were so close to actually bringing her into line, too! Way to set things even farther back with such a… such an AWFUL remark! Now she's gonna be drooling like a hungry lion with the imagination of a creepy old man while she continues to badger me like the gremlin she is! Shame on you!"

"Ow! Sky, I'm sorry! I swear I meant that in the most authoritarian way possible!" he complained as he let Sky pull him toward the end of the tunnel like a child whose mother was dragging him out of a grocery store for misbehaving. "Authoritarian!" he continued to whine as he pleaded his innocence.

"Hey! Don't try and ditch me in this spooky tunnel!" Twitch called after them, putting some pep in her step as her de facto team leader dragged their teammate, in the most authoritarian way possible, into the next line of danger.

 ** _A short, hurried walk down a dark, creepy corridor later…_**

While their trip up to this point had been long, arduous, and filled past the brim with danger, infighting, near-death experiences, and rampant disagreements, our heroes' trip through the dark, spooky tunnel was… basically a cakewalk. No monsters popping up out of nowhere, no perilous death traps, and no implausible environmental hazards to speak of. If anything, they found just the opposite at the end of the tunnel. Once they entered what appeared to be the final room in this sky-high dungeon labyrinth of a shrine, they were greeted with a most captivating, relieving, and breathtaking sight as they all gawked in wonder around the area.

"Wow… This is incredible…!" Sky murmured as her eyes were immediately drawn to the awe-inspiring mural decorating the rounded ceiling above that also continued onto the walls surrounding them. The mural seemed to depict a group of young, long-haired, curvy, jewelry and dancing costume-adorned women with various hair colors striking various belly dance poses with a backdrop of a clear, starry night sky. The neon colors shined and reflected off the platinum-gold pillars lined up evenly along the perimeter. It… was probably completely incidental that the pillars were indeed shaped like sheared spools.

"Now, THIS is a definite tour spot… minus all the death traps we had to survive to get up here," Twitch added, her attention drawn to the gleaming, glittering marble floor. The floor seemed to depict a very vague shape of a young, purple-haired, red-and-gold clad woman with an extensively long ponytail and glowing hands facing off alone against a host of monsters and other sinister creatures… Sound familiar? I'm asking because it doesn't sound at all like anything I've ever heard of.

"How is it that the rest o' the inside o' this tower was fallin' apart, but this one room stayed intact…?" Tay asked as he focused on the massive stained-glass windows, all seeming to depict the same image of the sun shining through a lightly cloudy sky. The most interesting piece of it, however, was that the angle of the sunlight as it beamed through some of the windows to illuminate the shrine with a bright, warm golden hue. Tay's attention was also drawn toward the statue of what appeared to be a genie happily belly dancing away atop a sheared spool-shaped platform located at the far end of the shrine.

"And look at all these gems just laying around!" Twitch announced, her eye drawn to the gleam of baby blue hitting her peripheral vision. When she looked over to it, she'd indeed spotted humongous piles of gems of every color they usually came in, with all sorts of shapes and sizes, located behind the statue with treasure chests sitting amongst them. "Those are definitely ours for the taking! AND there's those two green crates over there, too!"

"Green crates…?" Tay wondered, looking in the same direction Twitch was headed, only to be astonished to see that not one, but two very familiar-looking Weapons Crates were lined up amongst the unattended riches that appeared to be up for grabs. "How…?" he almost asked, hurrying up behind his eager comrade to get a closer look.

"You guys, wait!" Sky objected, chasing after them to stop them. "We can't just up and take any of the treasures laying around here! We don't know if this was a place of worship, a place to honor the dead, or what. It'd be disrespectful to touch it, so let's be mindful and leave it all where it is."

"You can do that, but I'm taking more of it since you're objecting," Twitch dismissively replied as she drew nearer to the treasure piles.

"Twitch, she as a point," Tay agreed with Sky, halting his position despide his curiosity. "We don't really know the deal about this place, so let's at least hold on a minute an' investigate."

"Aw, don't let that spoilsport bird cager get into your head, Tay-Tay," Twitch further objected. "How often do we survive a barrage of death traps, fight off teeming hordes of monsters, and climb a mountain of a tower to run smack into a room loaded with riches beyond our wildest dreams? We didn't come up here for nothing, so why wouldn't we take the opportunity to get some proper restitution?"

"Because sticky fingers lead to stickier situations," answered a feminine voice belonging to neither Sky nor Twitch. The voice startled all three travelers nearly stiff as they turned toward the center of the shrine to see a moderately-tall, curvaceous, mocha-skinned woman with long, silky, beautiful hair of a deep violet that seemed to flow like a gentle breeze continually blew through it.

"Who… are you?" Sky asked, mystified by the appearance of the woman, who'd been wearing a golden sleeveless, midriff-baring sari with an equally shiny crimson pallu draped over her shoulder. Her arms were adorned with a series of golden ring bracelets that seemed to gleam like the treasures laying unclaimed at the end of the shrine.

"And how did you get in here without us noticing?" Twitch also asked, locking her eyes with the emerald-green irises of the woman in question.

"How I got here is not important, young one," the woman answered, her tone gentle and soothing. "The real question is how YOU survived everything this tower had to throw at you."

"Hold up…" Tay murmured, sizing the woman up and down, seeming to be picking up on something odd about her. As he scrutinized her appearance with his gaze, he took special note of her hair color… her eye color… her style of dress… and even the sound of her voice. This did not go unnoticed, as the woman in question turned her attention to him and blushed with a tinge of discomfort.

"Er… M-may I help you, young man? You seem… quite taken by my appearance," she commented. "Flattering as your attention may be, I… would appreciate it if you didn't stare at me like that." This comment of course alerted Sky and Twitch, who'd simultaneously glanced at Tay to see that he continued to study the woman intently.

"Yeah, Tayshan, didn't we have a talk at some point about it being inappropriate to stare at girls?" Sky tried to offer a friendly reminder.

"Somethin' about you… Seems awfully familiar…" he revealed as he disregarded Sky's comment, shocking everyone present.

"M-me? Familiar?" she asked, seeming to have no clue what he meant. "Peculiar, because you don't look at all familiar to me."

"Right, but… I… I think I've seen you somewhere before…" he pressed, flashing back to a certain encounter he had with a woman of a moderately-similar appearance back in the Grotto of Judgment. Of course, the lack of a jackal mask didn't help his deduction process, but he felt that he'd been onto something. "Or… I'm not sure…"

"It could simply be that you are a bit fatigued from your efforts to climb to the top of the Sheared Spool Shrine, traveler," the nameless woman politely, yet dismissively suggested, though Tay continued to ponder as lowered his head and averted his gaze. "Um… A-anyhow, I welcome you three to the Sheared Spool Shrine; an ages-old foundation of wisdom, truth, virtue, and good fortune," she further announced.

"Yeah, because nothing screams 'good fortune' like gargoyle hordes, spike pits, molten lava, and booby traps," Twitch indignantly remarked, crossing her arms as she cast a disbelieving look toward the purple-haired maiden standing before her.

"Your derision is understandable," the woman acknowledged. "However, know that during this sanctuary's earlier days, it served as a safe haven for genies large and small who found themselves endangered by the forces of evil. The hazardous paths you three traversed were supposed to be insufferably difficult, if not impossible for any creature with malicious intent to conquer. That said, even without the genie guards that used to provide surveillance of each floor and attack intruders on-sight, no normal humans should've been able to find their way up here. Not in a hundred years, at least."

"Whoa… I knew this place had a captivating story behind it, but that bit of info's incredible to hear!" Sky proclaimed. "I've gotta tell Shantae all about it; she'd be overjoyed to learn about such priceless genie culture!" At that, the woman let out a mirthful chuckle as she displayed a sudden glimmer of excitement that went unnoticed by her guests.

"Indeed, the Sheared Spool Shrine has its colorful roots and storied history," she confirmed. "I'll even go on a whim and inform you that this tower and its surrounding environment used to be grounded and within the boundaries of a city long-since wiped from existence in an event that predated the Pirate Master Conflict," the impromptu history teacher educated, blowing all three of her 'students' away.

"Whoa…!" Sky exhaled in total awe.

"Huh…" Tay murmured, scanning his surroundings as he seemed to be deep in thought about the information being spoon-fed to him and his comrades.

"I'm guessing, in that case, that genies magically lifted this temple into the sky to preserve it while also using it as a protective aerial oasis, then?" Twitch estimated.

"You would be correct, young lady," the woman confirmed, providing further insight into the history of the Sheared Spool Shrine.

"Far out…" she also muttered, taking a moment to quickly glance around the shrine. "Good thing I marked this as my secret chill spot already, because I definitely plan on coming back here to dig a little more into this…"

"I understand that you three didn't come here without reason or to hear me prattle on about facts from the distant past, however," the sari-clad woman commented, bringing the attention of our heroes back to her. "I cannot say you'd find much else other than a few history lessons and a few pocketfuls of gems and jewelry, of course. I apologize if you feel like your trip here was wasted."

"Wasted? Nonsense!" Sky proclaimed. "This shrine is a timeless masterpiece! We'd be crazy not to bask in the countless bits of historical gold we stumbled upon. No pun intended…"

"I appreciate your enthusiasm, miss," the woman gratefully acknowledged the bird tamer's energetic comment. "Nevertheless, in return for your efforts to survive the deadly trip to the top of this tower, you will be permitted to take as much of the Sheared Spool Shrine's treasures as you want… within reason, of course."

"You don't have to tell ME twice! Thanks, lady!" Twitch unabashedly announced as she turned and immediately began helping herself to all the Sequinean currency she could get her hands on, even going as far as to open one of the red treasure chests to discover golden, diamond-studded, silver, and platinum-gold jewelry abound. "Jackpot!" she further exclaimed as she took off her rucksack to stuff it full.

"Twitch, hold on! She said take within reason! Don't get greedy!" Sky complained as she chased after her to get her fill while trying to stop the bespectacled maiden from getting carried away.

"Question," Tay posed, having chosen not to immediately get distracted by the boundless riches he'd just been offered.

"Yes, sir?" the mysterious, familiar-looking woman permitted.

"Those green crates over there. They ain't a part o' this gem collection, are they?" he asked, just to be sure.

"No, those were not, I'm afraid. I take it you know something about them?"

"Yes," he confirmed. "If they're what I think they are, then those crates were stolen from me by a woman named Risky Boots an' her band o' bat-pirate mutant servants. As far as I'm aware, they were usin' the contents o' those crates t' do some serious damage wherever they went with 'em."

"Right, I'm aware of the persistent threat that the Pirate Master's former apprentice poses," the woman acknowledged. "If it's worth mentioning, I confiscated those crates and brought them here after it turned out some other travelers before you attempted to navigate the perils down below and failed. This happened no longer than a few days ago, to be specific."

"Did you happen t' see what those 'travelers' looked like?" Tay pressed, his anticipation climbing very quickly at the implications of the woman's answer.

"Only just barely. Their figures were scraggly and shadowy, save for what I presume were scarlet red bandanas and matching pants…"

"Shoot…!" Tay cursed under his breath, gaining a sneaking suspicion that a certain band of pirate thieves had already made their way to the sanctuary before he and his crew did.

"Indeed, you may have reasonable cause for concern," the woman concurred. "The crates have strange devices in them, for which I'm not certain how they function. They appear to be firearms, but they look nothing like what I've seen in my time. Is that what you meant when you referred to the destructive power of the contents within these green containers?"

"Yes, unfortunately. Worse off, what you're tellin' me right now removes all doubt that those little fiends were here tryin' t' start trouble at some point," Tay murmured, suddenly growing tense as he pondered what to expect of his next encounter with Risky's minions. "In any case, I would hope you don't mind if I laid claim t' them?"

"If they originally belonged to you, then I have no reason to stop you unless you planned to utilize those firearms for evil."

"Trust me, I'd never. My friends an' I are tryin' t' stop Risky an' her cronies from usin' them t' set the land ablaze with chaos an' bloodshed."

"Hmm… I can tell from the urgency in your voice that you speak the truth. You may take your equipment as you please, so long as you utilize them for the protection of Sequin Land. Additionally, do not be shy about claiming the shrine's treasures. They may prove more useful to you than they would simply collecting dust here."

"Are… you sure?" he asked rather hesitantly. "It just seems… kinda rude t' go diggin' around in your stash without restraint."

"Your concern alone proves you worthy to partake, sir," she smilingly encouraged. "Additionally, the shrine's riches are only shared with those who brave the unspeakable terrors this tower holds and succeed in pushing through; be the individual good or evil. For your eyes to behold the bountiful supply of treasures as they are now, should prove to you how successful any outsider has been at reaching the top of the Sheared Spool Shrine. On that note, I must take my leave," the woman suddenly bade, clasping her hands together and summoning an odd seafoam green glow as she focused.

"Whoa…! You… you can use magic!?" Tay asked in astonishment.

"All genies can harness magic, sir, and I am no exception," she double confirmed, thereby knocking Tay off his feet… metaphorically, of course. "Oh! Wait, I-I wasn't supposed to say that… Dang it…!" she whispered, kicking herself for her slip of the tongue as she lost her focus. She lowered her arms and directed her embarrassed, blushing gaze toward the floor. The magic glow encasing her hands disappeared as she moved to scratch her head in immense concern.

"What!? You're a-!?"

"Yes, but I must ask you to keep the details of our meeting scarce in case you plan on telling anyone about me," she informed him, catching him by surprise yet again.

"Why?" Tay asked, growing suspicious as he flashed back to the Grotto of Judgment once more. Something about this woman was making something click in his head, though he couldn't seem to establish the connection. It was on the tip of his tongue, but he had nothing but a hunch to go on at this point.

"There is no reason for anyone to know of my being here, simply put. It is better that my presence remain confidential. Genies are not exactly supposed to be easy to find, though you may not know about that…"

"I… guess, but I already know a girl who's half-genie, half-human, and she doesn't exactly hide herself from the general public. Why should you?"

"Because I'm a full-fledged genie," she revealed to him, nearly sending him reeling. Before he could voice his shock, however, she gestured a finger in front of her lips to signal for him to be quiet. Soon after, she leaned in close and motioned a finger to beckon him. Picking up on her mannerisms, Tay obeyed, granting this mysterious genie woman a chance to speak to him in a whisper. "I shouldn't be here now, but I needed to tie up a loose end or two before returning to the Genie Realm. Please do not share intricate details about me to anyone; not even to your travel companions there."

"Oh, good. Another secret from another strange woman in a secret location t' keep from everybody…" he lamented, though it continued to tug at him as to why this woman seemed so familiar to him. Figuring he wouldn't get an answer from continuing to badger her on this feeling, however, he let it go… mostly. "Understandable, though it sorta begs the question of if I might be able t' tell someone who might be able t' help protect this temple in case anybody got any funny ideas. The fact that Risky Boots's minions were here is a huge red flag."

"Sadly, this place will not need protection," the woman glumly informed him. "I fear that, even if it receives no more visitors, the Sheared Spool Shrine's days are numbered. I would just prefer that it be left tranquil and undisturbed until its dying day."

"Whoa, are you sure? This shrine seems super valuable. Why wouldn't you want it to be protected or preserved?"

"Simply put, young man, it is because it has already fallen into such a state of disrepair over its many years of existence that trying to keep it up or protect it would be a grievous loss of time and effort. Its last lines of defense were the monsters and traps that littered this place bottom to top. To see you and your comrades here means that you activated the traps and vanquished the monsters."

"Ohh… Sorry…" Tay remorsefully acknowledged, not realizing before this moment that his and his teammates' presence may have done the shrine more harm than good.

"Additionally, one bad thunderstorm or typhoon would topple this building and the entire landmass in a matter of minutes. That is why I want you and your friends to partake of the shrine's treasures. They would be lost otherwise, but I would like for you to take only what you deem necessary."

"Hm… I… I suppose so, ma'am, but don't be surprised if I say I'm still confused as t' what this place is an' who you are."

"I'm aware, my child, but the answers you seek will come in due time," she dismissed before stepping back and raising her arms once more, channeling magic back into them. "Now then, I must return to the Genie Realm. Remember what I told you," she urged, sashaying her hips in a most hypnotic, rhythmic motion as she tightened her focus. Although, she kept her gaze locked on Tayshan.

"Right. Don't tell nobody nothin' about you bein' a genie… or presumably, what you look like," he recited as quietly as he could muster, glancing over to Sky and Twitch to see that they were still preoccupied. "What about my teammates, though? They've seen you, too."

"Inform them of this condition. I cannot stop any of you from mentioning that you saw me here, but let them understand that my appearance is not to be discussed. Additionally, you are the only person to know of my species. Keep it that way."

"Will you at least give me your name or tell me what loose ends you needed t' tie up? Or somethin'?"

"No, no, you will not need that information," she rebuffed, raising her hands to the ceiling as she increased the intensity of her captivating hip swivels. Perplexed, Tay lightly chuckled in a mix of discombobulation and puzzlement… which are all basically the same thing, so we'll just chalk it up as the serviceman being VERY confused. "However, I will impart you with this word of advice: Please take care of the outfits you're given, my boy. Clothes in your size and style, and with the materials your outfits are made from are notoriously difficult to craft," she advised him with a tinge of nagging in her tone. "I'd also advise against you simply giving away articles of clothing to your friends, however noble the gesture may be. You could get sick if you're not careful!"

"Wait, wha-!?" Tay tried to ask, caught completely by surprise yet again as the mysterious genie hit him with another verbal bombshell. Before he could utter his question, however, a seafoam green-tinted *POOF* filled the atmosphere. It took a mere few seconds for the magic-instigated smoke to disappear, revealing that the genie in question had left the building… very magically so, leaving poor Tay thrown for so many loops, he could've sworn he'd just gotten swallowed up by a tornado made entirely out of the cryptic statements this intentionally-nameless woman threw at him.

"Man… Just when you think things can't get weird enough around here, somethin' always has t' completely blow me out o' the water…" he complained to himself as he turned to join his comrades in collecting the hard-earned treasures they were permitted to take. "Has that lady been responsible for givin' me all these new clothes, or was she just messin' with me…? Even then, how would she even know I was gettin' new clothes out o' thin air? And why can't I shake the feelin' I've met her before…?" he pondered as he proceeded to pocket a modest supply of gems while watching Sky and Twitch indulge themselves (more-so Twitch than Sky, but who's asking?).

"Good of you to finally join in, Tay," Sky remarked as she dug into a chest full of gold and snagged some of the sparking trinkets to stash into her inventory. "Just in time, too. Your friend over here was about to abscond with the whole collection."

"Mind your business, you yapping peacock!" Twitch brashly insulted as she continued stuffing her rucksack and pockets with whatever she could get her hands on. "We have free rein to take whatever we want, and it appears I'm the only one who came prepared to capitalize on the opportunity we were given."

"Don't you think you might be overdoin' it a bit?" Tay asked as he took a few sizable handfuls of what he understood was Sequinean currency before moving to inspect the Weapons Crates that he'd been eyeing since the team entered the room. "That lady said take within reason. I don't know if loadin' yourself up t' the point where you wouldn't be able to walk would fit that mold."

"Oh, don't be such a worrywart, Tay-Tay," the enthusiastic, unassuming young woman assured. "I got this! Besides, I've gotta grab enough for me and my crew… or, at least enough for me and Vinni."

"Well kudos t' you for thinkin' of someone else, but you're still packin' yourself full t' burstin' over there. Your bag looks like the straps could break at any second, an' you're wobblin' like you were balancin' off a tightrope."

"Babe, I've got it. Don't lose your head over me," she confidently countered, at this point struggling to fit a single extra bit of treasure anywhere on her person. "I'm good for this sort of thing. You'd be surprised how maneuverable I can be with this much weight on me. Instead, I'd encourage you to take at least twice as much as you already have. There's plenty to go around, so don't hesitate," she added before noticing the serviceman about to pop open one of the two Weapons Crates. "Hey, what kinds of guns are in those crates there?"

"You know what's in these?" Tay asked, opening a container and wasting no time to claim the weapons inside.

"Of course! My squad claimed some of them from past expeditions," Twitch confirmed while examining herself to see if she'd packed enough of her hard-earned reward before turning her attention back to her teammate. "I'd be crazy not to make that connection by now. Awesome gun, by the way."

"Thanks," he accepted her praise before moving to open the other Weapons Crate. "But, it seems like somebody already kinda dug int' these, so ammo is in a little bit of a low supply for 'em," he informed as he collected the firearm from the second Weapons Crate. Afterward, he pulled out the carbine rifle he'd previously picked up, reloaded it with ammunition he'd found within the Weapons Crate, and then handed it to Twitch.

"Tay, what are you doing!?" Sky questioned in protest of the young man's action as she noticed him relinquishing the weapon to the Ammonian affiliate.

"Whoa, you're giving this to me!?" Twitch questioned, pleasantly surprised to have been handed a new weapon as she graciously accepted it.

"Just makin' sure we're all covered in case somethin' else wants t' jump out at us," he warned, scanning the area. "There was word that a certain group o' pirate mutants found their way up here before we did, an' we'd be wise t' stay alert…"

"You're kidding!" Sky interjected, having just finished collecting her share of treasure as she refocused her attention. "Tinkerbats beat us up here? How do you know that?"

"That woman mentioned that some of 'em wandered their way t' this tower a few days before we showed up, but that they never made it all the way up. Side note: In case any of us feels like spillin' info to other folks about our quality time up here, that woman humbly requested that we do NOT describe her appearance in any way," he recited, confusing his comrades. "We can mention that we met her, but she doesn't want us tellin' anybody what she looks like."

"Why?" Twitch asked. "What, is she scared of how people might think of her or something? It isn't like we're gonna run into her again…"

"I'm not sure, but that's what she asked me t' pass along t' y'all. So, as far as we're concerned, we don't mention her if we can help it. If we mention her, then don't describe what she looked like."

"Uh… Okay…? I'll… try to forget we even saw her, then…" Twitch uncertainly complied with an indifferent shrug. "Not that it makes a bit of difference to me. We've got more important things to focus on anyway."

"If that's what she wants, then why shouldn't we respect that?" Sky acknowledged, willing to comply with the mysterious woman's parting wish. "She did generously grant us access to the shrine's treasures, after all, and I think keeping her identity a secret is a small price to pay."

"Couldn't have said it better myself," Tay concluded. "Er, anyway, Tinkerbats. They were here at some point very recently, which explains how these Weapons Crates wound up here. Apparently, they were confiscated after a group o' Tinkerbats failed t' make it up the tower."

"That also explains the all the tattered red clothing fabrics we spotted along the way," Sky commented with a nod. "That's not a good sign… Also, where did that woman go?"

"Yeah, did she leave already?" Twitch asked, equally as perplexed as she examined the sleek, onyx frame of the carbine rifle she'd been given.

"Yes," he straightforwardly answered. "She said her piece and then just vanished, basically."

"Vanished how?" Twitch queried.

"We blinked, and then she was here. We blinked again, and then she was gone," he cryptically replied, doing his best to keep the woman's identity a secret from even his own teammates.

"Weird that she showed up out of nowhere, granted us permission to take some souvenirs home, and then disappeared without another word," Sky pondered, taking a few seconds to scan the area. "Did you see her leave?"

"Hardly," Tay dismissively replied with a scratch of his cheek, compelled to keep his comments on the woman only he knew as a genie brief. "Like I said, I basically blinked, and she was gone," he added.

"Oh, of course," Sky accepted, dropping the topic. "That's not terribly unusual, though it always does leave a wishing well's worth of unanswered questions when that happens."

"Yeah… You're tellin' me…" he agreed, though he murmured his statement as though to speak more to himself than to his ally.

"I wonder if maybe she was a ghost that was just waiting for someone to show up here and hear her out before she departed to the afterlife...?" Sky further pondered, finding herself mystified by the nameless woman.

"Oh, well," Twitch cut in with another shrug of her shoulders, none too concerned with their unexpected host's origins or sudden disappearance. "We got more than what we bargained for, and I don't see or hear any other threats coming. If you two are done getting your shares of the rewards, then we should probably find a way out of here. We're definitely not going back the way we came in, either."

"Also true," Sky agreed, checking to see if she had indeed collected her fair share. "Most of the doorways we took on the way up here slammed shut and locked after we passed through. I'm not seeing a Stage Clear platform, though, so there's gotta be something we're missing…"

"Yeah, ain't this around the time someone or something randomly shows up an' tries t' kill us?" Tay pointed out, demonstrating he had become familiar with the typical rhythm for adventures in Sequin Land.

"Usually, but the only person to even show up out of nowhere this time was that strange woman. She didn't appear all that intimidating, though, so unless she's planning to ambush us, we don't have a reason to suspect she was up to no good," Sky reasoned, scanning the area once more to see if maybe they'd possibly missed any important details.

"I'm not really sure what you're yammering on about, but if we don't have a way out of here, we're gonna have to make one," Twitch suggested, none the wiser on how the whole 'adventure stage-boss battle-victory celebration' formula worked. "Even if we have to shatter one of these pretty little windows and have one of your flying rats carry us down, Squawks," she so graciously added to her previous statement.

"First of all, my name is SKY," Sky irritably replied, not at all fond of Twitch's moniker for her. "Second, they're birds, not rats. Third… I'm not sure how I feel about vandalizing sacred ground just to make an easy escape."

"Well, unless you've got a less heretical way of busting us out of here, we don't have much-!" Twitch was set to argue before being halted by Tay holding out a hand. "What's up? Something wrong?"

"Very," Tay curtly replied, though his eyes were glued to the doorway and surrounding windows. "It sounds like something's on its way here…" he warned, putting his teammates on high alert as they took up defensive stances alongside him.

"Are you sure…?" Sky asked in a whisper. "I don't hear anything…"

"Neither do I…" Twitch agreed.

"Listen close…" Tay advised, placing the weapon he'd just got from the Weapons Crate into his inventory as he reached for something else he'd recently collected. "If you can pick it up, there's the sound of gunshots an' footsteps in the distance. It's faint, but it's there…" he advised, preparing himself for the worst as the trio fell silent in anticipation for what was to come. As he'd pointed out, the sounds of distant gunshots, accompanied by sporadic, rumbling *booms* and the pitter-patter of footsteps filled the otherwise-quiet atmosphere. Worse yet, the sounds were getting louder with longer they waited for something to happen.

"I hear it now…!" Twitch declared in an anxious whisper as she readied the rifle she'd been supplied with. "Do you think it's possible Risky's little freaks found their way up here…?"

"Given what we've seen an' heard... Most definitely," Tay confirmed, pulling out a black canister and slipping a finger through the key. "We can't let them trap us in this room if the case is that they're on their way up here. There's no cover, an' there's no tellin' what kind o' firepower they're bringin' this time around," he warned as a sudden *Boom* sent a small quake rippling through the tower, startling everyone in the process.

"Whatever it is they're bringing, it sounds incredibly destructive," Sky observed, contemplatively pulling out a pouch filled with bird seed that appeared to be meant for Wrench. "Are we sticking around to stand our ground, or are we gonna make an effort to escape before they get to us?"

"I'd say we get up out o' here an' live t'-!" Tay was about to suggest before a thunderous *BOOM* rang out, causing debris and chunks of the door to go sailing across the shrine in every direction. At this point fully aware of the imminent threat, Sky, Twitch, and Tay prepared themselves for an encounter like no other. The smoke from the explosion didn't even need to clear before a massive swarm of red-garbed, spiky yellow-eyed bat creatures came rushing through with all sorts of interdimensional pistols, submachine guns, shotguns, and one unloaded, smoking rocket launcher at the ready. Wasting not even a nanosecond, the hostile creatures flooded the shrine with their collective presence, almost completely surrounding the trio with their weapons pointed at them.

"Shoot, they got up here faster than we thought they would!" Twitch yelled, aiming her weapon at any Tinkerbat that had its sights on her.

"We've gotta come up with a plan!" Sky announced, having summoned Wrench to her side as she opened the bag of bird seed to let him feed.

"Right, but if they haven't started shootin' yet, we should be mindful not t' make any sudden moves until we know what they intend on doin' with us," Tayshan suggested as he noticed that, while his squad's enemies had them outgunned and outnumbered, they hadn't immediately begun opening fire; a rather peculiar circumstance, considering their position.

Tay thought deeper about the situation they were in. At a glance, it appeared they were cornered as the Tinkerbats drew closer with their weapons drawn. They blocked off the only way in or out of the shrine and had no intention on letting them go. The only method he could think to employ in this moment was to utilize the explosive in his hand, and then hope to take advantage of the incapacitating effect it had on Risky's sycophantic servants. However, the area of effect would not cover the entire swarm, and as it appeared, any sudden moves would doom them all if any one of them acted too recklessly. Their only saving grace seemed to be that, as they were being forced to back up toward the back window-bearing wall of the shrine, a large handful of Tinkerbats noticed the remainder of its vast treasures. Distracted by untold riches that hardly came anywhere close to rivaling their master's own immeasurable fortune, many of the Tinkerbats dropped their aggressive stances and began partaking of the Sheared Spool Shrine's treasures while other members of Risky's crew continued to hold the trio at gunpoint with the ostensible intent to capture them.

At least a third of the Tinkerbat group marched toward the trio, guns at the ready as they made their move. Within seconds, some of them began grabbing at the adventurers, putting their weapons away and pulling out rope with which to attempt to tie them up.

"Hey! Get your filthy paws off me!" Twitch rebelled, slapping a Tinkerbat's hand away and aiming her weapon directly into its face. Alerted to the possibility of resistance, the group of Tinkerbats reacted accordingly. They began to bum-rush our three-person squad in a collective attempt to ensnare them by force. "Don't touch me! Agh! Buzz off, you grabby little cretins!" Twitch continued to complain, kicking and swinging away at her would-be captors and clobbering some of them as they advanced on her.

"Wrench, eat up! Quick!" Sky hurriedly offered her trusty sidekick before whistling to summon a pair of gold-feathered hawks that came bursting through the stained-glass window behind her with a startling *CRASH*. The hawks, with ear-piercing screeches, ripped through the air, flapping and clawing away at Tinkerbats that immediately began trying to shoot them down. The offset of *BANGs* and *POPs* of course alerted the rest of the Tinkerbat platoon, causing them to take up their arms to assess the situation. Utilizing this distraction to her advantage, Sky created some distance between herself and the offending Tinkerbats and allowed Wrench with just enough time to munch on a few healthy beak-fuls of his specialized bird seed.

"You gangly abominations already had me hog-tied in one tower; I won't let you do it again!" Tay protested, swinging and kicking away much the same way Twitch had been to keep from being overwhelmed. However, the instant he saw the opportunity, he lobbed the grenade in his hand over toward the immediate vicinity of the remaining treasures that the other group of Tinkerbats were advancing from. Within a second, another startling *BANG* rang out, distracting most of the Tinkerbats as they turned to inspect the source of the noise. As it appeared, a handful of Tinkerbats had been either dizzied, stumbling, or aimlessly staggering around as though they'd gone blind. "Hope y'all like flashbangs, because I got a few of 'em t' spare," he declared, quickly pulling out his pistol to fire off a few rounds that, with a few even louder *BANGs*, eliminated some of the Tinkerbats right in front of them.

"Now that's what I'm talkin' about!" Twitch cheered as she swung her rifle like a bat by its barrel, cleaning the clock of another Tinkerbat with a frightening *THUNK* of an impact before backing up to fix her grasp on the firearm. As soon as she prepared herself, Twitch began firing off rounds at the Tinkerbats, the sudden rush of *POPs* and *BANGs* filling the air as the situation devolved into a full-blown gunfight. As you might imagine, Risky's minions returned fire as best as they could while some of them recovered from the disorientation caused by the flashbang grenade they were hit with.

In just that moment, Tay turned toward a sudden bout of rapid flapping coming from nearby to see a pair of golden hawks soar out of the broken window behind them. In that same instant, he caught sight of Wrench, levitating in midair before a sudden *POOF* of a murky magenta-hued smoke revealed the form of Giga-Wrench. In as little as a single second, Wrench had grown, like, thirty-five times his original size.

"Alright! Now's our chance!" Sky called out, climbing atop her gigantic avian ally and hurriedly fixing him with riding equipment that would allow him to be steered by her. Wasting no time after the fact, she took her position and turned toward her comrades. "Come on, you guys! We've gotta go!" With that urgent call to action, so began what was not exactly a 'Boss Battle,' per se, but what could be considered a frighteningly dangerous 'Survival Mode,' in which our heroes found themselves fighting through a swarm of Risky Boots's seemingly limitless forces for their lives. So, with that said…

 ** _FIGHT AND FLIGHT: TINKERBAT TYRANNY!_**

"Ain't gotta tell us twice!" Tay agreed, firing round after round while trying to keep from getting hit by any of the gunfire aimed at him. Thinking quickly, he grabbed Twitch by the arm and pulled her toward him as he joined Sky in perching atop Wrench. Twitch, needing no more clues in terms of the context, took her seat in front of Tay, doing her best to secure her spot as the two of them continued firing their weapons to keep the Tinkerbats at bay.

"Alright, bird-girl, step on it!" Twitch demanded, her focus glued on her adversaries. "We need to get outside so I can get to my plane!"

"Heard! You two had better hold on tight, because it's gonna be a bumpy ride! Wrench, let's fly!" Sky commanded with vigor; an order received loud and clear by Wrench as he let out a valiant cry of determination and, with a flap of his wings, lifted off. He burst through the broken window, another *CRASH* of shattered glass ringing out as Wrench swiftly emerged from it. However, they were not in the clear yet. "Whoa, what the heck!?" she called out in a panic, noticing another gang of Tinkerbats waiting for them outside. At an immediate glance, there appeared to be at least eight more Tinkerbats, all levitating with the use of their handy propeller packs, each and every single one of them armed with either a rocket launcher or a grenade launcher aimed directly at them.

"No!" Tay cried out in panic, hurriedly switching weapons from his silver pistol to the MP5 submachine gun he'd obtained from inside the Sheared Spool Shrine in an attempt to shoot down the aerial adversaries that appeared to have nothing but the worst of motives to fulfill. "We can't let them fire a single one o' those things off!" By the time he uttered his statement, however, it was too late. With a resounding series of dread-inducing *FWOOSH* noises, at least four of the Tinkerbats hovering in the air simultaneously fired off a rocket each, every single one aimed directly at our determined travelers.

"Shoot! Wrench! Evasive maneuvers!" Sky commanded as she tugged on the reins she'd been using to steer her most reliable comrade through the air. With a couple of last-second twists, Wrench launched himself downward with a burst of wind and speed, turning and flapping his monstrous wings as hard as he could to dodge the incoming explosives aimed at him. With a mighty caw, he successfully protected himself and his passengers from harm as the rockets raced past him. However, as Wrench created distance between himself and his attackers, a series of deafening *BOOMs* ripped through the air, with humongous chunks of debris scattering in every direction. When our heroes observed the damage from below, they took in the heartbreaking sight of the tower smoking and burning. A massive, gaping hole had been blown clean through it, the rumbles and crackles of stones falling from its formerly stable form as it sustained irreparable damage.

"Jeez, these guys aren't playing around!" Twitch observed in complete surprise, alarmed by the fact that the Tinkerbats on their tail had brought such massive destructive power with them. "If we can get to my biplane, it'll be much easier for me to take them out before they completely destroy this place! Get me down to the other side of the tower before it's too late!"

"I'm trying!" Sky barked back, steering Wrench through the rain of debris as yet another obstacle presented itself; more Tinkerbats armed with propeller packs and semiautomatic rifles that came whizzing in with a massive spray of gunfire. "Darn it, more of them!?"

"Yo, why are they houndin' us so hard out o' nowhere!?" Tay complained, doing his best alongside Twitch to fire off rounds as accurately as he could to ease some of the pressure placed on his teammates. However, the spasmodic, turbulent moves Sky had to command Wrench to pull off made it nearly impossible to score any decisive hits on a consistent basis. As the rifle-armed Tinkerbats swooped in as close as they could manage, firing barrages of glowing bullets that forced the trio of travelers to continue dodging around the tower while defending themselves in their desperate bid to make it close enough to Twitch's plane to allow her to climb into it, the ones armed with rocket and grenade launchers were bought just enough time to reload. Within the next few seconds and without warning, the explosive-wielding Tinkerbats took aim and fired toward the base of the tower and the surrounding area. Tipped off by the disheartening sounds of the explosives being fired in their general direction, Tay, Sky and Twitch reacted accordingly.

"Watch out, watch out, watch out! They're shootin' more rockets at us!" Tay warned in a panic, the added stress triggering that same unusual tingling sensation as he hurriedly tapped Sky on the shoulder.

"I know! Wrench! We're gonna create some distance, so let's aim skyward!" she commanded, using her reins to direct the avian behemoth upward and away from the temple grounds.

"Wait, no! My plane's gonna—!" Twitch attempted to protest, though it was far too late. Before the young woman could finish her statement, the ground surrounding her plane was swallowed up in a blanket of rolling explosions that made absolutely sure that no one was able to get anywhere near it to use it. Additionally, sprays of water vapors and debris scattered all about the vicinity as the foundation took on heavy damage. It's also probably worth mentioning that the base of the tower had unfortunately been caught in the crossfire, with a sizable chunk of it being decimated. More smoke billowed from the gigantic hole that used to be home to the Sheared Spool Shrine's bottom wall. "No! Darn it! That's the third plane I lost this week! At this rate, I'm gonna blow through all my paychecks for the year on these things! Are you kidding me!?"

"Sorry, but we had no time to get you down there!" Sky reasoned, still steering Wrench to avoid sporadic sprays of gunfire as they headed upward and away from the Sheared Spool Shrine. "You'll have to ride with us until we get Risky's goons off our tail!"

"Gah…! These… These repugnant little goblins…! I'll make you all suffer for this! Every single one of you freaks! You hear me!?" Twitch shouted, making her best effort to turn and shoot at the Tinkerbats pursuing her and her comrades in revenge for them perpetuating her rampant vehicular struggles. As she did so, she bore witness to the Sheared Spool Shrine collapsing in on itself, the crumbling, flaming *CRASH* emphasizing its fall. What was once a celebrated, ages-old, irreplaceable monument to genie-kind, was reduced to watery rubble in a matter of a couple of minutes. The rest of the aerial island fared no better, as the collapse of the tower took out a portion of the landmass. Smoking stone chunks were washed away in a cascading current as the moat surrounding the tower was suddenly made into a waterfall that carried not only the remains of the tower, but also the mangled wreckage of Twitch's airplane into the ocean below. The voluminous *SPLASH* sounds ringing out prompted Sky to turn and gasp in devastation as the island that used to house the Sheared Spool Shrine crumbled and deteriorated before her eyes, raining into the ocean piece by gigantic piece.

"No…! They… They destroyed it! They completely destroyed it!" Sky shouted, utterly outraged by the grievous transgression perpetrated by none other than the loyal subordinates of the Pirate Queen herself. "Those monsters!"

"If it's the last thing I do, I swear I'm gonna wipe 'em all out for this!" Tay declared in an equal level of ferocious anger at his team's enemies as they came charging through the air after them. As our heroes made their daring, lightning-quick escape from the extending clutches of Risky's minions, Tayshan and Twitch put forth their best efforts to shoot down as many Tinkerbats as they could manage. However, the combined urgency and turbulence, in addition to the intense rushing winds blowing by them as Wrench soared through the skies while trying to avoid being shot, made scoring a hit nearly impossible.

"Yo birdbrain! Keep the ride steady and make it easier for Tay-Tay and me to aim, will ya!? We can't afford to let these disgusting little bandits get over on us!" Twitch demanded, still trying her best to keep the pressure off while also making sure not to slip off the back of her teammate's giant bird/getaway vehicle.

"Believe me, it isn't as easy as you think, so bear with me!" Sky shouted back, steering Wrench to the side to narrowly avoid another rocket that whizzed by with a smoke-trailing *FWOOSH*, in addition to a barrage of glowing marbles that came dangerously close to hitting their mark. "Wah!" Sky hollered, startled by the influx of deadly projectiles. "Alright, I'm gonna try to straighten us out, but I need you two to start nailing them right away! Wrench is gonna be vulnerable if you don't act quickly, and we can't allow for him to get hurt!"

"Copy! We'll pick 'em off as fast as we can!" Tay agreed with a nod, intensifying his focus on the belligerent Tinkerbats dashing after them. Upon hearing her comrade's confirmation, Sky directed Wrench to slow down and straighten his flight path. In doing so, she allowed her teammates some breathing room and stability as they shifted themselves to where they were more capable of defending themselves. As a trade-off, however, this allowed for their enemies to quickly gain on them, guns at the ready as they relentlessly fired away.

"Have a taste of this!" Twitch challenged, steadying the M4 Carbine she'd been wielding as five Tinkerbats came charging in from the side. Wasting no time after preparing herself and taking aim, Twitch fired off her next few rounds. With a series of voluminous blasts from her gun, she picked off the Tinkerbats before they got the chance to hit her or her teammates with a single round. The offending creatures were sent barreling away in defeat, neutralized in the crossfire. "Alright!" she cheered, feeling a rush of adrenaline course through every inch of her body. "Which one of you freaks is next!?" As she ever-so-politely invited all comers to take her on, a group of another seven Tinkerbats rushed forward, eager to avenge their fallen kin. Without warning, Twitch fired off another barrage of rounds that took out some of them in the same manner as the last batch before a spray of gunfire from her enemies, in addition to a sudden shift in direction by Wrench, forced her to duck to avoid being stricken. "Agh…! Darn it, I can't… see…!"

"I got you covered!" Tay volunteered, having just shot down a separate row of Tinkerbats that had hounded them from behind as he carefully turned toward the direction in which Twitch was facing. Immediately, he was greeted with a spray of gunfire that forced him to shield his face with his arms. The multitude of stings resultant of the rounds connecting with his forearms was equivalent to being bitten by bullet ants. "Gagh…! Ow, ow, ow, darn it, that hurts…!" he complained, shaking the searing agony off as best as he could as he took aim and immediately returned fire. "We're only lucky they ain't usin' the right ammo for most o' the arsenal, or we'd be in a ton more trouble…!" With that brilliant observation, Tay utilized the MP5 submachine gun with the full intent of wiping out as many Tinkerbats as he could manage. With another volley of rounds from the weapon, Tay managed to cover his teammate and dispatch a few more Tinkerbats before Sky suddenly directed Wrench to dip low, entering a quick, but incredibly shaky nosedive while veering to the side again to avoid another spray of enemy fire coming from a direction neither Tay nor Twitch were facing.

"They're coming at us from as many angles as they can! Tayshan, we're gonna have to step it up with shooting them down before they overwhelm us!" Twitch suggested in a hurried tone, reorienting herself and taking aim. "I'll keep handling the ones trying to flank us! You extinguish the flames on our six!"

"Copy!" Tay agreed as the two lined themselves up to solidify their positions. "How you doin' on ammo!?"

"I have at least a couple extra mags left, so I'm good so far!" she responded, shooting down another four Tinkerbats as Wrench took another hard turn to his right to slip past another spray of enemy gunshots. Twitch, prepared for the sudden shift in direction, used it to her advantage and shot down two more of the offending pirate creatures while the rest remained in hot pursuit. "You?"

"I've got enough t' last!" he assured, spraying another coordinated fusillade of rounds at a particularly sizable group of Tinkerbats swarming in from behind as they tried playing catch-up. The sheer size of the group nearly caught the soldier off-guard, though he remained as focused as he could. Firing short, controlled burst as the rest of his team did their thing, he managed to lighten the load by eliminating another four Tinkerbats. This, however, came with the trade-off of having many of the remaining group rain another merciless storm of bullets at the trio. Rounds sporadically made contact with each member, causing them to wince in collective pain.

"Shoot, these rounds hurt like no tomorrow!" Twitch complained, growing frustrated as she maintained her composure. "If you don't mind, how about you take them down before they shoot us, Tayshan!?"

"If that was possible, then believe me, I'd have been doin' that!" he shouted back, reloading his submachine gun as quickly as he could before firing off the next set of rounds into the crowd of Tinkerbats doggedly chasing them through the partly cloudy Sequin Land skies. "There's still a bunch of 'em left! We can't let our guard down… Sky! Make sure t' keep your head low an' keep them distracted while we try t' pick the rest of 'em off! Twitch, let's make short work of 'em while we still can!" commanded Sequin Land's first/only G.E.N.I.E.S. affiliate. At this point, fueled with debatably magic willpower, he went all out on eliminating the persistent threat with rapid, short bursts of gunfire.

"Sounds like a plan!" Twitch agreed, taking down another two Tinkerbats with controlled bursts of gunfire before she had to take a moment to reload.

"You got it! Just take them out as soon as you can, Tay! We can't keep this up forever! I'm gonna call up some aerial support to help you guys deal with the remainder of them!" Sky acknowledged, her tone urgent and pressured. Though her attention was divided, the astute war bird trainer was managing between steering Wrench to employ speedy evasive maneuvers and whistling bird calls to summon teams of multicolored sparrows to halt the Tinkerbats' relentless aerial assault enough for her partners to take them down. The Tinkerbats themselves were armed with modified handguns and submachine guns from Risky Boots's stolen military arsenal, firing away in a malicious bid to take out the three adventurers. Try as they might, however, the Tinkerbat assault squad quickly found their numbers dwindling. Despite the initial forty-to-three numbers advantage Risky's soldiers had, Tay and Twitch held a firepower advantage with their guns, whereas Sky held an advantage of maneuverability in Wrench over the henchmen's propeller packs. The sparrows she'd called in had also done a splendid job of leading some of the wayward pirate minions astray, granting Tayshan and Twitch some much-needed breathing room to take them down.

"Y'know, I still can't believe we managed t' get out o' that trap-infested tower in one piece t' even get this far!" Tay commented as he picked off three of the twelve remaining Tinkerbats in a spray of machine gun fire, referring to their recent quest that led them into this scenario. "T' have these things attackin' us so belligerently is a huge curveball, though!"

"You're telling me!" Sky agreed, ducking close to the back of her trusty avian sidekick to keep from being wounded by incoming bullets as she instructed him to veer a sharp left. "I'm honestly surprised they've been this persistent with chasing us! They usually aren't this focused on targets that aren't Shantae! Either they're acting on their own, or they have specific orders to take us out!" she hypothesized, still baffled as to why this group of Risky's servants were so eager to take them down.

"It's also possible they either tried laying claim to that temple, or they tailed us up there and waited for us to do all the dirty work for them!" Twitch presented her idea as she continued to participate the valiant counterattack. However, as the perilous aerial skirmish continued, Tay, Twitch, and Sky found it consistently difficult to coordinate evading enemy fire and returning it to take out the rest of the battalion. Tay and Twitch had only managed to take out two more of Risky's henchmen, leaving a still-threatening seven of them. Sky maintained her speedy pace, guiding Wrench to keep him out of harm's way. However, it was also evident by this point that Wrench was a big target and had taken considerable damage. Additionally, the poor bird's fatigue was setting in as his speed and agility gradually decreased for reasons other than Sky's express direction and guidance. As an unfortunate result, Wrench began to take more damage from stray bullets, further impacting his ability to keep the momentum going. As such, the Tinkerbats loomed closer as they gave a tenacious, unrelenting chase.

"Hey! You guys having any luck back there?" Sky asked, worried that Wrench would get hurt if something wasn't done soon. "Wrench is in a lot of pain right now, and we really need to shake those Tinkerbats off! He's taking too much damage!"

"Not a whole lot! Aimin's been a bit rough!" he informed as he continued shooting, taking down another Tinkerbat as it fired a shot that grazed Wrench's wing. Wrench squawked in agony as he nearly lost all his aerial momentum, almost shaking his passengers off his back. "Whoa!"

"Jeez!" Twitch complained, grasping Wrench's back for dear life as she lost her focus. "Like we discussed before, Squawks, we can aim better if your bird stayed steady! We're almost done, so tell him to stick it out!"

"Obviously, that's what we're trying to do! Tayshan, can you please think of something? Wrench can't take much more of this, and my other birds can only do but so much to help out!" she urged, at this point scared that her most trusted ally would give out at any second.

"Shoot! Umm…" Tay pondered, realizing the imminent danger he and his friends were in and noting that she had a point. After a moment of thought while suppressing the onslaught of the remaining Tinkerbats with return fire, he developed an idea. "I got somethin', but I'mma need you t' fly straight for a good five t' ten seconds," he informed, pulling out a black, cylindrical device.

"What's your plan?"

"I'm gonna hit 'em with this flashbang here, but it's gonna be risky," he explained, engaging the safety of his submachine gun before handing it to Twitch. "Hold this for me, please."

"Sure thing, but just know that means neither of us is gonna be able to shoot," Twitch reasoned, clutching both guns tightly. "Whatever it is you plan on doing, Tay-Tay, you'd better make it quick!"

"Trust an' believe, I plan to," he assured. In a moment's glance, he gripped the key attached to the device and took a deep breath to prepare. "I'll have t' cook it JUST long enough t' where as soon as I throw it, it'll blow up in their faces! After that, Twitch, we'll light 'em up while they're distracted! Did I ever get t' teach y'all about the flashbang?"

"No, but I've seen it in action. It stuns them by messing up their sight and hearing, right?" Twitch answered.

"Affirmative! As soon as the grenade explodes, hand me the gun an' we'll take the rest of 'em out while they're disabled! If we're fast, not t' mention lucky, Wrench won't have t' get hurt further, so time is of the essence! Like you said, we'll be vulnerable for a bit, but my aim is t' get this done as fast as possible to avoid injury!"

"Alright, Tay! I believe in you!" Sky faithfully agreed, directing Wrench to fly in a straight line to provide Tay the leverage he needed. The Tinkerbats, noticing the soldier relinquishing his weapon, banded together into a cluster, guns ready to turn the soldier, the bird trainer, the Ammonian officer, and their war bird into feathery fireworks. However, this worked well in Tay's favor, as it minimized the margin of error of his incredibly chancy plan. As the Tinkerbats neared, they began firing their guns, their bullets whizzing past the trio and their transport bird. In that moment, Tayshan ripped the key from the device, held it high, and counted. In that moment, as though it were like clockwork, everything slowed down as his entire body began to intensely tingle once more.

"One, one-and-a-half—! Flash Out!" he shouted, launching the flashbang grenade almost immediately after preparing it. The device smacked a Tinkerbat in the face with a dense metal *THWACK*, detonating with an intensely loud, smoky *POW* as though it were on impact. The sudden blast knocked one Tinkerbat out of the sky while stunning the six others as they stopped dead in their tracks. Each of the scrawny black creatures appeared dazed, swirls in their eyes as they held their heads to try to regain their senses.

"Gun!" Tay commanded, prompting Twitch to hand him back his weapon before readying her own. "Sky, turn around!" he further commanded, disengaging the safety. Sky, hearing him loud and clear, instructed Wrench to pull an incredibly speedy 180-degree turn, flying back toward the incapacitated Tinkerbats while the opportunity was golden. As they hovered toward the blinded, deafened enemy troops at a much more casual speed than before, Tay and Twitch unleashed a relentless spray of bullets that eliminated the six of them in no time flat. Their propeller packs went haywire from the damage, sending each of them spiraling toward the rocky terrain far below. Thus, the brutal engagement ended with a decisive victory for Twitch, Sky, and Tay.

"Yes! In your ugly faces!" Twitch cheered and gloated, pumping a fist high in the air. "That was incredible!"

"You did it!" Sky cheered as the three heroes breathed a much-deserved collective sigh of relief, reengaging the safety of the weapon and putting it away.

"Nah, WE did it," he corrected, placing a hand to his thumping heart as the adrenaline coursing through his body kept him in a state of high alert.

"Man, I can't believe we actually pulled that off," Twitch very astutely observed. "What are the odds?"

"You can say that again," Sky agreed as she directed Wrench to continue flying at a casual pace through the crisp, open Sequin Land air. "Y'know, I never did like going on such perilous adventures, but… we really pulled through on the ones we've been on together. Weird as it is to say, it's actually been a lot of fun, minus a couple of setbacks! We make a surprisingly good team, too, don'tcha think?" she asked, smiling with relief that the worst of it was over.

"Heh, I'd say so. Take this as y'all will, but I think we have good chem… huh?" Tay trailed off as he looked below to the bright yellow mountainous region beneath them. He spotted something shining from below that he didn't recognize at first. The shine, however, sent a chill up his spine, but he needed to verify.

"What's wrong?" Twitch asked, looking back in wonder.

"Can you hand me a pair o' binoculars if you have 'em, please?" the soldier asked, gathering a sneaking suspicion that they were not out of the woods yet. Twitch wordlessly provided him with her set of vision-enhancing equipment, picking up some of her partner's apprehension. Tay was quick to survey the canyon below in search of anything worth note. Sure enough, as he peered into the bushy bluffs of the canyon, he spotted something with a red bandana, a long, thin, metallic shape, and—as he feared most—a lens. At that, the young man's sense of dread went into overdrive. "Sky, we gotta get outta here, now!" he warned, rapidly tapping her on the shoulder.

"What? Did you see something down there?"

"Yeah, we're bein' scoped out by a sniper! If we don't move we-!" Tay tried to explain, though it was too late. A distant noise sounded from the direction of the object he spotted. Within a second, Wrench jerked his entire body upward, having noticed the sound and, by extension, the bullet careening toward him. The kaleidoscopic behemoth came to a screeching halt, the bullet narrowly missing as it whizzed upward past his beak. He was safe from harm thanks to his reflexes. As for his passengers, however…

"WAAAGH!" Tayshan shouted in shock and horror, being thrown off of the back of the giant bird by his knee-jerk reaction to nearly being shot. Thinking quickly, however, he grasped Wrench's wide, puffy mauve tail feathers, clinging on for dear life. He was safe. Or, he would've been, if not for what was about to happen.

"AWAAAH!" Twitch screamed in terror, losing her balance alongside Tay as she fell off of the saddle. Resultant of Wrench's evasive maneuver, she was also sent plummeting.

"Shoot! Twitch!" Tay called out, instinctively dropping his MP5 to catch her by the hand, immediately amplifying the danger they were in. "I gotcha! Just hold… on…!"

"Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, nonononono! Not again! Tayshan, please! Hold on!" she pleaded as she gripped his arm as tightly as she could while also losing her weapon in the process, though the worst was still yet to come.

"Gaaaaaagh! I…! I won't let you fall! Urgh…!" Tay shouted in immeasurable strain as his sense of stress intensified alongside the magic in his body once more. At this point, with how often he'd been put into life-threatening situations, it was a wonder how his heart hadn't given out. Nevertheless, he strengthened his grip on Wrench as he tried to pull Twitch toward him as she clung to his arm for dear life.

"Oh, no! On, no! J-Just hang on, you two!" Sky pleaded with gripping concern, noticing the danger her teammates were in. "Whatever you do, stay calm! I'm gonna try to—!" she was about to suggest. In that moment, however, another distant *bang* from an indiscriminate direction sounded off and, within a second, Wrench jerked back, squawking in unfathomable agony as he nearly lost his position. His owner, however, was even less fortunate. "WAAAAH!" Sky screamed in peril, having completely lost her grip on Wrench as she tumbled off the giant bird's back.

"Sky! AW, N-!" Tay was about to yell before being hit with a brutal *THUMP* from above that caused him to lose his grip on Wrench's tail feathers. As it turned out, Sky collided with the soldier, her back smashing into his defenseless face as he was hanging on to Wrench's tail, knocking him (and by extension, Twitch) off as the three of them began hurtling toward the sparkling crystal blue ocean below. Wrench, hearing their collective ear-splitting cries, immediately realized the danger his allies were in and moved posthaste to save them from certain doom.

"CAWWW!" roared the giant chicken/raven/hawk thing as he hurriedly spread his glorious multi-toned azure wings and nosedived with the speed of a fighter jet. His last-ditch plan in this scenario was one Sky had rehearsed with him numerous times; in the event that his rider was for some reason shaken off of his back, he would dive hard and fast. He would accelerate enough to where he was lower than the airborne rider, and then, when the time was right, he would swoop upward in a wide-arching scooping motion, ensuring that his helpless passengers landed safely on his back. As he prepared to maneuver, however, additional shots rang out from the distance. Wrench, noticing this, dodged the bullets, though their interference disturbed his focus. However, he remained determined as more bullets came beaming past him. His concern was not to ensure his safety, but to rescue his best friend and the strange man she found herself so fond of... as well as the other young woman said best friend found herself NOT so fond of, he guessed. Regardless, he would not fail her at any cost.

Meanwhile, Sky, Twitch, and Tay were free-falling like skydivers without parachutes. All three of the young heroes could barely breathe, much less continue to scream for help as the monumental rush of upward air nearly overwhelmed them. Looking downward was an impossibility, the speed of their descent too great for them to open their eyes. Tay, having somehow wound up below both his teammates in their fall, managed to at least turn himself around, grab the bird trainer and the Ammonian affiliate and draw them close. He squeezed the two girls close to his chest, cradling them as though to cushion their impending impact while leaving himself vulnerable for the brunt of it. Sky and Twitch, in return, scooted in tandem with their partner, curling up tight as they clenched onto him, preparing for the absolute worst as the turbulent, deep blue ocean current awaited them.

Surely, this incredibly tense, pulse-pounding nailbiter of a situation would have anyone at the edge of their seat. I know for a fact that I almost couldn't bear to watch. This sort of life-or-death thing gives me all KINDS of vicarious anxiety. However, not describing this awful, awful situation to you would be an unforgivable injustice to you, reader. So you'd better thank your lucky stars for the sacrifice I made. The things I do for love…

Anyhow, Wrench nearly didn't make it, as he'd taken a couple more hits from the hidden gunmen's merciless attack. Thankfully, the bullets suddenly stopped midway through his nosedive (for genie-related reasons you may already be aware of), allowing him some breathing room. Using what little time he had to the best of his ability, he dove below his endangered passengers and engaged in a most suspenseful scoop-up, paying full heed to the speed and trajectory of his upward arc. He made sure to keep a watchful eye on his allies, as losing sight of them could've cost them their lives. Waiting for the right moment, Wrench decreased his speed to nearly a crawl as he judged himself to be right under them. His talons were skimming the ocean waves as he made his move, but the soft *thump* of his allies landing safely on his saddle assured him that he'd made it in the nick of time. Letting out a "CAWW!" of relief as he flapped his gigantic wings, Wrench ascended high into the air with Twitch, Sky, and Tayshan in tow and prepared to hastily retreat to Scuttle Town like they'd intended to do.

"Jeez…" Tay murmured, still holding his friend tight as he tried to process his umpteenth near-death experience. His breaths were heavy and labored. He'd been jittering like he drank a gallon of sugar-spiked super coffee. He was moderately disoriented by the ordeal but had taken a series of deep breaths to calm himself down. "I don't know how many more close calls I can handle before my heart explodes from all the stress alone… You two okay?" he asked his comrades as he hugged them close. Sky, equally as shaken up, laid her head to rest on the soldier's chest as she clasped a hand to her heart. Nonetheless, she turned her head to look up at him.

"Y-yeah…" she confirmed, though the stress of the horrible experience was evident in her tone. "That was way too close for comfort. We… when we get back home, we need to do absolutely nothing but recuperate for at least a day. I think we've earned it."

"For once, I agree…" Twitch concurred, just as jarred and wired-up as her teammates as she hugged Tayshan with all her might.

"I can't argue with that. R&R is definitely what we need after all the trouble we went through this past few days… or at least, today alone," he agreed, motioning to let go of his equally-exhausted teammates to relax, though neither one of them appeared to want to let go. "Uh… Y'all can let go now. We're safe."

"Is it possible to just stay like this a little longer?" Sky politely asked, her grip holding strong. "Sorry if I'm imposing, but my heart's still racing a thousand miles a second after that…"

"And after almost dying for the 30th time in the span of a week, I feel like I'm gonna need therapy, a ton of hot chocolate, and for someone to massage my back while telling me it's going to be okay," Twitch agreed, also tightening her hold.

"Oh. I-I mean, I get it, but…" Tay understood, though he still found himself mildly uncomfortable amid the subtle bout of anxious tremors he suffered as a result of his latest near-death experience. "I… Uh, w-we can all rest assured that we made it out alive," he reasoned through his nerves. "Plus, I… um…"

"Tayshan, with all due respect, you probably need this more than either of us does," Twitch pointed out, much to his surprise. "You're trembling again. I can feel it. It's okay that you were scared back there. We all were. Take a moment to breathe and recollect yourself. I'm here for you. Last thing we need is for you to have another panic attack."

"Right…" he acknowledged, flashing back to the mortifying experience he suffered back in the now-defunct Sheared Spool Shrine. "Thanks. You're right, but I'm okay. Seriously," he assured. "It's gonna take a minute for any of us t' let the stress from that situation melt away, but I don't know how necessary it is for us t' cling to each other like this…"

"I'm gonna go on a limb and agree with Twitch this time, Tay," Sky interjected, much to the surprise of both of her allies. "Shocking, I know. I can tell by your faces."

"Wha? You, agree with her? I never thought we'd live long enough t' see that happen…"

"Har-har," Sky flatly remarked, unappreciative of the poor timing of his joke in relation to the context. "Be glad we lived long enough to even mention it. Either way, after what we just survived, what's the harm in assuring each other that we're still even alive? Of course, if you really don't want to, just say the word and I'll let go of you."

"I won't," Twitch cut in with a scoff. "It'd be better if she let go anyway, since she already has this giant, purple, flying target she calls a bird to hug on," she added, thus swiftly ending the brief moment of nonaggression between herself and the bird tamer. "Plus, I'm far better at helping you calm your nerves, as we already know."

"On second thought, I'm not letting go," Sky announced, changing her mind. "If it means saving you the trouble of dealing with this obnoxious show of obsession and clinginess, I'll take my chances. Amazing that you can still try to turn this situation into an opportunity for personal gain, Twitch."

"There's the teapot calling the kettle black yet again. But go ahead; keep making yourself look like the hypocrite you know you are, egg-face." At that, Sky merely sighed in exhaustion.

"Aw, jeez… Even after what just happened, you two can still find ways t' take stabs at each other…" Tay murmured, thoroughly wiped out from the experience. Not of nearly falling head-first into a watery grave, no. I meant he was wiped out from hearing the two girls arguing with each other the entire time. "That takes dedication, I'm sure…"

"…I'm too burnt-out to even dignify such immaturity with a reply anyway," Sky remarked, dismissing Twitch's comment. "The point, Tayshan, is that if you're uncomfortable, just let us know. I just think the extra bit of reassurance doesn't hurt. Are we making you uncomfortable?"

"No, I… I can see your point, once I give it some thought," he complied, taking a deep breath and strengthening his embrace of the young women as his trembling slowly subsided. "This is one doozy of a situation t' just be walkin'—or flyin'—away from. I guess you could say we all had our feathers ruffled a bit. We made it on a wing an' a prayer…" At Tay's affirmative comment, Sky giggled in a mix of mirth and relief.

"I love the situational puns, Tay. I don't usually like cheesy humor, but those were genius," she complimented, glad that he was able to make light of the ordeal to ease their collective tension.

"Puns? What are you talkin' about?" he asked, apparently thrown off by her observation. On second thought, maybe he wasn't making light of the ordeal and was just using some cleverly-timed expressions here? I'm not sure…

"Hm. Apparently so genius, you don't even realize it. Or do you?"

"You tell me," he shot back in humored perplexity, still appearing not to get what she meant.

"Oh, never mind… You're something else," the now-mellow bird trainer commented as she made herself comfortable in the serviceman's grasp.

"Hmph… So fake…" Twitch muttered in contempt, clearly displeased with Sky's 'performance' as she put a little more strength into her embrace of Tay. At that point, the trio went silent as Wrench soared through the open, pacified skies, his feathery form sailing over the horizon as he brought his passengers home.

 ** _And with story-time concluded…_**

"…An' that's the story all about how the three travelers nearly died multiple times over some random treasure locked in a floatin' tower that no longer exists, thanks t' Risky Boots an' her barbaric crew o' pirate imps," Tayshan concluded, lying back on the boating dock he and Bolo were occupying as he stared blankly into the navy-hued night sky.

"…How?" Bolo questioned him, his mouth agape and his hands gestured in front of his face to emphasize his complete befuddlement.

"Question o' the century," Tay acknowledged, taking in the full extent of his new acquaintance's confusion. "If you're askin' how we lived through that whole ordeal, I'm afraid I don't have many answers for ya. If you're askin' how we even found that tower, much less climbed it an' managed t' avoid all the traps an' hazards until that indescribable mysterious individual showed up an' then vanished without a trace, I have even less answers for that," he semi-guessed while also hinting that he withheld certain details from the other young man's ears.

"No, no, no," Bolo began, shaking his head in denial. "I can understand everything that went down throughout your trip. That sort of stuff happens to Shantae and me all the time," he nonchalantly countered, throwing Tay for a loop. How could he possibly not be the least bit surprised by anything he'd just heard? And what did he mean by his statement that he and Shantae dealt with such life-threatening scenarios all the time?

"What do you m—?" Tay was about to query.

"What I meant was, how did you have Sky and Twitch fighting over you the entire time? Especially to the point where you actually scored a kiss from one of them?" he very brashly asked, focusing on all of the wrong details. "That's insane! Not to mention all the other close encounters you had with them! Or even that fistfight they got into! Like, wow! I can't even imagine what they must've been saying to each other to come to blows! Especially Sky, who's usually much calmer than that!" he rambled, making even more evident that Tayshan left out some of the details of his experiences at the Sheared Spool Shrine; in this case, to apparently spare Sky's reputation.

"…Really?" Tay asked with slight irritation after taking a moment to stare blankly at the impressionable young man while processing his impertinent question. "All the stuff I told you about, an' THAT'S what you want me t' spill my guts on, man?"

"W-well, I know it isn't the most conventional thing to talk about, but dude, you gotta understand how much of a gift that is, attracting cute girls like it was nothing!"

"Trust me, Bolo, it's as new t' me as it is foreign t' you," Tay remarked, taking no pride in his experience. "Er, n-no offense. Besides, it got real old, real quick with them findin' every reason in the book t' scream at each other. Also, it was more about the personal issues they had with each other than it was about me, if you really want my opinion. It felt like I was more so just another fuel source to the massive forest fire that is their rivalry with one another."

"That makes sense, too, I guess. Sky DOES have that tendency to forever mark someone as an enemy if they give her a good enough reason to. Also, I agree that there's definitely a heated rivalry of sorts there, with the way you're explaining it; and from the sound if it, it's almost as bad as the rivalry between Shantae and Risky Boots. Kinda makes me glad I might finally have a rival of sorts in you."

"What? Me, your rival? We barely know each other!" Tay remarked, humored as he was thrown off by Bolo's suggestion that they were competitors.

"Yeah, but with how much notoriety you've been drawing since you got here, and with us having more or less the same goal of becoming viable and reliable teammates for Shantae, I refuse to take all that lying down. It'd be bad for my rep if I did. If you want to cement your spot on our team, you can bet that from here on out, I'm not gonna make it easy for you," he valiantly declared, looking Tay right in the eye with utmost seriousness. After a silent moment of studying the blue-haired young man and ruminating on his rather ambitious statements, the soldier nodded.

"Hm. Alright, then. Rivals, we are," he accepted, though he still didn't rightly understand why Bolo felt the need to make such an assertion. "In that case, I don't plan on losin'."

"That's what I like to hear. As rivals, we need to motivate each other to succeed. Only then, can we realize our true potential."

"Absolutely," Tay nonchalantly agreed, feeling as though he should leave a can of worms where it may lay.

"Glad you see it my way. Of course, I now have to find a way to improve my image, so girls flock to me," he stated, changing the topic in a way that once again astonished Tay. "It's gonna be tough, but I know I can prove myself. It's a wonder how both Sky and that other girl fought over you like they did.

"Okay, hold o-!" Tay tried to cut in.

"I mean, I think I know Sky enough to know she has a type. Not that I'm interested in Sky, but I can't help but notice."

"...Umm..."

"I can't speak for the other girl, but it sounds like she and Rottytops would get along great if they hung out."

"I still ain't sure who Rottytops is, but I'm startin' t' get an impression. Anyway, it ain't all it's cracked up t' be, presumin' there are others who think the same thing you're thinkin' about love triangles. When you find yourself in the middle of a two-person war over your affection where both sides are at each other's throats like leopards on deer meat, it makes things a… bit awkward," he clarified, warning Bolo to be careful what he wished for. "An' that's just puttin' it lightly. There's flattery, but that goes out the window quicker than you think. There's no huge confidence boost, either. There ain't even a sense of accomplishment. After a little while, there is only frustration an' escalation. Take it from me. An' even when you tell both girls you're not interested in datin' at the moment, they continue t' push you t' make a decision, whether you want to or not."

"Hmph. You're making it sound like such a horrible deal that you have multiple girls willing to go to such great lengths to have your undivided attention," he complained in disagreement as he stood to stretch. "Talk about taking a situation for granted. Sounds to me like you should learn to appreciate a good thing before it disappears." At that, Tay scoffed in disbelief.

"What I'm not appreciatin', sir, is the idea you're pushin' that I have t' be happy with all the unnecessary attention bein' paid t' me in a context I ain't necessarily ask for," Tay countered with a slight scowl, sitting up and turning toward his acquaintance. "I'm tellin' you, this is not as fun as you think it is. There's nothin' t' gain from it, an' if anything, it makes me worried that somebody's gonna get hurt worse than what happened today."

"Sorry, sorry," Bolo quickly apologized, pacifying the soldier as they let the tension ease. "That was a little rude, I admit. My bad. Still, for someone who not only has two girls vying for his affection, but also apparently passionately kissed Shantae at some point, you sure do seem unenthusiastic about it all," he observed, though the very mention of his incident with Shantae made the serviceman's heart nearly stop dead right there as he stared again at Bolo in such shock and bewilderment that it seemed like he was ripped right out of reality itself… all over again, I guess.

"…How… How… do you know about that…?" Tay very hesitantly asked, still taken aback by Bolo's blunt revelation.

"Oops…!" the blue-haired boy reeled back, covering his mouth in realization that he done goofed. "Uh… Uhh…"

"Who told you about that?" Tay asked again, the bass in his tone emphasizing his growing discomfort with the fact that something he'd never told anyone but Sky and Twitch was apparently known by someone he'd had no interaction with since he began working with Shantae.

"It was… just a guess…?" he tried to lie, shrugging his shoulders as he nervously chuckled. "Apparently, I was a little too on-the-nose about it…" At that, Tay got the real message loud and clear, though his gaze remained locked on Bolo as he took a very tense moment to collect his thoughts.

"…She told you… didn't she?" Tay questioned, his heart pounding hard enough that he swore each beat caused a record-breaking explosion that only he could feel or hear.

"No, dude! What? No way! She'd never admit to that!" Bolo continued trying to cover for his best friend, waving his arms in front of himself to communicate a feigned total innocence. "I swear, it was just another silly rumor I heard! It's no big deal! Sorry for getting you all worked up, but it's fine." Tayshan merely shook his head at Bolo's attempts to deflect the situation.

"No… If you weren't there, then there'd be no way anyone would know unless you were told," he pointed out, though his position didn't change. "How much did she tell you? What did she mention about it? Is… Is she still upset with me?"

"Uh… Um… I… Er…" Bolo stammered, picking up every bit of his new acquaintance's confusion and apprehension as he struggled to scavenge the necessary words in his brain to formulate his next statement. The atmosphere went eerily silent once more as the evening winds wafted over the Scuttle Town tides nearby, the nonstop crash of the water against itself filling the air. "I… don't kn-!"

"No, I'm not upset with you anymore," a feminine voice called from the distance, its owner rapidly approaching. Bolo and Tayshan both turned their gazes toward some of the nearby stone buildings to see a familiar lavender-haired young woman approaching, her face twisted into a troubled scowl aimed at the spiky-haired young man who'd been staring back. Bolo was mortified, to say the least. "But I AM upset with you, Bolo! You're just about the worst at keeping things to yourself! I can't believe you! You promised you wouldn't say anything!"

"U-uh, my bad, Shantae! I-I slipped after he told me this story about what he was doing while you and I were in the Thimble Canyon! It was an honest mistake!" he pleaded as Shantae marched toward the two men, seeming to by quite frustrated with her friend.

"I heard enough to know you did more than make an 'honest mistake,' Bolo," she warned him, spiking his dread to the point where it would pierce the clouds above if it was tangible. "You jerk! You let your curiosity get the better of you all over again! I told you what I did, thinking you got rid of that habit!" she further ranted, finally reaching them as both men were petrified in different degrees of intensity. "Clearly, I was wrong to trust you!"

"Shantae, look, I totally get it! I goofed! My bad!" Bolo owned up, though it seemed to have little effect on the half-genie's mood. "I was only trying to find out a little more about the relationship between you two. If I can make it up to you, just let me—!"

"That's none of your business besides what I told you!" she angrily shot back before taking a moment to breathe a heavy, HEAVY sigh of embarrassment and frustration. "Just… Ah, never mind… Anyway, I need to talk to Tay alone. Goodnight, Bolo," she dismissed, waving at him to signal him to clear the premises.

"But Shantae, I… I don't wanna leave you hanging."

"Trust me, it's not an issue. I forgive you. Now, if you don't mind, I need to talk to Tayshan. Goodnight," she reiterated, making sure through the terseness of her tone that Bolo got the message.

"I… I hear you. Goodnight," Bolo acknowledged with a nod, offering Tay a quick handshake. Tay, though stunned beyond belief, found it in himself to return the gesture without a word. "Nice meeting you, man. I'm sure we'll be working together soon, so just keep an eye out for me. I-I apologize if I pushed things a little too far, but thanks for the story," he hurriedly bade before dashing off through an alley into the town without even looking back at his friends to see if they at least waved goodbye to him. Shantae waited a moment, staring in the direction in which Bolo scurried off until he was out of earshot. Once the coast appeared to be clear, Shantae breathed another sigh before turning toward Tayshan, who'd still hadn't found the courage to do anything but stare at her in paralyzing fear. Reading the apprehension on his face, Shantae took it upon herself to walk toward the dock and find a seat right next to the serviceman as he continued to wordlessly gawk at her.

"S-so… Good evening," she awkwardly began, shifting her line of sight toward the sparkling ocean waves ahead as she folded and shuffled her legs to where they were crossed as she took her seat. Her heart was racing like she'd just gone skydiving as she clutched her hands together, pressing them into her chest in an attempt to quell her anxiety.

"…H-hi…" Tay greeted, just as awkwardly as his nerves continued to overrule his every mannerism. Too stunned to even process the fact that his mentor was sitting next to him, much less apparently trying to address the tension between them, Tay could find just about nothing else to say to Shantae in that moment. As such, they both went silent, allowing the ambience of the quiet evening atmosphere to fill their ears for a moment before someone attempted to kick things off.

"Uh… been a while since we last met, huh?" Shantae asked, awkward as can be as she took the first swing at breaking the ice between her and her sidekick.

"You… could say that, I guess…" Tay agreed, his gaze also shifting toward the ocean ahead as he took a deep breath to steel his hyperactive nerves. "I mean, all two hours since we last saw each other must've been a long time."

"Y-yeah… about that…" Shantae hesitantly acknowledged. "I'm… sorry for not speaking to you earlier."

"You're apologizin' t' me?" he asked, reeling back in astonishment.

"Yeah, I am. I… I wasn't sure what to say to you because of how we left off before, so when I saw you, I… kinda panicked and diverted all my attention to Sky because I had no idea what you were thinking or feeling at the time."

"That makes sense," he understandingly replied. "Yet, here I was, thinkin' you were still mad at me for messin' up our conversation the other night. Speakin' o' which, I-!"

"Don't worry, Tay. I got your letter," she interjected, seeming to know what he was going to say. "It's okay. I'm not so upset about the way our talk went anymore. If anything, I should apologize to you for overreacting…"

"No need t' apologize for that, either," he assured. "I know by now that what I said was rude."

"You didn't mean to come off like that, though. I'm not holding it against you."

"I'll own up to it, no less."

"If you say so, Tay… I'm just glad we can move past it; even if it took us two days to finally start talking again," Shantae concluded as the two of them momentarily went silent to contemplate who would say what next. Each of them felt a burgeoning pressure that seemed to grow more evident with the longer they remained at each other's sides, saying nothing to one another. Shantae had a litany of questions to ask Tayshan regarding his ideas on their connection, whereas Tayshan was internally urged to clarify his and Shantae's friendship. However, each of them found the necessary words catching in their throats as they both instinctively gulped and sighed in a collective attempt to alleviate the mounting pressure. Eventually, someone broke the awkward silence before too long.

"So uh… I… understand you've been busy these last couple days," Tay began.

"I heard the same about you," Shantae commented back, matching her friend's statement.

"I'll bet you did… I'm… guessin' Sky caught you up on everything, then?"

"Yep. At least, she nutshelled it for me. Gotta say, you must've had one wild ride, dealing with both hers and Twitch's emotions as you all fought for your lives in that airborne tower that apparently no longer exists."

"That's a huge understatement… Meanwhile, I'm guessin' you've been havin' just as much fun?"

"As if you need to ask, Tay," Shantae confirmed. "I went on an adventure to the Thimble Canyon with Bolo while you were with Sky and Twitch, and boy was it a trip to remember…"

"That's what I figured… I was gonna ask Bolo if he had any involvement in your adventure in our time apart, but he caught me off-guard when he uh… revealed… er…"

"…That I told him you and I kissed?" Shantae finished for him, causing both of their hearts to quicken their beats to the point where at least one of them risked an artery bursting from the sudden onset of situational anxiety.

"Y-yeah. Why…? What… brought you to tell him that?"

"It wasn't so much that I told him outright…"

"Oh?"

"Y-yeah… it was more that he kinda-sorta found out…"

"How?"

"About that… S-so, don't hate me for this, but uh…" Shantae nervously paused, just about ready to explode with shame at the embarrassing detail she was about to reveal as her voice wavered. "I… may have… kinda-sorta accidentally spilled the beans to Risky Boots when Bolo and I ran into her in the Thimble Canyon…" At that, Tay's blood ran cold in his veins as he momentarily mentally blanked out of reality. Did he really just hear what he thought he heard? Did Shantae really just admit to exposing the details of one of the most controversial moments between them to Risky Boots, their mutually shared worst enemy of all people?

"…Wha…? How…? Huh? Why?" he asked in rapid-fire form as his full attention snapped directly to his ally. As an observable direct result, Shantae's eyes lowered to the dock she and her partner were sitting on. "Actually, no wait; you ran int' Risky Boots again!?"

"Yeah, and I fought her, too. But she ran away before I could take her down. Anyway, she was teasing me about all the rumors she heard about us," the flustered half-genie explained. "And then she kept egging me on to the point where she brought up the Kitschy Quilt Desert again. I thought she was gonna mention what happened between you and me there, but I got so scared of her blurting it out that I… wound up doing just that… and Bolo was right there to hear it… so yeah, that's how he found out…" Tayshan, upon hearing this news, went silent again as a fresh new wave of discomfiture crashed down on him like a truck-sized bucket of ice. Breathing a heavy sigh high into the air, he scratched his head in moderate chagrin as he refocused his eyes to the ocean ahead once more.

"…Aw, man…" he groaned, utterly lost for words on the harrowing revelation.

"I know, I shouldn't have said anything, but I totally panicked," she further explained herself. "If I could take it all back and make it so I never even thought to mention our kiss to her, I would. Believe me, Tayshan," she added, sensing the discomfort he'd been exhibiting.

"…Well…" he hesitantly spoke, still uncertain of what to say. "It… There ain't nothin' we can do about it now. Shoot…" he lamented. "That's… just… fantastic…" With that, he let out another heavy sigh as his mind nearly began to race with thoughts regarding what sort of nefarious debauchery Risky could perpetrate with such sensitive information. Before he let it overwhelm him, however, he shook his head to clear his mind before changing the subject. "So, what about Bolo? Did he ask about it?"

"Yeah, and after he did, he and I had a talk about the details. I didn't initially want to talk about it, but I figured that, since he heard, I might as well have come clean. I guess at that point, it was a similar thing to what brought you to tell Sky and Twitch," she revealed, upping the ante as Tay flinched in shock. "I… just wanted to get it off my chest and get a second opinion because, even if we ignore that Risky found out, I was still completely confused about where you and I were at after the other night."

"F-fair enough…" he hesitantly acknowledged. "I still can't believe that even Pirate Girl knows now… I sure hope the chills I'm gettin' up my spine are coincidental or because it's cold out here…" he stated, revealing that he, for some strange reason, felt an ominous vibe overtake him for a moment. "As for why I told Sky an' Twitch… Well, I… was also lookin' for a second opinion from Sky. As for Twitch, I figured I'd continue bein' honest about everything that happens between me an' y'all instead o' keepin' things under wraps like I did before… I kept thinkin' about what a mess I made last time, an' I couldn't stomach the idea o' keepin' her in the dark with the possibility of her findin' out later. That's twisted t' say, I know, but that last conversation on Prickle Stitch Valley left an impression on me."

"No, no, I understand completely, Tay. That must've been really scary, either way," Shantae acknowledged. "Still, I'm glad to see you're taking your lessons to heart. I… can also see why you'd let them know what happened."

"You can?"

"Yeah. I've… had a lot of time to think about it after our not-so-successful talk the other night, and… well… based on what Sky told me, it seems like we were both struggling with how to process it for ourselves. That kiss still feels like it could've just been a wild fever dream for me, if I'm gonna outright admit it. Like, I know it happened, but it's like I can't bring myself to believe it happened. It's so surreal…"

"Took the words right out o' my mouth, Shantae," Tayshan agreed, a flurry of butterflies erupting in his abdomen.

"So we're on the same page there, at least. Good… and… I-I think, since we've both had some practice through talking to other people about it, maybe we could… y'know, try again? With uh… with clarifying some things between us, so we don't have to feel so weird about what happened…"

"I couldn't agree more," Tay replied, finally turning his head to face Shantae again as she continued to gaze into the opaque distance of the ocean. "I was kinda hopin' we'd get t' do that, but I… I didn't want t' rush it an' make things worse than I already did."

"I get it, Tay. I do," she assured, taking a deep breath and finally returning his gaze, though she couldn't help but notice the condition of his face. She chose, however, not to acknowledge his facial scars in that moment, as she was more concerned with reestablishing her bond with her extraterrestrial sidekick and friend. "So… here we are. I'm not mad anymore, you don't seem too upset yourself, and I think we've waited long enough to clear the air."

"You speak the truth," Tay concurred with a nod. "In that case, where do we begin?"

"We'll be here for a while, I'm sure, so we can pick it up just about anywhere. I've got a ton of questions I want to ask anyway, but I know what to ask first… or at least, I think I do. So, why don't we start with…" Shantae began as the dynamic duo we'd grown so familiar with started the process of reconciling with one another. All things considered about the nature of their very long, emotional conversation, I'd thought it better to let them have this particular discussion in private… without prying eyes. Now, I get it that you might not be happy with that decision, but trust me; it's for the best. When we return, we will see just how much success our favorite half-genie and her star-crossed adventuring partner had with smoothing things over. In the meantime, reader, as I always say: Sit tight, eat right, sleep at night, wake up bright, and stay tuned! …Okay, maybe I don't always say most of that, but you get the point. Anyway, see ya soon!


	16. Restless Reconnaissance

Chapter 10: Restless Reconnaissance

LOCATION: YARNBALL HEIGHTS TOWN RUINS, YARNBALL HEIGHTS, SEQUIN LAND

DATE: SEPTEMBER 25TH, 16 P.G.F.

TIME: 1517 HOURS

Alllllrighty now! Welcome back to the stage of… recent events past! I hope I haven't kept you waiting too long after such a brazen, unceremonious, and dramatic cliffhanger. And I know what you're gonna say: I'm a jerk for giving you such richly-detailed, succulently juicy accounts of events here while keeping you pretty much in the dark everywhere else. Well, reader, to that I say… Nothing! Because it's true. But we're stuck together through this wild ride, so deal with it. Anyhow, you may be alarmed to see the name of a never-before-seen location in the title up there, and you're definitely asking, 'What the heck is a Yarnball Heights?', in addition to a litany of other pressing inquiries that I just love leaving you with. Alas, you will find your answers very cryptically hidden within the events of the tale I have to share with you (as usual). As such, without forcing you to strain your eyes as you lazily skim through this paragraph (kudos to you if you actually read this line), wondering when the action starts, we begin smack-dab in the middle of yet another perilous journey braved by none other than the world-famous Half-Genie Hero and her not-so-world-famous Kinda-Sorta-Alien Sidekick.

"Why in the world would you go an' do that!?" the terrified soldier known most commonly as Tayshan, dressed in an entirely black and dark gray variant of his usual outfit, asked in a notable panic. As it appeared, he'd been frantically sprinting through the smoldering, rocky, scattered remains of what used to be a bustling town street in broad daylight while a group of assailants hounded them from the air with a mixture of guns, grenade launchers, and flamethrowers. The enemies in question were indiscriminately bathing the defenseless mountaintop municipality in flames, explosions, and gunfire with no intent to let up.

"Don't blame me! I didn't think they'd actually use those bomb-flinger things in such close quarters!" Shantae, dressed in an uncommon sapphire blue variant of her usual dancer costume, complained as she held on tight. What do I mean by that, you ask? Well, I'll tell you. She'd been clinging to her comrade like a koala as she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist while he continued to dash along, dodging a spray of gunfire aimed from behind. "I also didn't think my Bubble would've worked THAT well against those rockets!"

"They're called grenade launchers for a reason! That's why I said not t' try an' provoke them Tinkerbats int' usin' em! An' homegirl, those rockets blew up half the neighborhood we were in! It didn't help that your shield sent them flyin' back at the exact same speed, only for them t' completely annihilate that entire shoppin' district!"

"I get it by now, Tay! I won't use my Bubble to block the rockets unless we're in a safe spot! But what was I supposed to do!? They had us surrounded with those things!"

"The plan was supposed t' be t' lure them out o' the area t' avoid damagin' the buildings! I told you how much destruction they could cause! Why would you think it was a good idea t' challenge 'em straight-up instead o' tryin' t' draw 'em out!?"

"Well, you saw how they were holding those defenseless civilians hostage! I figured we'd take them out before they got the chance to-! Tay, look out!" Shantae warned in a sudden state of peril as she turned and pointed at a propeller-adorned Tinkerbat aiming a rocket launcher at them. "Now they're trying to blow US up!"

"Somethin' I'm honestly surprised they're only tryin' now, but I hear you!" Tay affirmed, picking up the pace of his mad dash as he remained determined to keep himself and his teacher in one piece by the end of this horrifically deadly encounter. "Gah, my legs are burnin' up…!"

"Remember what I taught you about your magic! Use the stress to your advantage! I'll try to buy us some time!" the half-genie advised, keeping a close eye on the explosive-wielding assassins trying to take them out. She'd additionally tried taking out some of the Tinkerbats hounding them with fireballs, but the haphazard, unsteady position she was in while serving as Tayshan's humanoid backpack severely impacted her aim. She threw a good five or six fireballs, clinging onto her teammate with one arm while casting fire spells with the other. She'd only managed to graze one of the notorious creatures, though it did not deter them from pursuing their targets through the utterly bombed-out mountaintop city of Yarnball Heights. "Darn it! I keep missing!"

"Then I'm goin' all out! Haaaaah!" the frantic soldier hollered, putting every bit of his focus into running away as hard and as fast as he possibly could. Per his teacher's instruction, Tay focused all of his frustration with the compromising predicament on his efforts to escape so that he and Shantae could live to fight another day. As one might predict by this point, his entire body was suddenly set alight with that same arcane glow as his speed saw a notable increase.

"That's it! Good! Keep it up before-! Oh, no! He's about to fire the rocket!" Shantae panicked again, pausing her counterattack to brace for impact. Hearing this loud and clear, Tay urgently and involuntarily channeled more of his energy into his legs, speeding up to the point where his sprint could very well rival that of a cheetah. However, even at top speed, no human has ever outrun a jet-propelled, weaponized rocket… no matter how much magic they have packed inside them. With a sudden *FWOOSH*, the merciless minion of Risky Boots fired the explosive directly at them.

"Darn it, no, no, no, NO!" Tay panicked yet again as he bolted with all his might while he carried an equally horrified Shantae on his back. But you see, the funny thing about trying to run away from a group of murderous, weapons of mass destruction-wielding madmen… er, mad-bat creatures of indescribable species on the summit of a mountain, is this: You eventually (and very quickly) run out of space to attempt to escape. As such, Tay found himself quickly approaching the edge of the summit after sprinting past a few more emptied-out buildings that soon found themselves either coated in rampaging flames or blown to smithereens by a volley of launched grenades. Just as Tay almost reached the edge of the snow-bathed mountain summit, the rocket hit the ground with a massively forceful **_*KABOOM*_** right behind them. "Waaaaahahahaaaa!" Tay screamed in absolute terror, the aftershock of the blast flinging him (and by extension, Shantae) forward and over the mountainside, where there existed nothing but a steep, slippery, bumpy, snow-blanketed ride down.

"I got this! Just hang on!" Shantae commanded as she watched Tay inadvertently swan dive over the edge of the mountain. Thinking on instinct alone, however, Shantae made a most unusual move to ensure hers and her sidekick's survival. That move, you might ask? Well, get this: She planted her knees into Tayshan's back as he inadvertently practiced his air-to-ground belly-flop technique. She subsequently moved to pull his head back so that he was looking upward before grasping his wrists and pulling his arms backward. She additionally pushed her weight forward, forcing Tay's upper body forward as well. All of this, while they were in midair. However, by the time she finished her impromptu safety measure, Tayshan had landed chest-first onto the smooth, frigid ski slope of a mountainside with a frightening *THUMP* and began sliding down the mountainside swift as a two-person avalanche. As you might realize now, Shantae kept his outstretched arms in her grasp as they zoomed toward the base of the mountain with a horde of heavily-armed Tinkerbats in hot pursuit.

"Agh! W-What is this!? Why are you usin' me as a toboggan!? No, wait, HOW are you usin' me as a toboggan!?" he asked, none too pleased with his newest role as Shantae's latest method of transportation. "This doesn't make any sense!" He also may have found it a tad ludicrous that such an unusual arrangement was even possible, but... I digress.

"It's the fastest way down! I've got tons of recent experience with this sort of thing, so I'll guide us to safety in no time! Trust and believe, Tay!" she assured, stealing one of his signature statements while suddenly pulling his arms to the left to steer him. Just as she did so, the duo whizzed past a row of pine trees that initially stood directly in their way. Meanwhile, that same group of Tinkerbats continued to relentlessly give chase, setting forth bursts of incinerating fire and blasting off barrages of gun rounds in their unforgiving rampage. This, of course, did not go unnoticed by Shantae, who'd committed to yanking her partner's arms in every which way to have him avoid the gunshots, fire blasts, and environmental hazards as they barreled down the perilous mountainside.

"Gaaah! You have no idea how cold this is!" the human sled complained.

"Well, it IS snow and ice we're on, so it kinda comes with the weather around these parts!"

"Darn it, that's not what I meant!" Tay protested, revealing a more… metaphorical reason he made his previous statement. "This is cold because-!"

"Hyaah!" Shantae shouted, suddenly yanking the poor guy's arms to the right to steer him aside to avoid a spray of bullets as they headed for what looked like a ramp made of snow.

"Agh! No, wait! How are we supposed t'-!?" Tay attempted to ask before he found himself launched off the naturally-formed snowbank. "Waaaaaaaah!"

"Woo-hoo!" the invigorated half-genie cheered, victoriously pumping a fist high into the air as she revealed just how much fun she was having being hunted down by her arch enemy's Tinkerbats while using one of her best friends as a bobsled. She even spiced up her daring feat by striking a sassy pose before they descended back onto the icy landscape, following up by zig-zagging her human toboggan through a series of crags and more pine trees while doing her best to avoid the continuous sprays of marbles and fire from above.

"Why is this even a-!?" Tay tried to ask before being plowed in the face by a conveniently placed snowman, the *PWOPH* of an impact knocking him for a loop as Shantae continued trying to rip his arms off to steer him clear of the persistent dangers in their path. "Oww!"

"Sorry, Tay! Never thought anyone would get the idea to place snowmen here! There's a bunch more of 'em in our way, too!" Shantae warned, carefully letting go of one of her comrade's wrists to charge up a fireball before launching it forward as hard as she could. The projectile immolated an incoming snowman and melted it into an icy puddle… that Tay wound up skidding right over, thus INCREASING the speed at which they rode down the mountain. "Now we're talking!" the half-genie cheered as she pulled Tay's arms to the right to veer past a giant, round ash gray boulder at just the moment a pursuing Tinkerbat got the bright idea to shoot grenade launcher round at it while the others pressed on with trying to incinerate or otherwise neutralize their targets. The sudden *BOOM* of the round against the sturdy surface of the boulder sent it immediately barreling down toward our spoonerific duo. The dense, heavy crashes of the boulder as it rolled quickly tipped Shantae off that she and her friend were still in grave danger. As such, she turned her head to see that the boulder was gaining on them with the potential to squish them flat if she didn't do something.

"Oh, no! A boulder AND an avalanche!?" she shouted, frightened beyond belief at the gargantuan stone as it closed in on them. However, she also noticed that the ruckus caused by the deadly scuffle with Risky's minions triggered a devastating snow slide that came sweeping through the mountainside without regard for who or what was in its path. "Tay, we're gonna have to pick it up!"

"Well, what exactly am I supposed t' do in this position!?" he complained, still at his mentor's mercy as he subconsciously hoped to the high heavens that he wouldn't suffer a debilitating case of frostbite in the event that they survived. He needn't ask, however, as Shantae was already on the job thinking up some harebrained, unfeasible method of saving their butts. Picking up on the strategy she'd discovered a second ago, she began intentionally steering Tayshan toward a series of snowmen in their path, foisting fireballs at them to melt them into ice puddles. With each successive completion of her strategy, Tay's speed increased just enough to continue staying ahead of the steadily approaching avalanche. The giant bouncing boulder, however, was a different story. Another Tinkerbat with a rocket launcher fired another round with the intent to turn the duo into a scattered mass of clothing fabrics and hair. However, the boulder took the full force of the impact, the *KABOOM* ringing loudly enough that anyone within a 20-mile radius could've potentially been deafened by it. Nevertheless, the boulder was flung forward at such a speed that it would put the fastest race car to shame. "That don't sound go-! Shantae, wait! There's a giant gap ahead!" Tay panicked, his sheer, unadulterated terror spiking so high that, if it was tangible, it would've dwarfed the mountain they were on.

"Shoot! Looks like we're in for it now!" she announced, seeming hardly deterred by the imminent threats they faced. "Thankfully, there's another rounded snowbank up ahead!" she added, yanking her teammate's arms up to force him to hop over a pile of gravel before yanking them in just about every other direction to have him dodge more trees, another spray of bullets, and a stack of misplaced, snow-frosted logs. Through this all, however, Tay heard Shantae's comment, which yielded no form of comfort for him.

"No, wait! Do we have t' jump again!?"

"Yeah! We don't have a choice if we want to survive!" she answered though her focus was squarely aimed at the approaching chasm they were beelining toward. Immediately visible was the fact that this chasm was wide enough that, unless someone had a death wish and maybe the ability to fly, there would be no conceivable method of actually clearing the gap. This much, Shantae knew. And that knowledge nearly frightened her stiff until she saw what looked like a massive shuttle loop made entirely of ice to the far left of the snowbank she was originally aiming to use to clear the gigantic ravine. In the few seconds she had before she committed to her final decision in that moment, she took note of one more series of snowmen in the path leading up to the loop, in addition to the larger ramp presented at the other end of it. While this loop looked promising to her, she didn't want to risk altering her game plan so drastically and on such short notice that she'd wind up getting herself and Tayshan killed. However, the decision was made for her when that boulder from earlier flew high over them and smashed into the snowbank, obliterating it in a glorious splash of snowflakes. "Oh, no! Change of plans!" Shantae shouted, tugging the unfortunate soldier's arms all the way to the left.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow! What are you tryin' t' do!?" Tay asked in a healthy mix of panic and pain, at this point unaware of his teacher's course of action.

"It's best not to ask right now, Tay, because I'm not even sure this is gonna work!"

"What!?" Tay attempted to ask, distraught at the mere vocalization of her uncertainty of their survival as she pulled his arms upward and to the right to dodge one more pile of jagged rocks and another fire blast from the Tinkerbats as they remained safe in the air while also remaining hot on the adventurers' tails. Forced to pay this little mind, however, the critical life-or-death moment of the century came at the duo like a punch thrown at the speed of light. Undeterred, however, Shantae did her best to manage the situation as it unfolded. Thinking as quickly as she could, she let go of both of Tay's arms, charging up two fiery projectiles and hastily flinging them forward at the nine juxtaposed snowmen apparently guarding the entrance to the shuttle loop, following up with a third immediately after. With a couple of satisfying *PWOSH* sounds, Shantae hit her marks by melting three of the nine snowmen, clearing a wide enough path for them to slide past the remaining six of them.

"It's all or nothing, Tayshan, so prepare for the ride of your life! Haaaaaah!" she valiantly declared, leaning forward with all her might she gripped Tay's arms hard enough that she was nearly cutting off the circulation in them in the wake of her own mounting anticipation for what was to come.

"Gwaaaaaaaaah!" Tay joined Shantae in screaming (more out of unspeakable terror than anything related to being excited about potentially dying) as he and his partner slid over the ice puddles, tripling their speed as he suddenly felt the sub-zero texture of the shuttle loop press heavy into his chest. In a most unbelievable turn of events, Shantae and Tayshan rode all the way into the humongous loop as the group of flying Tinkerbats and the avalanche swept through the perilous landscape. With the speed that felt like that of two sailfish, three cheetahs, and a falcon (oh yeah; sea, land, AND air) combined, the duo actually cleared the loop! However, the most daunting part of this ill-advised, ill-planned, and just plain ill stunt was yet to come. At roughly the same speed the duo traveled at to get through the loop, they shot up the ramp that immediately followed, flinging the two of them high, high, HIGH into the air with a most ambient *FWOOSH* just as the avalanche, accompanied by a couple flamethrowers, completely destroyed the shuttle loop as hundreds of thousands of gallons (or, hundreds of kiloliters in case you were a fan of the metric system) copiously poured into the deep, dark, smoke skull-spewing trench below.

"We've got this, Tay! We're almost there!" Shantae cheered, clinging onto her sidekick for dear life as she wrapped her arms and legs around his torso as though she were trying to suffocate him. "Oh, no…! Oh, goodness…! Ohh, I think I'm gonna be sick…!" she whispered, her voice wavering intensely as she clung to her friend. Unfortunately for our favorite half-genie, the instant she looked down to inspect the progress of her daring maneuver, her crippling fear of heights set in like the boulder that fell deep into the abyss she and Tay were in progress of sailing over.

Tay, having no choice but to watch as he and Shantae pretended to be professional B.A.S.E. jumpers without parachutes, felt every molecule in his body ignite with the intensity of a thousand neutron star explosions as he felt the crushing anxiety sink in. Involuntarily, everything slowed to a crawl in that same pulse-pounding way it always did when he found himself in serious trouble. This exacerbated the debilitating sense of dread he felt in that moment, as seconds ostensibly turned into minutes. And in that moment, Tay immediately processed two things. The first thing was that if they didn't make it, he and Shantae were as good as dead. No questions or doubts about that. The second thing was that if they DID make it by some unfathomable miracle, the sheer height they'd be descending from would most certainly cave his chest in (at best; at worst, his entire body would be obliterated) if the plan was to have him land flat on his stomach. There'd be nothing to save him from that. And that thought nearly sent him into a world of anticipatory torture before a sparkling glimmer caught his eye from his peripheral vision.

Turning his head toward the glow, he noticed a row of gems directly in their path that hovered at just the correct angle that they seemed to trail over to the other side of the ravine. However, he also noticed a floating sheet of crystallized, rainbow-colored ice that, for all intents and purposes, seemed to be shaped like a board hovering just ahead. At the mere thought of it, Tay reached for the ice sheet, his hands immediately absorbing the chilly texture of the foreign object just before and Shantae began losing altitude. Following the same instinct, Tay stretched his arms outward while jutting his hips forward, board in hand, while arching his back. He followed up by quickly swinging his legs upward to perform a last-minute gymnastic backflip to orient himself as he hurriedly placed the board under his feet before bending his knees at such an angle that he could conceivably (read: hopefully) absorb the shock of the landing while maintaining enough momentum to keep their hopes of escaping alive… while also keeping them alive in general. And you probably thought up to this point that there'd be no way the soldier would be able to use gymnastics as a survival skill. Go figure, because I thought the exact same thing.

"Here goes everything…!" Tay managed to mutter to himself as he grappled with the sense of absolute, nigh-tangible dread that nearly paralyzed him as he did his best to position his feet in the appropriate positions on the board as he and Shantae rapidly descended toward the ground below. While some of his dread was relieved by the fact that they made it, the vast majority of it remained due to the fact that, even after the impossible stunt was completed, they still had the remainder of the mountain to traverse before they could consider themselves safe.

"Huh…?" Shantae grunted in wonder, bearing witness to the impromptu snowboarding tricks her partner had employed while her grip on him remained strong as a vice. Astounded, she wordlessly watched on, taking full notice of the bursting white light emitting from his form as he, with lightning-quick reflexes (from her perspective) oriented himself to where he was set to land on the other side of the chasm with a strange, crystalline snowboard-like block of ice under his boots. "Whoa…! How…?" she attempted to ask, though the situation at hand prevented her from even drumming up the words necessary to formulate the question. Before too long, however, the satisfying *PWOPH* of the snowboard on the mountainside shook both of them out of their respective stupors as they immediately resumed sliding down the remainder of the mountain as Tay instinctively and momentarily stretched his hands toward the ground to keep from losing his balance. "Tay! How…? How the heck did you pull that off!? That was incredible!"

"I wish I had an answer, homegirl, but the most important thing is that we still ain't safe!" he warned, glancing back to notice that, while the avalanche was more or less halted by the ravine they'd just crossed, there were still Tinkerbats left to deal with. "Think you can take 'em out while I brush up on my amateur snowboardin' skills?"

"I'll try, but it's gonna be a challenge to shoot them down with my magic while we're speeding down this mountain!"

"In that case, maybe you can use my gun?" he suggested, gesturing a hand toward the silver pistol in his holster as he leaned forward to steer himself in between a pair of pine trees that he soon zoomed by while narrowly avoiding being clotheslined by low-hanging branches. "It ain't the best option, but maybe it'll at least make it easier for you t' return fire!"

"I'm still no good at handling that thing, but if that's the only alternative, then I'll see what I can do!" she uncertainly agreed, using one hand to grab for the pistol while her other arm remained wrapped securely around the soldier's neck. Successfully grabbing the firearm, Shantae turned her attention back toward the Tinkerbats that were already in the process of unleashing a hailstorm of bullets upon them. Understanding the obvious weaknesses of her partner's signature weapon, she charged a bit of her magic into her hand as she stabilized her position before stretching out her arm to aim the gun at their adversaries. "Gotta stay focused…!" she encouraged herself, doing her best to steady her aim while her partner got to work dodging all manner of incoming hazards that included boulders, more pine trees, and the occasional snowbank he did his best to avoid while struggling to keep his balance. Just as Tay was rounding a curve to avoid a particularly huge snowbank, however, a Tinkerbat pushed forward and pointed its flamethrower at the duo. The mere sight of the foul creature fixing up to roast the duo alive was all the motivation the half-genie needed to take action.

"Oh, no you don't! Eat THIS!" Shantae shouted, firing her first round with a startling *BANG*. The recoil from the weapon nearly sent it flying out of her hand, though the magic she preemptively charged into it helped her to maintain her grip. Fortunately for her, the round she discharged managed to strike the Tinkerbat's fuel tank as it attempted to dodge her shot. Immediately, the dastardly minion's weapon ignited, causing it and some of its squadmates to attempt to put the blaze out before it spread to its propeller pack. This, however, did nothing to deter the rest of the group, armed with rifles, from doggedly chasing them down as they fired another volley of flashing marbles at the duo. Keeping her resolve strong, Shantae focused more of her energy into her hand to make up for her lack of experience wielding such an unusual handgun as she fired a volley of her own to defend their position.

"Shoot!" Tay cursed, quickly taking notice of the lethal precipitation as he glanced back while weaving through a field of stone piles and lumps. "Whohawhoa!" he bellowed, nearly losing his balance as a direct result of letting himself get distracted. Worse yet, however, was that as he focused his efforts on stabilizing himself on the makeshift snowboard, a series of pitfalls and gaps began to yield yet another terrifying threat to their safety. Forced to improvise further in the dire straits he and Shantae found themselves in, he did his best to avoid them as he also began a practice of performing small hops to clear the environmental traps as they rapidly appeared with increasing frequency. "Shantae, are you havin' any luck back there?"

"Barely!" she replied, still firing off rounds as accurately as she could. She'd managed to strike down one or two Tinkerbats, though a swarm of at least six more were still hounding them like starving hawks on unsuspecting squirrels. "This gun is giving me a run for my money with marksmanship! I don't know how you do it with this thing!" she further complained as she fired another shot that struck the propeller pack of an additional Tinkerbat, sending it crashing into another one and eliminating both of them. "On the bright side, there's only two more le-! Tay, look out!"

"Wha-? WHOA!" the startled soldier yelled, glancing back once more to notice that one of the four remaining Tinkerbats, wielding a grenade launcher, fired a round at them. Tay, forced to brainstorm one more time, veered hard to his right, nearly toppling over as the *BOOM* of the grenade's impact threw him off-kilter. "No, no, no! Darn it!" He hurriedly and instinctively held his hands out toward the ground as he attempted to regain his balance.

"Tay, whatever you do, don't-! Wah! D-don't fall!" Shantae encouraged, clinging tightly to his back for dear life. Hearing her humble request, Tay managed to push himself back into a stable position, though this did not come without him inadvertently zigzagging as he also did his best to avoid falling backward. As if things couldn't get better, however, the minute he steadied himself was the minute he'd rapidly been on a one-way crash course with a snowbank conveniently shaped like a ramp hanging at the precipice of another snowy abyss straight ahead.

"Ohh, noooooooo!" the nearly petrified serviceman panicked as he helplessly watched himself cruise right onto the ramp. Within a second, the duo was flung through the air with another emphatic *fwoosh*, launched high and far over the second major gap in the unintentional snowboarding course. "Aaaaaagh!" Tay further screamed in sheer, unadulterated horror as his entire body rushed with a mix of adrenaline and magic.

"Tayshan, stop screaming!" Shantae demanded, still shooting away as she continued to keep her grip as tight as she could. "There's no reason to lose it! We're almost don-! OH MY GOSH, NO! Waaaahahaaaah!" she immediately contradicted herself as soon as she looked down, instinctively squeezing him harder.

"What's the matter!? You sound scared!" Tay remarked, evidently halting his fit of panicking just long enough to witness his teammate eating her own words.

"Shut up! No I'm not!" she sheepishly denied, just a tad embarrassed about having been called out as they began plummeting toward the next section. Two of the remaining Tinkerbats attempted to pick them off in midair, prompting Shantae to summon a Bubble around them just before the spray of rounds struck them.

"Thanks for the reassurance, boss!" he shot back with a slight grin, bracing himself for impact once more. "How's everything look from the back? I'm noticin' the bubble you put up!"

"They almost got us, but I saw them shooting just in time! There's only a couple left! I'm gonna try to take the rest of them down right… about… Now!" she proclaimed, dispersing her Bubble the very instant Tay's icy snowboard hit the ground with another resounding *PWOPH*. However, the second impact with the ground from such a high altitude broke a chunk of the board off with a shocking *CRACK*.

"Oh, shoot! This ice board just snapped!" Tay warned, hurriedly shuffling his feet to reorient on the narrowed-down ice plank. "I don't know how long we can keep this up!"

"Heard! I'll get 'em!" Shantae assured, carefully shifting her position to where she was hanging from the soldier's back by way of her legs wrapping around his waist while an arm was secured across his collarbone. She soon turned, firearm at the ready, looking to take out the final few Tinkerbats; one of which fired another grenade from its grenade launcher at them. "Tay, look out! Another bomb!"

"That one's still up there, huh? Darn…!" he acknowledged as he hopped over a series of rocky potholes and swerved past a couple more trees. Before he could even get the chance to turn and inspect the positions of their enemies, the *BOOM* of the grenade launcher's round tipped him off that it struck either a boulder or a tree behind them. The missed shot, however, was followed by another fusillade of bullets that Shantae blocked again with another quick, seconds-long summoning of her Bubble. As soon as she deactivated the shield the second time, she fired a spray of haphazard rounds of her own while Tay continued to hop, slice, hook, and dodge around a smorgasbord of other obstacles.

As one might've expected, the heroine's aim suffered immensely because of the lack of steadiness in her partner's movements in conjunction with her inexperience and the gun's obnoxious recoil. She had to have fired off at least thirty rounds in alarmingly inaccurate succession, hoping that at least one round would hit its mark before the Tinkerbats mounted another offensive. Hearing every *BANG* of an impact, Tay wondered just how much progress his team leader made with eliminating just four Tinkerbats while using enough ammunition to fill seven or eight magazines of the Desert Eagle.

"Goodness, homegirl, are you alright with that thing!?"

"Yeah! I got 'em!" she proudly proclaimed, turning her focus forward after watching the remaining minions spin out of control and collide with one another before hurtling away to a smoky oblivion.

"I'm glad you did, but it sounds t' me like you need some serious target practice!" Tay remarked, his ears ringing like someone blew an exploding whistle directly into them.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," she curtly acknowledged. "Just be glad I-!" she was about to counter before a sudden *SNAP* stopped her in her tracks. "Huh? What was that?"

"What the heck!? No, no, no, no, NO, NOOO!" Tay shouted, suddenly going from riding on an impossibly thin, ice-crafted snowboard to running on his own two feet down the remainder of the mountain at a speed much to fast for his feet to carry him. Before he and Shantae knew it (and before he could prove himself even remotely capable of running down a steep, slippery mountainside), he slipped and fell forward, landing right onto his stomach. Shantae, witnessing Tay's loss of balance, quickly shifted to where her knees were planted in his back and one hand was latching onto one of his wrists while his arm was stretched back. "This again!? Awaaagh!"

"Looks like it's up to me to make sure we finish strong!" the half-genie proclaimed, taking charge as best as she could, grabbing Tay's other wrist while she was still holding his gun. "Don't worry, Tay! I got it!" Back in Toboggan mode and noticing the mountain's steep nature starting to steadily come to a flat, even plateau, Shantae made sure to scout the incoming hazards as they either approached or whizzed past them to see what she could do to bring the situation back under control.

Unfortunately for our most diligent heroes, however, this opportunity would come in a manner neither one of them could have ever hoped to expect. They barreled right through a smorgasbord of trees and boulders that, due to the sheer density and quantity of them, clouded their line of sight as they charged into the thick of it all.

"Yikes! Whoa, Whowaawaaa!" the astonished half-genie screamed as she began a rather unorthodox pattern of yanking her human toboggan's arms in every which way (yet again) in order to guide him around the daunting plethora of pine trees, boulders, rock embankments, and pitfalls. Just as I'm implying, this involved Shantae doing a ton of last-second maneuvering that would cause Tay to either swerve chaotically around a rapid succession of giant rocks and trees or hop over rock piles and ditches while he continued to give his best impression of a penguin. It probably didn't help that he was also unable to stop himself from eating copious amounts of snow, dirt, and ice as Shantae continued to use him as a method of transportation down the mountain. Making matters even more frightening was the series of VERY close calls and near-misses the duo sustained as the young woman did her best to avoid having her partner slam headfirst into a tree trunk or a boulder.

"Aagh, oww! You're gonna rip my arms out o' their sock-! Gwaaaaaagh!" Tay tried to complain as Shantae led him through the stony woods and into a clearing. He was, of course, made to follow the trend of being cut off in the wake of a horrifying incoming obstacle. The culprit this time? Another ramp! Even better, it had a snowman set up right in front of it. Recognizing it as a golden opportunity, Shantae temporarily let go of one of Tay's wrists just long enough to fling a fireball at it to melt it into a speed-boosting ice puddle. The moment-defining *PWOOSH* of the fireball against the icy, flaky texture of the unusual mountain decoration motivated her to push forward, leaning all the way forward as she used her partner's arms to make him do the same. "No, Shantae, wait! We don't even know what's on the-!" Tay tried to object, though his words would come just a moment too late. With one more glorious *FWOOSH*, the duo was sent on a beeline through the air toward what looked like the area base of the mountain. It seemed they were home free. No more Tinkerbats were chasing them. The avalanche previously chasing them seemed to have settled. There was definitely NOTHING AT ALL to worry about now…

…Only, you and I both know better than that, reader. And, as a reward for you accurately guessing that something else was bound to go miserably wrong, you get to find out exactly what happened! So, as Shantae and Tayshan soared through the air like birds learning to fly, all seemed well enough. At least, if one didn't account for the fact that the base of the mountain was coated all over with ice stalagmites of varying sizes, but with equal potential to impale anyone unlucky enough to land on them from… say, maybe at least forty feet above, like the rapidly-descending height our heroic duo found themselves at?

On top of that, even if they were to somehow avoid landing on the frosty spikes ready to penetrate them, just beyond the spikes was an ice-covered lake that would've kept them sliding for far longer than they needed to be. And man, did that not look promising, considering the wide variety of cracks in the ice coating the surface of the monumental body of water just ahead that signified that it was highly unstable. Reading every bit of this frigid danger from above, Shantae knew they'd not get out of this one scot-free. Tayshan knew, however, that even if they somehow avoided landing on any of the spikes, his disadvantaged position would've seen to it that every bone in his chest would've become immensely intimately familiar with his vital organs in all the wrong ways. As such, another burst of anxiety-driven magic pulsed through him again.

"Ain't tryin' t' die today…! Not like this…!" he murmured, taking advantage of the slowed-down movement of time from his perspective as he wrested his arms from his partner's grasp, flipped himself around, wrapped Shantae up in his arms as tightly as he could, and attempted to aim his landing at some form of clearing in the bed of ice spikes below. Not long after reorienting his position, he spotted a long, narrow path between two giant spike fields that seemed to lead to a nearby iceberg protruding from what could be considered the shoreline of the lake. "That's all we've got… Come on, weird magic, work for me…!" he further pleaded, spinning himself to where he was facing forward, cradling his team leader while aiming his legs downward with his knees bent to brace for impact. The imminent threat of grievous bodily injury sent the soldier's nerves into a spiraling typhoon of dread and anticipation, directly causing his body to glow white like the snow he'd already been covered in as he came closer and closer to making his daring landing.

Soon enough, and with a definitive *SMASH* of ice under the soldier's feet, he landed. Only, because they were still moving very fast, AND he landed on ice, he quickly lost his balance. Twisting his body so as to avoid landing on top of Shantae, he wound up losing his grip on her, flinging her into the air as he fell backward to and tumbled along the ice path with hardly a thing to break his fall… other than more ice.

"Waaaohoahahowww!" Shantae shrieked in panic, flailing about as she, too, was made to face the unforgiving wrath of the wintry environment. Unlike her partner, however, she landed with a *THUD* flat on her stomach before she began tumbling along the slippery ground in much the same fashion that he did. The two had been helpless to stop their horrific, unceremonious trips down the sub-zero path leading to the wall that served as the only thing standing between them and the frozen lake. Shantae was unable to even notice the slight *rip* noise that seemed to come from some part of her outfit snagging onto an icicle as she bolwed down the lane before finding herself propelled forward though the air under no power of her own. Within a few seconds, however, Tayshan slammed back-first into the wall, bringing his glorious (read: humiliating) stint as a human snow sled to an abrupt and most painful end… or, rather, it was most painful AFTER Shantae slammed into him with another *THWACK* of her chest against his face.

"Awwgh, ow!" Tayshan growled in agony as he grasped his head with both hands. Evidently, he didn't take kindly to banging the back of his head against the ice wall he'd found himself laid up against as a direct result of his partner inadvertently body slamming him.

"Ooh…! Wow, what an impact…" Shantae remarked, groggily recovering from her graceful interpretation of a frozen tumbleweed blowing down a hill as she propped herself up to where she was sitting straddled over her partner. However, as the soldier nursed his sudden headache, he glanced up at her and, in a matter of a second, went wide-eyed at what he beheld before him. In an INCREDIBLY kneejerk move, the mortified young man clasped both his hands over his comrade's chest, turning his head to the side and squinting one eye shut in the process. "Gah…! Hey! What do you think you're-!?" Shantae shouted as she instinctively raised her hands to his wrists, ready to give him a most heinous earful for touching her while getting ready to shove his hands away.

"Sorry, homegirl, I ain't mean it like that, but I should probably let you know that uh… your… er…" he stammered, unable to find the right words to explain himself for yet another repeat of one of his most common offenses against the opposite gender since he'd arrived in Sequin Land. However (and luckily for him), Shantae noticed the heavily avoidant, blushing look on his face (complete with the squinted eye that communicated that he was trying to keep from seeing something he wasn't supposed to) and, after a brief period of silent context clue gathering, she breathed a heavy, frustrated sigh as she dropped her hands. "…Lemme guess: My top came loose… didn't it?"

"More like it snapped from the back an' was about t' fall off…" Tay sheepishly corrected, opening his eye just a bit as he turned his head toward her while keeping his hands completely still. He of course made sure to keep his eyes strictly aimed at his partner's face.

"What!? Are you serious!?" she asked most rhetorically as she turned her head around and glanced to see that, as her sidekick pointed out, the top piece of her costume had been torn beyond repair in the back, and the only thing saving her from complete and total embarrassment… was her partner's hands firmly pressing onto her. "Aw, come on! Darn it! This sort of thing never happens to me! Why now!?"

"…I'm just… gonna refrain from askin' the question o' how you avoided wardrobe malfunctions like this until now an' politely offer you the shirt off my back instead," he hesitantly commented as he remained frozen in place… situationally, of course. Not actually frozen because they were in some random, frosty wasteland. "That is, unless you brought an emergency change o' clothes for when accidents like this happen…?"

"No…" she morosely droned, disappointed as she shifted her hands to where she was holding her top by the front, allowing the soldier to remove his hands from her. "Like I said, this never usually happens. My outfits are usually much more durable than this."

"Right…" he acknowledged, if not somewhat incredulously as he quickly sat up and got set to remove his snow-drenched tank top. "Here. Take this."

"Are you sure? I mean, I appreciate it, but it's freezing out here. I'd feel horrible taking the only thing you had to cover your upper body with; especially in conditions like this…"

"I already had t' let go of a shirt for the same reason an' in a similar weather conditions once before, as I've let you know, so it ain't a big deal."

"Right, you said Twitch had a problem just like this," she acknowledged, slightly put off by the reminder.

"Indeed, she did. But then, I've noticed a trend o' my shirts bein' useful in case o' situations just like this. Then again, you still have your top, unlike her in her situation at the time. Maybe you're able t' tie the back o' your top t' keep it stable?"

"A good suggestion, but I don't think that would work," she explained with a tinge of dejection. "That'd be like trying to glue together the straps of a broken bra. It won't hold the same for my size, and I wouldn't want to deal with the constant issue of retying the knot every time it started to loosen. The material in my outfits isn't meant to be stretched beyond a certain point or torn in the slightest, or else the fabrics wind up weakening beyond a point of usefulness."

"…Shoot, that's rough. Sounds like you're speakin' from experience."

"You bet I am, Tay. That's why I've always made sure my clothes are sturdy enough to venture out with. With the types of sticky situations I find myself in, I've had to replace quite a few of my costumes in my earlier days as an explorer. You've been me for a day, so you know what I mean."

"I hear you. And you're sure you don't want my shirt, considerin' your outfit wasn't so stable this time around?"

"No, no… I can't just steal a shirt from you… That'd be rude to just take comfort in someone else's clothes while they froze half-naked in a snow-covered tundra on my behalf. It's not fair to you."

"Fair or not, it seems like we only got two options," Tay explained. "Either I go topless for the remainder o' this trip, or _you_ go topless." At that, the unfortunate half-genie reeled back in surprise, her face reddening a bit at the thought.

"Smooth, Tay," she flatly and sarcastically remarked, mildly irritated by the way he pointed out the conundrum. "Buuut… Well, when you put it that way, there's hardly a reason to think about it," she admitted with a pressured sigh. "Alright, I'll borrow your shirt. I'll give it back once I'm done. I promise."

"Keep it, homegirl," he permitted, raising his hands in front of himself to emphasize his point. "If anything, stash it away in case somethin' like this happens again once we finish," he added, handing over his tank top to spare a companion total humiliation for the second time. Shantae wordlessly got Sidekick's Tank Top, making sure to wrap an arm around her chest as she did so and… before she put it on, she shot the soldier a worried, flustered glance. "Right, right. I won't look," he understood, turning his head away and pressing a hand over his eyes. "Just let me know when you're done."

"Will do…" Shantae acknowledged with another heavy, embarrassed sigh. "I'll make it as quick as humanly possible." And, as she promised, she hurriedly slipped the soldier's tank top over her head, donning it in no time flat before adjusting it to where it was appropriately covering her. "Finished!" she alerted, prompting Tay to uncover his face and look back at her.

"Hm. It's not quite your size, as we probably already knew," he observed with a raised eyebrow as he raked a finger through his beard.

"Yeah, I figured. All things considered, you're huge. Can you help me with it?" she asked, preemptively flipping her position to where she was still straddling him, but facing away. "It's a little bit of trouble reaching behind me to play around with it without some concern about how it'd fit me. It's so big."

"Good point, but you… could also try tuckin' it in, no?" he asked, caught off-guard by her suggestion and preemptive position change.

"Tay, this thing is way too long," she dryly remarked. "Tucking it in isn't going to help me at all."

"Uh… Right. O-okay, sure. Y-yeah, I gotcha," Tay nervously accepted the task, evidently not expecting his teammate to casually ask him for such an intimate favor. Then again, he also figured he should be used to getting requests of the like from her by this point, considering this was not the first time he'd been asked a favor of a similar nature. Nevertheless, he set forth to carefully move Shantae's giant ponytail aside to grab the back of her new shirt to attempt to tie the back of it into a suitable style where it would serve as an appropriate alternative while also baring the woman's midriff as she usually preferred. However, as Tay attempted to scrunch up enough of her new top to tie it, her knees began to slip on the ice they were situated on. Instinctively, Shantae attempted to lean forward and scoot her legs upward to hold her stance while her partner tried fixing her outfit. This was to no avail, as the ice proved too sleek for her to gain a steady position as she kept sliding back into him. After a moment, she halted him.

"Hang on," she requested, prompting Tay to let go of the shirt while she attempted to climb to her feet. "I'll just reposition myself so youuuwhoawaah!" As Shantae moved to stand, she lost her footing before she could fully rise. She fell backward, slamming with a most unsettling *POMPH* on her partner.

"Gagh…!" Tay grunted, his eyes nearly exploding out of his head as he tightly contained his reaction to the half-genie plopping onto him in the worst way this situation could muster.

"Ooh! S-sorry, Tayshan! I slipped," she apologized, reaching behind herself to press her palms into his abdomen while attempting to stand once more. Unfortunately for her, her shoes were not slip-proof. As such, her feet slid out from under her as she attempted to push off her partner, causing her to slam back into him with another *POMPH*.

"Agh!" Tay grunted again, taking the brunt of his mentor's slip-ups with the longer he remained stuck under her. "Shantae…!"

"Oh, gosh! I'm so sorry!" she apologized again, growing rapidly more flustered as she hurried up with trying to get off him. She wiggled her hips and scooted back further onto him, hoping to get enough leverage to finally push off and bring herself to a stand when she felt the grasp of his hands on her sides. Not expecting the tight grip of his fingers on her hips, the young woman was startled well out of her focus as she turned her head to look at him.

"Stop, stop! Please, just… hold on a minute…!" he choked out, taking deep, heavy, flustered breaths as he tried to process what was happening to them. "Whatever you're tryin' t' do ain't workin'…"

"My bad," she apologized again. "I've never been in a position like this before. It's so hard to move the right way… This is so embarrassing…"

"I hear you. Just relax an' take your time, then," he suggested, letting go of her once he felt confident enough that she wouldn't inadvertently plop onto him again. "Considerin' where we are, it's probably best for both of us if you take it slow an' ease yourself into a comfortable spot."

"That makes sense," she agreed with a nod and a deep breath to expel some of her situational discomfort. "Okay, I think I'm ready now," she suggested as she shifted herself to try getting up again before something stopped her. "Oh, wait! I forgot to hand you your gun back," she realized, remembering that it was last in her possession before she and her partner finished their exciting (read: traumatic) sledding misadventure.

"Oh, that's cool. I see it right over-!" Tay was about to reply, glancing over to the side to see his weapon resting in a small pile of slush a couple feet away. Before he finished his statement, however, he felt a most uncomfortable sensation where uncomfortable sensations should not be felt. "Kagh…!" he grunted, dumbfounded and wide-eyed as he looked at his partner, his breath catching in his throat like a fully inflated balloon. As it seemed, Shantae leaned herself forward, reaching downward behind herself to pick up what she thought was the soldier's pistol to hand it back to him.

"Huh… That's weird. I can't pull it out from under me," she cluelessly murmured, continuing to grasp at the object in her attempt to pick it up. "It shouldn't be this hard…"

"Gagh! Shantae, wait…!" Tay rasped, horribly flustered by his mentor's egregious slip of the fingers as he grabbed her wrist with both hands to stop her from making further attempts to pick up the gun that was evidently not where she thought it was.

"What?" she asked, confused as to why Tay sounded so urgent that he was practically hyperventilating while he clamped onto her arm.

"Wrong gun…!" he choked out, valiantly resisting the temptation to scream out the reasons for his sudden and drastic increase of physical tension.

"Hm? What are you talking about? You only gave me the one gun, right? And I could've sworn it was right…?" she trailed off, turning her head further to see the soldier's face contorted into an expression that seemed to mix embarrassment with… not quite pain, but moderate discomfort as his eyes were squeezed shut. The half-genie also took quick note of the bright red hue in his cheeks. Starting to get the picture, Shantae's heart suddenly began thumping like a barrage of gorilla fists on her chest as she quickly shot her panicked stare downward. "…Ooohhhh… That's… uh… th-that's what you meant… Oops," she droned, mortified to the point where, if possible, her soul would jump right out of her body and high-tail it for the hills. She hastily pulled her hand away, thereby losing her only form of leverage as she plopped right back down on him once more. As one might expect, the unfortunate young man flinched as the thoroughly embarrassed young woman sat back down. She was at a total loss for what to even say, much less do.

"…Why do you insist on puttin' me in situations like this…?" Tay asked, finding himself stiff with, uh, discomfort as he blamed his partner for callously victimizing him. "Why?"

"Me!?" she yelled, clearly unhappy with his assertion that their predicament was her fault. "How is this MY fault? I had no idea what I was grabbing! And besides… I… I could've sworn I was sitting on your gun, not your-!"

"Point taken, homegirl," Tay very quickly interrupted, wanting nothing to do with the remainder of Shantae's statement. "But please… No more of… whatever THIS is. Things have been weird enough for us already. Here, I'll help you up. I'll support you with my hands," he suggested, desperately needing his teammate to get off him as early as last week. As such, he pressed both of his open hands onto her upper back, prompting her to lean forward and plant her hands on his legs.

"Hmmph," the young woman hummed with uncertainty as she steadied her position. "I thought we agreed that there was nothing to worry about and that everything was fine."

"What do you mean?"

"Well… I was under the impression we pretty much clarified that we are just friends and that neither one of us was getting any funny ideas about the other," she explained, revealing some of the conversation they'd engaged in prior to this expedition.

"Okay…? And what does that have to do with right now?" he warily asked, suddenly uneasy about where she was going.

"You tell me," she challenged, shooting him an expectant, pouty look over her shoulder as her cheeks remained pink like fresh carnations. "Because I'm a little concerned now, considering…" At that, he got the clue and was immediately offended.

"That's because you kept fallin' on me!" he yelled, none too enthused about having to explain himself for something he didn't feel was his fault. "How are you gonna blame me for-!"

"My, oh my, oh my…" another voice called out from in front of them, startling the duo stiff as they turned their attention to its owner. "I had not expected to see you two again so soon… I had er… far less expected to bear witness to you… in the midst of some important business…" the mysterious bystander continued, their voice soft and smooth, yet moderately low in tone. "And to think, here of all places? Most peculiar…"

"Uh, th-this isn't what it looks like!" Shantae blurted out in a frightened panic, shooting up with hardly a moment to prepare herself. "We were jus-whoa!" she attempted to explain before she lost her footing just one more time. And just one more time, she fell backwards, crashing onto her sidekick with another jarring *POMPH*.

"Oh-hogh!" Tay cried out in moderate to severe discomfort, flinching hard due to the impact of Shantae's inadvertent butt slam. "Stop doin' that!"

"I'm not doing it on purpose!" she shouted back in defense of herself, quickly shifting herself forward to lift herself off her partner's lap. "This ice is hard to stand on! Also, could you… do something about that?" she humbly requested, pointing downward as she pouted again with embarrassment. "This is getting way too awkward for me to handle…"

"Are you serious!? This is happenin' because o' you!" he complained, offended that she would just blurt out such a ludicrous statement in front of a stranger and even more offended that she pinned the blame on him for something she caused. At that, the half-genie took in a sharp, stunned gasp at his remark as she found herself at a loss of words on how to rebut.

"…Uhh," she droned, her face flushing as she inched herself further forward before attempting once more to climb to her feet. "Oh… Wow, that's… I was not ready for that confession… huh… wow, Tay… That's… a little forward, don'tcha think…?" she innocently inquired, causing him to shoot her a deadpan stare as he tried to process the sheer displeasure her question caused him.

"…Homegirl, you're trippin'. Get off me, please," Tay flatly suggested, having just about had enough of their predicament as it continued to unfold.

"I'm not trippin'! You're trippin'!" she blushingly complained, throwing his insult (and slang) back at him as she seemed to be struggling to process the whirlwind of conflicting emotions she'd been hit with in that most… monumentally mortifying moment. "And believe me, I'm trying!"

"Perhaps I can lend a hand," the unnamed witness offered, moving forward to offer their hands to the struggling young woman. Without a word, Shantae took the stranger's hands and allowed them to pull her to her feet, where they soon led her a few additional feet forward so that she was standing on somewhat-stable ground.

"Thank you," she expressed, taking a deep breath to try and calm herself.

"Not an issue, kanafeh," the individual replied, catching Shantae off-guard as she immediately began wondering just who this person was as a result of them calling her the name of a certain delicacy. Nevertheless, the individual had quickly set forth to assist Tayshan, who'd also accepted the help without hesitation.

"Much obliged," Tay politely expressed his gratitude as the stranger, their identity masked by a mauve parka with the hood on, green mittens, a matching green scarf wrapped around their face, dark blue harem pants, and salmon pink boots. "You came just in time."

"I will bet I did, habibi," the stranger joyfully, yet suggestively replied as he pulled Tay to his feet. At that, however, Tay reeled back in surprise.

"'Habibi'?" he pondered, studying the stranger up and down. "I haven't been called that in a minute…" At that, he connected some of the dots and preemptively drew a conclusion. However, just to be sure, he asked another question. "Wait… did you also say you've seen us before?"

"Indeed I have. Do not tell me you have forgotten about me already, dear Tayshan."

"Uh… so you know who I am. Interesting… Excuse me for not bein' aware o' who you are, but it's hard t' tell when you're all garbed up head-to-toe in those winter clothes."

"Oh, right. How silly of me to expect you to recognize me when you are unable to even see my face," they replied with an adorable giggle, though it was cut short when they got a good look at the soldier's face. "Hmm… I do not remember you having those disfiguring scars across your eye and cheek last time I encountered you. Are you alright? Were you harmed before you made it here?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Tay answered, self-consciously brushing his fingers over his facial scars. "I picked up these scars about two days ago when I was attacked by a gargoyle while I was on an investigation. At least, as far as my eye goes. I also took a stray arrow t' the face later on that day that left this mark on my cheek…"

"Dear me, habibi, you have my humblest condolences for your past troubles!" the stranger remarked in alarm, evidently far more concerned with the serviceman's health than one would expect them to be. "Might there be anything I can do to aid in your recovery?"

"Er, m-much as I appreciate your concern, I… think they're as healed up as they're gonna get," he respectfully declined. "I'm okay. I assure you."

"That soft voice…" Shantae pondered, still studying the mannerisms of the fully-garbed individual. "Those nicknames… The tenderness in that tone… and complete and utter lack of apostrophes… No way… Aashiq, is that you?" she questioned, using her context clues to deduce the identity of the unknown individual that stood before them. As she brought forth this revelation, the stranger removed their hood and scarf to reveal long, silky, wavy jet-black hair, a gorgeously supple, feminine face, and sparkling hazel-colored eyes that would ensnare the attention of anyone lucky enough to cast their gaze upon them… uh, a-anyway, enough of my gushing. The stranger turned out to be a cleverly disguised Aashiq.

"Indeed, it is I!" Aashiq cheered, excited to see that he had been recognized. "As always, you prove yourself to be quite the clever girl, my kanafeh!"

"I knew it…" Tay murmured with a sigh, for some reason less than excited to meet with a recent acquaintance as he carefully went to retrieve his gun from the pile of snow it was stuck in.

"I am most ecstatic to cross paths with you again, my friends!" he further exclaimed, hugging the half-genie, who'd appreciatively returned the gesture.

"Glad to see you, too!" she shared with a smile. "What brings you out to Yarnball Heights?"

"I was lounging about in my loft, setting up for an urgent meeting with someone at this location when the city was attacked by a group of madmen with explosive devices," he explained.

"Risky's Tinkerbats, I'm guessing you mean," she concluded, already having more than enough proof of his account.

"Indeed. They had begun laying waste to the town before I had the chance to realize what was happening. Once I discovered the town was under attack, I set out to protect some of the townsfolk from harm. During that time, I happened to catch a glimpse those nefarious creatures as they razed houses and businesses alike to the ground. I followed suit after assuring the safety of the citizens present during the attack, hoping to catch up and vanquish those fiends, though it appears I was much too slow. My apologies for not proving useful to you."

"Aw, don't sweat that," she dismissed. "We took care of business. I'm just glad you weren't hurt, though I wish I could say the same for Yarnball Heights Town…" she lamented. "Those rotten jerks completely obliterated it, and there was hardly a thing we could do to stop it…!"

"Fret not, kanafeh," Aashiq assured. "Many of the town's citizens were not present during the assault. Those that were, I personally saw to it that they were safe before I made my way here. Unfortunate as it is that the city was leveled, it is equally important that you brought the culprits to justice before they could do further harm."

"Mainly because they were specifically after us the whole time, but I guess that's true…" she agreed, though she went silent as she thought about the implications of the ambush and what disheartening clues it gave for the future.

"We still have t' worry about what that heartless pirate woman has planned next," Tay added, equally as concerned as his mentor. "She an' her men have destroyed a few places by now, between the Prickle Stitch Valley, the Sheared Spool Shrine, an' now Yarnball Heights Town…"

"Not to mention Hypno Baron's Castle, in addition to her almost destroying the Kitschy Quilt Desert," Shantae added, a pang in her chest serving as an omen that Risky Boots's merciless war path could possibly victimize more innocent people. "Ever since she got her hands on that weapon supply, she's been more ruthless than ever…"

"Oh, dear… It sounds as though this Risky Boots has something of a vendetta against the humble citizens of Sequin Land," Aashiq observed, growing worried himself as he listened to the plight of his allies.

"Yeah, as far as we can tell. If it's the last thing we do, we've gotta put a stop t' her the minute we get the chance," Tay urged, clenching his fists. "I can't allow her t' keep runnin' rampant with these weapons… She's not showin' any signs o' stoppin' on her own, either…!"

"Agreed. If I can aid your tireless crusade to thwart the infamous pirate menace known as Risky Boots, please let me know. I simply cannot stand idly by as she continues to threaten our homeland with her disreputable antics."

"Thanks, Aash," Shantae expressed. "We could use as much help as we can get. We'll need to figure out when her next attack will be, though. We had no clue she'd send her troops this far out, and we still don't know how likely she is to attack another town. Although, the Tinkerbats we engaged earlier were specifically after me and Tay. And as far as my last encounter with her is concerned…"

"…Right," Tay acknowledged, seeming to already know what his partner was implying as a sense of insurmountable dread washed over him. "Well, if she thinks I'm just an easy target for her t' get through t' get you, then she's got another think comin'," he assured. "I ain't goin' down without a fight, so she and her minions better be ready for the long haul if she wants t' try takin' me out. If luck's on our side, then I won't go down at all. Regardless, I'll do everything in my power t' make sure she regrets it if she ever tries t' hurt you."

"Thanks. And don't worry; I'll protect you, Tay," Shantae vowed with utmost confidence while also sensing a tinge of apprehension in her sidekick's tone. "As long as I'm here, I'll make sure Risky never lays a finger on you or our other friends. One way or another, we'll take her down and spare Sequin Land any more unnecessary destruction." At that, Tay studied his partner and immediately read the utmost determination in her eyes. Somewhat relieved by her fervency, Tay silently smirked and gave a thumbs-up to communicate that he got her message loud and clear. Shantae returned this gesture with a thumbs-up and a grin of her own.

"My word… the undying commitment between you two is breathtaking," Aashiq pointed out in amazement. "I cannot help but admire how much you two love each other to lay your lives on the line to ensure one another's survival." Normally, such a passionate statement would've emphasized the sense of commitment any two heroes had for one another, thus bolstering the impact of such a poignant moment. However, this… was not one of those situations. As such, the duo was immediately shaken out of their heroic stupors, immediately flabbergasted by the adorable young man's adorably inaccurate assertion.

"Uh… W-well, 'love' is way too strong a word to use there," Tay hesitantly denied, suddenly warm enough to theoretically melt the ice surrounding them. "It doesn't have anything t' do with that. I just want t' ensure the safety o' my friend while we work together t' prevent a weapons-related crisis. That's all." This comment, however, drew the ire of his teammate as she scoffed.

"Wow, that's mean!" she complained, offended by the meaning behind his statement as she glared at him.

"Mean? What? What'd I say?" he asked, shocked to see her get angry at him.

"I get it if you don't necessarily find our friendship at its strongest at this point because we only recently made up, but you don't have to go and flat-out state that you don't love me."

"What!? N-no, that ain't what I meant!" he hastily tried defending himself in his sudden state of panic. "It ain't even about that! I-I mean, you don't necessarily have t' love someone t' be willin' t' protect 'em anyway, right?"

"No, but you make it sound like it's just part of the job and nothing else! That comes across as just a tiny bit insincere, Tay. We talked about this just the other day!"

"Aw, come on! You're really gonna jump down my throat about the semantics of a simple statement?" he shot back, displeased with Shantae's offense. "I apologized already for bein' a bit too blunt with some o' the things I've said, but you know what I meant this time. All I was sayin' is that my desire t' protect you doesn't necessarily have t' come from love, so much as it definitely comes from a sense o' duty an' commitment. It's part o' my sworn responsibility as a member o' the enforcement services t' serve an' protect, in case I need t' remind you. Love or no love, I don't want t' see you get hurt."

"That's honorable and respectable, but what am I supposed to interpret from the way you said it? Are you saying you don't love me as a friend and you're just doing what's in your job description? Is that what you mean?"

"Don't do that, alright? Twistin' my words an' usin' 'em against me," he pointed out, mildly upset by her assertion. "Fool me once, homegirl. If I didn't love you as a friend, I would've never told you half the stuff I told you about myself, much less continued t' appreciatively spend time with you after our dramatic two-day split this past week."

"Well if that's the case, then why are you getting all self-conscious and deflecting Aash's statement like it bothered you?"

"Because! I don't think it should be about that… I'm just sayin' that we're workin' together for more reasons than that. Besides… W-wouldn't it sound just a bit weird t' tell you I love you or agree t' what he said after we just got done climbin' over the giant wall that sprang up between us after what happened in that desert? Even if such a statement was meant t' be platonic, that lays it on just a bit thick for my liking."

"It isn't as weird as you think. I mean, at this point, it isn't all that hard for me to acknowledge, cherish, and completely appreciate our friendship and partnership, Tay. I'm surprised to hear you're still having reservations about that. Like we talked about before, we actually became really close in a matter of two weeks, so it'd be crazy not to acknowledge that we formed a considerable bond of sorts."

"I suppose that's fair, an' believe me, I cherish our bond as much as you do. Even so, you bring up my other point that it's only been two weeks," he stated, though he immediately realized something within his statement as he stopped in his tracks. "…Oh my goodness, I've been stranded in this world for TWO WEEKS…"

"What?"

"Ah! E-er, nothing," he quickly dismissed. "Anyway, while I acknowledge said bond, you're tellin' me you'd seriously have no problem sayin' you love me this soon? As a friend, I mean?"

"Yes!" she declared, throwing him for a loop like no other. "There's no such thing as a time limit or end goal when it comes to establishing and building connections with people. I love all my friends, and I take my relationships with you all very seriously. It doesn't matter to me if it's been two weeks or seven years or sixteen years. And let's not forget, we've saved each other's lives multiple times! Also, I know we had something of a bump in the road because of it, but you kissed me to save me from certain doom after you promised just the day before that you'd go that far to keep me safe! I realize that for myself. And even now, you just gave me the shirt off your back despite the fact that we're in the middle of an arctic tundra just so I wouldn't have to worry about my outfit being ruined. For that alone, how could I not love and appreciate you?"

"Ohh, my…" Aashiq murmured with intrigue as he bore witness to the argument his allies were engaged in.

"Oh. W-well, when you put it that way…" Tay uncertainly replied, contemplating the nature of his friendship with Shantae as he ostensibly conceded.

"See, you know what I mean," she pointed out. "I mean, I still don't know if you agree with me, but you have to at least understand what I'm getting at."

"No, no, I get it," Tay assured, temporarily shooting his gaze elsewhere as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Maybe you got a point there. It's still just a little bit odd t' hear that you feel we hit that level so soon though, ain't it? I mean, sure, I guess I could reasonably say I uh… l-love you as a friend, based on what we've been through, but like… um…" he attempted to explain, soon faltering as he lost his nerve. Scratching his head and sighing, he felt his heart jump right into his throat with the full intent to force him to stop speaking. Shantae noticed the sudden sharp increase of nervousness in her partner and chuckled lightly as she smiled warmly.

"Sorry, I might've been a bit overbearing there," she admitted. "I don't mean to make you feel uncomfortable, but I just wanted to make sure we're on the same page."

"What? Nah, I'm… not uncomfortable at all," he denied as he returned his gaze to her, though he could still feel the rush of anticipation coursing through him as he processed his team leader's revelation of her opinion on their partnership while also processing the consequences of becoming as close to a resident of Sequin Land as he did, when his original goal was supposed to be to return to his own world. "And… y-yeah, thanks for clarifyin' things…"

"If I must say so myself, you two sound like your relationship has soared beyond the heavens! You are already up to having occasional lovers' quarrels, too? My, what a wondrous development!"

"…Lovers' quarrels?" both Shantae and Tayshan questioned in unison.

"Where'd you get THAT idea? I thought we were pretty clear last time that we're not involved like that," Shantae continued, raising an eyebrow as her heartbeat suddenly intensified.

"Ah, I see you are still under the impression that I do not know better," he teased with a chuckle and a knowing grin. "However, I am aware of what you were up to moments before my arrival…"

"…And what exactly do you think we were we up to? Because I ain't likin' that look on your face, homie…" Tay warily asserted.

"You tell me, habibi~!" he teased again, his grin widening has he studied his acquaintances' equally nervous, stiff mannerisms. "I am aware you two had something of a close encounter with one another before I appeared here."

"…I don't like where this is goin'…"

"Aashiq… What do you mean…?" Shantae warily asked, seeming to pick up a gross misunderstanding in the making.

"The 'important business' I walked in on, of course," he bluntly stated, giggling heartily as he did so. "While I am proud of you for taking that step towards exploring your interests, kanafeh, I must apologize for my untimely interference." At that, poor Shantae's face went so red that she could potentially have suffered a horrific nosebleed right then and there. Tay simply stared blankly at Aashiq, mouth ajar, astounded that he would draw such a conclusion. "However, it seemed like you were having trouble fitting something because it was 'too big'? There was talk about your lack of experience as well, as far as I overheard… If you so desire, I can offer you some advice, so that you may find much success and satisfaction; even if I DO find it a tad odd you would engage in such racy activity so soon after you were ambushed by enemy forces."

"What!?" Shantae bellowed out, floored by her former crush's observation.

"I have also overheard habibi instructing you to take it slow and find a comfortable position. He is right. It seems you are in good hands if he knows how to assist you."

"Hey, hey!" Tay called out, growing incredibly flustered by Aashiq's misconception. "No, you got the wrong idea! Like, ALL THE WAY wrong!"

"No need to be shy about it, habibi. I know I am prying a bit, but I would like nothing more than to see your connection to my kanafeh flourish to mountainous heights," he smilingly assured with an innocent grin. "No pun intended, considering the landscape…"

"Aash, no, that's not necessary! We were not-!" Shantae tried to interrupt.

"Regardless, the fact that you are wearing his shirt, kanafeh, is a sign that your relationship has grown very close already."

"No, no, no, that's not-!" the half-genie tried to deny before being cut off.

"And I also certainly wonder about you now, habibi…"

"…Wonder what?" he paused to ask, no less than utterly petrified about what the other young man might have in mind to ask.

"What… exactly are you working with?" he asked in a very lascivious tone as he, for a fraction of a second, flicked his gaze downward, a not-so-innocent blush creeping onto his beautiful face as he resisted (or rather, tried to resist) the urge to grin at the dumbfounded soldier. Shantae, also hearing the intrusive question, went equally as speechless as the two of them stared blankly at Aashiq.

"…You're… You're serious…?" Tay stammered, utterly floored by the intrusive question.

"My apologies, but you must understand. I would merely like to… how you say, gauge your potential. For… research purposes." At that, Tay continued to stare blankly at him as the inquisitive young parka-adorned man nervously fidgeted with his hair. An awkward silence of the most disturbing proportions washed over the icy atmosphere as a gentle, chilling breeze rolled through. After what felt like a full ten minutes, Tay slowly turned his gaze toward Shantae, who'd also turned her equally speechless gaze to him. After yet another moment of debilitating, uncomfortable silence, Tay gestured a hand toward Aashiq while still looking directly at Shantae.

"…Yo homegirl, getcho mans," he ordered, figuring she might be able to do something about his inappropriate behavior. "He's on a whole different level right now." The flustered young woman reeled back at the moment she heard her partner's outlandish request.

"Get my mans?" she asked, not understanding the phrase in the least, though she could at least pick up that it must've meant something in the context of Tay finding Aashiq's behavior to be something he would prefer not to deal with. "What do you expect ME to say to him!? I didn't think he would still be this bold after all this time!" At that, Aashiq burst into a hearty chuckle as the 'couple' in front of him began yet another argument.

"So you were aware he might be capable o' doin' this," Tay surmised, gaining insight from his partner's statement. "Handle him please, because I-I don't know where t' go with this anymore."

"It's not like he's my pet or anything, Tay! If he likes you, then I think you and he need to have a little chat," she advised, turning her body away and crossing her arms while still keeping her gaze locked on him. "I can clearly see the sparks flying between you two."

"Oh, you got jokes," Tay sarcastically remarked as he glared at the young lady, having a feeling she would remind him of something he specifically wanted no part of. "He saw you first an' still cares enough about your experiences t' go snoopin' around for details. He's yours. It looks t' me like you should explore that, since he's so concerned about what you can handle. Seems t' me like it's a perfect opportunity for you t' get your feet wet," he added, causing the half-genie's face to glow so red that she could've been used as a branding iron as she turned back around and scowled with a hot fury at the soldier.

"Are you kidding me!? You've got some nerve!" she screamed, thoroughly embarrassed by the statement as the soldier's ire turned to gripping fear. "I can't believe you just said that!"

"Whoa whoa, chill! I was just playin'! Relax!" he attempted to console, seeing that she was upset by his comment. However, Tay did not realize the danger he'd further placed himself in by breaking an unspoken rule about what happens when you tell a girl to relax.

"Relax!? You just made that embarrassing joke about me, and you want me to RELAX!?" she yelled even louder, growing angrier with him by the second. "Haven't you learned anything from our last talk!? You said you wouldn't say things like that anymore! You know how that makes me feel!"

"Yes, I get it, but you're takin' it too personally! You just made a joke about me hookin' up with your old flame over here despite the trouble I'm already in, but you don't see me gettin' all riled up! It ain't that deep, homegirl!"

"I'm not taking anything too personally! Gah, you still don't get it, do you!?"

"Get what, Shantae?" he asked, growing frustrated with how she was speaking to him.

"We literally spoke about this just yesterday and the night before! I asked you to be more sensitive to my point of view and to consider what you say, and you've done just the opposite all over again! In front of Aashiq for the second time, no less! I thought you'd have at least learned your lesson from THAT conversation! And that one was close to a week ago!"

"Yo, come on! Are you seriously gonna nail me to a wall every time I say or do somethin' you don't like!? I said I'd do my best, but you can't just up an' grill me to a crisp every time you feel I made a mistake! That's why it was so hard t' even try t' talk t' you the other day! Gimme a break!"

"Tayshan, you're seriously not doing anyone any favors! Give you a break? How about you learn to not be so insensitive!? I thought that was part of what you and Sky went over! That's at least three conversations you've had with two different people that I figured would help you understand why you can't say certain things without thinking about the effect they have on others!" At that, Tay felt a sharp twinge of incredible anger course through him for a split-second, though he froze before he acted on the impulse. He subsequently threw his head back and let out an exhale hot enough to rival the inside of a microwave oven. Suffice to say, he did not appreciate her assertion that he should be trained to avoid saying anything that his comrades may not agree with.

"You know what, Shantae? The more we talk, the more I start t' think y'all got this idea y'all can just control how I act an' think," he challenged. "I'm a human being, not some robot you can prime int' behavin' the way you see fit!"

"Habibi, if I may interject…" Aashiq cut in, long since losing his previous humor at their exchange as it grew steadily more heated.

"What, Aashiq?" he asked, already irritated at him for his previous statements and prodding.

"I feel as though I may have… instigated this argument, and I would like to take responsibility."

"You don't have to do that, Aash," Shantae denied. "While I think we should clarify that nothing you saw or thought you saw was what you think it was and that Tay and I are not involved like that at all, it isn't really your fault."

"Excuse me!? So what, you're blamin' me entirely for you bein' upset right now?" Tay indignantly questioned, finding the implications of her statement to be quite unsavory. "Look, I'm sorry if you didn't take kindly t' the joke I made, but you're not bein' fair-!" he was about to rebut before a sudden series of quakes and tremors rocked the frozen ground beneath them. Bracing themselves, the three young adventurers scanned the vicinity for any potential threats coming from any possible direction as they did their best to hold their footing. Within seconds, however, the frozen lake a few yards away began to destabilize, the series of *CRACKs* and *CRUNCH* sounds signified that something was trying to emerge from it… Something huge. Noticing this, the trio readied themselves as best as they could.

Before they were made to wait too long for the potential threat's arrival, a final, pounding, echoing *CRASH* rang out, sending ice chunks hurtling in all directions as they rained all over the area. From the sudden opening in the ice field emerged a giant, green-skinned, clamshell bikini top-adorned, blue-eyed woman with long, flowing, sopping wet algae-green hair and what appeared to be jellyfish attached as hair accessories in addition to a giant, round, sapphire-colored gem. Additionally notable about this giant woman's appearance was the flared-out fins attached to either side of her head that seemed to serve as her ears and the fact that her lower body appeared to be entirely marine in nature.

"Oogh…" the gargantuan fish-woman hybrid groaned with a stretch and a long, drawn-out yawn. "Dear me, what time is it…? And what is all that racket…?" she murmured, rubbing her eyes as though she'd just woken up from a nap.

"Giga Mermaid!" Aashiq called out in excitement, apparently already knowing who (or what) this mysterious creature was.

"Wait… You know her already?" Shantae questioned in surprise.

"Hm?" the giant mermaid responded, turning her attention toward three tiny (by comparison) individuals standing on an ice-bathed shore nearby. She immediately recognized the long, flowing curtain of lavender that was one person's ponytail and the hazel-hued eyes of the second person. Filled with a mix of relief and joy, she immediately perked up. "Aashiq! Shantae! Pleasure to see you two again! And at the same time! What an auspicious surprise!" she called out with a friendly wave, thereby clarifying that she was not an enemy.

"It is most wondrous to see you again as well!" Aashiq greeted back as he and Shantae approached. Tay, still wary of the presence of a giant mermaid, chose to remain behind to assess the situation from afar. "I was starting to worry that you had forgotten about our meeting here today."

"I didn't, I assure you," she calmly replied, her voice gentle and serene, yet booming like she was attached to a set of speakers. The echoes of her voice reverberated through the surrounding icebergs. "I… may have overslept and wound up accidentally letting myself get frozen under the lake, however," she admitted with a sheepish giggle. "I see you've brought familiar company. How have things been, young Shantae?"

"Great! I'm glad to see you're not still being harassed by the likes of Techno Baron," Shantae politely answered. "I'm surprised to see you're not at Mermaid Falls, though. What brings you all the way out here? And is everything okay over at Mermaid Falls?"

"Mermaid Falls remains safe and tranquil, thanks to your tireless efforts to stop that fiendish crocodile from enslaving me, my fellow mermaids, and the rest of those young human women. And, believe it or not, I was hoping to see you again. Aashiq and I had some concerning business to discuss regarding the recent activities of the one called Risky Boots." That was all the half-genie needed to hear to understand that there was trouble afoot that needed to be addressed.

"In that case, I'm all ears. What's happening?" she readily asked, eager to obtain her next lead on tracking down the nefarious Pirate Queen.

"Eh… Before I bog you down with the details… uh…" Giga Mermaid trailed off, seeming to be confused about something as she scratched her head. "What… what's with that shirt? It doesn't seem to fit your usual sense of style."

"Oh, this? Uh, y-yeah, my top was ruined, so my teammate back there let me borrow his shirt to cover up," she nervously explained.

"Oh. In that case, do you still have your original top with you? I can fix it up as a small token of gratitude. I do owe you quite a lot…" she offered, gesturing one of her massive humanoid hands toward her acquaintance.

"You don't owe me anything, don't worry," the half-genie assured, waving her hands in front of herself. "Although, I certainly wouldn't mind the help," she added, pulling her broken dancer top from her inventory and handing it over to the enormous mythological creature.

"Hm. This is a simple fix. It just appears the back of it was torn, so it'll take no time at all to repair it. In the meantime, I would like to discuss a possible favor I have to ask of you," Giga Mermaid requested as she examined the article of clothing.

"Sure! I'm listening," Shantae agreed, prompting Giga Mermaid to begin explaining the predicament at hand while repairing the half-genie's clothing.

 ** _One short explanation later…_**

"So, this Risky Boots's minions forced their way into an underwater labyrinth previously inhabited by a host of peaceful creatures that were guarding it?" Aashiq questioned in surprise.

"What purpose would she have for an underwater temple?" Shantae added, adjusting her newly repaired dancer top to where it fit her exactly as it did before.

"Her minions have infested the sacred grounds of the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth," she solemnly informed them. "They callously pollute the very air that wafts through its halls with their presence. They brazenly disturb the tranquility that kept the labyrinth peaceful enough for the creatures inhabiting it to live without concern or fear of outside intrusion. As a result of their encroachment, the monsters down there have become incredibly hostile and at this point, will attack any outsider on-sight. My fellow mermaids and I cannot even attempt to gain entry without frequent and persistent danger looming at every turn. And if it isn't the monsters posing a threat, it's these strange, despicable contraptions those awful cronies of that pirate set up. What was once a monument to an ancient, fabled legend is now a hall of horrors!"

"Yikes… Sounds like we'll have our work cut out for us," Shantae acknowledged, though she was not intimidated by the challenges ahead. "We'll get the job done, no less. We can wipe out those Tinkerbats, no sweat!"

"I trust that you can, but I haven't even mentioned that they risk awakening an immensely powerful, long-dormant creature hidden within the deepest recesses of that temple that, as legends state, will rise and flush out all foreign life forms within the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth before moving on to potentially destroy the planet one continent at a time if left unchecked… These foolish creatures know not what havoc they could potentially wreak with their recklessness."

"Goodness, this task seems like quite the handful," Aashiq observed with a nod, worried about the weight this quest bore.

"Indeed it is, which is why I was originally going to request that you find Shantae to seek her assistance. Lucky us that she was already in the area…"

"Yeah, that's usually how it works," Shantae acknowledged with a nonchalant shrug. "Either way, if those no-good Tinkerbats are causing trouble again, then you can count on us to stop them!"

"My kanafeh, are you certain?" Aashiq asked, concerned for her safety in the wake of her fearless determination. "This is quite a cumbersome quest to embark on. You must consider your options, no?"

"It'll be fine, Aash," the young woman smilingly assured him. "This won't be my first rodeo with navigating an abandoned sacred landscape hidden well below surface level that was teeming with hordes of volatile, dangerous creatures. If we're quick and effective, we can pull it off without a hitch. And in case you need help, I'll guide you along the way in the event that you're joining us." At that, the Hypnotist apprentice nearly jumped out of his coat in excitement.

"You would have me at your side, kanafeh? As… as an adventuring partner?" he asked, hardly believing it for himself.

"Of course! I'm still curious about what you've been up to since we lost contact with each other aside from what we talked about last time we met. I've also seen some of what you're capable of, and I'm presuming Hypno Baron taught you some useful skills. I want to see more of what you can do. This is a perfect opportunity to do just those things in one fell swoop!"

"Wait, hold on," Tay finally spoke up, having remained silent before this point. "Ain't this just a bit of a tall task for him t' tag along on so soon? You heard what this lady said is in store for us, didn't you?"

"It's fine, Tayshan," she curtly replied, coming off as though she would hear none of his naysaying. "He can handle it. If anything happens, I'll… er, I mean, WE'LL be there for him."

"Is it really that easy for you t' guarantee his safety an' just let him come along for the first time this late in the game? Especially when you were so unwillin' t' even let me team up with you in the beginning?" he pressed, feeling a tad betrayed by her eagerness to team up with Aashiq.

"This is different. I've learned how important teamwork is by now, and I think Aash can hold his own if given the chance."

"Oh my, you flatter me, my kanafeh," Aashiq blushingly accepted her compliment.

"We don't know that for sure," he protested. "An' I don't think this is the best spot t' start-!"

"Who… are you?" Giga Mermaid cut in, eyeing the soldier up and down in a most suspicious manner.

"Uh, er… My name is Tayshan," he hesitantly introduced himself, picking up on the sense of wariness in her gaze.

"And what business do you have here?" she crossly asked, seeming to decide she did not trust him.

"Uh, wow… Okay," he stammered, taken aback by the bluntness of her question. "I'm here as an assistant t' Shantae on her quest t' stop Risky Boots."

"Really, now? Are you also part genie?"

"No…? I'm human through an' through."

"Hm. Then, are you capable of any spectacular feats like Shantae, such as turning into animals that help navigate the landscape, or utilizing magic in any capacity?"

"…In a sense, I can use magic, but I… haven't fully figured it out yet. But no, I can't shapeshift or cast spells of any kind."

"Uh-huh," she flatly replied, seeming not to believe him. "Then, what sorts of skills do you possess?"

"I'm a marksman, a battle-trained soldier, a martial artist o' sorts, an' an adventurer in training, I guess…?"

"Okay… Marksmanship may be useful, I suppose, but I remain doubtful that any guns you may have would work underwater. Fortunately for you, this temple has an atmospheric bubble around it that allows land-dwelling creatures to enter it. Otherwise, you would be out of luck. However, you'd still have to be able to tolerate being totally submerged in the frigid waters of Yarnball Heights for an extended period of time before we even got there. Are you at least able to breathe underwater or provide yourself with a method of doing so? Are you able to grow a set of gills or conjure up a force field of sorts?"

"…No," he answered, growing steadily more confused about her aggressive approach to digging into him about his capabilities.

"Then what good are you here, human?" she impatiently asked, making apparent that Tay had failed some preliminary pop quiz. "Your abilities are inadequate, so you've no place to argue who is qualified to enter the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth."

"Excuse me?" Tay questioned, instantly put off by what he perceived as blatant disrespect being aimed solely at him.

"You are not worthy," she reiterated. "There it is in layman's terms, in case you didn't understand the first time. I suggest you turn away and leave this place for your own good. I have plenty of help from Shantae and Aashiq, who are more than capable by themselves. You would be the liability, not Aashiq." The soldier did not take this attack on his character lightly, immediately glaring up at her as his body began to glow with a familiar faint white aura.

"You have no idea what I can do, so keep your judgments t' yourself," he challenged, shocking both Shantae and Aashiq. "Who the heck are you t' tell me where I'm allowed t' go or what I'm allowed t' do? We're tryin' t' do you a favor at your request!"

"Tayshan! Whoa, dial it back a notch!" the half-genie warned, holding out a hand to halt him. Her plea went ignored, however, as the argument continued.

"First of all, I am the one and only method of linkage to the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth, in addition to being one of its appointed outside guardians. Second, I asked Shantae and Aashiq for their assistance, not yours. And what will you do if my 'judgments' remain in place, boy?" Giga Mermaid challenged. "I certainly wouldn't expect such a pathetic-looking specimen to do very much outside of his element. You don't even have the proper attire to survive in this environment, yet you expect me to believe you're worthy to take up the task I presented? Don't make me laugh!" Her remark only further incensed the young man as he continued to scowl at her, baring his teeth as the aura grew stronger to the point where it was immediately noticed by Aashiq and Giga Mermaid alike.

"Try me an' find out!" he very sternly suggested as he tried his hardest not to lose it. His efforts were failing, however, as his frustration continued to grow and his hands began to tremble. "Whatever way you want me t' prove myself, lady! Name it!" He further demanded. At this point, he was ready for a challenge.

"Whoa… His energy is overflowing out of nowhere… Its very essence seeps from his body like steam… Is it possible he actually CAN use magic…?" she murmured as she continued to observe him, trying to make sense of the sudden burst of aura radiating from his body that seemed to connect to his immense displeasure with her. In that moment, Shantae moved to stop the soldier in his tracks, but Aashiq took the initiative to settle the dispute just as she was about to do so.

"With all due respect, Giga Mermaid, I must ask you to refrain from badgering my trusted ally," he spoke up, surprising the gargantuan sea creature even more. "He is quite a capable adventurer in his own right, and he was merely expressing concern for my wellbeing. This would indeed be my first experience and, while I do have access to many magic spells—not the least of which includes the ability to summon a magic barrier that would double as an air pocket underwater, I am also just a full-blooded human at my core. Therefore, I must also take some level of offense to your comments."

"Oh! M-my apologies," she offered, her tone changing quickly as she listened to her friend. "I didn't mean to offend you, Aashiq. I was actually doing the opposite in defending you because I thought he was picking on you."

"Nonsense!" he jovially dismissed with a flick of his hand. "We are all friends here, and we look out for one another," he added, doing his best to defuse a tense situation before it got worse. "In any case, I can provide my friend Tayshan with the necessary supports to aid him on our journey to the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth."

"Hm…" Giga Mermaid contemplated as the group went silent once more. Shantae took this as an opportunity to have a word with her irritable comrade as she walked over to him, inching him back a couple yards as he took a breath to calm himself down. This also caused the energy surrounding him to dissipate accordingly.

"Dude, what's your deal?" the half-genie scolded, unhappy with his outburst as she glowered at him. "We're supposed to be helping her, not fighting her."

"I get it, Shantae, I lost my cool. I apologize," he replied, though he was still mildly upset in the aftermath of the heated exchange. "But I ain't gonna just sit there an' take her comments layin' down. She asks for help, an' then has the nerve t' cross-examine me without even knowin' who I am? Come on with that. Beggars don't usually get t' be choosers."

"Fair, but you're not doing us any favors by blowing your top over it. She doesn't know you, so she's gonna be a bit skeptical. That shouldn't be anything new for you. We can't help that she doesn't immediately trust you, so you'll have to earn it as we go along, as far as it seems. Either way, if we're gonna make this trip a smooth one, then you need to keep yourself under control."

"And again, you blame me an' me alone for what happened," he remarked with some level of exasperation, causing her to reel back in surprise. "I'll take responsibility for steppin' outside myself an' yellin' at her, but that's not fair that you keep pinnin' bad situations on me."

"What are you talking about?" she asked, unappreciative of his accusation. "I never blamed you for anything that went wrong!"

"That's not true. Every time I interact with someone in a way you don't approve, you get mad at me most o' the time, an' only once did you direct your frustration at someone else, as far as I'm aware. In case we need t' take a trip down memory lane, one big example among the bunch was in Genie's Hem. You blamed me for doin' half the things I had t' do while I was in your body, which culminated in that argument we got into in front of Aashiq, where you said I was makin' everything harder on you. Another one was the other night. As far as our talk went after the two days we spent apart, I'm still supposed t' be the one at fault for how the aftermath o' the thing in Kitschy Quilt played out. And then just a few minutes ago, you accused me o' pushin' the envelope too far over a single comment followin' a couple of intrusive misconceptions made by Aashiq; yet, he gets off scot-free while I get the brunt o' your disapproval. An' now you're blamin' me for gettin' upset with this giant mermaid when she's the one who got up in my face unprovoked? What am I supposed t' do, huh?"

"Okay, I don't think half of those things are as bad as you're making them seem," she denied. "I thought our talks clarified that we all had our parts in the way some situations played out; especially after the Kitschy Quilt incident, where we both acknowledged that we didn't approach it the right way and that we weren't gonna let that be a reason for us to keep disagreeing with each other. We also agreed on what happened, and you admitted that you misspoke after the fact. Is that not you accepting responsibility alone? And if it is, then how is it that you'd be trying to grill me now over things you already acknowledged as your fault? I understand if you feel like you're under a magnifying glass, Tayshan, but that doesn't mean you're excused from owning up to your actions; regardless of the situation. You said it yourself that you were looking to be more accountable for yourself and the things you say and do. We had THAT talk way before any of the other stuff happened."

"As far as our talk about Kitschy Quilt goes, that was me acknowledging that I said the wrong thing at the wrong time. The act itself was somethin' completely different, which we never covered," he revealed, implying that their most recent conversation did not cover all the bases as his heart skipped a beat at the mere mention of it. Little did he know, however, Shantae's own heart also skipped a beat as she instinctively gulped. "That aside, I take responsibility for what I know I'm at fault for. I led two girls t' believe different things about my intentions, only for them t' find out I wasn't bein' entirely honest with either of 'em. That's somethin' I took full responsibility for, an' I vowed t' never do it again. I made a series o' terrible choices in my past that cost me everything but my own life, an' only after you pointed that out t' me did I realize I was in the wrong… well, more so than I believed before. I took full responsibility for that, an' I vowed t' do better, so long as I'm granted another day t' draw breath an' work toward change. I even take responsibility for things that aren't entirely within my control, as you already know, but don't interpret that as me givin' you free rein t' pin blame on me like I'm the only one capable o' makin' mistakes."

"Okay, so what are you really driving at here?" she asked, growing impatient with him as she heard him. "You can't take responsibility and NOT take responsibility at the same time. It's not really adding up, and at this point, we're trailing way off-topic," she added, causing him to sigh in irritation. "Anyway, it sounds to me like you're angry that things haven't always gone in ways where you're completely satisfied, and now you're implying that I'm at fault for a lot of the trouble you've experienced over the last week or two. That's not fair to me, Tayshan, and I don't know that I like the idea that you're getting this upset with me over things out of my control. I can't force you to do the right thing, but as your friend, I'd like to at least believe you'd take my word to heart when I let you know you're saying or doing something I feel might set you back."

"No, that's not…" he was about to argue before he paused. He picked up some validity in her words. As such, he threw his head back and exhaled before turning his attention back to her. "My general point, Shantae, is that while I acknowledge my part in any situation I'm involved in, you have t' understand that there are times where other people can catch just as much heat, an' I'd appreciate it if you stopped automatically pointing the finger solely at me whenever situations like this come up."

"I don't know how accurate that is, but sure. I'll be more considerate to your point of view if you want me to be," she ceded, though, as she stated, she was uncertain of if Tay's words rang entirely true to her. As far as she could see it in that moment, he was upset about the way things were going on this particular trip and used his frustration with this situation to air some of his grievances about the rest of his time in Sequin Land. She didn't necessarily find this the most appropriate time to do so, nor did she find it agreeable, given that he was ranting about why she should stop holding him 100% responsible for things he was more or less 100% responsible for. It didn't make much sense to her at all.

"See, I'm pickin' up that you don't believe me in the slightest," he pointed out, causing her to frown in increased agitation. "Case in point, I wasn't the one who started that argument with this mermaid. I asked a simple question or two about your trust in Aashiq, seein' as you're so sure he can handle himself when we've only seen a glimpse o' what he can do, an' she decided t' grill me over it because she assumed I was pickin' on him. Catch my drift?"

"Yes, I get it," she flatly confirmed, growing tired of being stuck on the topic of blame distribution. "I'm sorry, alright?"

"…Right," he acknowledged after brief pause, though the pause was a result of him being stunned that she seemed not to receive his point as well as he thought she would. "Anyway, I have a different question while we're on the topic: Why are you so open t' takin' Aashiq on such a dangerous trip as this Siren Labyrinth place when you had nowhere near as much of an enthusiastic attitude toward me? Or Bolo, Twitch, or Vinegar, for that matter?"

"What do they have to do with right now!?" she asked back, unintentionally getting loud as she found herself quickly growing hot with anger at the mention of other participants in the campaign against Risky Boots. "And why are you so hung up on Aash coming along? If it makes you happy, then one of the biggest reasons I'm okay with him coming is because you proved that I should give people a chance!" she revealed, surprising him in the process. "And for the record, I'm not blaming you for anything, so stop telling me that I am! I'm just trying to make sure we're all on the same page."

"Oh. Understood. Sorry," he apologized, suddenly feeling bad for making her upset again as he contemplated just how far their most recent spat had gone. "Look, I don't mean t' come across like I'm whinin' or anything or like I'm mad at you, Shantae, but I still have-!" Tay was about to argue back before they were cut off.

"I will allow your third party member to come along," Giga Mermaid announced to Aashiq, though Shantae and Tayshan heard this and stopped their arguing long enough to turn their attention to her. "There is safety in numbers, and I will place faith in the three of you."

"Oh, splendid, Giga Mermaid!" Aash cheered, beaming with joy. "With our combined skills and power, we will have the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth back to its proper state in no time!"

"I have no reason to believe otherwise," Giga Mermaid concurred before turning her attention to Tay. "Just know that you skate on thin ice, shirtless one," she warned Tayshan, who resisted the urge to angrily frown at her. However, the more pressing concern in her statement was…

"…Do you mean that literally, or…?" he asked with a tilt of his head after glancing around the area to recognize some of the irony in her warning. It took her a moment to interpret his meaning, though she followed his gaze and soon realized the reason for his ostensibly arbitrary inquiry.

"Ohh, right, because we're… literally surrounded by ice…" she murmured, letting out a slight embarrassed chuckle. "Poor choice of words. What I meant to say was that you'd best not sink lower in my eyes."

"I hear you, but… Uh, is that a joke aimed at the fact that we have t' dive underwater? Or do you just mean your opinion o' me is low…?"

"What? What kind of question…?" she was about to ask before she again realized for the second time that she'd let loose another situational slip of the tongue. "Oh! R-right, because we… actually have to do that," she pointed out again, chuckling once more before clearing her throat. "A-anyway, human, you know what I mean. I will not be mazed by your insipid puns."

"…So, am I supposed t' ignore the fact that you just made another pun about mazes, considerin' we have t' explore through what I'm guessin' is a giant underwater maze? Or am I trippin'?" Giga Mermaid picked up on this pun instantly and let out a hearty guffaw that reverberated through the surrounding ice caps. Aashiq, deriving much of the humor, laughed with her, though Tay remained confused.

"Ugh, Tayshan…" Shantae groaned, growing annoyed and impatient with his frequent nitpicking of Giga Mermaid's phrasing as she sighed and rolled her eyes. "You're picking the wrong time for this…" In that same moment, Giga Mermaid cleared her throat and took a quick, heavy breath before reorienting herself.

"Stop that! Your humorous witticisms will not sway my opinion so easily, marksman! I still don't like you, so I fail to see what your aim is with telling these foolish one-shot jokes!"

"But, I'm NOT tellin' any jokes," he candidly replied. "You keep makin' 'em yourself! Matter fact, you just made another pun or two about me bein' a-!"

"Tay, stop!" Shantae cut him off as she plastered a hand over his mouth (and immediately aggravating him in the process), already fed up with the overload of horrible puns. As if this story wasn't filled to the brim with 'em, am I right? "Stop pointing out all the eerily-convenient plays on words before she-!"

"Gaahahahahahahaha!" Giga Mermaid burst out laughing, scaring the ever-loving daylights out of everyone as she doubled over, clutching her sides. "Hah! I DID make another one! Marksman, aim, one-shot… Hilarious!" she bellowed out, still howling with unnecessary cackling. Meanwhile, Tay took a moment to wrest the half-genie's hand from his face, glaring at her as he wiped his mouth clean.

"I don't need you silencin' me like that. I'm NOT a child…!" he flatly and bitterly remarked, much to Shantae's shock as he took another deep breath to temper his frustration before turning his attention back to Giga Mermaid. The gargantuan sea creature calmed down as her laughter died down to a few residual chuckles before she took in a breath of air.

"By the starfish, that was the most delightful laugh I've had in months…" she commented, wiping her teary eyes as she continued to reorient herself before she turned her attention back to her soon-to-be passengers. "Okay, human. You win. You are quite the comedian. I apologize for my previous shortness with you," she offered, making him go wide-eyed with surprise. Much as he wanted to ask her how it was so easy for him to win her favor with literally no effort on his part… something inside him (as well as a quick glance at a winking Aashiq giving him a silent thumbs-up) told him not to question it.

"Uh, s-sure. I apologize for gettin' mad an' screamin' at you. I didn't mean to offend you," he uncertainly replied with a rightfully confused shrug of his shoulders. "And… I'll… be here all week?" he added, eliciting yet another giggle from the giant mermaid.

"Ohh, please, no more," she begged as she waved her hands in front of herself. "You'd have me going belly-up with laughter at this rate. Let's focus on getting you to the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth, shall we?"

"Cool," he calmly concurred with a nod. However, much to his surprise (yet again), she burst into yet another fit of raucous laughter.

"And the puns keep coming!" she proclaimed, having evidently picked up on yet another unintentional joke made by the soldier. "Oh boy, was I wrong before. I like this guy! If I had knees, I'd be slapping them silly right now!"

"Wha… What the heck did I even say that time?" he asked as he turned his befuddled gaze toward Aashiq, who'd smilingly walked toward him and patted him on the shoulder.

"Giga Mermaid is a… bit of a sucker for bad puns, habibi," Aash finally warned him. "She may come across as standoffish to new faces as a result of recent exposure to exploitation by one Techno Baron, but she is generally a nice woman. Also, while humor is one of the quickest ways for her to warm up to you, it is most wise to choose your words VERY carefully around her."

"…Great. Then for the sake of it, I'll quit while I'm ahead an' keep my mouth shut until we get where we need t' go."

"That may be the simplest route to take," he assured with a nod before turning toward Giga Mermaid. "Are you ready for us to embark, dear?"

"Oh! Y-yes, yes. Please, come aboard," she offered, leaning all the way down to where her upper body hovered over the icy surface toward her allies. She extended her hands out toward them, gesturing for them to climb on. Aashiq walked aboard without hesitation. Shantae, instead of walking onto Giga Mermaid's hands, walked toward a spot where a certain tank top had been lying. She quietly picked it up and turned toward Tay.

"Here," she flatly and halfheartedly called out to him, barely getting his attention. As he looked toward her, he saw his sopping wet tank top sailing through the air toward him. Though caught by surprise, he caught the soaked article of clothing with one hand, though the texture of the shirt wasn't what he paid immediate attention to. He peered over to Shantae, who'd turned her back toward him, shooting him a side-eyed look of what appeared to be a mix of displeasure and frustration that he couldn't help but read crystal clear. Before he could say anything, however, she'd turned all the way around and began rhythmically rocking her hips as she stretched her arms out to her sides. Within seconds and with a wordless *POOF*, Shantae transformed into her Mermaid form. "I'll be going as an actual mermaid myself, so don't worry about me, Giga Mermaid," she informed the gargantuan woman.

"Not an issue. I had forgotten you could even transform into a mermaid, but color me impressed as always," Giga Mermaid acknowledged before turning her attention to the soldier, who'd appeared to be daydreaming as he turned his gaze toward the ground. "Are you coming, Mr. Marksman? Or have you gotten cold feet?" she asked, snapping him out of his daze.

"Uh, trust me, my feet are as cold as the rest o' me is, but that won't stop me," he assured, unintentionally making just ONE more pun that would make most narrators quit their jobs on the spot. Lucky me, I am not one of those narrators… though I am getting VERY close. Nevertheless, I press on. Ever the appreciator of a terrible situational joke (as we've seen), Giga Mermaid let out another adorably voluminous giggle.

"Ah, your knack for crafty puns is one I wish some of my colleagues shared," she informed as Tay climbed aboard alongside Aashiq in her hands. "It's quite a charming trait," she added. Within a moment, she lifted them up, straightening her form to where she was upright. Within another moment, she shifted her two passengers onto one hand and used the other to lightly tug on her bikini top. The mere sight of this, of course, immediately alarmed the soldier.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you can't be serious," he protested. "You're not really about t' put us in-?" he was about to question, though the action in question was completed before he could utter the remainder of his statement. That action? Giga Mermaid tucking Tay and Aashiq into her bikini top as a means to transport them. "Agh! Why!?" the flustered serviceman protested, flaining about as he immediately tried to find some comfortable footing.

"My apologies," she nonchalantly apologized, blushing a bit as she puffed out her chest and looked down at her two passengers. "I… do not necessarily have pockets and I need to be able to use my hands in case I need to brush anything out of our way as we traverse the depths of the ocean. This is… my best-slash-only option for you."

"Wow…" Shantae groaned, shaking her head and sighing as she tried to fight the urge to glance at her own chest. Definitely not as a means of comparison, of course, but out of simple curiosity.

"Aw, shoot, aw, jeez, aw, man…!" Tay commented in a hotly embarrassed tizzy, fumbling around as he continued trying to find some level of comfort in just about the second most uncomfortable situation he could've ever found himself in today. "No offense, Ms. Mermaid, but it's so clammy in here!" he further complained as he writhed and squirmed, causing Aashiq to gasp in shock. Although, Giga Mermaid did not take offense to it. As the two boys looked up at her, she appeared to be stifling a chuckle, as she hid her blushing smile behind a hand. However, as we've already been tortured enough to realize, Giga Mermaid couldn't resist a 'good' pun. Soon enough, she let loose another fit of immature giggling.

"I-I see what you did there," she pointed out, causing Tay to stop clamoring (NO PUNS) within her top long enough to think about her assertion.

"What did I do?"

"Clammy, because my top is made of clam shells? Genius," she complimented, much to his confusion and much to Shantae's dismay.

"Uh, n-no, that ain't er… that ain't exactly what I-!"

"You have such a buoyant sense of humor!" she further observed with a smile, though Tay immediately took in a rush of air through his teeth as he cringed.

"…See, why you gotta say that…?" he groaned in some apparent sense of distress.

"…Habibi, do not," Aash warned, seeing that Tay may have realized something. "I believe we have heard more than enough puns to know that you and Giga Mermaid are friends now. However, I am begging you at this point, do not push it… We cannot handle another terrible pun. You have exhaustively pointed out enough of them already."

"Of course I ain't gonna do it," he assured in a sense of ire at Aashiq's suggestion. "Not like I was doin' it on purpose before anyway. But come on… Buoyant? Really? I'd never think t' make the-!" Tay was about to deny that he was going to make another lurid pun, but it was already too late.

"Hah!" Giga Mermaid howled in laughter again, picking up on yet ANOTHER pun… Oh lord, I can't do this… but by the grace of all that is sacred, I have to. "I see what you're implying, and it's so true!" she further lauded, taking the opportunity to uh… 'cup' herself and bounce up and down to exemplify the horrific suggestions of the pun she pointed out. "They ARE buoyant! Ah, Mr. Marksman, you're too much!"

"Nooooo!" Tay hollered out in a mix of situational agony and eternal embarrassment that would certainly plague him for the rest of his days.

"Wow, are you kidding me right now!?" Mermaid-Shantae called out, highly displeased with such a horrid show of impertinence exhibited by none other than her own teammate. "Tay, what do you think you're doing up there!?"

"Tayshan!" Aashiq yelled, pouting at the unfortunate soldier in mild annoyance that one would not think a soul as gentle as Aashiq's could display. "What did I just tell you!?" It seemed that on this day, Tay would be making no friends here whatsoever… except maybe the giant mermaid he'd been unintentionally poking fun at.

"What? I haven't done a single thing since we got here!" he complained some more. "It ain't my fault this woman has such a fishy sense o' humor!" And with that, he done goofed again. Grasping the sides of his head in panic, he realized just what he did. "Wait, no! Son of a-!"

"Baaahahahahaahaaa!" Giga Mermaid cracked up some more. "Fishy! I love it!" she declared through her hysterical laughter.

"Tay! Stop it!" Mermaid-Shantae yelled at him again.

"You sir, are working on revoking your speaking privileges for all of today if this continues," the gorgeous young parka-adorned man admonished as he shot Tayshan a fully justified deadpan expression; the signal from which Tay received in its entirety as he took his shirt and slipped it back on, but pulling the collar of it over his mouth to stifle any further opportunity to make another abominable pun. Thank goodness.

"Oh, for the love of-! Are we ready yet!?" Mermaid-Shantae called out, just a TINY bit more than annoyed at the emergence of this ridiculous pun war. Hearing Shantae's impatient words, Giga Mermaid did her best to straighten up, clearing her throat and taking a deep breath.

"Yes, yes, we may go now. We have spent more than enough time playing around. Are you ready, boys?" she asked, prompting Aashiq to cast a spell that, with a wave of his hands toward himself and Tayshan, encased magenta-colored aura coats around their entire bodies from head to toe.

"Indeed we are, sweetheart!" Aash declared as Tay sulked, disappointed in himself for single-handedly destroying everyone's sense of humor… except Giga Mermaid's.

"Then let us go!" Giga Mermaid declared as she, alongside Mermaid Shantae, took a deep, voluminous *SPLOOSH* of a dive into the frigid depths of the Sequin Land Sea… Finally. Aaaaaaaaand… Transition!

 ** _One very (thankfully) quiet polar plunge into the Sequin Land Sea later…_**

After a long, somewhat awkward, and mostly-silent marine trip through the dark, expansive recesses of the Sequin Land Sea's stony floor, Mermaid Shantae and Giga Mermaid (with her two barrier-protected passengers in tow) reached what appeared to be an enormous series of dark purple, algae-smothered pillars with a single opening in the middle of them all. This, accompanied by what appeared to be the aftermath of a devastating rockslide, as it appeared that most of what was supposed to be a temple had either crumbled in on itself or had been smashed in by some outside force.

Additionally apparent was the massive protective sphere surrounding the temple ruins as our team of amateur SCUBA divers neared their destination. Without much hesitation, Mermaid Shantae and Giga Mermaid passed through the bubble without issue, with Shantae immediately *POOFing* back to her humanoid form as she made landfall. Giga Mermaid phased her upper body through the barrier before scooping Tayshan and Aashiq from her bikini top and stretching her hand toward the dilapidated labyrinth grounds. Tay and Aash hopped off and safely touched down before Aashiq, with a flick of his hand, turned off the protective magic fields surrounding him and his comrade.

"We have made it safely," he gratefully declared with a deep breath. "You have our deepest thanks, Giga Mermaid."

"No problem at all, Aashiq!" Giga Mermaid acknowledged with a friendly smile. "You must all be forewarned, however. As I stated previously, the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth has a host of territorial monsters lurking about within its confines, in addition to those foul pirate creatures that were armed with those strange, incredibly dangerous weapons. I wish I could provide you with further details of exactly what sorts of creatures you would be dealing with, but I myself have never been inside the labyrinth to find out."

"I guess it'll be one o' those cases where we find out for ourselves," Tay replied with little concern, though he remained curious. "Just t' be sure though, did those strange weapons come in the form o' some guns that looked a lot like this one, in addition t' some others?" he asked, pulling out his firearm to show to her.

"Indeed," she concurred, though his question raised some suspicion within her. "I've been meaning to ask, actually; How is it that you have one of them? I certainly hope you don't plan to tell me you used to be allied with those horrid beasts…"

"Absolutely not. Long story short, those creeps an' their leader invaded a whole different world t' swipe them all; a world that they also more or less kidnapped me from. An' trust me when I say this; I was NEVER affiliated with them, an' I never would be."

"Huh… Is that another joke? Because I'm… missing the punchline," she asked in understandable confusion.

"No, no jokes this time. I'm native to a completely different reality that I presume used t' exist parallel t' this one… or at least, that's what my impression is. I'm not too sure where or when or even what I came from at this point…" he reiterated, though Giga Mermaid remained skeptical. Aashiq, upon receiving such news, was stricken speechless as his mouth gaped in shock.

"I see… Is this true, Shantae?" she asked, turning to the half-genie for a point of reference.

"Every word, yes," she plainly corroborated with a nod.

"Goodness. So you are no ordinary human, after all. Interesting to know that there exist other universal paradigms, though it also worries me that such destructive devices could come from within them…" she pondered. "In that case, what is your intention for engaging in battle with your former captors?"

"At this point, my goal is t' make sure that one way or another, they have their access t' those weapons cut off. Whether we take 'em from those Tinkerbats by force or outright destroy 'em, I have t' make absolutely sure they don't cause further harm than they already have."

"Further harm? What else have they done?" she asked, worried about the implications of the statement.

"They obliterated Yarnball Heights Town, for one," Aash answered, much to Giga Mermaid's dismay.

"What!?"

"I am afraid it is true. Entire communities were reduced to rubble under the destructive might of these heinous creatures."

"They've also laid waste to a bunch of other places since this problem started and, as far as I understand, they completely wiped a place called the Sheared Spool Shrine out of existence the other day," Shantae added, causing Giga Mermaid to gasp in horror.

"That cannot be! They destroyed the Sheared Spool Shrine with those contraptions!? That was a timeless monument, hidden in the clouds! They couldn't have!"

"I was there when they did that," Tay sadly confirmed. "Two other friends an' I did our best t' try an' defend it from them, but they overwhelmed us in an aggressive surprise attack. We only barely got away with our lives, but they blew every last little pebble o' the place int' the ocean below."

"My word… This…! This is outrageous!" she exclaimed, her anger evidenced by the gem in her hair beginning to grow an intense, almost-blinding violet as she clenched her fists. "How could you allow these… these repugnant devices to wreak such wanton havoc upon our world!? How could you allow that rancorous pirate to bring them here!? Why didn't you stop her!?" she demanded to know, pinning the blame squarely on the soldier's shoulders for the carnage she'd been made aware of.

"I would suggest you shift the blame elsewhere," Tay calmly responded with a tinge of impertinence that immediately made his allies nervous. "If it wasn't for Risky Boots, our worlds would've remained completely separate, an' there would be no stolen weapons or destroyed landmarks t' worry about. She invaded my planet without warnin' an' hijacked an entire arsenal for her personal gain. An' believe me, I tried my hardest t' stop her before she even returned t' this world with my organization's weapons, but she beat me int' the dirt an' almost had me assassinated for even makin' the effort t' hold her up. I alone couldn't stop her, which is why I'm here workin' alongside this nation's best defenders t' bring her t' justice." Giga Mermaid heard the soldier's words and went silent to contemplate his statement as she studied him up and down. She also took a moment to glance at Shantae and Aashiq, who'd each been exchanging looks with her. After a moment, she sighed and spoke.

"…My apologies," she offered. "I shouldn't blame you for something that you had no control over. It's just very disturbing to hear that Sequin Land could be under such peril, and to see it becoming so widespread so quickly… It's frightening. I also sometimes forget just how monstrous that Risky Boots can be, despite the fact that she saved me from Techno Baron after he recaptured me…"

"We'll take care of this mess, no sweat," Shantae assured with a determined nod. "The faster we get-! Wait, you got captured by Techno Baron a second time? And RISKY BOOTS of all people saved you that time?" she asked, thrown way off her game by the revelation.

"Yes, though it was clear she had not a shred of concern for my wellbeing," she clarified. "She was on a mission of her own, it seemed, and we had no interaction after she freed me. Either way, I am fully aware of the atrocities she has committed, and I would like to extend my assistance in whatever way I can. In fact…" Giga Mermaid trailed off, closing her eyes and placing a hand on her gem. The shining jewel glowed a blinding white for a few seconds before she clasped her thumb and index finger around something that appeared to manifest from it. She soon handed the foreign object to Shantae, who in turn got Luminous Aquamarine.

"What's this?"

"Fix that gem into your headband, and you will gain the ability to shine light through it with the use of magic," Giga Mermaid instructed. Wasting no time, Shantae popped the original sapphire-hued jewel from the center of her golden headband and quickly fixed the Luminous Aquamarine into it. Soon after, she tested it out by channeling magic into it with two fingers. As expected, the gem began to glow bright like a flashlight, the gleaming beam spreading far and wide in front of her.

"Awesome! Another new power-up that I know will come in handy! Thanks, Giga Mermaid!"

"No no, I require no thanks," she assured as she modestly waved her hands in front of herself. "I just hope that gem will aid you in your journey through this labyrinth. I feel we have spent enough time fraternizing, however, so I must ask that you press on. I will stand guard out here in case anything comes up."

"Roger that," Aashiq answered with a confident, smiling nod as he removed his mittens and channeled a beam of bright green magic into his own hand that extended its own beam of light that projected in any direction he held said hand. "Are you ready, kanafeh?"

"Wow, you can do that on your own? That's incredible, Aash! I'm impressed!"

"Now now, sweetie, you flatter me," he blushingly replied, seeming to be glad to earn his old crush's approval. "Allow me to truly earn your praise once we dig in and get to work, hm?" he suggested with a heart-melting wink and smile; a gesture that sent a wave of butterflies through the half-genie's stomach… which was something she hadn't expected to have happen as a result of speaking to Aashiq again.

"Uh, r-right, of course," she agreed with a meek, sheepish smile as she and the young man set forth.

"Actually, excuse me…" Aash requested before motioning to remove his parka and scarf to reveal an open front, cropped light orange vest that left little to the imagination as his slender form was shown off much more emphatically. Also apparent was the salmon pink sash wrapped around his waist that matched his boots. "Sorry, it was getting a tad warm with that extra layer of clothing on," he added as he pulled out a dark blue headband with a golden plate adorned to it. He quickly tied it around his head to keep his hair out of his face and to gear up for his first adventure.

"Wow, Aash… You came prepared today," Shantae complimented, eyeing him up and down to observe his attire. "Not to mention, you look adorable! Really digging that headband, too! I can see my own reflection in it!"

"Oh, stop, Shantae, you are going to make me blush…~" he modestly replied, hugging his hands to his face to partially hide his bashfulness at her comments. "This headband is not just for show, however. It is meant to protect my forehead from incoming attacks. It also works as a magic inhibitor that allows me to better control my magic until I become fully accustomed. Master Hypno Baron says that I often use too much too frequently, which causes me to run low quickly, so he bestowed it upon be to help me better adhere to my limits."

"Hm," Tay quietly grunted, shaking his head as he found himself more concerned about the functionality of Aash's headband than he was impressed by the other young man's incomparable outward beauty.

"Wow, talk about convenient. That's an incredible piece of equipment you got there. And let me just say, I forgot how well you knew how to pull off such bold color combos!" she continued to gush. "I'm glad you never changed there. I love it!"

"What can I say? My personality may have changed some, but my tastes have not… as you may know in some respect, sweetheart," he confidently shot back with another smiling wink and giggle, eliciting an additional giggle from his half-genie comrade.

"You're still such a goofball," she laughingly pointed out, laying a hand on his shoulder as she shared in the humor. "Ah, you always knew how to make me laugh. I missed your carefree sense of humor, Aash," she admitted.

"As I have missed that incredible smile of yours, Shantae," he matched her gushy comment with another. "Now then, let us create more fond memories as we embark on our first adventure together, no? I have much to prove to you."

"Let's move, then!" she agreed, pumped full of excitement at the opportunity to traverse a dangerous landscape alongside one of her oldest friends. "I can't wait to see what you can really do!" she added, dashing forward toward the entrance to the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth with Aashiq following close behind. Tay, getting a sudden uneasy feeling in his gut, paused for a moment, staring at the ground as though he'd lost awareness of where he was.

"You should probably go before they leave you behind," Giga Mermaid suggested, again snapping him out of a dazed stupor.

"Er, r-right. Of course. Wouldn't wanna look like I'm already crackin' under the pressure," he commented as he scurried along after them. As he did so, he missed the chance to see Giga Mermaid giggling at the 54023rd awful situational pun he'd unintentionally made.

"Haaa, pressure… because we're miles upon miles under the sea. That man's too good…" she mumbled to herself as she turned to begin scouting the immediate area for any potential threats while she waited for the adventurers to complete their quest.

 ** _Within the confines of the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth…_**

"Alright, we finally made it," Shantae observantly pointed out as she and her teammates entered the all-encompassing darkness of the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth. Without a second thought, Shantae and Aashiq activated their magic, with Shantae channeling magic into the gem lent to her by Giga Mermaid while Aash summoned a beam of light in his hand. The shining rays of sapphire and emerald light illuminated the room the trio stood in, revealing opaque, dilapidated, moss-covered brick walls and statue remnants abound. There also appeared to be vines hanging from the ceiling, which was low enough that the tallest of the three adventurers could potentially jump and touch it with little effort.

"This structure certainly has seen fairer times than this, it seems," Aashiq commented, his nerves already starting to get the better of him as he shined his light around the room to gain some perspective of where he was. The moment he uttered his statement, his light glossed over an unidentifiable creature on a nearby wall that hissed and scurried off with a startling pitter-patter of its feet against the stony interior of the abandoned temple. "Gwaah!" he shouted in notable surprise, immediately on high alert.

"What'd you see?" Shantae asked, drawing closer to the frightened first-time adventurer as she took a stance of readiness to protect him from harm.

"My apologies, dear," he began after taking a deep breath. "It must have simply been one of the creatures we were told reside within this labyrinth. I should learn to better contain my reactions…"

"Ah, don't sweat it, Aash," she reassured, turning to pat him on the shoulder. "It's okay to be a little nervous. We're in the pitch-dark, dozens of miles under sea level, and in uncharted territory while potentially being surrounded by teeming hordes of vicious and aggressive creatures of the night, so I don't blame you."

"…Er, Shantae, if I may…" Aash hesitantly spoke, taking some issue with the bluntness of his team leader's attempt at consolation. "…That does not do very much to calm my nerves…"

"Aash, relax!" she cheerfully reassured, casually slinging an arm around his shoulders and reeling him in. "I've dealt with much worse situations on my own in the past. Trust me, this'll be a breeze. If anything jumps out, I'll protect you, okay?"

"Your concern is much appreciated, kanafeh. However, I will try to fend for myself, so that I am not interfering with your work."

"It's okay, hon!" she affectionately addressed him, sending a vibe of silent shock through Tayshan, who'd oddly chosen to refrain from speaking. "We're in this together, so don't worry about slowing anyone down. We can stick together until you get the hang of things, if that makes things easier on you."

"That would be much appreciated," Aashiq agreed with a nod, inching himself closer to his half-genie comrade as they prepared to enter the single open, narrow hallway directly in front of them. "Though, I must say, your affectionate embrace alone is more than enough reassurance for me, my kanafeh," he added, lightly nuzzling into her as they continued to embrace. "Your hair is still just as silky and mesmerizing to the touch as I remember it…"

"Aw, you're still just as sweet as you always were back then…" she complimented, hugging him tighter for a moment. The rush of warmth and comfort she felt from having Aashiq with her in that moment brought on a mostly involuntary smile as she acknowledged his appreciation of her company. "I wonder if I'm the same to you now…"

"If I have always been sweet, dear, then you have always been Sequin Land's most delectable dessert by comparison," he matched her compliment with one of his own. "Hence, part of the reason I always address you as 'kanafeh' to this very day."

"You're too much, Aash," Shantae humorously commented with a light giggle, patting him on the back as they finally separated, though they remained close to one another. "You always were good at knowing just what to say to make me feel better. Thank you…"

"I merely speak the truth, Shantae. I am simply glad to be here with you. I only hope our time back in Genie's Hem did not derail our kinship… I am aware by now that I put you on the spot, due to how excited I was to see you again after so much time had passed…"

"Water under the bridge," she casually dismissed with a shrug, though the incredibly saccharine confession from the other day sent an enormous wave of anticipation and… arcane excitement roaring through her abdomen. "I think we've come to an understanding by now, so no need to dwell on it. If you still feel like something's up, though, I'm open to talking about it."

"Hmm… Maybe once we are finished and if there is time, kanafeh, but now we should focus more on our mission."

"I couldn't agree more, Aash," she concurred with an invigorated nod as she braced herself for an adventure like no other.

"Are you also ready, habibi?" he asked, turning toward Tay as the soldier attempted to scour the surroundings to no avail. When Aash received no immediate answer, he called again. "Tayshan?"

"Hm?" The serviceman grunted, having been snapped out of some distracted stupor as he turned his attention to the Hypotist apprentice before him.

"I asked if you were ready for us to embark. Are you?"

"I guess so…" he nonchalantly replied, seeming preoccupied with something else.

"If I may suggest, it would benefit you most to stay close to us, as you are the only one who has no access to a light source," he advised. "Shantae and I may be able to assist you, so that you may more accurately use your firearms." Much as he understood Aash's suggestion, he did not take kindly to having someone entirely new to the exhaustive line of work that is adventuring giving him orders… or, suggestions.

"That won't be necessary," he rebuffed, much to the other young man's surprise. "I'm gonna take point t' give us a chance t' take out any incomin' threats from afar. You stick by Shantae," he advised, drawing his weapon and stepping ahead.

"How exactly would that work if you don't have a light, Tay?" the perturbed maiden asked, seeming to disagree with his idea.

"Well, I was thinkin' we'd play it safe in the dark," he explained. "My idea was that I hang up front while you two used your lights t' scan the surroundin' area. Y'know, take it slow since we can't really see all that well."

"Eh, not being able to see that well isn't that much of a problem," she fully disagreed, stepping in front of him. "A little darkness and a few monsters creeping around shouldn't force us to hamper our pace."

"That's… not the point," he alerted her, not understanding why she didn't heed his suggestion. "I was thinkin' that, since we'd be helpin' Aashiq get accustomed, we make things easier on him while makin' them safer for all of us."

"It's fine, Tay," she denied yet again, both shocking and mildly upsetting Tayshan. "We've got this. All we've really gotta do is explore and potentially wipe out any Tinkerbats or other enemies we see before they cause too much trouble here. That's hardly a challenge, so Aash will be okay."

"We don't know that yet. You heard-!"

"Yes, I know. Giga Mermaid said the monsters were hostile, but again, that's nothing new. If we do our best to speed through and avoid them or knock them out when necessary, it won't be as much of a concern as you think," she sternly explained, cutting him off in the process. "Relax a little, will ya? You're always so high-strung." The serviceman, hearing her nonchalant preemptive rebuttal, was immediately urged to press the issue further. In fact, he was just gearing up to do so before…

"I believe kanafeh has a point, habibi," Aash interjected, thereby making the argument a two-to-one deal. "It would potentially be best if we made haste with completing this quest, so that we minimize the number of chances in which we may run into danger."

"How are you gonn-!" Tay was about to shoot back, immediately incensed by Aash butting in at a most inopportune time.

"See, you get it already, Aash! Thanks for understanding," Shantae praised, thereby shutting Tayshan down. "The faster we move, the sooner we get the job done."

"Of course. I trust that you will guide us in the proper direction, kanafeh."

"You bet I will. Now let's get a move on!" she proclaimed, taking Aashiq by the hand and dashing off toward adventure, again leaving Tay behind.

"…Gah…!" the disgruntled soldier growled, his dissatisfaction amplifying as he clenched a fist. In that moment, his fist began became shrouded in a bright white aura much the same as his entire body had previously. Noticing this, Tay stared at his hand for a moment before gathering something of an idea. Keeping his hand tensed, he waved it around to test its ability to work as a flashlight of sorts. "Hmm… If I'm in luck, then I can use this energy as a flashlight, too…" he murmured. "It's just too bad I can only use it when I'm frustrated an' I still have no idea how t' really control it, but… it's a start. Okay, might as well ride this wave while it lasts… Haaaah!" Tay shouted with intense effort, tensing up every muscle in his body as a means to extend the magic glow throughout the rest of his body as he felt a rush of warm, never-ending tingles throughout his form. "Doin' that works, at least…!" He quickly glanced around himself to see that the magic indeed worked to provide enough light for him to see where he was going. With a nod and without another word, Tay clutched his handgun and pressed on after his teammates.

By the time Tay had caught up with his allies, they were in their starting positions with Shantae taking point while Aashiq stood close behind. The three found themselves staring at a giant, dark purple, mossy brick wall of what seemed to be a dead-end if it were not for the giant hole in the floor that seemed to invite them to jump in.

"You made it, habibi!" Aash cheered, quickly taking note of the aura surrounding the serviceman's body. "And I see you have picked up a new talent. I was not aware that you could also utilize magic!"

"Not as well as either o' y'all, an' my use of it is circumstantial at best," he countered, trying to maintain his focus on keeping the magic running.

"Circumstantial?" he asked, tilting his head.

"Yeah. In my case, I can only-!"

"His magic is based on how stressed he feels during adventures," Shantae cut in, explaining Tay's deal with magic without giving him a chance to speak for himself. "The more danger we're in, the stronger his magic is. In turn, it also makes him stronger physically."

"You know, I could've s-!" Tay tried to cut in again.

"My, what an interesting quirk," Aash acknowledged, also cutting Tay off. As one might expect, Tay grew more irritated, which caused his glow to shine slightly brighter. This went unnoticed, ironically enough. "So, does that mean he is incapable of utilizing magic when he is calm?"

"No, but that's definitely a question I had at first," Shantae continued to speak for Tayshan without a thought for his input. "I think it's more like he always has it in him, but he still doesn't have a lot of experience with using it, so it's harder for him to control. Sometimes, he releases it without even knowing it, which I think might also cause him to burn out prematurely if he isn't careful." At that embarrassing reveal, Tay went silent. He burned with a desire (not necessarily magic-influenced) to speak up, but he also did not want to lose his cool for what could be seen as no good reason.

"Hm… And here I was, thinking I was the least experienced…" Aash pondered for a moment before turning toward the mortified serviceman, whom you might imagine was the farthest thing from pleased by Aash's comment. "Habibi, do you maybe need a couple pointers on how to properly harness your magic? I am certainly no expert myself, but I may be able to assist you with increasing your potency. We would not want to see you fizzle out before you reached the climax of this journey of ours. In fact, would you like to borrow my…?" he trailed off, as Tay walked right past him and a shocked Shantae toward the hole in the ground.

"…Y'know what? I'm done talkin'," he sternly rebutted in a low and very unfriendly tone, at this point burning hot enough to potentially be mistaken for a human firecracker. Without another word, he leapt down the hole.

"Tayshan!" Shantae called after him, both surprised and displeased with his blunt, irritable demeanor as she peered down the hole to see him descending far below. The distant *Thump* of his feet hitting a wooden surface alerted her that the jump wasn't too steep. "Jeez, what's gotten into him…?"

"…Was it something I said?" Aash asked, feeling a tad guilty for possibly making his teammate feel uncomfortable.

"I doubt it, Aash. Don't worry, he's probably just a little frustrated about earlier. He'll get over it," she explained as she took the Hypnotist acolyte's hand into her own. "Come on, we'll try and clear things up." With that, Shantae and Aashiq jumped into the chasm together, thus kicking things off.

Within the next few seconds and with a couple of *THUMPs* of their feet on what appeared to be a wooden raft floating in a body of water (only made apparent by the shakiness of the platform and the subsequent *SPLASH* that followed their landing), they had made it down. There, they found a silent Tayshan already taking aim with his pistol into the opaque distance of what appeared to be a long, watery corridor. One could hear the sporadic *drips* and *plops* of water droplets leaking into a larger body and onto the stony surfaces of the dark cavern as the platform began to shift, moving forward to begin what could be interpreted as an introductory tour of the environment with no guide.

"Tay, what's the matter?" Shantae asked, picking up that something was up.

"I'm fine," he flatly replied, never breaking his focus.

"That doesn't sound 'fine' to me. You sound angry."

"Maybe I am," he told the truth. "But then, it's necessary t' keep this magic goin', so there's nothin' t' worry about now."

"Habibi, I… You have my deepest apologies for upsetting you. I meant nothing offensive by my words," Aashiq attempted to console him. "Is there something I can do to make it up to you?"

"I don't need an apology. I'm okay. Now let's go," he suggested, wanting to hear no more of anyone attempting to pick into the reasons for his anger.

"But I-!" Aash was about to say when Tay suddenly fired his gun, the terrifying *BANG* of the firearm causing the poor vest-adorned young man to jump out of his skin. "Wah!" he hollered in fright, prompting Shantae to grab onto him to assure him that things were okay. It was because of this that the two of them did not notice the distant explosion that followed after Tay fired his first shot.

"Hey! Don't you think you could warn us before you start shooting!?" the half-genie complained, annoyed that Tay made such a brash, sudden move without telling her. "You scared Aashiq half to death!"

"There's active Claymore mines in here, an' from the looks of it, we're on a raft that's suddenly started cruisin' down a dark, empty, flooded hallway that could be filled with 'em," he explained, still aiming as best as he could. "So unless you wanna find out up close an' personal what those things can do t' you, I suggest we stay alert an' get crackin'. We're not alone in here."

"Fine, but you could at least apologize for scaring him!" she demanded as she helped Aash back to his feet. As soon as she made the request, however, Tay fired another shot, the noise ripping through the corridor. Again, Aash jumped. "Tayshan!"

"We have more important things t' worry about! I just took out what looked like two Tinkerbats that were waitin' t' remotely detonate rigged explosives as soon as we got close enough t' get hit by 'em. If he's scared o' the noises, then get him some earmuffs!" he shot back, taking his team leader aback as she exhaled in utter disbelief.

"We're gonna have a talk about this attitude of yours, because you're pushing it. You hear me?" Shantae warned, glaring at him as she helped Aashiq orient himself to his surroundings. Tay heard this and immediately felt a pit form in his stomach, though his frustration-borne focus kept him from turning to look at his mentor. Within that same moment, the disheartening sounds of animal-like creatures growling and screeching could be heard with rapidly-increasing volume. "And so it begins," she further murmured, readying herself for battle. Aash, taking note of his teammates setting up to engage the incoming threats, flexed a hand to summon a beam of a crackling orange light as he entered his own battle stance.

"I am prepared for what is to come, kanafeh," the sorcerer-in-training assured.

"Good. So, for future reference, Aash, this is the part where we utter a battle cry to declare our adventure as having started," she advised him. "So, whatever you can think of that pumps you up, just shout it out, alright?"

"I see… A morale-boosting chant of fortitude immediately prior to digging in? Oh, I adore it!" he proclaimed.

"That's the spirit! Now, after me. Ready?"

"Without an inkling of hesitation, darling."

"Good. Now…" she began, taking a deep breath to prepare herself. "Ret-2-Go!" she declared, thus sounding off and officially initiating the tradition of announcing that she was ready for action before engaging in her quest.

"Mesmerize and Neutralize!" Aash valiantly called out, feeling pumped up as he did so.

"Engaging Targets," Tay quietly uttered, though his tone emphasized his concentration on the task at hand. And with that, he fired another shot, quickly followed by the *BOOM* of an enemy being vanquished. As though it were contingent upon when its passengers were ready, the large rectangular wooden raft increased in speed as it began barreling through the incredibly dim corridor. As Tay focused on scoping out Tinkerbats he believed were lying in wait to ambush them with explosive devices, Shantae and Aashiq used their magic lights to scan the uneven, curving walls of the hall in preparation for anything else that might've been waiting for them. And without fail, the half-genie spotted a gold-scaled, sapphire-eyed reptile on the ceiling that let loose an intimidating growl as it turned its attention to them.

"There!" Shantae announced, charging a fire ball into her hand as she anticipated the creature's next move. The six-legged monster, appearing to look like a cross between a crocodile, a goat, and a giant ant (which, trust me, is EXACTLY as weird as it sounds), leapt from the ceiling, spreading its membranous bat wings while gaping its maw. It held still for a few seconds as it levitated, seeming to be focusing its attention on the young woman who'd spotted it. And without warning and with a horrifying screeching roar, the monster lunged. "What the-!? Whoa!" the half-genie yelled in panic as the flying crocodile bulleted itself toward her at a speed she almost couldn't comprehend. Luckily, she had just enough time to leap backward as the creature slammed teeth-first into the raft with a thick *CRUNCH* of its jagged teeth into the splintery platform. Wasting not an iota of time, Shantae dashed forward while the six-legged crocodile attempted to free itself and whipped away at it with her hair until it was sent hurtling away into oblivion.

"My word! That was a close-!" Aash tried to observed before the next threat made itself apparent.

"Look out!" Shantae warned, diving to tackle her comrade out of the way of a goopy, purple slime-based projectile that hit a wall with a disgusting *SPLAT*. As soon as the coast appeared to be clear, Shantae helped Aash back to his feet once more as she prepared for more. "Make sure you keep your senses sharp, Aash. We're in monster territory, so they're not gonna be too fond of us being here. The monster that shot that slime ball is over there," she advised, pointing toward what appeared to be a gorgeous, voluptuous green-skinned woman with enormous bird wings sprouting from her back. In place of humanoid feet, however, were scaly, razor-sharp talons that seemed to be able to tear through steel. Her hands appeared humanoid, though the fact that they were covered in feathers, in addition to the fact that her fingernails were also long, jagged, and sharper than ice picks did wonders for our heroes' imagination of what this creature might do to them.

"Go figure that there are actual sirens in here," Aash cleverly pointed out, intensifying the orange glow in his one hand while the green glow in the other remained functional as his makeshift flashlight.

"Yeah, and if you know anything about sirens…" Shantae was about to warn before the siren in question opened her mouth and began to sing. Her mellifluous voice was like that of an opera singer. Her tone was magnificent. Each note she hit penetrated the very eardrums of our heroes, almost as if her voice had taken form and set out to ensnare them by penetrating the depths of their hearing and mesmerize them to the point of dropping their guard… and, with the exception of Shantae, that's exactly what happened. Tayshan and Aashiq found themselves frozen in their respective places as the siren continued humming her ominously alluring tune as she took flight and hovered toward her enemies.

"Agh…! Can't move…!" Tay choked out, frozen in a position where he'd been aiming his gun. "What….?"

"Ergh…!" Aashiq groaned, also stuck in a position where he was about to make a move. "My limbs will not… do as I tell them…!"

"Aash!" Shantae yelled, worried for her friend's safety as she picked up on the correlation between the siren's song and the Hypnotist apprentice losing his basic motor function. In that same instant, the siren presented herself by landing on the platform, a sinister grin on her face as she continued humming her hypnotic melody. "That's enough out of you!" she yelled at the siren as she launched a fireball at her. The siren, quick on her feet, dodged the flaming projectile as she kept singing to keep her victims immobile. Shantae took the initiative to charge at the foul creature, but her approach was stopped dead when said creature extended her claws on one hand toward Tayshan's neck as she stood beside him. "Don't you dare!"

"It certainly surprises me to encounter three foolish humans stumbling their way through this maze," the bird-woman hybrid sang, keeping up whatever auditory spell she used to keep her male enemies frozen in place. In that moment, two more hungry-looking flying crocodile monsters revealed themselves on the ceiling, salivating and growling as they waited for the correct moment to tear into their 'meal.' "Your trip shan't be long, as my friends and I have hungered for days. I suggest you avert your gaze while we feast on your-!"

"You won't even get the chance to nibble on either of them! Now take this!" Shantae challenged, hastily performing a belly dance routine to transform into her Mouse form.

"What!? Where did she…?" the siren asked, ceasing her singing in the process. Before she even realized her mistake, however…

"Tay! Get her now while she's distracted!" a higher-pitched version of Shantae's voice called out from seemingly nowhere.

"Wait, what? Where is her voice coming fr-!?" she attempted to ask before she felt a sudden python-like pressure wrap tightly around her neck. This was quickly followed by another force pushing her head forward. "Ack…! You…!"

"You let your guard down! Now let's see you sing your way out o' this!" Tay challenged as he held a tight rear naked choke on the monster, evidently having been freed from her spell when she stopped singing.

"Perfect!" Shantae cheered, *POOFing* back to her normal self as she dashed toward her sidekick and began hair-whipping away at the beast he'd been holding. Meanwhile, Aashiq engaged the crocodile monsters that had taken flight and bulleted their way toward his allies.

"You fiendish reptiles will deal with me before you attempt to bring harm to my team!" he valiantly proclaimed, strengthening the orange-hued magic in his hand while he extended his reach toward them. In an instant, both of the ravenous reptiles were frozen in midair and enveloped in the same magic Aash's hand was exuding. They screeched and squirmed, desperately attempting to break free from their enigmatic prisons. Try as they might, however, their efforts were futile. "It is no use! Take this!" Aash declared, flinging his hand downward and then upward in rapid succession, forcing the crocodile monsters to hit the ceiling with a simultaneous *SMASH* that eliminated them in an instant. At the same time, Shantae delivered the final hair whip that caused the siren to wail in defeat as she burst into a barrage of feathers right in Tayshan's arms.

"Hah… Now that was a close one…" Shantae observed, sighing in relief.

"As close as close gets…" Tay replied. "It's gonna be a bit o' trouble if there's more monsters like that woman, who can-!" he attempted to add, stopping short when the young woman turned around to notice Aashiq recovering from his surprise attack on the crocodiles that tried to ambush them.

"Aash, you never told me you could use telekinesis!" she exclaimed in utmost amazement as she approached her old flame. "That's an unbelievably useful ability! Wow, you're already exceeding my expectations!"

"Now now, kanafeh, that was hardly a thing," he modestly replied, growing a tad bashful as he nervously twirled a finger through his luscious wavy locks. "What was more amazing was your ingenuity with distracting that siren to get her to stop singing. You saved me!" he cheerfully added, grasping one of her hands with both of his. "You have my eternal gratitude."

"Aw, that? That was nothing!" she shot back with a flick of her free hand as she laughed. "I just figured in that moment that she'd probably expect me to attack her head-on, so I mixed it up to throw her off."

"You say it is nothing, but you have still earned my adoration, Shantae," he smilingly informed her, bringing a smile to her face.

"Aash, come on, you're so embarrassing," she blushingly retorted as the two continued to converse with one another.

"…Hmph. Back t' work, then…" Tay murmured to himself, ignoring the pit in his stomach and disengaging himself from the conversation as Shantae and Aashiq celebrated their early victory. With a heavy sigh, he took up his original position of scouring the area for more traps or monster ambushes. As the raft bounced off the wall with a creaky *SMACK*, it took a steeply curved right turn as its angle tilted to where it seemed to be heading downward. As they rounded the corner, Tay noticed three suspicious creatures that appeared to be standing still in the distance. He could only see glimpses of a dark yellow, though the yellow became brighter as the raft neared them. Before long, he caught a glimpse of what appeared to be red bandanas and immediately prepared himself.

"Watch our eleven an' two!" he warned his teammates.

"…What?" Shantae asked, unfamiliar with his terminology.

"Tinkerbats comin' up on both si-!" he shouted, though he was cut off by the *BANG* of a gun being fired. The shot heard 'round the maze dungeon was all the trio needed to hear to hurriedly take cover. Tay went prone on the wooden surface of the platform and did his best to pick off the Tinkerbats as they returned fire. "Darn it…!"

"Bubble!" Shantae called out as she pulled Aashiq near her to surround both of them in her magic bubble spell. "Aash, get ready to counterattack!" she advised him, charging up fireballs to launch at an additional group of Tinkerbats that seemed to be rushing toward the sounds of the gunfire.

"Roger that!" he acknowledged, holding out his green-hued hand to spot his enemies. Once he got a read on where they were, he extended his index finger on the other hand, where a bright blue light began to shine at his fingertip. "I am no expert on firearms, but my newly-developed Soul Pistol should be a handy substitute! No pun intended." And with that, Aash fired a few magic blasts from his awesomely named Soul Pistol, managing to strike down three of the invading creatures. He did not stop there, however, as evidenced by the laser gun-like *PEWs* that sounded every time he fired a shot.

Meanwhile, Shantae and Tayshan focused on taking out other groups as they approached and opened fire. The sporadic flashes of light from the barrels of the weapons fired by the Tinkerbat squad lit up the immediate area, though it also caused a real issue with noise pollution. Shantae and Aashiq had little to worry about, as they watched from the comfort of the half-genie's bubble shield as enemy rounds bounced off of it every which way. Tay found himself alone in the protection department, however, as the magic aura around him did nothing to protect him from the series of flashing marbles that careened in his direction. As such, he'd taken a few hits as he lay prone, returning fire as rapidly as he could to avoid picking up a serious injury. He additionally ignored the excruciating stings he felt throughout his body as a result of the ambush. As the three of them focused on eliminating as many Tinkerbats in the dark as they could manage, however, they could faintly pick up the melodious tune of a woman singing in the distance, accompanied by the snarling of some ferocious beast.

"It appears another siren may be on her way," Aash alerted his teammates as the two remained safely guarded in her bubble shield.

"Not if I got somethin' t' say about it," Tay replied with grit, shooting down one more Tinkerbat before pulling out a canister and ripping a key from it. Making haste, he brought himself back to his feet, doing his best to avoid the sprays of gunfire coming from the straggling Tinkerbats as he aimed his canister toward the sound of the woman's singing. "I'm gonna try an' be quick about this, Aashiq, so make sure you two keep up with pushin' those bat mutants back."

"You have my word, sir," Aash assured, sticking close to Shantae as the two continued hailing fire and energy beams at the offending minions. "What is your plan?"

"You're gonna see right now," Tay warned as he held out his free arm to steady his aim while he cocked the other back, the canister firmly in his grasp. With intense focus, he summoned enough of his situational energy to visualize an arching line that stretched down the hall into the darkness. He could still only barely see, and the farther the raft drifted into the corridor, the stiffer his limbs felt as a result of the siren's singing growing louder by the second. "Agh…! Limbs are startin' t' lock up again…! No time t' waste…! Flash out!" he shouted the very second he caught a glimpse of one of the creature's feet levitating toward them. In that same second, he flung a flashbang grenade forward. Before the device made contact with anything, it exploded. The sudden *POW* of the explosive device cut the siren's singing off while also causing the snarling monsters ahead to wail in confusion and agony.

"It sounds like you hit your mark," Aash observed as he and Shantae finished off what appeared to be the remainder of the Tinkerbats. "Just in time, too."

"You said it," Tay acknowledged, reaching into his inventory to pull out a semiautomatic rifle, line up his sights, and fire a few calculated shots into the shadows of the corridor. After a few short bursts of rounds, the defeated wail of a woman was heard, signifying that the soldier managed to take down the monster before it could use its special ability on him or his fellow male teammate. "Target neutralized."

"So now we just have to deal with whatever was following her down here," Shantae clarified as her bubble shield dissipated on its own. Just as she made her statement, the raft made a sharp, winding left that nearly threw its passengers overboard. "Whoa!" she hollered, latching onto Aash as he'd returned the favor. Tay was flung backward, landing on his back with a *THUD* as the raft continued to rip through what seemed to be a rapid downward spiral as its speed increased by a wide margin. As though things couldn't get more hectic, our brave spelunkers found themselves hotly pursued by more flying crocodile monsters, in addition to speedy wall-crawling, gigantic mahogany-hued cockroaches with menacing, glowing jade green eyes. Just one glance at them caused Shantae to shriek in a mix of disgust and terror. "Ugh, no way! There's giant roaches down here!?"

"Kanafeh, look out!" Aash warned pulling Shantae out of the way of a diving crocodile as it plunged its fangs into the raft. Before they could consider themselves safe, however, one of the six belligerent roaches appeared to charge up a current of electricity between its antennae, the current growing stronger in relation to the disturbing crackling, clicking noises its antennae made. With a sudden *ZAP*, the hideous insect cast an electric shock at the wayward platform. Aash again pulled Shantae out of the way, with her winding up on top of him as they narrowly avoided being electrocuted.

"Thanks, Aash! You're the best!" she cheered, glad to have been protected by her teammate. "Now, let's see how these bugs like picking on something their own size…" she added, using her position to steady herself. As she sat, straddled over the young magician, she rapidly sashayed her hips while slowly raising her outstretched arms to her sides and eventually above her head.

"My word…!" Aash breathlessly murmured, evidently enraptured with Shantae's hasty belly dance (among other things in that situation, but I'd wind up digressing). "Such indescribable beauty…" he further murmured, staring in awe at the young woman as she did her thing.

"Traaaaansform!" Shantae called out. With another *POOF*, she assumed her Spider form, immediately lifting herself off Aash once she completed it. "Sorry about that, Aash, but I needed to transform as soon as I could. Haaah!" she apologized as she, with an effortful shout, turned and expelled a line of web from her thorax that hit the nearby wall with a wet *THWACK*. Her aim proved to be impeccable, as she'd aimed her web shot in front of the cockroaches, some of whom had become inescapably ensnared in Spider-Shantae's webbing.

"Genius!" Aash praised, rising to his feet and quickly charging orange-hued magic into his hand. "You halted some of the roaches by trapping them in your spiderwebs!" he excitedly observed, extending his hands toward a group of flying crocodiles as they lunged forward. Of the seven crocodiles attempting to devour them from above, he trapped four of them in his magic grasp. "Hoooo-wah!" he valiantly shouted, flinging his arm across his chest. By doing so, he slammed the immobilized crocodiles into the other wall, where two of the four remaining roaches were struck and knocked out of commission. "We are making good progress, it seems!"

"Excellent work, Aash!" Shantae addressed Aash, proud to see him getting the hang of things. "You're improving much faster than I could've hoped! I like what I'm seeing! Keep it up!" she continued as she reeled back and spat out a series of arching acid balls at the remaining crocodiles to take them out. She managed to land one or two shots, though the crocodiles avoided the rest and hungrily roared as a prelude to their next attempt to eat the adventurers alive.

"As long as we are together, we have nothing to fear!" Aash proudly accepted her compliments, finding himself as invigorated by their teamwork as he was eager to continue earning the half-genie's admiration. Taking note of Shantae switching gears to focus on the airborne reptiles, Aash took the initiative to try taking down the roaches with his Soul Pistol as he switched the color of the magic in his attacking hand. Just then, the raft veered to the right, again almost catching its passengers off guard. They were more prepared this time, however, as Spider-Shantae and Aash held their ground and continued engaging the enemies. The raft straightened out, though the trip only got bumpier, faster, and steeper as its path seemed to continue downward.

"Agh…! Wow, this is one turbulent ride," Tay commented, finally able to climb to his feet and stabilize his position. He turned to notice Spider-Shantae and Aash hard at work taking down the electricity-spewing roaches and jagged toothed, winged lizards as the monsters continued their brazen assault. Feeling as though he needed to contribute to the cause, he put away his rifle in favor of his usual handgun and took aim at the crocodiles Shantae was trying to take down with acid spit and spiderwebs. Before he could steady himself, however, a string of *Pop* noises coming from behind prompted him to turn around. The instant he did so, he caught sight of a wave of flashing marbles heading right for them. "Yo, watch out! We got some unfriendly company at our twelve!" he called out to warn his comrades, hurrying to aim his handgun to return fire. *BANG* after *BANG* from his pistol rang out in conjunction with the rapid discharges of rounds from what sounded like enemy firearms; Tinkerbats, no doubt. As though it were like clockwork, three of the Pirate Queen's weapon bandits emerged from the darkness, armed with propeller packs and semiautomatic rifles. "Just as I thought. Y'all are goin'-! Huh?" Tay grunted in wonder as he caught sight of something glimmering behind the three gun-toting assailants as they took aim at him. Wasting not even a millisecond, Tay opened fire once more, taking out two of the three visible enemies before they could get close enough, much less get another opportunity to fire any more rounds. As the third one returned fire, spraying its weapon haphazardly as though it did not have full control of it, the glimmer rapidly grew brighter.

"What is that…?" Tay asked himself as he continued to engage the remaining Tinkerbat, who'd taken evasive maneuvers as it suspiciously let up on its gunfire. This threw the serviceman off for a moment, though he wouldn't need to wait long to see what was happening. The tiny, growing glimmer quickly turned into a flash, causing Tay to instinctively back up toward his friends as they pressed on with taking care of the monsters coming from the sides and behind. And just after that flash shined bright in the soldier's eye, his vision was filled with the image of a particularly aggressive Tinkerbat, seeming to be armed with a propeller pack and a gleaming, incredibly sharp combat knife. The Tinkerbat came bulleting in, knife extended and ready to tear into whatever it could plunge into. Tay noticed immediately that the Tinkerbat didn't seem to aim for him, as it was off to the side in relation to his position. Glancing back, he noticed that Spider-Shantae was directly in the line for the creature's merciless ambush. Reading the message loud and clear and understanding that time was of the essence, Tay's instincts kicked in without him even thinking about it.

"Oh, no you, don't, you-!" he challenged, hurriedly leaping into the Tinkerbat's path as it hurtled toward the unsuspecting half-genie while she was preoccupied. While Tay held his ground and somehow managed not to be pushed back, he was cut off before he could finish his statement. As you might've wondered why, he'd been hit with a sudden and shocking case of knife stab; as in, the ruthless Tinkerbat plunged the knife blade into the soldier's chest near his shoulder, the *Sksh* inaudible to all except for the person being stabbed. "Gaaagh! Aaaagh!" he shouted in unspeakable shock and agony, alerting his teammates to the predicament he'd found himself in.

"Habibi!" Aash called out as he turned around to see what was wrong. He gasped, horrified by the sight of the Tinkerbat pressing a foreign object into his comrade as the serviceman yelled in pain. Aash rushed over to help, though he froze, wide-eyed with horror at the sight of the weapon inside the wounded soldier's shoulder as its wielder maintained its grip. The gunshots from the other Tinkerbat quickly alerted Aashiq to the fact that danger still loomed within the ominous cavern as he hurriedly summoned a magenta-hued magic shield to block the incoming rounds before they could harm him.

"Gaagh, you…! Try t' stab her when she ain't lookin', will you…? I'll make you regret tryin' it…!" Tay growled, finding enough of his senses to reach a hand to wrap his fingers tightly around the assailant's neck, cutting off its circulation as the aura around his body grew brighter and more furious. The Tinkerbat was forced to let go of the knife as it began clawing at its unintended target's tightly clenched fingers. Tay would grant the Tinkerbat no opportunity to escape, however, as he strengthened his grip and lifted the struggling minion high.

"Take this!" Shantae called out as she *POOFed* back to her human form, dashing past her comrades to launch two fireballs at the gun-toting Tinkerbat that had just tried to shoot them all down. With a couple of hot, crackling *PWASHes*, the Tinkerbat was sent hurtling away in a flaming ball of defeat, after which it crashed into a wall and disappeared. Just as Shantae finished off that Tinkerbat, Tay chokeslammed the other one, the *CRASH* of its body onto the raft echoing through the corridor as he rammed the creature as hard as he could onto the splintery surface.

"Hah!" Tay shouted, taking a step back and, with a full swing of his fully-cocked leg, punted the downed henchman with a powerful *THUMP* into the ceiling, where it exploded in a puff of smoke. Panting heavily as the almost blinding glow of his aura died down to a modest glimmer, Tay took a knee to recuperate. "Agh…! Awgh, this hurts like nothin' I've ever felt before…!" he choked out as he winced, stiffening one arm as a result of the knife still stuck in his chest.

"Oh, no…!" Aash vocalized his dismay as he and Shantae turned their attention to their injured teammate.

"What happened?" Shantae asked, the immense concern in her tone also evident as she immediately directed her attention toward the blade embedded in her sidekick's pectoralis muscle.

"Ergh…! Lousy Tinkerbat stabbed me…!" he complained, grasping the knife to keep it from moving too much. The sharp, searing agony resultant of the weapon being plunged into him was almost too much to bear, as Tay fought his hardest not to scream in debilitating pain. "Knife is still stuck…!"

"It STABBED you!? Oh my gosh!" Shantae reeled back, horrified by the mere thought of her friend being impaled with a sharp object at the hands of one of Risky's minions.

"Here, allow me to assist," Aashiq volunteered as he approached, tapping Tay's hand to prompt him to move it out of the way.

"What do you plan on doin'?" he asked, wary that Aash was going to make the situation worse. "You know you're not supposed t'-!"

"I do not plan on simply ripping the blade from your chest, I assure you," he countered, summoning a bright pink glow into his hand as he placed it flat on the soldier's chest. "I will cast a spell to stabilize your wound as I remove the knife. You will not have to worry about additional damage."

"Oh. Wow, you sure do have a lot o' tricks up your sleeve."

"As do you, habibi. In fact, it is a wonder that you are not bleeding at this moment," he pointed out, alarming Tay as he instinctively looked at the knife and noticed just what Aashiq was talking about.

"Huh… Wow, that's… how…?"

"My theory is that the magic in you, much like mine and most definitely Shantae's, strengthens your body in ways you would not believe until you saw them," Aash hypothesized. "If what she said about you holds merit, then your body is protected in that any traumatic wounds you sustain will be significantly less life-threatening. Master Hypno Baron explained that to me, though I have not seen it in action until now."

"Huh… I've had the experience before, but I didn't know this magic worked like that…"

"Yes, it is quite fascinating, though we must still make haste with removing this weapon from your chest," the Hypnotist apprentice advised, placing his other hand on the handle of the knife. "Your magic will only hinder the adverse effects of your wound but for so long. I will also warn you that this will still hurt quite a bit. I have to do it quickly, or else you will not heal correctly. Are you ready?"

"Go for it," Tay permitted with a nod, wincing in a sudden shock of pain as Aash tightened his grip.

"Kanafeh, could you come closer? I will need your light to ensure I perform this maneuver properly."

"Sure thing! I gotta see this, much as I'd prefer not to…" she agreed, though she found herself highly intrigued by the impromptu surgery her old best friend was set to initiate. She aimed the light from her gem at the site of the injury as Aashiq further prepared himself.

"Thank you kindly," he expressed before tightening his focus and his grip on the soldier and the knife. "Okay… On the count of three… One… Two… Three!" Aash counted as he, in one fell swoop, tore the knife straight out of his teammate's chest, the nauseating *Shck* loud enough to make a certain young woman cringe in disgust.

"Gahah! Agh, ow, ow! Augh, that stung!" Tay complained, almost reaching to cover the wound with his hand, though Aash had placed his pink-highlighted hand over it and pressed it firmly onto his surgery patient's wound.

"Keep yourself still, habibi," he advised, his focus locked onto his glowing hand as a surge of enrapturing warmth coursed through it. "Haaaah…" Aash exhaled, sending a light rush of his ethereal energy into his teammate. The warmth from his hand radiated into Tayshan's chest as the despicable pain he'd felt from the wound rapidly and progressively dulled down until he could feel no pain at all. After a few more seconds, Aash ceased channeling magic into his hand, sliding it from his friend's chest up to his cheek, causing Tay to look up at him. "Are you feeling okay, sweetheart?"

"…Uh… Y-yes…?" Tay uneasily confirmed, taking note of the nurturing expression Aashiq was wearing, as well as the hand the impromptu healer caressed his cheek with as he stood over him.

"Wonderful!" Aash cheered, lightly running his fingers across Tay's cheek before releasing him. Wasting not an iota of time, Tay climbed back to his feet and attempted to ignore his mountainous discomfort as he inspected his chest.

"Wow… There's another scar there, which I shouldn't be surprised about, but I don't feel any pain at all…" he observed, poking and prodding at the site of the wound.

"Incredible work, Aash!" Shantae praised, patting the magus-in-training on the back as she smiled brightly at him. "You're amazing! I can't believe you can actually heal other people with your magic!"

"While I appreciate your compliments, kanafeh, I have yet to perfect any of my spells. As such, many of them also take a toll on me if I expend too much of my magic at once," he countered, though he returned Shantae's smile with one of his own. "I must be careful not to overdo it, or else I may not continue to prove useful on this endeavor."

"I hear ya, bud," Shantae acknowledged with a nod. "I can cover for you if we wind up in a bind. And who knows? Maybe I can teach you a thing or two on how to better control your magic if we get the chance sometime."

"Is… that an invitation to hang out once again, per chance?" he asked, his magnificent eyes glimmering with hope.

"You know it!" she excitedly confirmed. "It's been so long since last time! On top of getting the chance to really catch up, I'm itching to find out what sorts of potential you have with your magic!"

"I may be able to say much the same, darling!" he added, sharing in the excitement. "I would love nothing more than to see how much you have grown since the last time we truly spent time together. My heart pounds with anticipation."

"Mine, too!"

"Hey, not t' cut y'all off, but uh… you think I could get that knife from you, homie?" Tay asked, snapping both his comrades out of their cutely distracted tangential stupor.

"Oh, but of course! Although, I am a tad concerned with how… jagged this thing is when I take a closer look," Aash worriedly pointed out, looking at the weapon as he handed it over; a jet-black tactical knife whose many serrated edges and deep ridges along the blade implied that it was meant for something other than cutting food. One need not even mention the ridiculously sharp tip of the blade that made it seem like it could penetrate concrete. "It looks as though it were made from a cross of titanium and piranha teeth…"

"Neat description. Still, it'll be alright," Tay assured as he got Combat Knife from Aashiq. The instant he did so, an extra pouch appeared on his utility belt in the form of a sheath for the blade. "I can make use o' this when necessary," he further informed, placing the blade into the sheath once he noticed it was there.

"That's good," Shantae acknowledged with a nod. "You've got to be more careful though, Tay," she advised him, much to his surprise as he reeled back.

"Wha? What do you mean?"

"We were lucky Aashiq came along with the ability to heal you," she interrupted. "We would've been in some serious trouble otherwise. I'm honestly surprised that you let that Tinkerbat get that close to you in the first place."

"I didn't know it was chargin' in with this knife until it got close enough for me t' see it," he attempted to explain, unhappy with her assertion that his being stabbed was his fault. "Besides, I only got stabbed because I jumped in-!"

"Either way, Tay, that shouldn't have happened," she countered. "I know things were a little hard to manage back there, but make sure you're aware of your surroundings in situations like that in the future. That could've gone worse if you'd have gotten stabbed in a different spot," she further lectured him, causing him to go silent with a mix of surprise and immeasurable frustration as he stared blankly at her. As the group's conversation came to an uncomfortable halt, the raft had slowed to a crawl as it slowly straightened out and approached what appeared to be a long, massive, cavernous entrance way, lit up bright with torches that shined their light across the cracked, gritty, yet thankfully-dry floor that happened to serve as a makeshift dock for the raft as it skated through the water toward it.

"…You… Do you know why I got stabbed, Shantae?"

"I'm… not sure what sort of question that is, but I can only guess it was because you let your guard down…?" she answered, raising an eyebrow in slight confusion as she did so. "That's why I'm telling you to be more mindful. You can do better. We can't have you turning into a human knife block, now can we?" she rhetorically asked with an innocent smirk, though her teammate did not share in her humor as his face remained stoic.

"…You have NO idea…" he flatly remarked, shaking his head as the raft came to a screeching halt when it bumped into the rocky surface of the floor spanning around the three giant doorways. Before anyone could utter a reply to his statement, Tay walked past his teammates and hopped off the raft. He quickly got to work scanning the surroundings to see what was in store for them. Shantae, surprised by such a cold and indifferent reply, took a moment to ponder what had him in such a sour mood.

"Kanafeh?" Aash called to her as she contemplated, causing her to direct her attention to him.

"Yeah?"

"Excuse my intrusion, but… do you think maybe you are being a tad hard on him?" he asked, unsettled by the tension he sensed between his two allies.

"Hard? How? I only told him to be more careful."

"Yes, but I am starting to get a sense that there is some conflict between you two."

"Really? I'm surprised you'd say that," she replied, uncertain of what Aash meant. "I mean, we haven't exactly been seeing eye to eye today, but I didn't think it was anything big."

"Right, but I do not refer to just today," he explained. "I have only encountered you two twice in recent times, but from these meetings, I sense that there is… a disagreement between you on how well each of you believes you should cooperate."

"Hmm…" the half-genie pondered, thinking back to her time in Genie's Hem in relation to her time in Yarnball Heights to figure out what Aashiq meant. "…Well, I guess you're right in that sometimes, it seems like one of us has totally different ideas than the other on how to work productively. But then, that sort of challenge and frustration can only be expected. I'm teaching him how to navigate environments properly during adventures. Believe it or not, Aash, he's my apprentice… sorta," she explained, much to his shock. "He's definitely learning, but there has been a little bit of pushback recently because he's still trying to get the hang of things. You've got a point, though. Maybe I should be a little more lenient and let him develop a style of adventure that suits him rather than doing it strictly my way," she agreed, seeming to understand what Aash was getting at. "It's gonna be a tough bet for me, but I think I can handle it."

"Er… r-right, kanafeh," he agreed, though he scratched his head as though he wasn't 100% on-board with her suggestion. "I trust that you and Tayshan can work past your differences and truly operate as a team."

"You bet! And hey, you're a part of this team too!" she cheerfully included him, slinging an arm around his shoulders; a gesture that instantly made the adorable boy flush with exhilaration as they finally took the initiative to walk onto the temple floor from the raft together. "You're picking up on things so well, and we seem to have some good chemistry with each other. We keep this momentum up, and I just might consider seeking you out for more adventures if you're not too busy with Hypno Baron. I'd love to have you on my team if you're so willing."

"Goodness, Shantae, you… You flatter me," he nervously responded, blushing as he shuffled under her arm. "You are making me feel so much like the old me, it is almost uncanny… Nevertheless, any time I spend in your company is time both appreciated and cherished," he further informed her as he shot her another warm smile. As the half-genie's gaze met his, she couldn't help but smile herself as the two went silent. Gazing into his innocent, glimmering eyes sent another wave of unexpected excitement through the girl's abdomen as her heart began to pound. Seeing Aashiq's infectious smile after so long seemed to reawaken a sense of nostalgia within her as her grin involuntarily grew brighter.

"Is… that your way of saying you missed me?" she found herself asking him on impulse.

"As though I have not said enough already, kanafeh," Aash teased, chuckling as he playfully nudged her. "Romance or no romance, you were my absolute best friend. I would simply be out of my mind to say I did not miss you. Your gorgeous smile, your spontaneity, your indomitable enthusiasm… I could never find someone else as incredible as you. I mean that." Hearing his eloquent statement sent the young lady's heart aflutter as she thought about how much his companionship meant to her, as well as how much her companionship evidently meant to him.

"Aw, Aash… I missed you, too! I know what I said back in Genie's Hem, but it's great to have you back again…" she confessed, bringing him closer as she squeezed him tight with the arm she had wrapped around his shoulders. Taking initiative, Aashiq wrapped his arms around his old friend's hips, drawing her into a friendly hug as the two absorbed the glorious moment of reunion in its entirety.

"Hm…?" Tayshan, who'd been closely inspecting one of the maze entrances, seemed to notice something peculiar about it and turned to notify his teammates. However, his heart inexplicably sank at the sight he beheld. It appeared Shantae and Aashiq were deeply invested in getting reacquainted with one another, hugging closely and goofily grinning at one another as they conversed about times past between them. His body awash with an arcane sense of discomfort, the soldier quickly averted his gaze downward as his breathing suddenly became pressured like he was standing in the middle of a heat wave. He reached a hand toward his chest, clutching at it with the ostensible intent to grip his heart directly to get it to stop beating hard enough that it resonated in his eardrums. As he did so, the glow around his body increased in intensity without his control as his chest began to itch. His discomfort too great to ignore, Tayshan breathed a heavy sigh, holding his breath for a few seconds before doing so. He additionally scratched his chest to rid himself of the sensation he felt. "Darn it, what's happenin' t' me…? Get it together…" he chanted to himself, shaking it off and slapping both his hands to his face. With another deep breath, Tay calmed himself down just enough to retain his focus on the task at hand.

"I see that you have been staring at the frame of that pathway entrance quite intently, Tayshan," Aashiq addressed him as he and Shantae separated and approached. "Have you noticed something about it?"

"Uh… Y-yeah," he confirmed as he turned toward them, shaken out of his train of thought.

"What'd you pick up?" Shantae casually asked, equally as curious.

"Well… All three entrances have symbols marking the frame all the way across. They look like they were written in a different language, but the funny thing is that the symbols in the middle entrance are glowin' with this neon purple light," he explained, pointing toward the entrance way to emphasize his point. "See here? It's faint, but it's noticeable once you get close enough." Shantae and Aashiq walked toward the entrance Tayshan pointed at, further inspecting it before moving to scan the other entrances separately.

"Indeed, this entrance here does not glow the same as the center one," Aash announced as he studied the left entrance.

"And neither does this one over here," Shantae added, having moved to inspect the right one. "I can't decipher this language, either. It doesn't look the least bit familiar."

"I would imagine that either this labyrinth is a part of ancient history, or it was constructed by creatures that spoke a language other than what we may be used to," the young magician-turned-archaeologist explained as the trio regrouped.

"Possibly, but what reason would there be for only one of the passageways to be glowing?"

"It is a mystery that may be solved with the more we explore, maybe?"

"That was my thought to the very letter," Shantae agreed, ready to roll as she prepared to charge into the entrance. "Only thing is that, since there's three entrances, do we each go into one? Or do we play it safe and stick together?"

"For all intents and purposes, I would prefer to be by your side, kanafeh," Aash readily voted, feeling it safer to stay close than to separate for the sake of exploration.

"Definitely. And you, Tay?" she asked, though she did not get an immediate reply. "…Um, Tay? Did you hear me?" she asked again, turning around to figure out why he wasn't speaking to her. When she faced him, she noticed that he had been peering deep into the cavernous doorway as though something had caught his eye. "Tayshan!"

"Huh?" he grunted, shaken out of his bout of staring into the darkness as he directed his gaze toward the young woman who'd been trying to capture his attention.

"Do you think we should split up or stay together as a group?" she asked again.

"Oh! Definitely stick together," he answered candidly. "Just… let's be sure t' check our corners," he further warned. "I'm already gettin' a vibe that this won't be a simple, straightforward trip."

"What trip of ours HAS been simple and straightforward?" she asked, figuring that he was stating the obvious.

"Fair enough," he concurred with a nod. "In that case, should I take point, or…?"

"Leave that to me," she volunteered, touching her finger to the Luminous Aquamarine to brighten its glow. "It'll be easier on all of us if I went ahead. That way, my light can help us spot enemies and other threats with enough time to respond. I wouldn't want to see you getting hurt again."

"…Right…" the serviceman hesitantly agreed, taking her suggestion with a grain of salt. "Okay, then. You take point, an' I'll cover our six," he added, drawing his pistol in preparation for the next section of the Siren's Requiem Labyrinth.

"Cover our six?" Aashiq queried, unfamiliar with Tay's terminology.

"It means I'll try t' keep watch behind us, in case anyone or anything tries t' ambush us again."

"Ohh, I understand. But then, why is it considered a 'six'? Is it like, six degrees, or are you staying six steps behind, or…?"

"Yeah, I… I don't get that, either," Shantae added.

"I figured that was the case. Alright, I'll break it down. Imagine the face of a clock. Twelve o' clock is at the top, three o' clock is on the right, six o' clock is on the bottom, an' nine o' clock is on the left," he explained.

"Okay…" Aash nodded, intent on learning more.

"If we were standin' on a clock face right now, then twelve o' clock would be pointed forward, which in this case would be us goin' into this pathway. Behind us, at our six o' clock position, would be the river raft we rode in on."

"Ohh," Shantae droned, picking up on what Tay was putting down. "So, if that's the case, then what would that mean if we had to make a right or left? Does that mean we're going toward the three or nine position, and then twelve and six become the new right and/or left?"

"No, don't think that deep," he advised. "It's just a point o' reference; like, a system used as a quicker way o' callin' out danger in all directions. Presumin' we always face toward the twelve on a figurative clock, then any time we spot danger on either side or behind us, it's quicker for us t' say 'three,' 'six,' or 'nine,' dependin' on what direction an enemy might be approachin'. It also works because the enemy won't know what we mean, which gives us just that little bit of extra time t' brace ourselves an' prepare a counter."

"Oh, I get it now!" Shantae proclaimed, perking up as she deciphered the meaning behind Tay's lesson. "It's like wherever we move towards, is considered twelve o' clock, and any other number on a clock between one and eleven is a different direction in relation to where we're facing or where our destination is!"

"Exactly," Tay confirmed.

"Got it. So that explains earlier, when you said to watch our eleven and two. And that other time, where you said to watch our twelve."

"Yep," he answered with a nod. "I meant t' say that they were comin' up in front of us, but slightly off t' the sides the first time, an' from straight ahead the second time. You can imagine what rolls off the tongue faster when we're in the heat o' the fight."

"Gotcha. Okay, that might come in handy. I'll try to get used to that," she appreciatively nodded, turning back toward the entranceway and taking Aash by the hand. "Ready?"

"Without a hint of hesitation!" Aash enthusiastically took up the task, thereby granting Shantae all the indication she needed to dash forward, taking the young man with her.

"…I only hope this goes better than I'm expectin' it to…" Tay warily murmured to himself as he set off to pursue his teammates before he was left behind again. Aaaaaand just when things are getting good, I… unfortunately must inform you that I need to take care of business elsewhere. Of the lavatory kind, in case you were wondering. But let's be real; you probably weren't. Well, you know now anyway, so deal with it. Anyhow, when we return to your regularly scheduled program after these messages, I will promise you there won't be any more obnoxious interruptions… for the remainder of this chapter, at least. I think. Okay, I lied. No promises. I should stop doing that. Er a-anyway, I certainly hope I didn't spoil you by giving you entire adventures in giant, meaty chunks of uproarious action mixed with extensive situational dialogue up to this point. But surely, you can see how difficult it can be for me to give you the play-by-play on such expansive journeys involving our beloved teenaged belly dancing half-genie superstar and her friends. Anyway, I'm wasting breath, and my bladder is about to go on strike if I keep twirling and dancing around like a ballerina trying to hold it in. Don't go anywhere for too long! I'll be back in a flash! Buh-bye!


End file.
